This Illinois veteran always knew she would have her art by her side

From a young age Lindsey Figgins knew she loved art and, more than that, she knew she loved her country. It didn’t take Figgins long after her service in the Army Reserves to find a way to combine those two things.

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Joining the Reserves in 2006, Figgins was active from 2008 to 2009, during which time she was stationed in Afghanistan serving her country. Always an artistic person, Figgins said she relied on her art and painting while away from home and, when she came back, she didn’t want to abandon that part of her passion.

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Upon her honorable discharge from the Reserves, Figgins began making custom word burnt plaques for friends as family members which she would give away as gifts. Shortly after she began doing so it was apparent there was a demand for her product so, Figgins started up her business, Etched N Flames.

“At first I didn’t expect it to take off [because] I’m kind of self conscious about my work,” Figgins said. “Once I started doing it and having the customers review my work, seeing the reviews of my work when I would do something for them, it made it all worth it.”

Growing beyond what she could have imagined, Figgins is now in the process of expanding her business so she can provide more product to her customers in a shorter time frame. Currently, every product from Etched N Flames is made by hand, taking between four to five hours on average for Figgins to complete.

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Favorites of Figgins include animal portraits, particularly horses, and patriotic scenes which she said she has been drawing since she was a little kid in art class. She said one thing that makes her art unique is the attention to detail she gives to each and every project that comes her way.

“I always enjoyed drawing when I was growing up [and] I loved art class so that’s kind of where it started out,” Figgins said. “It’s just really something that I enjoy [and] people seem to really love how detailed I get with it.”

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