One Button to Made by Mary Scott

How a single gameday button in 2021 turned into a whole business.

In the fall of 2021, I was a freshman at the University of Alabama with a great idea for a gameday button and a dorm room to make it in. I didn't have a business plan, a logo, or a brand name. I just wanted something that felt personal to wear on gameday. That one button taught me something I still use in everything I make: people don't want something generic. They want something that feels like it was made for them.

Following what people asked for
Once friends saw the buttons, they started asking what else I could make. Could I paint a banner for a birthday? Design stickers for a party? Take photos at a graduation? Every "could you…?" became a new offering. Today Made by Mary Scott includes hand-painted banners, custom party decor, photography, and content creation for weddings and brands.

What school added
I graduated in 2025 with a degree in Hospitality Management, with a concentration in Events. That degree taught me to think about the whole experience, not just one item. Now I'm finishing an MBA focused on digital and social marketing, so I'm learning how to help a brand tell its story, too.

More blessings than I could have planned
I never could have planned any of this. The Lord has blessed me with opportunities I would never have imagined when I made that first button, and with so many people I've met along the way: clients who trusted me with their weddings, graduations and celebrations, friends who cheered me on, and mentors who taught me. I don't take any of it for granted. Every order, every session and every "could you make this for me?" is a gift, and I want to do it with care.

What hasn't changed
Every project still starts the same way: with a conversation about what you're imagining. Then I design around it, sometimes with a mockup first, and I make it by hand. Big idea or small detail, it should feel like yours.