Welcome!
Hello!   My name is Michelle & I am the owner & artist of WillWay Studios.  My studio is located in the Cincinnati area and serves the entire state of Ohio.

Background/Education
I have a Bachelor's of Science in Business Management and spent 20 years in corporate America working for a very large (Fortune 50) company.  I held various leadership roles in the Financial Services sector.  In 2017, I left the stability of my corporate job to focus all my efforts on the small business I created the prior year.  I can now say with confidence - it's the best decision I ever made.

My Accidental Discovery
My journey to this amazing world of Fine Art is very different from the majority of artist stories I've read.  I did not uncover my passion (obsession??) for painting until much later in life.  I grew up in a blue collar/middle-class family.  There were no creatives in my circle of friends or family.  I was taught to find a good job (and stay there until I retired, or died), work hard and to save money.  Stability was key in my family.  When talking about career options, the Arts were never mentioned as a potential option.  
 
In 2020 my daughter asked for painting supplies. Overjoyed with her request for anything not involving her electronic device/technology, I happily obliged her request.  I bought her a ton of painting supplies....everything she needed to get started (and then some).... While searching for projects we could do together, I stumbled across a YouTube video that caught my attention. Now, let me clarify, i was not a huge YouTube user back then.  I could probably count on one hand the number of YouTube videos I had watched in the last 5 years.  

This video, however, immediately drew me in.  This video led me down a rabbit hole which eventually uncovered my obsession with painting.  I have always enjoyed painting....I handled all the painting of my real estate investment properties for years....long after i was able to afford to pay someone to do the work, i contiunued doing it myself.   

Even though I was very successful in my real estate business, I continued to handle all the painting tasks of my projects/properties.  I could have easily hired someone to handle this, but continued doing the work myself.   Looking back, this was clearly a sign that i ignored.   

My daughter used all her new supplies a handful of times and lost all interest.    But, I have been completely OBSESSED ever since.