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Wrenwood Designs
I was born creative
Wrenwood Designs existed in my mind a long time before I actually started the business. I was born creative; art and music were my first loves and I was a pro musician for more than a decade. I’ve always enjoyed designing and making things, my home is a haven for crafting.
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7 years ago I became a single parent to my 3 beautiful children. My youngest was just 2 at the time, and it soon became clear that my music career would have to be put on hold. I threw myself into full time parenting; that creative “itch” was always there though and once my youngest reached school age, I found a job in a well known craft store. I didn’t realise it at the time, but that job was the beginning of my career as I know it now.
After a difficult time in my personal life, a sudden house move and a shock medical diagnosis, I decided that now was the time to start working for myself again. Wrenwood Designs was born just before Covid hit, at the very end of 2019. The business looked quite different back then; I actually started off making macrame wall hangings!
Throughout the lockdowns I rediscovered my love of art, and after extensive research online, I realised there was a way to put my art onto things like tea towels. And so began the long process of learning all about dye sublimation.
My early designs were quite different to those that I produce now. I knew that I wanted everything to be inspired by nature; I grew up on the South Devon coast and love being by the sea. I design everything digitally now, my medical condition (I have Crohn’s disease) can make me feel quite unwell and it can be hard to hold a pencil or paintbrush steady. I use a mixture of Procreate and Affinity Designer to create everything, which actually speeds up the process as I don’t need to digitalise my designs anymore.
I’m extremely proud of the way Wrenwood Designs has developed over the last 18 months. People seem to like what I do, and the business is steadily growing despite my health problems, which do slow me down a lot of the time. I turn 40 this year and I’m finally able to say that I have a career which I’m not just proud of, but excited about. I can’t wait to see what the next few years bring!
