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Meet the Chair Stylist, Wendy Conklin!

Artisan • Designer • Educator • Entreprenista

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Wendy is the Creative Director and thought leader behind the Chair Whimsy movement to live more creatively.

 She helps her online course students tap into and cultivate their creativity, giving them permission to "play" and upgrade their joy. Her teaching style makes the challenge of learning a new craft feel accessible and fun!

Her business programming helps other artisans and makers leverage their knowledge, skills, and finished work to build and grow businesses supporting their families and providing financial and creative fulfillment.

You can still purchase from her inventory of exclusive reupholstered chairs and indulge in the multi-sensory feast of her unique pattern play and design aesthetic.

Whether she's building a greenhouse in her backyard, revamping her vintage camper, or upgrading her design studio, Wendy brings her audience along for the ride.

Her growing Instagram following goes wild for her sneak peeks, tips, and sourcing links.

 Her work is featured in top-shelf publications, including HGTV Magazine, Woman's World, Cottages & Bungalows, Where Women Create, Cottage Style, Austin Home, and Austin Woman magazines.

Wendy lives in the Austin, Texas area with her husband, two daughters, and little furry friend, Maui.

Expert Topics:

The art and joy of crafting antique chairs

How to take a side hustle and catapult it to a full time gig

How to be a more creative thinker

- Featured in -

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TV & Magazines

ABC 10 Your California Life: DIY Ugly Chair Challenge

Austin Home Magazine: Sitting Pretty: Chair Whimsy Offers Customizable Chair Creations

Austin Woman Magazine: What Inspires Wendy Conklin's Whimsical Chairs

Better Homes & Gardens: Chairs Featured in Cottage Style Magazine

Chicago WGN Channel 9: Wendy Conklin, The Chair Stylist, Shares Tips on How to Design and Upholster Your Chairs

Cottages & Bungalows: Chairs featured in A Great Romance

Cottages & Bungalows: Transform any space in your home with amazing, creative, custom chairs

Flea Market Home

Hello Iowa: Reflecting Personality in Your Home

HGTV Magazine: February 2022: Your Flair Everywhere

Good Day Stateline: Making Over Chairs That Need a Little TLC with Wendy Conklin

News Channel 8: Bringing Old Chairs to Life

News Channel 9 WSYR-TV: An Ugly Chair Challenge: No Sewing Required

Where Women Create Magazine: Ways I Practice Mindfulness in the Studio and Expand My Creativity

Who Des Moines: How to upcycle a chair

WishTV.com: Ugly Chair Challenge: The Chair Stylist turns ugly chairs into works of art, teaches how you can do it too

Cottages & Bungalows: Turning Dreams into Reality: How antique building materials and upholstery courses transformed one woman's world.

Podcasts

Biz Ninja: Wendy Conklin – Queen of the Chair Whimsy Movement

Courage Becomes Her with Laurel Emory

Diversified Game: Wendy Conklin Gives the Game on Chair Whimsy her Boutique Chair Design Co

Mental Health News Radio Network: Wendy Conklin - An Encore Career Specializing in Creativity and Fun.

Make Space Podcast: Spills the beans on how I style fun chairs, mix and match prints, and make eclectic chairs work together as well as amazing tips for giving furniture pieces a makeover.

Monique Cara Podcast: Being Brave with Wendy Conklin from Chair Whimsy

Side Hustle School: Crafter Fashions Upcycled Chairs into Six-Figure Shop

Stories of Change & Creativity: Chronicles my journey from side hustle to entrepreneur and how I turned my hobby into a full-time gig.

The Design You Podcast: How to be a Creative Thinker with Wendy Conklin.

Thrift Diving: This Woman Makes Six Figures Reupholstering Chairs!

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Newspapers & Blogs

Apartment Therapy: Here's How a Pair of $50 Vintage Bistro Chairs Became the MVPs of My Tiny Apartment

Austin American Statesman: Chair Whimsy Owner Donates Table and Chairs to Lugo Family

BuzzFeed: 26 Furniture Pieces That Reviewers Say Are Gorgeous, Stunning, Or Beautiful

BuzzFeed: 52 Pieces Of Furniture And Decor That Basically Say "Why Yes, I Am A Sophisticated Adult"

BuzzFeed: 52 Pieces Of Furniture And Decor That Basically Say "Why Yes, I Am A Sophisticated Adult"

Create Whimsy Spotlight: Wendy Conklin Artist and Chair Designer

Culture Map Austin: Round Rock entrepreneur reupholsters Austinites' creative lives with whimsical DIY book

dotLA: From Helicopters to Online Courses: How a Flight Instructor Earned Millions on Kajabi

First for Women: Make Money With Your Hobby: Sewing Blankets, Hosting Book Events, and Flipping Furniture

Forbes: How Second Act Entrepreneurs Turned Their Side Hustles Into Businesses

Forbes: How Do You Build a Successful Side Hustle?

Forbes: What is the Most Successful Side Hustle You Can Do?

GoDaddy: Tips for scaling up your Etsy business

Oak and Linen Home Book Interview

NextAvenue: How to Run Your Side Hustle Like the Business It Is

Stray Dog: Stray Dog House Tour with Wendy Conklin

Tech Crunch: Online education platform Kajabi helps creators earn money for sharing their expertise

Thrive Global: Wendy Conklin of Chair Whimsy: "Add fun books stacked on a table"

Upgrade Your Joy: A Stray Dog Home Tour with Wendy Conklin

US News & World Report: How to Make Money on Etsy

Women's World: How One Woman Makes Up to $14,000 a Month Refurbishing Chairs

Yahoo News!: Bring color and creative joy to your life with author of Life Whimsy Wendy Conklin

X99News: How to Make Money on Etsy | Personal Finance

Download the Chair Whimsy Media Kit!

Ready to book Wendy for a media event or opportunity?