Lainey Molnar is using her wildly popular comics to dismantle double standards, affirm choice, and spark joy—one square at a time.
If you’ve ever cried in a Target parking lot, rage-screamed at the phrase “biological clock,” or wondered whether your “food baby” is visible through your dress, chances are you’ve seen a Lainey Molnar comic. With over 900,000 Instagram followers and a global fanbase, the 38-year-old Hungarian artist—now based in the Netherlands—has built a digital sanctuary where women can feel seen, supported, and a little less alone.
Through colorful, candid illustrations, Molnar tackles everything from body image and reproductive rights to the sacred absurdity of modern spirituality—offering up a daily dose of feminist truth with a wink and a wand. With sharp wit and soft lines, the self-proclaimed “Sloppy Witch” is redefining womanhood through comics that are as healing as they are hilarious. Whether she’s celebrating the choice to remain child-free or dragging sexist trolls in the comments, Molnar transforms everyday experiences into bold, beautifully honest art that transcends the algorithm.
After following @lainey.molnar and falling head over heels for how seen her comics make me feel, I slid into her DMs to chat about her passions, her process, and how this fearless feminist artist finds the inspiration to inspire others.
Scrolling through your feed to find the perfect comic has been impossible—I love all of them. Do you have a favorite?
Thank you so much! I truly can’t pick a favorite because I love how each comic comes to life through the interpretations of my followers. Reading their personal stories, jokes, and opinions in the comments and messages is the best part of my work.
Have you always been an artist?
I believe every person is born an artist, but many fall victim to societal pressure, thinking they need to suppress that part of themselves because they’re “not good enough,” it’s not a serious career, or it’s a waste of time. Others keep it as a hobby, never daring to call themselves the big “A” word. We should throw that word around more! But even as a full-time artist, my knee-jerk reaction is still, “No, no, I’m not an artist; I’m just doodling.” So ignoring the inner critic: yes, I have! Drawing and creating have been my outlet since kindergarten. If I’m not drawing, I’m crafting, building, or refurbishing. For me, it’s not just self-expression; it’s meditation and emotional processing. It’s the biggest part of my life.
What inspired you to start drawing comics of this nature?
During the pandemic I was going through some rough personal issues, and I drew constantly just to feel a bit better. I have an old friend who’s a professional comic book artist and had encouraged me for years to experiment with the format, so I finally decided to give it a try and explore my experiences as a woman in this world on social media, without expectations. What I didn’t realize was that my experience resonated with hundreds of thousands of women globally. My work became a collaborative space, transcending my own perspective. My goal now is to depict the diverse experiences of as many women as possible.
What has been your most “controversial” comic so far?
I wish there were just one, but apparently much of what I think is common sense—like bodily autonomy or being happily single—often receives backlash, especially from a particular group of conservative men. To them, I’m a villain because I haven’t been “picked” by a man, so in their minds, I’m trying to brainwash women to swear off men as revenge for my “spinsterhood.” It’s a little more complex than a normal disagreement.
I wanted to expand on the backlash—a shocking amount of triggered men troll your posts. While their ignorant tantrums could be seen as validating for a feminist fighting against patriarchal norms, no amount of validation can change how frightening it is to be publicly threatened. How do you keep your head above water? How do you protect yourself?
I generally have a pretty thick skin; I’ve been existing publicly on the internet since my MySpace emo days 20 years ago, so not much surprises me. But it’s wild. My friends always say they don’t know how I deal with it, but I just do. Someone has to, because these things need to be talked about if we’re ever going to see change, and awareness is where it starts.
You’ve been doing this line of work for years. How have you grown in both your artistic style and personal approach?
My artistic style hasn’t changed much, but after four years of creating feminist art, I recently made the anxiety-inducing decision to dial down the activism and focus more on the joy and beauty of womanhood. The constant anger and helplessness had completely drained me. I still stand for women’s rights from every angle, but I also now create comics about silly or relatable everyday things. It’s helped me find my creativity and peace again, even if it means losing some followers.
Much like yourself, many of BUST’s readers and writers identify as child-free. The positive representation of this identity shown in your comics is awesomely affirming. That being said, how enraging is it that child-free women are so highly scrutinized that affirmation feels necessary?
It makes me really happy that you provide a platform for this conversation! It’s frustrating that the world isn’t ready for women to make their own choices, so this needs to be discussed publicly over and over. There’s nothing radical about not wanting children; if anything, it’s a natural progression for women in a capitalist patriarchy built on their unpaid domestic labor, raising the future workforce, and enduring glass ceilings, inequality, and minimal support. This isn’t to say motherhood isn’t beautiful—it’s the hardest job in the world, and I draw many comics in support of moms. But it should be an opt-in choice, not the default.
Lastly, but certainly not least, what does being a feminist mean to you?
It means I believe that every human being deserves the rights, freedom, acceptance, and support to live an authentic, fulfilled, and stable life. I believe in equality not just in gender but across race, socioeconomic standing, and sexuality because feminism doesn’t exist without intersectionality. Womanhood and femininity aren’t labels or categories with set definitions—they’re an infinite rainbow of identities that a woman is free to choose for herself. I believe that women hold divinity, a deep sacred knowledge and power that’s been suppressed, because if it flowed freely, dominance, greed, inequality, and violence would cease to exist. Feminism means uplifting and celebrating women, amplifying their voices, listening to them, and standing together, not just for support but for a better future.
Whether she’s unpacking internalized shame with a well-placed punchline or helping women reconnect with their power through art and intuition, Molnar’s mission remains clear: to affirm the complexity and validity of every woman’s experience.
In a world obsessed with filters, expectations, and control, Molnar offers something radical: truth, in full color.
In addition to her comics, the artist offers spiritual classes and one-on-one intuitive guidance through her second Instagram account, @hellothisislainey, where she shares her work as a clairvoyant and Sacred Feminine mentor. Her main page, @lainey.molnar, is a daily dispatch of wit, wisdom, and really cute outfits.
