Western Kentucky Artist Brings Holiday Cheer With Window Painting Magic

You've likely heard the Christmas carol "Deck the Halls". That songs begins with this lyric: Deck the halls with boughs of holly. Fa la la la la, la la la la.

Local artist Tessa Hardin (who's from Island) is taking holiday decorating to another level.  She's decking out the windows for a variety of Tristate businesses with a big dose of jolly.

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I learned about Tessa from a mutual friend of ours- KaSandra Kline. As it turns out, KaSandra was Tessa's first boss. They worked together at the Subway in Livermore. Today, KaSandra works up the road at BF Evans Ford. Speaking of BF Evans, Tessa just painted it.

Tessa, who owns and operates an art business called Tessie Doodles, just got into the window-painting business in October. That's when she was asked by Chandler over at Niko's Bakery in Owensboro to paint something for them. The only direction really given was something with a 'Fall vibe.'

Matt and Jessica Weafer own Niko's here in town and one of their kids is obsessed with lemurs. So, Tessa painted a lemur coming out of a pumpkin. The painting was a hit and she has since been back to Niko's to paint some more.

There is an old adage that word travels fast. In Tessa's case, that's an understatement. Since that first painting at Niko's, she has been on an artistic tear. She has already worked on businesses in 'seven or eight' area counties and is painting up to three business windows per day.

And get this! At the moment, her window painting business is just her part-time job, her side hustle. Tessa works full-time too. She's a member of the Brewco Marketing team and sets up shop at music festivals and rodeos around the country. Next week, she's headed off to work an event in Las Vegas.

Until then, she's painting and making the holidays merry and bright for a bunch of area businesses.

If you're interested, she has already opened up her calendar for bookings in 2026. Tessa says she's already gotten requests for Valentine's Day and Easter designs.

If you would like your windows painted, you can contact Tessa Hardin by sending her a message on the Tessie Doodles Facebook page.