Life & Work with Katie Foster of Westport, KCMO

Today we’d like to introduce you to Katie Foster.

Hi Katie, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
I knew I always wanted to be an artist, but that seemed nearly impossible having all my kids really young. I worked hard to make sure they always had what they needed. I found out early on that the more physically strenuous jobs paid more, so at the expense of my body that’s what I did. I was good at it, too. I ended up running a major supply chain’s operation during the pandemic- a huge feat for a beauty school dropout. It showed me I was capable of big things. During the pandemic I also lost my favorite person in the world, my Grandma. The whole year was an eye opener for me; it made me realize that a job will never be as important as your family. It was about that time my body started to fall apart on me, which I later found out was because I have a genetic connective tissue disorder. I was no longer physically able to do what I had dedicated years to. I was at a crossroad- if I can’t do what I need to do, what do I want to do?
I wanted to create art.
2020 I had my first art show, something I did to cope with losing my grandma plus I wanted money to reinvest in art supplies. Little did I know that would light a fire that would be hard to ignore.
I started creating more and more. I ended up having booths at Art Garden KC from 20-23. I went on to open an Etsy shop and kept posting my things online to sell.
Come around to 2023 and I could no longer physically work the jobs I had dedicated so much time to. I had applied for disability. I was wrapping my mind around the fact that the girl who was once able to snowboard and move the fastest in the warehouse wasn’t even able to hold a job due to her health. It was a hard thing for me. Then I got a part time job in another local art studio.
I absolutely loved it.
Not a single day felt like work. I loved working with people and seeing the beauty that creativity brings to people. I got asked all the time if I was the owner of that place, that is how much I dedicated myself to it. I started out part time and eventually became the studio manager. I decided during that time that that was what I wanted to do with my life. How can you go from doing something you absolutely adore to anything else? Then the idea was planted… if I could run a whole warehouse with a multimillion-dollar output, is it really that crazy to think that I could do it? The planning phase began.
The studio I was working for ended up not working out- it ended rather bumpy and abruptly. When I stopped working there it actually made me really depressed. I tried finding other work, but nothing compared to that feeling I got in a creative space like that. Plus, I was about a year into my disability application process at this point. I had to be careful with employment otherwise it would ruin the entire thing. But I just felt like I needed to keep the idea going.
I got blessed with a lucky opportunity and I knew I had to go for. I had an idea- a DIY art studio that wasn’t commercialized like the other studio’s in town. I wanted something funky, something different- a place for the weird ones. I wanted something unique and now I am the only place in KCMO that offers tie dye.
The idea started to gain traction, and everything started to fall into place. Things that I didn’t even have control over, the universe laid it all out for me to just go for it. I’m usually very unlucky, so it was wild that it was working. The building accepted my business proposal and it was happening. I signed the lease literally the day after I got my disability denial letter in the mail.
My grandma called me Sunshine. That’s where the name of the studio came from. She also loved butterflies, and my shop is in the Monarch Storage building. It also happened that opening day was 5 years exactly that she had passed. I started selling my art the year she left us, and the Sunshine came back five years after it left.
Now I have been open for four months and things are still growing. I have a spot at a local music festival in a few weeks, a personal goal of mine. I do local pop ups and events. And I am back at giving people that creative space.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Nothing ever worth having is an easy road to achieve.
I am doing this all on my own, for the most part. I am learning more things than I ever thought I would- which is actually really neat in a way. I learned how to create a website, marketing, graphic design, legal terminology- so many things. It gets to be overwhelming, but once you acquire it, nobody can take that skill away. It’s yours after that.
Another obstacle is that our family has health issues. My husband actually had to have back surgery twice in the month of July. My joints dislocate so I’ve been battling a few stubborn ribs that won’t stay in place. Plus, we have three amazing kids, but they want their mom, too. The wonderful upside to these things is that being in charge of my own schedule has been a lifesaver. I keep telling myself that this is why I’m doing this- so I can be present when they need me the most.

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
Sunshine DIY Studio is a unique creative space that allows people to express themselves fully. Nothing here is ever too big, too loud, too much. I wanted to be able to have a safe space for the weird ones. I feel like so many other diy studios have become commercialized. Everything is blank. Someone once told me back in my early art vending days that walking into my booth was like walking into another world, it was so creative and relaxing and inspiring. I wanted to recreate that. I think that is what I am most proud of. That even in a world that says “it needs to be this certain way” I said nah, I don’t think so. I wanted something different, something unique. So that’s what I did.

Inside the studio we offer paintable wood and plaster crafts, paint your own pottery, secondhand art supplies, and tie dye projects. We are actually the only place in KC that offer tie dye all the time! And it’s not the dye you get at the store- this is professional fade resistant dye. Once you dye it in studio, it gets double wrapped and you get sent home with a take home kit with professional color locking detergent, instructions, and a dye catch sheet for the first time it goes in the laundry!
Our projects aren’t generic. You can paint a Bigfoot mug, tie dye a shirt for your dog and matching bucket hat for you, or come in on Saturdays to make your own slime! Or you can check out any of our unique classes. My personal favorite is our Anything But Brushes Painting Experience. It is exactly how it sounds- you get to paint with literally anything but a paintbrush! I love seeing people come in and realize they can actually let loose in here and nobody will look at them any different. I feel like genuinely as a society, we need more of that.

We all have a different way of looking at and defining success. How do you define success?
Success is happiness.
Success is being able to be at home for dinner every night.
Success is being able to pay my bills without worry.
Success is being able to actually enjoy what I do 40+ hours a week.
Success is telling people what you do for a living and are proud of it.
Success is actually following your dreams.

When I am old and my skin is wrinkly, tanned from the sun, and I am standing barefoot in my garden on the land that I own, I want to be able to look back and think of what I did with my life I want to be able to smile about it. Even if it all ends eventually, if I had a good time during it, then I would say it was a success.

I really feel like success is so much more than what meets the eye. It’s more than just a paycheck a lot of the time.

Pricing:

• Tie Dye adult shirts- $33 (Tie Dye Tuesday- get taught a pattern with purchase of shirt!)
• $25-$65 paint your own pottery
• $20-$65 paintable wood and plaster crafts- each includes a jewel tone paint color
• Very Cheap Secondhand Art Supplies
• other tie dye projects- $25 up to $65

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.sunshinediystudio.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sunshinediystudio/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61573564124432