Community Highlights: Meet Zoe Ariel of Curated By Zoe Ariel

Today we’d like to introduce you to Zoe Ariel.

Hi Zoe, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
My story really starts with my BFA in Studio Art at the Univeristy of North Texas. That’s where I developed my eye and aesthetics with a concentration in photography and a minor in Art History. After graduating, I built a career in art consulting and interior styling, working with healthcare, senior living, and government clients to curate meaningful spaces. But when my husband’s career brought us from Dallas to West Lafayette, Indiana, I found myself in a much quieter arts landscape than I was used to.
Rather than resisting it, I started exploring. Small towns in Indiana have these wonderfully eclectic antique shops and I kept finding myself pulling over and wandering in. One day it just clicked — my curatorial instincts, my art history minor, my love of unique pieces — it all pointed toward something I could build. That’s how my vintage home decor shop was born!

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Honestly, the creative side never felt like a struggle, if anything, I was craving an outlet that was purely for me. The Indiana countryside ended up being part of the joy; there’s something meditative about driving past cornfields and barns on the way to a little antique shop in the middle of nowhere.
The real learning curve was the business side. Selling, marketing, shipping…none of that came naturally to me. I did what a lot of creatives do and bought a stack of entrepreneurial and art marketing books, thinking I could read my way into knowing what to do. Eventually I realized you just have to start and be okay when things don’t go the way you planned. I chose Etsy specifically because the platform does a lot of the marketing heavy lifting for someone who wanted to focus on the sourcing and curation.

Appreciate you sharing that. What should we know about Curated By Zoe Ariel ?
Curated By Zoe Ariel is a thoughtfully sourced vintage home decor shop and custom mat framing. My background in art consulting and interior styling shapes every piece I choose. I’m not picking things at random, I’m looking for items with character, history, and a meaning to why it would fit a persons home. I specialize in mid-century modern and handmade homeware, sourcing from antique shops, estate sales, and thrift stores across small-towns in Indiana. The shop is intentionally slow curation and are not rushed nor not mass-listed. One thing that sets me apart is that I also source found and thrifted artwork and do custom mat framing in-house, which means I can offer pieces that are already ready to present on your wall.

My BFA in photography and minor in art history mean I’m always thinking about what a piece is, where it came from, and how it lives in a space. That’s a different lens than most resellers bring.
For behind-the-scenes sourcing trips and sneak peeks, I share on Substack at @artistzoeariel.substack.com.

Risk taking is a topic that people have widely differing views on – we’d love to hear your thoughts.
I don’t really see myself as a risk-taker and I think that’s okay to admit. I’m practical by nature. I don’t think in terms of risks so much as choices. Some choices turn out great, some turn out okay, but I keep moving forward either way. There’s no failure that stops me, just information that redirects me.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://curatedbyzoeariel.etsy.com/
• Instagram: https://substack.com/@artistzoeariel
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/artistzoeariel
• Youtube: https://youtube.com/@artistzoeariel