Jenna Reed Hill never set out to become a small business owner. As an art teacher at South ÂÒÂ×ÄÚÉä Middle School for the past 15 years, her world revolved around guiding students through drawing and painting classes.
But what began in 2023 as a classroom lesson on digital design has transformed into a thriving side business that celebrates West Virginia pride — one sticker at a time.
“It all started because I was curious,†Hill said. “I wanted my students to learn how to make digital art and design their own stickers using their iPads. But before I could teach it, I had to figure it out myself.â€
That curiosity sparked what she describes as a “lightbulb moment.†Hill and two of her eighth graders each created a West Virginia-themed sticker. It was Hill’s first taste of turning digital art into something tangible.
She spent many hours learning the process, from drawing on an iPad to working with a production partner to print the designs.
Hill kept designing stickers and eventually opened an Etsy shop, Head to the Hills Studio, with the goal of filling her summer with creative work. Less than two weeks after opening, a contact at the Hawk’s Nest State Park gift shop passed her name along to a merchandising manager with West Virginia State Parks.
“I had a handful of online sales, and at the time I maybe had thirteen stickers that I had drawn. They were looking to feature more West Virginia artists and wanted me to design a series of stickers of state parks. We went through the list together and made a plan,†Hill said.
She learned how to become a registered West Virginia vendor and went to work. She spent her days teaching middle school art, and spent nights and weekends sketching waterfalls, grist mills and mountain ridges.
Over the following months, Hill produced designs for Pipestem, Blackwater Falls, Babcock, Cass Scenic Railroad, Cooper’s Rock State Forest and others. Hill has shipped wholesale sticker orders to gift shops in 30 state parks, and has branched out to doing magnets and linocut prints.
Her fledgling business — which she runs from her kitchen table and a corner of her bedroom — continues to grow. Her stickers and magnets are now at Tamarack, and Thomas Hospital’s gift shop sells Hill’s West Virginia-themed T-shirts.
“I’m planning on expanding my quilt-style stickers along with a West Virginia quilt shirt that will be coming out at the end of the summer,†Hill said.
Designing the Pipestem sticker and magnet was a special challenge. The most iconic feature of the park — the aerial tram — had been closed and dismantled. “The new tram wasn’t operational yet, so I had to get creative,†Hill said. “I used old photos, images I’d taken of the new tram poles, and digital renderings of what the new cars would look like. I fused it all together with a sunset.â€
The Pipestem project had sentimental meaning for Hill, because she was married there in 2014. “I felt like things had come full circle,†she said.
But it’s not just landscapes that inspire her.
“Cryptids are the superheroes of West Virginia,†she said. “Mothman, the Flatwoods Monster, Bigfoot, the Greenbrier Ghost, they’re whimsical and fun to believe in.†Her Mothman and glow-in-the-dark Greenbrier Ghost stickers have become favorites.
Hill grew up in Jackson County and graduated from Ripley High School. After college, she joined AmeriCorps and spent time in Denver. “Living out West really opened my eyes,†she said. “But I always knew I wanted to come back home and be an art teacher in West Virginia.â€
Hill also started a sticker club at school, where students designed their own WV-themed stickers to sell at school events. The students not only learn about creating art, they learn about the whole process from concept to sale.
What started as a lesson for her students has turned into a way to share her love for the Mountain State with a broader audience.
“My art story has been life-changing these past two years,†she said. “What I try to do with my work is show the stories, landmarks, and legends that make our state unique and special.â€
To visit Jenna Reed Hill’s Etsy shop, go to www.etsy.com/shop/headtothehillsstudio. Her state park stickers and magnets can also be viewed at shopwvstateparks.com.
