Former Falls Church teacher turned artist lands collaboration with Pottery Barn Kids

A Northern Virginia woman who left her teaching job to pursue her artistic dreams now has a collaboration with Pottery Barn Kids.

Riley Sheehey was teaching elementary school students in Falls Church when she decided to make the leap to become a full-time artist in 2017.

“I had a backpack with all my art supplies and I would take it to school with me and just after the school day I would end up just working on, like, different client projects and stuff. So it’s, it’s pretty crazy,” she said.

That decision to switch gears appears to have paid off. Sheehey’s whimsical paintings of animals, hot air balloons and florals have caught the attention of some major brands, including Ralph Lauren and, now, Pottery Barn Kids.

“Over the past four years things have just like kind of continued to, like, pick up steam,” she said.

Sheehey said she couldn’t believe it when Pottery Barn Kids first reached out to her to design a holiday collection.

“When I got the email, initially, I thought that it was, like, a scam. And so I read it and I was just, like, well just respond like it’s not a scam. And the person got right back to me. They really liked the animals. I [have] always done little scenes with animals doing different things and they thought that would work really well for artwork for different, like, nursery decor and stuff like that,” she said.

Months later, her line for Pottery Barn Kids is out for the holiday season.

“Just to see my artwork on things like ornaments and tea sets … it’s really exciting,” Sheehey said.

The collection features her signature designs in festive red and green on everything from blankets and pajamas to dollhouses and stockings.

Sheehey said the holiday collection is just the start as she’s preparing a nursery line for the brand.

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