We recently had the chance to connect with Jessica Muylle and have shared our conversation below.
Good morning Jessica, we’re so happy to have you here with us and we’d love to explore your story and how you think about life and legacy and so much more. So let’s start with a question we often ask: What do you think is misunderstood about your business?
The most misunderstood part of our business is that we don’t provide both the wine and the canvas. We actually don’t have a liquor licensee to sell alcohol and not everyone drinks wine so we don’t include any beverages with our ticket price. Sometimes we have an option to upgrade and add a drink or guests can purchase it through the hosting venue.
We are named “Wine and Canvas” because our industry name is paint and sip and this all began as a social activity for people to get creative. The alcohol part just helps the paint flow for those who like to drink it.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
I have been a business owner since 2013. I started a paint and sip company called Inspire San Diego as it was a local art studio. I booked a large event and didn’t have enough supplies so I reached out to competitors in my area to see if I could borrow, rent, or buy used equipment. The only one who responded was a company called Painting & Vino. The owner contacted me directly which I was surprised since they seemed like the Big Dogs in town. After a few emails he agreed to sell me some used easels for a good price and offered to meet up to exchange at his home which I thought was kinda weird since they had an office. It turns out, he checked me out on Facebook and thought I seemed like a cool gal and he wanted to meet me. So we met and he asked me to happy hour to “talk shop”. We ended up meeting and things took off pretty fast. We quickly ended up combining our businesses under Painting & Vino, getting married, and having a baby – all in about a year. We have been business and life partners ever since!
Wine & Canvas is actually a product of a lawsuit that was filed against my husband and Painting & Vino but he won the suit. We were awarded it in a court filing in 2021 and we have combined brands to run a national paint and sip business.
We now manage the corporate level for most locations and offer fine artists a business opportunity to license our brand name and run their own paint and sip business under our brand. We have a really great program for this with low start up costs and free training. If any artists are interested in joining our program please visit: https://paintingandvino.com/become-a-painting-and-vino-licensee/
This program is available for both Painting & Vino and Wine & Canvas – it just depends on the geographic location for the brand name.
Amazing, so let’s take a moment to go back in time. What relationship most shaped how you see yourself?
My husband. I had a lot of hardships and an extremely negative childhood that left me traumatized, depressed, low self-esteemed, and de-valued.
Although I did a ton of self work to fix all of that, my husband has been hands down my biggest cheerleader and uplifting person in my life. He’s the only person who has ever told me I am good enough and what I do matters.
His constant positivity and support has helped me blossom into a strong person who is confident in my abilities to be a good wife, mom, Christian, business owner and all around person.
Was there ever a time you almost gave up?
YES! I was running Inspire San Diego and also had to have 4 other jobs to make ends meet. At this point, I was basically working the art business as a passion project and not making any money. I was literally a few months from moving to Las Vegas to live with my dad and start a new life. I planned to close Inspire SD and get into the fitness industry in Vegas. I met my future husband in July and had a trip to Vegas planned for October to start job hunting – that’s how close I was to giving up on my art dream.
I think our readers would appreciate hearing more about your values and what you think matters in life and career, etc. So our next question is along those lines. What’s a belief you used to hold tightly but now think was naive or wrong?
That I’m in control of my life and have to do it all myself. I held a lot of stress, anxiety, and depression for many years with a victim mentality of “why is life so hard for me” when really I was just trying to control it and thinking I was in charge. It wasn’t until I turned to God and my Christian faith that I started to let that go and give it to God. We still have challenges with our business, life, health…etc…but I’m not so hung up on it b/c I know my life is going exactly the way God planned.
Giving up that need to control has been a huge stress reliever, depression lifter, and I sleep much better at night without so much anxiety. I now trust God will guide me in all ways to be my best self and help others. The funny part is, my bank account is now higher then it was before and I’m investing in my future more then ever.
Okay, we’ve made it essentially to the end. One last question before you go. Could you give everything your best, even if no one ever praised you for it?
Yes, I’m very self driven. I don’t need others to tell me I did something well to feel accomplished. I find praise in knowing what I offer the world helps people. I am living my dream which is to help others recognize and express their own creative power and connect with others. In a world that is so compartmentalized and digitized, I know what our business offers brings people together. They get to create something with their own hands using tactile materials, not computers, and sit next to each other and actually talk. There is no device in between and no computer program to “help” them make a design. It’s all them being authentic with themselves and each other. Paint and sips can be just a fun activity to try for a birthday or team building event BUT it can also go so much deeper and really change people. They can learn they are creative beings, they can bond with their co-workers without just talking about work, they can get away from the stressful chatter in their brains for a few hours while they focus on the canvas in front of them. To me, that is what fills me up and I know it’s my life purpose to facilitate that on a massive scale. So I do my best everyday to make that happen!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://wineandcanvas.com/
- Instagram: @ wineandcanvasftmyers
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jessica-muylle-0147962a2/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/wineandcanvasftmyers/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@wineandcanvasmainyoutube
Image Credits
Wine and Canvas
