Creativity at West Ranch takes many forms, including paintings in art class, pottery in ceramics, fine arts performances on stage and unique posters for campaigns or school rallies. But for some students, creativity is not limited to their classes; they go as far as to expand their expressive passions into businesses or impactful extracurricular hobbies, building their personal identities.
One such leading student is senior Sammantha Kirkwood, whose love of fashion, particularly accessories and jewelry, has led her to grow her fondness into a small, handmade business. “I began making art a while back, and eventually I realized I really wanted to make art that I could wear on my body. I would always see these girls wearing cool bangles or earrings and I thought, ‘Wow, I really want to be like them,’” Kirkwood shared.
She began by making keychains and friendship bracelets for friends and family, but her trajectory changed in one small but impactful way. “After a while, I realized I wanted to make something that didn’t look so tacky. I wanted my creations to last,” Kirkwood expressed. That shift pushed her to transform her hobby from casual crafting into jewelry-making rooted in sustainability and originality.
Kirkwood also elaborated on the significant role her sustainability initiative plays in her products, specifically in how she sources her inventory: “I usually supply my pieces from thrift stores or second-hand stores to support that sustainability campaign and look for reusable items like small shells or beads.”
Even when sourcing secondhand, Kirkwood emphasized her main criterion: avoiding unethical fast-fashion supply chains. She wishes to use her inventory-sourcing methods to promote waste reduction and raise awareness of environmentally harmful or immoral practices. She also added that this approach helps keep each design unique and authentic to each person since her materials are often limited and difficult to replicate.
This originality creates a special moment for Kirkwood when classmates recognize her work. “It’s really nice when people see me wearing one of my own pieces and ask where I got it and I can say, ‘Oh, I made it.’ That’s probably the best feeling and my favorite part of the payoff.”
Kirkwood is not the only student turning her creative passion into a business. Sophomore Najee Berry has taken a different artistic route to share her creations: nail art. Berry’s interest in nail art began unexpectedly during the summer before her sophomore year. “I was just bored,” she remarked. “So I went online and bought a bunch of nail stuff and began practicing. I got really into it quickly.”
What began as an experiment to cure her summer boredom quickly evolved into a passion driven by her love for art. “I really like drawing and that’s what I found I could do with the nails,” Berry reminisced.
“And I guess I was good at it since people began coming up to me and asking where I had gotten my nails done, so I kept doing it. I also loved how I could put my own unique creative spin on every design,”
Like Kirkwood, Berry expressed that the most satisfying part of the process was seeing her work pay off at the end, when she could show her friends the results. “After I began actually taking orders, people liked what they got from me, so that made me want to keep going and improving and it just grew from there.”
More broadly, freshman Autumn Zheng uses art overall as her creative outlet rather than a specific business. She focuses on mixed-media forms such as sketching, painting and fundamental studies.
Zheng emphasized the benefits of working with these different media: “Using many mediums makes me feel less restricted,” Zheng added. “I have the freedom to do whatever I want with the visuals to convey best what I’m trying to say to the viewers. I’d say texture play is the biggest part about that and I can do that with my mixed media.”
Zheng also heavily highlighted the mental and emotional benefits of art, noting, “It makes me feel good. It’s kind of like my therapy in a war–it helps me be more mindful of myself through both my process when I draw and the message I put behind my work.” Zheng strongly encourages other students to approach their creativity without fear or insecurity, emphasizing the feeling of freedom that comes with doing so. “Really, don’t be scared to start. Skill develops over time, so embrace the mistakes: art’s not supposed to be perfect anyway, just a passionate way to say what you need to say.”
Whether they are in the studio painting their truth, running a sustainable handmade accessory initiative or making nail art for friends, these students have shown that anyone can turn their creativity into something both personal and impactful. Cats, make sure to support your classmates in their creative journeys!
