November 12, 2016

Meet Roswell Woodworking: Carissa Williams

Local Stories

Today we’d like to introduce you to Carissa Williams.

Carissa, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I’ve always created things from cooking, sewing, building, and painting. In 2014, I decided to sell some of my things and the response was great! Each day is different and I never know what’s around the corner, but that’s all part of the fun for me. I love that there is always something to learn. I love meeting new clients, other makers and finding new inspirations.

Has it been a smooth road?
There are some smooth days but I would say most days it is hard. My biggest struggle by far is that it’s just me. From the concept, gathering the supplies, building, finishing, delivery, social media, and administrative work. While I’m sure working with a partner would have some downsides I would love to have another person to bounce ideas off of, learn from and split the load.

What’s the hardest part of your job?
I would say doing everything! From concept to final product it is 100% on me. While working with a partner can be challenging in a creative field I would welcome the opportunity to work with other creatives. I would love to incorporate other materials and skills into my products that I just don’t possess such as welding as an example.

What are you striving for, what criteria or markers have you set as indicators of success?
I would define it as being happy & satisfied on a daily basis. Not all days will you have ideas coming fast & furious and 100% enthusiasm but an all around happiness with the path you’re on. My markers would be, are my kids & husband happy, are my clients happy with the work I’m producing and am I proud of the things I’ve made and put out into the world. It took me a while to learn to stand behind what I’m producing and not let others dictate what they think I should be producing. That was a huge mark of success for me.

So, what should we be on the lookout for, what’s next in store for you?
You know with my life I’ve learned to take each day one at a time and more importantly enjoy each day to the fullest. I am okay with not having a grand master plan at this point. I’m happy letting this journey unfold as it comes. Our business name has a double meaning; the salvaging of materials is primary but secondary is we have an autistic daughter so the plans we thought we were going to achieve with our lives changed dramatically! It took many years to find peace with all the challenges our family faces and we work daily to salvage our happiness, health, and peace for our family. Her challenges quickly put a lot of things in perspective and taught me, specifically, to be happy with what you have, each day is going to be unique whether you like it or not and to not sweat the small stuff because it just doesn’t matter at the end of the day.

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