About Me

My name is Sarah Hall, and I am the creator and artist behind Mortem Made. I'm originally from Salem, MA where I lived for over a decade but have been residing in central Maine for over 4 years.

Art has always been a prevalent part of my life. As a child, I took art lessons, and my mediums were charcoal and acrylics paints (I even competed in local art shows!). Nature was my chosen subject matter for my paintings. I grew up in the middle of the woods of Massachusetts and was that kid who played with salamanders and tried to bring wildlife inside the house. I wanted to be close to animals as much as I could.  From a young age, I didn't feel as though I ever fit in, or could relate to many people.  I spent a lot of time alone, often locking myself in my room, listening to music, reading, or working on my drawings.  As a kid, some of my favorite movies were Dr. Doolittle, The Addams Family and Nightmare Before Christmas. I also remember being drawn to tattoos at a young age, likely from watching Miami Ink and LA Ink, which were reality tv shows about tattoo artists.  Just like my love for nature, tattoos and art stuck with me well through adulthood.

The first three images show actual drawings I created for tattoos I was looking to get.  Two of my tattoos are actually based off photos 2 and 3! The last photo is of a tattoo which is located on my upper arm. 

For me, being weird has never "been a phase".  I have always been drawn to the weird and unusual, so for college, I chose to go to the strangest place I could think of:  Witch City, aka Salem, Massachusetts.  I decided Salem State University was perfect to pursue my undergraduate degree in 2D Art.  I loved living in Salem since I met a lot of cool people who were unapologetically themselves.  Being surrounded by all the unique people, including witches,  metalheads, goths and other alternative kinds of people really allowed me to feel comfortable in my own skin.

During my 3rd year of college, I was given the opportunity to study abroad. I chose Florence, Italy, since I needed to fill some language credits, and the classical art I had been studying is there.  It was perfect, since I also love the food.  I loved seeing the statue of David, Medusa, and The Birth of Venus - all were absolutely breathtaking.

Shortly after I got back from Italy, I decided college was no longer for me, but I still loved art and wished to live a creative life.  In my free time, you would catch me at art museums, attending local art markets, or drawing concepts for future tattoos (see first three photos, above).  After leaving college, I stayed in the Salem area and had lived in various tiny apartments on my own.

At some point, I started pinning insects at my kitchen table, which at the time, was the only available space I had. Around this time, I had begun collecting oddities, including various animal skulls and other nature items.  In pursuit of adding to my collection, and craving to be around other people like me, I visited several spooky maker's markets in Salem.  I collected what I could, including prints and t-shirts from local artists, Seeing the other artists with their wares made me yearn to also sell at markets.  I thought, "I want to do this in my own way".  However due to lack of space and having to work full-time to pay for my bills, I had to put my dream aside.

Over the years, I worked for various businesses, including childcare and retail companies, as well as some brick and mortar shops in Salem.  Fast forward to October 2021, I had met my now ex-husband, who lived in Maine.  He invited me to live with him, and I decided I was ready for a change in scenery.  In January 2022, I moved to Maine, under the condition he agreed for me to have my own space for creating. It wasn't until we bought our first home in June 2022 where Mortem Made was truly born.

"Mortem" is derived from the term "post mortem" - which, according to Merriam Webster, "is done, during or collected after death." After a lot of thought, I kept going back to the name Mortem Made which seemed to be the best name for my business, as dead specimens are the focus of my handmade pieces.

I've always loved the Victorian period and this style is prevalent in the frames I use for my pieces.  Buying my first house (which was an 1892 Victorian) became the catalyst to officially starting my business.  For the first time ever, I had a plethora of space, as well as a huge garage for me to work.  I loved having my own room to display my personal collection of taxidermy mounts and trinkets.  Having a dedicated workspace, and being surrounded by items I love, most definitely helped keep me inspired and motivated.  

After we bought our house, I took several months off to focus on painting the house and working in my new studio whenever possible.  I gathered materials and starting trying different techniques.  That winter, in December 2022, I decided to start showing my work to the world.  I started off attending local craft fairs, and to my surprise, my work was generally received well!  I used that boost to continue, but I still didn't feel like craft fairs were for me.  The following summer, about a year after starting Mortem Made, I felt confident enough to start vending larger, more well-known witchy and oddity themed events.  Ever since, my business has taken off!

For over 2 years, I worked part-time at retail stores while making stock for shows as much as possible.  I reached a point where it was becoming difficult to get weekends off for my shows, but Mortem Made was my dream, and I was making increasingly more money selling at my shows than I was at my retail jobs.  In March 2023, I left my now ex-husband which allowed me to focus all my free time on my business.  I knew my potential to have a career with Mortem Made was much higher than any position I would have at a retail job.  I decided I was finished selling my soul to the corporate world, and in May 2025, I quit my retail job, when I was closing on selling the Victorian house.  I took the leap of faith into self employment and now run Mortem Made full-time!  

These days, I still reside in Central Maine, with my partner Ryan, and our 3 cats.  You can find me vending at various events across New England, including Renaissance Faires, Tattoo expos, Oddity and/or Witchcraft markets, and many other local art shows!

Thank you for reading!  

- Sarah of MM xo