A year ago, Abby Koch was questioning whether she would ever find a career that truly made her happy. Today, the Voorhees artist is celebrating the first anniversary of AbbyKPaints, a business built on creativity, courage and a desire to make people smile.
What began as a leap of faith and a few painting videos shared on social media has blossomed into a full-time career featuring original oil paintings, custom pet and home portraits, and colorful artwork that captures life’s funny and meaningful moments.
“About a year ago, I was not happy with how my life felt,” Koch recalled. “I went to work every day at a job I didn’t enjoy and thought, ‘is this how work has to feel for the rest of my life?'”
Although she had studied art and spent nearly every free moment painting, she never imagined she could make a living doing what she loved. That changed when she discovered a community of artists on TikTok and Instagram who had successfully turned their creative passions into careers.
“I thought, ‘why not me?'” she said. “I started recording myself painting and posted those videos on TikTok and Instagram. I have come a long way since those first videos, and one year later, art is now my full-time job!”
For Koch, the milestone represents more than professional success. It is a reminder of what can happen when someone finds the courage to pursue a dream.
“AbbyKPaints is my baby and I can’t believe it has grown to what it is now!” she said. “Personally, I am so proud of myself for having the courage to pursue my passion and create a life I can’t wait to wake up to every day.”
Finding her creative spark
Koch’s love of art began long before she launched her business, but she credits a teacher at Eastern High School with helping her recognize just how important creativity was to her.
During her senior year, ceramics teacher Mr. Thomas encouraged her to experiment and explore her artistic abilities. His classroom quickly became her favorite place to be.
“I found myself, for one of the first times ever, becoming excited to go to school every day,” she recalled. “I couldn’t wait to work on my ceramics projects! I would even go to the ceramics room during my lunch and study hall!”
That experience ultimately influenced her decision to study art in college, despite initially considering what she described as more “realistic” career paths, such as business or marketing.
“I just couldn’t imagine a life where I didn’t feel excited every day like I felt in that ceramics classroom,” Koch explained. “I knew I had to choose art, and I have never doubted my choice for a second!”
Still, making the transition from art student and teacher to full-time artist required a different kind of confidence.
When AbbyKPaints first launched, she imagined continuing to teach art while selling a few paintings on the side. She never expected her creative business to become her primary career within its first year.
“Past me would not believe how far I’ve come,” she said. “This business has grown into so much more than just my ‘side hustle’ and I can’t wait to expand.”
Painting with personality
Koch’s artwork is anything but ordinary. Describing her creations as “chaotic, silly and random,” she uses bright colors, playful subjects and imaginative details to produce pieces that spark laughter and conversation.
Her artistic style is loosely realistic, emphasizing personality and storytelling over intricate detail.
“I try not to get too detailed, because I want the focus to be on the essence of the piece and not how realistic it looks,” she explained. “I also focus on bright eye-catching colors that pull the viewer in.”
Among her favorite subjects are dogs, particularly those portrayed in humorous, humanlike situations.
Her fancy dog portraits might feature a pup wearing a bathrobe, sporting a towel wrapped around its head or holding a phone. Each detail invites viewers to imagine the dog’s personality and the story behind the scene.
“I paint fancy dog portraits because I think they are fun and funny, and I love creating a story about the dog’s personality!” Koch said.
While much of her artwork is designed to bring humor into everyday life, Koch also creates deeply personal pieces for customers, including custom portraits of pets, homes and loved ones.
Those commissions carry special meaning for the artist, who understands that the finished paintings often represent treasured relationships and memories.
“I absolutely love being able to capture a memory for my clients in the form of a painting that will last forever!” she said. “I get emotional when painting pets, homes, (and I’ve even been dabbling in portraits) because I know how meaningful these can be.”
For Koch, the opportunity to preserve those memories is one of the most rewarding parts of her work.
A year of memorable milestones
Among the highlights of AbbyKPaints’ first year was participating in the Haddonfield Crafts and Fine Arts Festival, an event Koch had attended for years while dreaming of one day exhibiting her own artwork.
When she applied, she wasn’t convinced she was ready to participate, or that she would even be accepted.
“I signed up before I was ready, thinking that I surely wouldn’t get in, but I did and I said yes anyway!” she recalled. “It was the best experience; I’m still pinching myself at that one!”
Participating in art festivals has also allowed Koch to witness firsthand the impact of her work on others.
She remembers the first time someone walked past her booth, pointed at one of her paintings and laughed.
Rather than feeling discouraged, Koch was overcome with emotion. The reaction was exactly what she had hoped to inspire.
“I felt like I could cry,” she said. “My goal is to bring joy, laughter and fun to my audience through art, so seeing this happen in real life was amazing.”
She especially enjoys conversations with visitors who share their own connections to her artwork or simply stop to compliment a piece.
“These moments make it all worth it,” she said.
Another meaningful project came through a longtime friendship.
Koch’s friend Jake Fritz, whom she has known since middle school when they performed together in Shrek the Musical at Voorhees Middle School, asked her to design cover artwork for “Without a Word,” a single by his band, House on Pine.
The collaboration offered Koch the opportunity to combine visual art with music, listening to the song before its release and designing artwork inspired by its mood.
“It was so special to me to collaborate with someone else who is following their dream as well,” she said.
She hopes to collaborate with Fritz and House on Pine again in the future.
Community, connections and creative confidence
Throughout her first year, Koch has found that pursuing a creative career does not have to be a solitary journey.
She credits much of her success to the encouragement of family, friends, customers and fellow artists, particularly within South Jersey’s close-knit communities.
“South Jersey is such a great place to live because there is such a sense of community here,” she said.
Friends of family members have helped connect her with opportunities, while the region itself provides constant inspiration.
Living near the Jersey Shore gives her access to coastal scenery and subjects for paintings, while Philadelphia’s thriving arts scene provides opportunities to participate in festivals and events.
But one of the most influential connections in her journey happened outside South Jersey.
About a year ago, while visiting a friend in Boston, Koch attended Snowport, the city’s holiday market. She had recently begun sharing her artwork online but was still struggling with confidence.
There, she met artist Erica Goldstein, owner of The Blank Canvas Co., who shared her own experience of building an art business.
Goldstein was among the first people outside Koch’s family and friends to encourage her to pursue art professionally.
“She was one of the first people (who weren’t my friends and family) that told me turning your art into a business is totally do-able, and she believed in me,” Koch recalled.
The two exchanged social media handles, and Goldstein continued encouraging Koch by commenting on her early posts.
That support helped Koch find the motivation to keep sharing her work, even when she was unsure of herself.
“We are still in touch to this day!” she said. “I will never forget that day and how much that interaction meant to me!”
Although her first year has brought exciting milestones, it has also taught Koch important lessons about the realities of entrepreneurship.
Running AbbyKPaints means managing much more than painting. She must also handle accounting, customer service, financial planning and the daily responsibilities of operating a small business.
With an endless supply of creative ideas, finding enough time to pursue them all has become one of her greatest challenges.
“I have so many ideas that I want to pursue and not enough time in a day to explore them all!” she said.
Learning to balance those responsibilities remains a work in progress, but Koch says the experience has taught her patience, perseverance and the importance of believing in herself.
“The quote I live by is ‘the day you plant the seed is not the day you eat the fruit,'” she said. “The most important thing I have learned is patience and believing that my dreams will come true, even if it takes time.”
A colorful future
With one successful year behind her, Koch is already looking toward new opportunities to expand AbbyKPaints.
She is putting the finishing touches on a winter collection featuring five original paintings, with prints expected to become available by the end of November.
She also hopes to introduce new products featuring her artwork, including greeting cards, magnets and bookmarks.
Another growing area of her business is live guest illustration, a service in which she creates watercolor portraits of guests at weddings and other special events.
Koch has already begun booking events and hopes to expand that part of her business during her second year.
“I have so many exciting things planned for year two!!” she said.
For other young artists and aspiring entrepreneurs in Voorhees who may be hesitant to pursue their creative ambitions, Koch offers advice rooted in her own experience.
“Leap and the net will appear,” she said, recalling a quote she kept on her phone’s lock screen for months when she was first starting her business.
“Start before you are ready and before you have ‘everything’ figured out. I still don’t have everything figured out and I am one year in!”
She also encourages aspiring creatives to embrace social media, even when putting themselves and their work online feels intimidating.
Once worried about appearing “cringe,” Koch has discovered that sharing her artistic process publicly can lead to opportunities she never thought possible.
“Life is way too short to care!” she said. “If you have a dream, you owe it to yourself to pursue it!”
One year after taking that first leap, Koch is living proof of what can happen when passion meets persistence — and when an artist finds the courage to turn a blank canvas into a world of possibilities.
