Katherine Waddell is the owner of and creative force behind Faul Magic. Faul Magic is a Denton-based brand that got its start crafting inclusive art with a cheerful aesthetic, but recently Katherine has pivoted their business to include Digital Marketing and Accessibility Consulting. A graduate of Dallas College, Kat launched Faul Magic in June 2022 to reshape narratives around invisible disabilities and neurodivergence. Originally envisioning a nerdy business wear line, the brand evolved to express Kat's experiences as a nerdy, queer, and neurodivergent individual through captivating art. Faul Magic challenges societal notions of laziness, embracing authenticity and creativity.
How did you come up with your business concept? What inspired you to start your own business?
After a lot of struggles in community college due to some of my neurodivergencies and disorders, my mom, who was my biggest advocate, convinced me that I should change my degree to fashion because she knew that it would be great for me based on my interests. When I moved to Dallas on a whim with a former partner, I knew immediately that DFW was home. I used all of my capstone projects in Dallas College’s Fashion Marketing program as preparation to launch a different company, but after COVID-19, I lost all of my passion for it. I decided to move to Denton in the fall of 2021, as I was finishing my degree, and loved the sense of community and how many markets and events were always going on. I knew the pop-up market world interested me because it was much like the video game and anime conventions’ artist alleys I knew and loved from my years in the Twitch and non-profit scenes. I didn’t know what I wanted at the time, but I decided to start selling with only three stickers for sale, a few original paintings, and a table in June of 2022. As I went on with this pop-up market hobby, I began to struggle more with physical disabilities, too. I made four designs that changed my trajectory: Not All Disabilities Are Visible, Dopamine Cravings, Gaymer, and I’ve Been Shittin’. These designs really opened up conversations at my booths about being queer, having ADHD and IBS, and about Invisible Disabilities. I knew from these conversations that I liked being able to talk openly about things I had felt ashamed about throughout my life.
What’s your background? Could you tell us how each of these disciplines emerge in your work?
I like to think my mom being a kindergarten teacher is really what encouraged the “ADHD hobbies are my hobby” gremlin in me, so I feel like I’ve done quite a lot in my life despite only being 28. I have some experience in journalism, photography, non-profit work, marketing, the fashion industry, content creation, social media management, visual merchandising, web design, event planning, booth management, product design, video recording/live streaming, and tons of different trade skills because I love learning new things! I think all of these experiences have truly shaped who I am, and I use these skills every day for Faul Magic, whether it’s trying out a new booth display setup, making content for social media, or figuring out how to make my website and SEO presence better. I know there’s so much more to learn, though, especially on the business side of things, so I’ve been continuing my education and am working towards my BBA.
What led you to take Faul Magic from idea to pursuing it as a business?
I started selling under my former Instagram handle, Frogmagics. I originally made the account for connecting with people when I visited NYC for a week while visiting a college I was interested in. I ended up repurposing the account for vending, and when I realized that Frogmagics wasn’t available on one of the social media sites, I knew I needed to change my name so I could have the same handle everywhere. I had just named my frog character, “Faul the Lazy Magical Frog”. Faul, which is German for lazy, was inspired by my best friend Paul who spent two years stationed in Germany for the military in the 1990s and is a disabled veteran. I loved the idea of taking back the word “lazy”, as I firmly believe it to be a misnomer. I believe the idea of “lazy” is just people being burnt out by capitalism and hustle culture or dealing with their own battles such as lack of accessibility. I also got tired of my entire life having both teachers and students say all kinds of unkind and ableist things to me such as being lazy for needing accommodations in K-12 for my invisible disabilities and disorders. On the contrary, though, I also love the imagery of “cute lazy” animals, so it just made sense for my little blob of frog art. As luck would have it, my target audience is much like myself – we want cute and funny things that make difficult conversations a little easier.
I’m still figuring out Faul Magic as I go, honestly, but the interactions with customers and other vendors for those specific designs are what made me know that I was on the right path and should keep going.
How did you find your way into selling your art at pop-up markets and now as a digital marketing and accessibility consultant?
I moved to Denton in November of 2021, and when the weather got nice in the spring of 2022, I saw a sponsored post for a market called Mosaic Market that was taking place at the now-closed Red’s Yard. I decided to check it out and see if it would be a good market to sell at and ended up meeting a few vendors who I now consider dear friends. I watched their Instagram stories closely to find more markets to attend in and out of Denton and grew from there! There is this awesome sense of community for a lot of vendors, especially in Denton. I’m constantly asking for and giving advice on everything about pop-up markets, from good markets to sell at to how to deal with those 15+ mph wind gusts. I decided to step into consulting with everyone in this cohort’s encouragement since they can tell how much I love to share my wealth of knowledge.
What’s your favorite thing about your workspace?
I started moving right after I joined the AccelerateHER program, so I’ve been split between two workspaces! I have been grateful that I’ve been able to have a spot to land with a complimentary desk during the program for being a mentee. When I need to do a lot of work on my PC it’s great to get away from the distractions at home. I love the people, the ways the space is accommodating to various needs with the different plans (I TOTALLY plan on continuing to be a member here if you can’t tell!), and the sense of community being around other entrepreneurs. My favorite thing about my home office space is my “lavender wall”, which I’ve been decorating with art primarily from Denton and DFW artists, as it is a huge form of inspiration and a piece of calm for me while I get my life organized.
Do you have a personal and/or professional motto or mantra that you call upon during tough times? What is it and what does it mean to you?
I think my two biggest personal mantras in this part of my life are “Rest is a right, not a reward” and “You can handle this.” I’ve been learning so much about my needs as a disabled person since I started Faul Magic. I have had to unlearn bad working habits of trying to get everything done in a short amount of time. I think that is something that all solo entrepreneurs struggle with, and I added on this layer of thinking that I wasn’t good enough unless I lived up to these unrealistic expectations in my head. Learning to have balance between rest and work to not injure myself physically or emotionally and realizing it’s okay to have a day off to recharge (you don’t have to earn it) are things I’m still working on. In the same vein, “You can handle this,” came from a place of feeling overwhelmed as an entrepreneur, struggling with basic care tasks for myself, and dealing with the grief of losing my mother during all of this.
How do you pick back up on it when perhaps feeling uninspired?
I give myself different kinds of enrichment outside of my normal routine. I go to pop-up markets that I’m not vending at to see vendor friends. I’ve started unwinding with locally made candles, the lights off, and a warm bath. I’ve also been having craft night dates with my partner once a week where we do a craft just for fun. It’s easy when making art for your business to get into the habit of only making things to sell, so it feels very healing to make something just for the sake of making.
What have you gained so far from being a part of the AccelerateHER cohort?
I feel like I’ve gained so much! I’ve been too scared to talk publicly about some of my disabilities before, and the safe space that these women bring, mentors and cohorts alike, has me talking candidly about my OCD, autism, and other disabilities for the first time in my life. There is definitely a sense of community in the cohort, and I love growing with and learning from not only the mentors, but each other, too. This program has also given me the space to slow down, evaluate my business, and plan for the future right as I was feeling burnt out because of the terrible heat we experienced this summer, putting a damper on pop-up markets for myself and many others. I’ve also learned from the cohort that I can do consulting too! I’m opening myself up to digital marketing and accessibility consulting because I think local small businesses could benefit from my expertise in both to help improve their digital offerings.
Name a woman, past or present, whom you admire or look up to. Why?
I admire so many women for being authentically themselves and for all the things they have taught me throughout my life, but the biggest source of admiration currently is my mom. She did so much for her communities and for the people she loved and rarely got or asked for anything in return. I started making my own digital art with a little cow named after her. Her name was Connie and I was inspired by her obsession with the color pink and the nursing gown she wore when I was little that was covered in cows. I don’t think I’d be here today if it wasn’t for wanting to honor her.