Introduction to estcetera
Hello, hello! I started things off on this website with a handful of gift guides. Now that those are out and ready for your holiday season use, I wanted to take a step backward and introduce myself and the story behind this website!
My name is Esther Michaletz, and I’m a mid-thirties artist and creative living in Saint Paul, Minnesota. I currently work as a graphic designer, although I’ve dabbled in different creative business endeavors since about 2016. Throughout this time, I also got into sharing fashion and outfits, which I did via a blog section on my website and a second Instagram account.
Fast-forward to 2022: I was really burned out from the grind of constantly trying to create artwork that felt relevant. I felt like trends were ruling (and ruining) my creativity and I craved the freedom to pursue art for art’s sake. I made the difficult decision to close my business, took down my website, and wholeheartedly pursued a traditional, Old Masters-style education in oil painting. I put my entire self into this schooling and really cut back on all social media, including both my art and my fashion Instagram accounts.
Now we’re at the end of 2024, and here we are on this new platform! I still love painting, but my recent schooling helped me decide I want to keep that passion protected from the pressure of monetization. It’s so easy to fall prey to painting to sell and being governed by what’s popular or trendy.
Through this entire time, I’ve continued to love fashion and building outfits! I will always have an appreciation for beautiful clothing and the act of getting dressed for the day, which is incredibly creative and expressive. I’ve also missed the community and inspiration that came from sharing my love of clothes with other like-minded people!
I’ve skirted around the fields of content creation and influencing for years and I'm finally going all in and making it official. This blog and my social accounts are such an enjoyable way for me to be creative outside of my graphic design work and I’m so excited to put more effort into it. I look forward to painting again someday, but in order to do a good job, I have to have solid 3 - 4 hour chunks of time to work with, and that just isn’t feasible in my current phase of life. On the other hand, I can make use of 5 minutes here, 20 minutes there for creating content. Of course, with how expensive everything is these days, the extra income is also welcome!
I know many of you have historically been interested in my paintings, so this shift in my work/life isn’t necessarily going to be for everyone. But I hope that those of you who are here from my earlier fashion days will enjoy this latest direction, and I’m excited to connect with new faces, too! I’m excited to apply my training and years of practicing art into the field of fashion, and also to utilize the social/marketing skills I’ve picked up while running my business.
So what can you expect from me moving forward? I do love high-quality, sustainable and ethical brands, but I also live on a pretty average budget so those pieces aren’t always available to me. My style is a blend of Amazon and Target clothing mixed with some investment pieces from places like Alo, Dôen, etc. I am also so proud to partner with brands like Sézane and Everlane, and I’m enthusiastic about seeing that list grow.
There are several influencers whose opinions I really trust, and their information helps me so much when I’m making purchasing decisions. I am honored to think that I’ll be able to do this for others through my new content! I’ll be sharing:
- reviews of pieces I’ve tried out or own
- wishlists
- gift guides/idea lists
- outfit inspiration/OOTDs
- some beauty and lifestyle content
- and more!
Thank you so much for being here and following my journey. I’m always up for hearing ideas so let me know if there’s anything you’d like me to cover or address!
xx, Esther
