Today we’d like to introduce you to Jenn Carter.
Hi Jenn, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
CRTR Designs LLC was created out of a dream turned necessity. I have always loved woodworking and have tried to carry it with me throughout my life. I started out woodworking as a kid and that got me into building scenery for the theatre shows in high school. When I went to college, I ended up majoring in Technical Theatre and my degree is essentially in Carpentry for Theatre. I worked in theatre professionally as a Master Carpenter and Head Carpenter for a couple of years. Then my career took a bit of a turn when I found myself enjoying life and thriving as a Production Master Electrician for Live Events, Film, and Television in Atlanta.
When Covid started, I was lighting two different television shows here in Atlanta which were put on hold and eventually canceled due to the pandemic. In the aftermath of having all of the work I had scheduled for the remainder of 2020 cancel within the span of four days, I packed up and moved back to my hometown (Warner Robins, GA) with my parents until my career could come back.
It was during this time of uncertainty and lack of work that I dove back into my woodworking hobby. I needed something to fill my days so I did not go crazy from boredom. It wasn’t long after starting to design and create that I started having friends ask me to craft them custom wood pieces for their homes. After about a month of moving and starting this journey of fighting boredom, I had a solid foundation for a small business.
I spoke with some of my friends who own small businesses to see how life as a small business owner could work and after about a week of asking around, I had officially filed to become a LLC.
Thus CRTR Designs LLC was born.
As 2021 rang in, my career in entertainment and the production industry started to return. It has been an interesting struggle to figure out and maneuver both sides of my life. I love my career, I never want to give that up. However, I’ve fallen back in love with woodworking and it brings me peace. I do not want to lose my passion and lose the time to maintain and thrive with my small business so I have been trying to find ways to keep both alive at the same time.
What started as a rejuvenated hobby has become a truly rewarding small business in so many ways.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
The biggest struggle I have faced with my small business is the exposure. In all honesty, I haven’t been the best help for myself in that department. I think it is mainly due to the fact of CRTR Designs LLC starting out of a hobby and quickly turning into my only source of income for about a year. Owning and operating a small woodworking business as only one person who has a career put on hold is hard.
It has been difficult to truly give myself fully to my business because part of my heart is still dedicated to my career. I love what I do so trying to maintain and navigate having both in my life is an ongoing adventure which has been both eye-opening and terrifying.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
Experience. From the beginning, my goal was to create one-of-a-kind pieces that elicit and evoke an experience with each use.
Whether that is a gathering of friends around a charcuterie board or a dinner party featuring some of my serving boards, I want each owner of a CRTR Designs product to find joy each time they use one of my pieces.
Each piece I craft is truly unique. I try never to replicate a piece. If a client sees a piece I have previously created and would like the same thing, I will work with them to create a similar piece that satisfies their wants but it will be different from any piece I’ve ever created in its own way.
I find this to be one way to show myself through my work. No one goes through life without changing. Without growing. So why should my work replicate and mirror itself. (I have no intention of belittling someone who does beautiful works more than once.)
I simply structure my business and my love of creating around the premise of truly unique creations.
Before we let you go, we’ve got to ask if you have any advice for those who are just starting out?
Trust your instincts. Chase your dreams. I know, I know, “chase your dreams” is so cliche and boring right? But stick with me. As a kid and teenager, I had this small idea of one day having woodworking as a big part of my life, of grooming that passion and skill into something bigger.
But I put it on the back burner for so many years. I ignored the dream because I didn’t believe it was attainable.
It only took a global pandemic, a pause in my career, and an immediate need to pay bills to push me to make the dream a reality.
I’m not sure where I would be right now if I hadn’t trusted myself and took the leap. I have such a strong support group behind me who have enabled, encouraged, and excited me to follow this path. Even in moments when I have felt the entire path has been riddled with impossibility and hardships, I’ve persevered… probably because I’m too stubborn to give up. But nonetheless, owning a small business is no easy task.
It is full of tough decisions and compromises. Yet, it is also an opportunity and avenue for personal discovery and growth.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.crtrdesigns.com
- Instagram: @crtrdesigns
Image Credits:
CRTR Designs LLC
