Read reviews from real artists and creators that I have worked with. Don’t forget to show them some love by liking their posts or following them on Instagram!


Instagram Assessment: @CheriPK

​Kelly was such a pleasure to work with. She is concise, well spoken, and such a valuable resource!

I had the Instagram Assessment with Kelly and I can’t believe just how much information I received in such a short amount of time! It was all laid out in such a professional manner. She had a structure to it with a worksheet on the format of the assessment to let you know ahead of time what topics will be discussed. She walked through each step while going through my Instagram page and talked about things I needed to focus on and it was all done in a positive, upbeat way.

Before the assessment I felt like I wanted to completely give up on social media, but finished the phone call with so many tips and so much hope that I will definitely be able to get the followers and exposure I need for my art as long as I follow the advice she gave.

I highly recommend Kelly and her consulting work. Thank you!

-Cheri PK of @CheriPK


Instagram Assessment: @Rimas.resin.art

I have been following Kelly’s artistic journey on IG for some time and have gotten to love her work, her blogs and her as an artist. She has been writing blogs for free about all kinds of artist related topics and I could tell that she has a genuine interest in sharing her experiences and helping others thrive. So it was only natural that I contact her for my one hour account review and boy, was I not disappointed.

Throughout this process, you may be paying for a one hour phone call but I know there is a lot more work involved in the background, understanding an artists objectives, analyzing their account , taking notes, reviewing captions and photos etc.. That she does, and she does it gracefully.

Aside from the lovely, generous and positive nature of Kelly, there is a lot of insight, experience and a keen eye behind this review. Kelly is very structured, and is incredible at managing expectations. First you need to fill in a questionnaire as to what you want out of this review, and then there is a structured talking points document that is used during the review where every obvious and not so obvious aspect of your account is covered. She is keen on going over every single one of these points, making them relevant to you, and being keen on ensuring your own concerns are covered. At the same time, she has the ability of making such a structured process so much fun, because she is witty, friendly, funny and warm and just has a genuine interest in giving.

All in all, it was the best money I have ever spent during my art journey, and if you are still contemplating this service, please go ahead, you will not regret it.

-Rima Kers of @Rimas.resin.art


Instagram and Branding Assessment: @helennortonart

I found Kelly’s services for Instagram and business branding when I googled “How do artists grow their Instagram following”. Kelly’s blogs on the subject came up at the top of the search. If that is not evidence of her knowledge around ‘being seen’ in the sea of online information on the subject I do not know what is! I wanted to increase my following and was totally stuck on a small following. I was confused by too much advice I had been given. Reading Kelly’s blogs convinced me that having a consultation with her on the phone would be fruitful. Her further proof is her own large following and gorgeous Instagram account.

Kelly listened to me very closely on my issues. Even after 30 successful years in the arts business, I need to change and grow just like anyone in any business. She assessed my confusion around a new direction I wanted to take in my business and helped me sharpen up the focus and identify what was really important to me. Kelly is great to work with – a wonderful and authentic communicator with much practical and people knowledge. It’s only early days, but I have been applying Kelly’s suggestions on Instagram and within a few days my daily follows increased instantly. I would recommend Kelly’s consultancy in a heartbeat. She gives you a questionnaire prior to your sessions so you get the chance to lay out your areas of struggle. Kelly holds nothing back, she gives you her all. The best spend on a consultant I have made in years.

-Helen Norton  of @helennortonart


Instagram Assessment: @maryannfarleyart

Wow. How does one even begin to describe a coaching session with Kelly Marie? Seriously, I’ve funded my entire art and music career as a freelance writer for years now, and words are escaping me as I try to express the pure fun and excitement of my session.

I’ll start by saying that by the time I got off the phone with Kelly, I was literally blown away. Not only is she an incredibly down-to-earth person who feels like your instant best friend, but she also has one wicked intelligence that she’s used to figure out the inside details of the Instagram behemoth. And what makes her even more fabulous is that she SHARES ALL OF IT with a remarkably generous spirit at an extremely generous price. Honestly, when I think of the amount of hours it would have taken to figure out what she taught me in yesterday’s session…well, let’s face it: I never would have figured it out—not without her help. And neither will you! 🙂 Without a doubt, what you spend in a Kelly session would be a bargain at ten times the price, and I say that without a hint of overstatement. I mean it. She’s that good.

I found Kelly through her Messy Ever After blog and decided to hire her as I was overwhelmed with the amount of info she shares there alone! You could probably get a lot of what she teaches in a session just from her essays…IF you had the time and inclination to read every single blog post. But then you’d miss out on her warm, funny and fierce personality…and the motivation and inspiration that comes from that one-on-one contact. If I had any criticism at all about our session, it was the amount of times I had to ask her to slow down so that I could grab every juicy tip that was springing from that delightful mind!

I’ll sum up by saying that I know with absolute certainty that, going forward, Kelly is going to be a part of my team as I attempt to create an online art career. These days I have some health limitations so I probably won’t implement Kelly’s suggestions as quickly as I would like, but that is all the more reason for me to hire her on a regular basis as my guide. She has me so excited that I’ve already recommended her to one of my best artist pals. Like all wonderful people in this life, Kelly is surrounded by fresh, honest, funny, passionate and messy air! 🙂 Be good to yourself and book a session. YOU WILL NOT REGRET IT.

-Mary Ann of @maryannfarleyart


Creative Coaching Sessions: @healingdoodle

​I hired Kelly Marie to help me figure out how to share my artwork with others. I was drawn by her extremely helpful “Messy Ever After” blog posts and felt she really understood the challenges that face new (and insecure) artists. In all, I had five sessions with her (most 1.5 hours), including a free intro session.

I don’t consider myself an artist, but my doodles have been an integral part of my healing journey over the past six years. I have no background or experience with photography, staging, etc. As a writer, I came to her terrified of Instagram and felt it was the wrong social network for me! But with Kelly’s help, I fell in LOVE with Instagram!  And I learned that the captions give me plenty of space to express myself!

Kelly Marie is an extraordinary teacher and coach. She is definitely someone who over-delivers and truly cares about her clients. While she does teach the technical aspects of Instagram and even website development if you ask, what makes her so special is how she personalizes her training. (Her in-depth worksheet questions are fabulous!)

With her guidance, I’ve been able to overcome my fear and start posting. But please don’t look at my account as an example of how it should be done! In fact, I have deliberately chosen to hold off on much of her advice while I experiment to figure out where I want to go with it and how I want to present it. But because of Kelly’s patient help, I have a clear idea of how to get there once I know.
I learned so much more from my five sessions than I ever imagined possible! You won’t find a better coach, or a kinder, more caring one, than Kelly Marie. I wholeheartedly recommend her.

​-Susan B. of @healingdoodle


Instagram Assessment: @violet.astor

I approached Kelly to help me improve my Instagram presence and sales. I found her to be incredibly friendly and focused on working with my individual needs. Kelly has a very good understanding of Instagram and how to make it work for artists. What I loved most was her genuine approach to Instagram. Her strategy is authentic, organic and honest, which has really helped me to make the process enjoyable rather than overwhelming. Together we focused on my brand by designing a clear bio, clarifying my style and bringing out my personality into my profile. I would definitely recommend Kelly to any artist who is looking to expand and reach their target audience. 

-Violet Astor  of @violet.astor


Instagram Assessment: @pencilandpiano

I am a new artist (I started drawing only a year ago), and even newer to having an Instagram page for my art! I created my page @pencilandpiano primarily as I wanted to share my drawings (and music) with people, grow my ‘brand’ and engagement, and most of all: hopefully inspire others to follow their passions.  My challenge however is that my experience of doing this through an Instagram page is very limited and so I wanted to seek some help.  

I met Kelly through Instagram, and she was the most charming and helpful person that I could have ever hoped for.  Kelly provided me with a huge amount of helpful tips and advice across all aspects of my page – ranging from the overall branding of my page, how to think about the style and theme of my posts, how to use hashtags more efficiently, how to increase engagement, how to better use stories, understanding of the infamous Instagram algorithm, advice on when to post and how often… and much more.  Most importantly, we discussed my goals and aspirations for my art and Kelly was able to not only fully understand my vision, but help me see a much clearer path to getting there.   

Kelly is honest, very thoughtful and insightful with a clear eye for creativity, and I feel that she is extremely passionate about helping other artists achieve their goals, whatever they may be.   She is both supportive and engaging with her comments and suggestions, whilst also being constructive and challenging with her feedback.  Importantly, she is 100% honest which I admire in her.  I would absolutely recommend Messy Every After’s coaching services to other artists, and I hope to work with Kelly again in the future.

-Mike Pickett of @pencilandpiano


Instagram Assessment: @kraftedbyengineer


I specialize in custom woodwork and market exclusively on Instagram, but I was struggling with getting exposure to potential customers/clients outside of the woodwork community. Kelly reached out to gain an in depth understanding of my aesthetic, marketing strategy, and goals for my business. Armed with this understanding, Kelly performed a full, in-depth analysis of my feed and interaction with my “tribe.” I was blown away by the insights she came back with! Kelly’s analysis included insightful feedback on how I could better align my content with my goals, reach new audiences, and capitalize on what was already working for me. I put her feedback into practice and within a week I noticed an increase in my following outside of the woodwork community; increased engagement on my posts; and a closer alignment of my content to my goals. I would recommend her services, whether you’re a social networking novice or an analytics junkie – she will offer a fresh perspective and insightful feedback!

​-Kevin Ebberts of @kraftedbyengineer


Instagram Assessment: @indigoimpressions


As an artist, my primary focus on Instagram is sharing my techniques and tricks with other artists to build community, but spreading some of my tips was hard when engagement on my posts were so low. I met Kelly through Instagram and she has been a game changer for me. Within just weeks of getting her assessment and implementing her recommendations, I saw a dramatic increase in my Instagram engagement. Followers rose by more than 1200 in less than one month.  Kelly’s recommendations were completely tailored to my goals — she wasn’t simply providing “do this to get more follows” type comments. Instead, she provided great insights on hashtags, types of posts, how to use my stories, and appropriate captions. Seeing some of the assessments she has done for others, I can say that her comments are super specific, not generic! Kelly truly cares about her clients and is just an amazing person to get to know. I cannot recommend her enough.

-Briana Coleman of @indigoimpressions


Creative Coaching Sessions: @jonesin4nature

​​Prior to reaching out to Kelly about coaching services, I was struggling with creating art on a regular basis and was feeling overwhelmed by tackling the “business” aspect of creating. I cannot put into words how incredibly valuable my coaching experience with Kelly was. With her guidance I was able to overcome some debilitating insecurities about creating, finesse my social media branding and, most importantly, get into the routine of creating

From the initial intake questionnaire to our weekly video chats, this whole experience was top-notch. The questionnaire Kelly created was insightful, thorough, and prompted me to reflect on my creative habits and roadblocks right away, which was very helpful for moving into our coaching sessions. She asked questions that sparked a great internal monologue and ultimately helped me better understand my own process, style and goals (which she then built on throughout our sessions!). Similarly, the daily art journals and weekly check-ins prompt you to be accountable to yourself and your work. 

Kelly is honest, understanding and clearly very passionate about helping others succeed, so it was incredibly refreshing to sit down and discuss process, business and inspiration with her. She is so forthcoming with her knowledge and experience; it was so enlightening discussing the art business with her.

After working with Kelly for two months, I can honestly say that I feel 100% more confident in pursuing my dream of becoming a full-time artist.  She gave practical, constructive, insightful feedback on my online branding and art style, challenged me to work outside my comfort zone, and made the vast world of business a lot more attainable.  

I would absolutely recommend Messy Ever After’s art coaching services to other artists. I will carry the strategies that Kelly instilled in me throughout our sessions with me throughout my career. I am so grateful to have had the opportunity to work with this phenomenal, talented woman!

-Jessica Bateman of Art by Miss JBa, @jonesin4nature