Check Out Preston Jordan’s Story

Today we’d like to introduce you to Preston Jordan

Hi Preston, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
Well, it hasn’t been an easy road traveled. But the path to success never is. Not that I’m all that successful because there has been alot of up and downs just like everyone experiences in life. So With out getting to far into my whole life story I guess I’ll go back about 5 years ago. It felt like my life was falling apart. I was working a job I hated and was in a failing relationship with the mother of my children which finally ended after about 10 years. My father passed away, I lost everything after the break up, I was fighting with addiction, battling mental illness, 100 pounds over weight, covid happened, and lost my job. So yeah it was a turning point for me and basically found myself starting over. I needed to make some changes and I needed to get sober. Today I’m proud to say that I overcame my addiction and severe mental illness. I made it through to the other side alive and unfortunately we don’t get to hear to many of those stories so that in it’s self is one of my biggest achievements. That being said, it surely hasn’t been easy to say the least. But I’m living proof that it is possible and that’s something I hope to share sometime down the road if the opportunity presents it’s self. Now I would say creating has always been my passion and like most people I was stuck wanting more. So I tried different things trying to build something in hopes of replacing my regular 9-5. I tried online businesses, drop shipping, skin & hair care products, freelancing art projects, food vendor service, and even almost got a record deal back when I was making music. But that’s a different story. So yeah I’ve failed many times I’m not afraid to admit that. I’ve had really good ideas and really bad ones too. Over the last year or 2. I was in the process of starting a food service pop up where I could make and serve bar style Neapolitan pizza in about 60 seconds. Everything went really good. Had a lot of positive reviews, got all my licensing, permits, everything was set in place. But unfortunately before I could even get up and running into the public I was going to have to scale up. Buy another oven, hire help, find more space and I just didn’t have the money or resources to get it all managed. So I made the choice to close it all down and start over. All of this was great I learned a lot and I don’t regret any of it. But to be honest none of this lined up with my true self or who I wanted to be. None of that was filling the gap I was hoping to find. But the fact that I’m still alive and doing this interview is a blessing in itself so for that I am grateful.

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
It definitely hasn’t been easy and I face challenges everyday just like everyone does. Though I look at it as stepping stones and learning experiences. This will actually be the first time talking and being transparent about some of my journey. I won’t go to far but, I got into heavy drug use when I was very young and was diagnosed with schizoaffective, major depressive impulse disorder, anti social, and bipolar when I was a sophomore in high school. So that has been a struggle managing leading up to this point in time. Even though it took awhile and I’ve endured unnecessary situations. I got sober made it out alive and I’ve never been happier with the way things are going. Now just like everyone trying to do anything no matter what it is. You got your full time job, your passion, hobbies, kids, wife, husband, family, bills, school, social life, health, sanity, the list goes on right. So even though I’m following my passion and living my true self I’m juggling all these different things in hope of creating something bigger. Do I know if all my hard work will pay off? I honestly don’t know. But, you miss 100 percent of the shots you don’t take as they say. So regardless of what happens there’s no way I can just sit back and settle for anything less. After all everyone deserves to live a life full of prosperity, love, health, wealth, and abundance.

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
Right now I’ve been working on tufting custom made rugs which you can find on my website www.drippyfats.com I also do commission paintings and provide original pieces as well as prints of my work. I work with many different mediums. Acrylics, epoxy resin, spray paint, watercolor, mixed media, Fluid paint, digital art, and rug making. I would say my art style is more on the psychedelic aspect of things. I love bright neon colors and love making pieces that stand out. Other than my son I would say the thing I’m most proud of is how much I’ve grown as a creator and person in a very short period of time. Some of the pieces I’ve done for myself and others I look at and can’t believe that I made it. Taking a idea from your head and putting it on canvas or building from the ground up is pretty amazing. To think that everything was once a thought in someone’s mind puts things in perspective of what we are capable of doing. I guess what sets me apart is the ability to adapt and mimic what I see in my own way. I’m always learning and striving for more. There are so many amazing artist out here that I admire and respect. Sometimes I feel like I can’t even compete. But then again I started this journey in 2019 so I still have dues to pay. Even though I’ve sold most all my pieces what’s left on my website is the last wave of creation of my old self and this next chapter of my work people will really start to see things from my perspective.

Do you have any advice for those looking to network or find a mentor?
I don’t know if I’m in a position to suggest finding a mentor or networking. Since I haven’t been to successful in that field. I’ve done live events, booths in marketplaces, booth rentals inside stores, I’ve tried to do collabs with other artist and people. It’s just hasn’t worked out for me. I would actually love to find a mentor myself, haha. But honestly there’s a lot of good information online. Whether it be YouTube, Fiverr, skillshare. You just got to be willing to do your own research and know that just because something worked for someone else doesn’t mean that it will for you. At the end of the day we are individuals. But that doesn’t mean don’t try finding someone successfully and learning from them. Sometimes it just takes the right person to shed some light on how to find those opportunities. I unfortunately just haven’t been able to find my community yet. But I’m working on something new everyday and pushing my limits. I think some of the most important things we can do is to keep evolving, continue learning, stop caring about other people’s success, and stop creating things we think other people will or should like. When I first started trying to be a full-time artist I found myself making pieces for other people in hopes they would buy it because I thought they would like it. But I’ve learned that’s one of the worse things you can do as a creative. Whether it’s art, jewelry, fashion, music it doesn’t matter. Don’t reduce yourself to other people’s expectations. Just be authentic and true to yourself. People including myself need to understand when you see successful people on social media we’re only seeing the end product of someone’s achievements. We don’t see that last 5, 10, 15 years of them grinding and struggling to make something of their work. We don’t see the dedication, discipline, the self doubt, or the bad times. My only advice is to keep your head up, stay focused, don’t quit, keep pushing and stay inspired.

Pricing:

• Rugs – $100- $250
• Prints – $10 – $25
• Originals – $200 – $1000
• Commissions vary

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.drippyfats.com
• Instagram: drippy_fats