Today we’d like to introduce you to Carrie Willard.
Carrie, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I graduated with a Fine Arts degree from Berry College and swiftly moved into the graphic design and marketing field. I believed that my need to be creative would be fulfilled while providing a comfortable salary. Fast forward a few years, and I realized graphic design was not the right path for me. A small, Roswell-based marketing company took a chance and gave me a position as a Traffic Coordinator.
The only qualifications I had was my design background and some mad organizational skills. At the agency, my process improvement, organizational, and management skills blossomed. And I enjoyed being surrounded by talented, creative designers yet not have the stress of looming design deadlines. I loved my co-workers, using my talents, and the work that we accomplished together. But something was missing.
I longed to be with my family and not just be a shadow passing in the night after a long day at the office. Stepping away from the career that I had built over many years was scary, but I took the risk and hadn’t looked back. And here I am now – taking care of my family, using my creative talents, and loving every minute of it.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc. – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
Every road has bumps, and my path is no different. Some days it’s finding the time to fit it all in. While others it’s questioning what could I be doing to make my work better and unique. I’m blessed to have a network of people who support and encourage me when obstacles arise.
We’d love to hear more about your business.
I am located in the suburbs of Atlanta. I work out of my home, mostly my garage. My only commute is taking my kids to school in the morning and the rest of my day is dedicated to my creativity.
As I stated, my garage is my home base as I’m always using power tools and creating a dusty mess. We installed solar panels on our home and are now generating our own power, and I feel even better about powering up my tools.
I’m proud of the fact that the materials I use in all my projects are mostly “found” and upcycled. I consider myself a mixed media artist, so I work with all types of mediums – wood, canvas, paint, stain, glue, whatever inspires me. I grab wood or furniture from the curb on trash day.
I buy great gallery-style canvases at Goodwill for a fraction of the retail price. Whenever I see a thrift or consignment store, I stop. And I can often be spotted picking up metal objects in parking lots. There is always a treasure to be found, and I feel like these touches set me apart from other artists who create similar hand-painted pallet signs.
But in all honesty, I do need to purchase certain items from the “big box” stores. Such as hanging hardware, nails, screws, certain types of paint, florals for my wreaths. I try very hard to reuse or incorporate existing materials into my art, but sometimes I don’t have all the pieces.
When I make my trips to the store, I have a list to minimize the back, and forth that can happen with my “mommy-brain”. Art is beautiful and even better when it’s sustainable.
What were you like growing up?
I was a shy kid. I’m the youngest of three, and there are big age gaps between me and my siblings. I spend a lot of time in my room with legos and coloring books. My first creative endeavor has painting color blocks on my bedroom walls. I didn’t ask my mom if it was OK.
Fortunately, she wasn’t too mad at me when she saw my work. I was always re-arranging my room and organizing it which has carried over into my adult life. I could always concentrate on my school work better if everything around me was in place.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.etsy.com/shop/FoundForYouArt
- Phone: 4045105737
- Email: foundforyouart@gmail.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/foundforyouart/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/foundforyouart/
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