A Little Paint, A Lot of Love

Painting the STN Kitchen Mural

If you’ve ever grabbed a coffee or eaten lunch in our kitchen at STN Digital, you know it’s more than just a place to microwave leftovers. It’s where spontaneous brainstorms happen, where we vent, laugh, check in with each other, and catch our breath during the day. It’s a little hub of energy and connection—so when the idea came up to give the space a refresh, I was all in.

I’ve worked on a lot of murals over the years, but this one was different. It was personal. STN means a lot to me—not just as a workplace, but as a place that’s helped me grow, creatively and professionally. So being able to put some paint on the walls felt like my own small way of giving back, of adding a little love to a space that holds so much of our shared day-to-day.

And I didn’t want to do it alone. From the start, I envisioned this mural as something for the company, by the company. I wanted it to reflect who we are as a team. 

We started by putting out a call to the entire company: What do you want to see on the wall? We gathered slogan ideas and phrases that felt like STN, then put the top picks to a vote. Once we landed on the winning idea, we brought in our incredible design team—specifically Joseph Drakeford, who mocked up several designs for our executive team to review and select from. Once the design was finalized, it was my turn to paint.

It took me two days to complete the mural—mostly because of a very uncooperative projector. But honestly, I’m glad it played out that way. Having the night to step away and reflect gave me the chance to come back fresh, make some small changes, and make sure everything lived up to the STN standard.

So much of my day-to-day work at STN is digital. That’s the nature of the job—and one of the things I love about it. But there’s something really powerful about seeing a physical piece of work in the world. Something you can touch. Something that lives in the same space as the people it was made for.

That’s what this mural is to me. A little burst of color. A collaboration. A love letter to the team. And a reminder that even the most ordinary spaces can become meaningful when we build them together.