Betsy Mae Muller, a senior at the University of Miami’s Business School and founder of Betsy Mae Art, is a princess. She loves pink, paints with “magic, love and anxiety” and wears custom pieces she made for New York Fashion Week.
Painting used to be her little secret. Not even her parents were allowed to see the artwork she started making in 2020.
“I was depressed, and everyone was isolated, obviously, so it’s hard to be a teenage girl,” Mae said. “And then I didn’t really show anyone. None of my friends in high school really knew that I painted at all.”
Until the summer of her freshman year, when she looked around at the Turkish restaurant she was interning at and thought: “There has to be another way. I wish I was painting right now.”
Art was her escape. It became her future.
New York Fashion Week saw Mae’s work come to life through a collaboration with Chloe Erowe, creator of Chloe Likes Pink. Mae made the prints and Erowe sewed the clothes for their “Dress Up” collection.
Before working together, they were strangers.
“[Chloe] did a magazine interview last year where she said that her dream collaborator would be me, which was like the coolest thing ever,” Mae said. “So, I was like: Done. Let’s make it happen.”
It was a dream come true. Erowe and Mae connected through Instagram DMs, working together across continents as Mae did a study abroad program in Florence and Erowe stayed in New York. They didn’t meet in person until the end of summer.
Once Mae walked into the crowded showroom, she was blown away. The models wore her art like a second skin— flawless and elegant.
“I felt like I was the least like the lamest person in the room because they all just looked so cool,” Mae said. The room was filled with Pearson and FIT — Fashion Institute of Technology — students. “And they were all appreciating my art. That was just surreal.”
One more person joined their team: Chelsea Galembo, founder of Musings New York—a styling company. Galembo styled the models, from assembling the outfits to doing hair and makeup.
When Mae started her small Etsy shop in 2021, Mae couldn’t have imagined that it would grow into her own website. From art prints to phone cases and tank tops, Mae monetized her not-so-secret passion. Of course, there were obstacles on the way.
“I got banned on Etsy because I had logos in some of my paintings,” Mae said. “That day, I was like, I need to overhaul everything, and that’s when I made my Shopify store.”
Despite the roadblocks, her audience skyrocketed, reaching over 45,000 Instagram followers. She reached a sweet spot between “luck and strategy.” It was a fight against the ever-changing algorithm, one that is still ongoing.
Since the beginning, though, she has always stayed true to herself. That is why she calls herself a “princess.”
“Honestly, it was a nickname my friends always had for me. When TikTok came out, I was always Princess Betsy Mae,” Mae said. “And when I started selling my art, it made sense as my personal branding.”
Now, Mae has brought her passion back to the University of Miami. She spoke fondly of Dr. Susan Amat, her “business partner,” and Director of Entrepreneurship Initiatives at the Business School.
“[Amat] helped me take it from like a little thing I was doing for fun, and she taught me to visualize it into something bigger,” Mae said.
This semester, Mae has also taken two UM Business School students as interns to run her social media.
But even with everything art has given her, Mae is not sure where she will go after graduation.
“I have trouble stating what exactly my vision is for Betsy Mae because I feel like it changes so often based on what opportunities come my way,” Mae said.
For now, she will be going back to her banking job, but art will always stay with her.
She hopes everyone finds their passion, too.
Don’t fall for the “nonchalant epidemic” is her main piece of advice. Find what you love and “just start doing something.”