Jessica Jacoby

(Designer, Entrepreneur, Mother of 3)

What you should listen to while reading this Mother Art Story?

Podcast: The Child Whisperer, The Empowered Wife, Wellness Mama

The Family

Jessica lives in Manchester, MO with her family of 5. Aria (5), Adalyn (3), Everly (4 months) and husband Dan (full grown adult). Her two oldest daughters attend school at Villa di Maria Montessori in Kirkwood while Everly is home with Jessica.

The Early Life

After graduating from St. Joseph’s Academy in St. Louis, Jessica was off to Tempe, AZ to study finance at Arizona State. She soon realized finance was not her destiny. “I thought ‘this is a path to make a lot of money’. But it really wasn’t what I was supposed to do.” She switched to Marketing during her junior year and started dabbling in graphic design classes. She nearly had enough credit to make it her minor. “If I had to do it again, I would probably have studied graphic design. That’s what I really enjoy doing!” Her motivation to earn her own money, her creative inclinations and entrepreneurial spirit stuck with her as she came into her own as a graphic designer and business owner.

During her childhood, Jessica loved her art classes and found herself drawing and coloring frequently. In high school, she paid close attention to her aunt’s love of scrapbooking. “I really liked all the little details that went into making the pages. I became really involved with scrapbooking and cardmaking, which is where my love of paper began!”

The Art (and The Business!)

This Mother Artist Story is most certainly about a Mother who has dedicated a decent portion of her life to creating beautiful things. As the story unfolded at the Kirkwood Kaldi’s (sidenote, the Rosemary Brown Sugar latte is BACK, so Merry Christmas everyone) I realized Jessica’s life was going to be a tale of how to work creatively while up against the standard burdens of Motherhood. I’ve realized that for many Mothers who are interested in art-making full time, there is a scary financial barrier standing in the way of going “all in”. Quitting a more traditional, stable job to make art is daunting. Battling family and friends saying “How is that fun art thing you’re doing going?” is an annoying, constant source of insecurity. This story is for all of you who are hung up on the “but how???” of embracing your Mother Artist.

*So much joy can be found in the little details.*

It’s safe to say that every Mother Artist we feature is in the business of selling her art. In fact, it’s a touchstone feature when writing a Mother Art Story, as we want to expose just how invested Mother Artists are in their craft. For any person trying to sell their work, it’s really never “just a little business”. Jessica, and her shop Paprika Paperie, is a totally different tale. With over 21,000 sales and counting, Jessica has scaled her business to a supremely impressive level “To have people buy my art is truly a dream come true.”

This story is for all of you who are hung up on the “but how???” of embracing your Mother Artist.

Post college, Jessica worked for a small marketing firm in Tempe. It was here that she had the first bit of good fortune. Other designers took her under their wing and helped her become proficient in Adobe editing and photo software, which she uses to this day for Paprika Paperie! After she found out she was pregnant with her first daughter, Aria, she opted to work from home so she could care for Aria and work. You know, classic mom move. “It was a pretty demanding job and taking care of Aria was practically impossible.” In 2016, pregnant with her second and burnt out from a grind she wasn’t completely passionate about, she quit. She had always sold labels on the side for her husband’s small home brew operation, so she focused her efforts on building her ETSY shop. However, she was still unsure this could be her “thing”. It was not until Father’s Day 2016 that she hit her first big victory when she got the idea to design a collection of beer labels for Father’s Day. “I got a crazy amount of orders and that’s when I got the confidence to work on my shop full time and stay home full time with Aria.” Her commitment to herself and her craft put her in the perfect position to receive the lucky break she needed to go full steam ahead with Paprika Paperie.

Since 2016, Jessica has other major milestones that aided in her success. She’s been featured in Ladue News, on Show Me St. Louis KSDK and is part of The Women’s Creative, which is a group dedicated to female entrepreneurs in St. Louis. She also sells her work at RF Home Co. in Kirkwood.

To maintain the volume of business she has worked so hard for, she needs to know what clients are thinking in terms of design and product. During Covid, everyone has had to pivot if they want to thrive. Jessica has always thought about the ever-changing needs of her client, and potential client base. Paprika Paperie's branding is meant to be like a celebration with fun and festive colors. “I carry a lot of that into my work knowing that my products/designs will be used for celebrations or gift giving. There's a passion for celebrating all of life's special moments - big and small. And so much joy can be found in the little details.” The wine and beer labels may seem like a minor detail, but these fun, unique details produce special gifts the end up being very memorable. This year, when people cannot necessarily share gifts in person, adding special touches to the gifts we send may be the perfect way to make the exchange more personal.

Her business relies heavily on daily (literally, daily) trips to the post office, staying on top of her email inbox, and prepping items for purchase. So how does she do it with three kids? The hardest part for Jessica is the creative side of her business. “You know with creativity how it goes. You can’t just be like ‘Ok it’s 10 o’clock let’s turn it on!” Especially the past year, Jessica has mostly been fulfilling orders and is eager to have time to sit down and work on ideas. Again, with over 21,000 orders she is certainly busy getting orders to her clients! Her husband, Dan, helps with packaging and shipping, as well as offering general cheerleader services. “I will hear him bragging about me, which is pretty cute.”

And I would have to agree. It’s pretty freakin’ cute!