Today we’d like to introduce you to Yvonne Smith.
Yvonne, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
When I first met my husband Tim, he dreamt of owning his own business. I on the other hand dreamt of owning an art studio that was open for the community where people of all ages, from all walks of life, of all creative abilities, could come and create. I have lived in Blount County for over 45 years. I went to elementary, middle and high school here as well as attending Maryville College as an Art major and lastly attended UT Knoxville for an education degree. I feel that Blount County is my home, these are my people, this is where my children have grown up and where I have worked for the last 20 plus years. When the opportunity came for my husband and I to start a business, there was nowhere else we wanted to be. We took a huge leap of faith and began building this dream.
We bought our building in April of 2020, right after the world-wide pandemic had erupted. Tim had lost his job back in 2019 due to a cyber attack on the company he worked for. At that time I was teaching art in public schools. While growing up here in Blount County and raising my own children here, there had never been a community art center. So we decided to open our own business and create one. We didn’t have a business background but are hard-workers willing to do what was needed. It took 6 months to get everything aligned and to open our doors to the public in the summer of 2020.
In our main studio we offer people from all creative abilities the opportunity to be successful artists. We have a variety of fun projects to stir up their creative sides and inspire their inner artist. We provide all the tools, materials, and all the cleanup. We have a large variety of regular projects including painting pottery, glass fusing, acrylic pours, string art, alcohol ink tiles, spin art, metal stamping jewelry, and as well as projects painting on wood, vinyl, or canvas. One of our unique attractions is that our building used to be a bank in its first few decades. We decided the best use for that space was to create a paint splatter, paint slinging, paint flicking room. So it became the Spatter Vault.
Creative Spark Studio also has a room dedicated for monthly art classes including watercolor, clay handbuilding, jewelry making, seasonal decor, and more. We have outside teachers that share their expertise including blacksmithing and sewing.
We host lots of birthday parties and team building groups as well as off site painting and group events.
One of the things that sets us apart from other art places is that our main studio is walk-in. Anytime we are open, people can come ignite their creativity and choose from over 200 different pottery pieces on the shelf as well as all the different projects including glass fusing. We love what we’ve created and feel blessed by family and friends that have encouraged us along the way. We hope that our community will continue to come make memories and be inspired to create with us.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
The thing about owning and running a small business is that we had no baseline for what to expect. We researched, took classes, joined small business groups, which helped, but its like navigating a jungle. We hope we are headed in the right direction, but there are always obstacles.
Our first major obstacle was starting this in the spring of 2020. We had the contract on buying our building, and then Covid hit the nation and world. Everything was at a standstill One thing we chose to do was buy furniture and tables where we could through antique stores and even auctions. Those pieces that we had to buy new, had unknown time frames as entire companies were shut down with no date of opening. When we ordered our kiln in May 2020, the factory was shut down. After a month, we ended up buying a floor model because it was the only way to obtain a new kiln. The one we bought didn’t fit through the front door, so it had to be unboxed and brought in in pieces. It also required an electrician to spend a day bringing in a new outlet as it was higher voltage.
Another big obstacle is figuring out ways to market our business. We have tried so many different types like radio promotions, billboards, paid internet ads, sponsoring youth groups and teams, and even offering coupons. It is still something we re-evaulate regularly.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
My goal is to provide a place for all people and all abilities to come create in an affordable and safe space.
Art has been one of the most constant areas of my life. I was one of those kids that got in trouble for drawing on the wall. I remember vividly that my grandmother had coloring books and crayons that I could color to my hearts content.
I was a vocational nurse, then a public school art teacher, and for the last 5+ years an art studio owner/director. I hold a philosophy that art has the means to allow people to heal, to speak through the act of creating, a way of processing all the feelings and emotions of daily life and just BE. Oftentimes it is the process of creating and not the end result, although we do love a great result, that gives us an inner peace.
Our studio specializes in providing a space dedicated to our community’s creativity. We offer lots of walk-in projects which can be made with as much or little help as needed. Additionally we offer small group classes where everything is included and expert teachers provide step-by-step instruction. Have a bad day, come create. Want to celebrate something, come create with us. Looking for more instruction or other types of class? Let us know and we will see if we can help or guide you to someone else that can provide that type of art.
One of the things that sets us apart is we are walk-in based. No appointments required for projects like pottery painting, glass fusing, acrylic paintings, alcohol ink projects, metal stamping, the splatter vault, and more. Plus we offer such a wide variety of projects that we truly feel we offer something for everyone including those that say they aren’t naturally artsy.
I am very proud of the space we have created, the types of projects we offer, as well as all the classes we offer. We are so fortunate to have amazing people that work with us. We love our community.
Is there a quality that you most attribute to your success?
I love people and I value the benefit of art in our lives. For me it’s been the constant in my life. I think sometimes it gets intimidating to go buy all the materials, try something, and then clean everything up. At Creative Spark we have already bought the supplies, created pieces for inspiration, and we can give tips and tricks to make customers art successful. Plus, we do all the cleanup. My goal is to provide a place in our community where creativity abounds when they need an outlet. In this space, all people can be successful, encouraged, and accepted.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://creativesparkstudiotn.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/creativesparktn/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100065053352211
Image Credits
All images owned by Creative Spark Studio
