Today we’d like to introduce you to Abbie Ulstad.
Hi Abbie, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
Ever since I was eight years old I knew I wanted to be an art teacher. And I got to live that dream.
I was fortunate to teach thousands of kids from all kinds of families in my public school art classroom. Yet regardless of their background, I kept hearing the same things over and over again.
From the kids: “I don’t have art supplies at home.”
From the parents: “I can’t do crafts with my kids. I’m not artsy.”
It broke my heart every single time – because I knew it wasn’t true. They had everything they needed. They just didn’t know it yet.
When I left the classroom to stay home with my own kids, I wanted a creative outlet and a way to prove that everyone can make something magical. I started Grow Good Humans in February of 2020 with a simple goal that hasn’t changed: sharing easy art and nature ideas that are accessible to every family, regardless of budget, background, or creative confidence.
Every kid deserves the power of art and nature in their life. And every caregiver deserves to witness what happens when a child gets to create and explore.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
One of my biggest struggles has been learning how to show up authentically in an online space. It’s so easy to measure the value of your message through metrics – likes, views, follower counts, etc. Learning to share while staying connected to my own intuition and creativity is a continual practice. But it’s the most important one, because the moment I drift from it the work stops feeling like mine.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I share art and nature ideas for kids using supplies that most families already have at home – a toilet paper roll turned into heart prints, a recycled piece of cardboard turned into a nature portrait. My whole philosophy is that art doesn’t need to be expensive, complicated, or perfectly aesthetic. It just needs to happen.
What sets me apart is that I approach accessibility from both ends: for the child who doesn’t have a fully stocked craft bin, and for the parent who doesn’t believe they’re creative enough to try. I’m here for both of them.
What I’m most proud of are the messages I receive from people in my community. I love when they share photographs of something beautiful they made with supplies they already had, or a note about how much they connected with their kids over a particular project. That is the whole point. That is everything.
What has been the most important lesson you’ve learned along your journey?
One of the most important lessons I have learned is the power of authenticity. The most magnetic creatives I know are the ones who are unapologetically themselves – who share from a place of genuine embodiment rather than performance. That energy is contagious. It gives other people permission to show up in their own way too.
I think about this a lot in the context of kids. One of the greatest gifts of spending time in nature or making art together is that it preserves a child’s authentic voice (their instinct to create without judgment or self-consciousness). So many of us spend our adult lives trying to get that back. The more we can protect it in our kids, the better. And the more we can reclaim it in ourselves, the better.
Pricing:
- I create lesson plans, ebooks, and printable resources that help families and educators bring art and nature to the kids in their lives in meaningful ways. Resources range from $1.00 to $10.99 – intentionally priced to be accessible to every family, wherever they are financially.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.growgoodhumans.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/growgoodhumans/
- Other: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/store/grow-good-humans
