NFullerArt: the first year.
The story around NFullerArt and how it came to be: (This is going to sound terribly dramatic and negative, but it isn’t. Not really. Just, keep reading.)
THE STRUGGLE:
I’ve always wanted to create work and sell it—originals or prints—so when the opportunity came up to do just that, I took it. I brought along my art and stickers, but quickly realised I didn’t have enough to fill a table with my friend. So, I also grabbed all the 3D printed items we had around the house—things my husband had made for me.
In that first instance, I completely sold out of my 3D items. They flew out.
In four months, however, I only sold one small print at a discount and two cards.
What I did discover was that I was actually very good at 3D printing. I made models and fidgets and sold more than I ever imagined. But I felt misaligned. I didn’t enjoy selling fidget toys and junk to people—things that would just end up in a drawer once the fad passed. I made the decision to stop selling dragons once the Christmas period was over.
My husband wasn’t sure, and neither were my friends or family. From the outside, it looked like I was giving up on something successful. But I wasn’t planning to stop—I just needed to align my business with my values.
On top of that, I was physically sick. With my chronic illness, I found it hard to manage market stalls without significant help. Between the stalls, 3D printing, and flare-ups, I didn’t have time to draw, create, or explore online sales and social media. I felt deflated and miserable.
Fast forward to January 2025: I had stopped selling 3D printing trends and had boxes filled with Christmas stock. I listed it online—but made zero sales from January through March. I still couldn’t sell my art prints. I’d started a TikTok that was completely broken.
I was good at TikTok. I hit 120,000 views per post and grew the account to monetisation thresholds in weeks. But I had to do this three times. My original account had serious system issues, and I was advised to delete it. I did—but the problems carried over. By the third attempt, I was ready to pull my hair out. After three months of back and forth with support, the conclusion was: all my personal details are locked to the original account, which wasn’t properly deleted on their end, and can’t be.
I can’t use TikTok for business. I can’t monetise. Any payments from shop orders are floating in “TikTok space.”
So… here I am, May 2025. I stepped away from successful 3D print sales to move online, but I can’t use the most engaging platform to drive traffic. And since stopping market stalls, I’ve made exactly three sales.
MY SELF DISCOVERY AND DECISIONS: