Today we’d like to introduce you to Paulina Reyes.
Paulina, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I own Fairview Design, which is a bespoke calligraphy and signage company that creates beautiful pieces to fulfill all the decor needs of your life and any event like weddings, birthdays, graduations, and all the showers! I’ve always been incredibly creative, artistic, and right-brained. I LOVE to doodle and draw, and I started this primarily for fun and because it was a cute way to eliminate stress. I’m self-taught, and in all honesty when I first started, I was awful! I’m very impatient and it was very difficult for me to practice because I wanted to be good and I wanted to be good NOW! Haha!
One of my friends owns a few Pure Barre studios and saw some of my doodles on Facebook and asked me to do some promotional chalkboards for her studios, and I honestly didn’t think anything would come of it- I thought she was just being nice. But I did the chalkboards, and I posted them on my personal Facebook and Instagram and then another friend asked me to write out her vows to her future stepdaughter and it honestly snowballed from that. Friends started noticing my work on my personal social media and I thought, “why not give it a try to start an actual Instagram for this?” so I did, and the rest is history. Not really, though. I’ve gone through so much trial and error and I have learned SO much through my mistakes. I’m very fortunate to have several friends who are very talented wedding coordinators, venue managers, and venue owners, and they’ve been kind enough to refer me their brides and invite me to their open houses. I’ve met some really cool people through social media, and some not-so-cool people through social media. A lot of people preach “community over competition” but few people actually practice that, so it’s incredibly refreshing to meet, even virtually, those who mean what they say. It’s definitely been quite the ride so far and I’ve met some fantastic people along the way, and I can’t wait to see where else it takes me.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Definitely not! Like I mentioned before, a lot has been trial and error, as well as learning through my mistakes. I work a corporate job full time, so this is my side hustle after working all day, going to the gym, running errands, taking care of the house and my animals, being a newlywed, not to mention trying to find a little time to sleep or take some time for myself. It’s definitely exhausting, especially when I have huge orders, or multiple orders at once. I have so many moments where I think “I can’t do this” or “I’m not going to make it or pull it off.”
Unfortunately, I had people actually reuse, not copy, but actually reuse my work before. I was devastated and shocked that someone had the nerve to do this. I had designed a chalkboard for a wedding and the person using the chalkboard the following week erased part of my work, added on to it, and called all of it their own without giving me any of the credit. I was so angry, frustrated, and upset.
Pricing can often be a difficult and uncomfortable conversation and as much as I love helping out friends and family, some can still take advantage of me and don’t always value my work. I went out of my way for a friend’s wedding because I knew she was paying for all of it herself, and I made a huge, beautiful welcome sign, 12 hangers for the bride and bridesmaids, and sign with lyrics from her and her husband’s wedding song. I was also extremely naive and very early on in my business and made the mistake of asking my friend what she felt like the value of all this was, and she said $75. I was crushed, but because I made the mistake of asking, I couldn’t go back and ask for more money.
I don’t always remember to keep up with my social media accounts and I have plenty of late nights and early mornings, and one time I was so exhausted preparing for an open house that I forgot to add the table numbers on a seating chart! I have no doubt I’ll have plenty more mistakes in my future, but if it was easy, then everyone would do it, right?
Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about Fairview Design – what should we know?
Fairview Design is a custom calligraphy and signage company that creates bespoke pieces to fit all of your decor needs for your life and your events. I officially started it about two and a half years ago, and while most people assume I only create signage and designs for weddings and wedding related events like showers and bachelorette parties, in reality I do so much more. I do signs for baby showers, baby names/calendars to track growth over time, nursery decor, quotes for home decor, Christmas and holiday quotes and decorations (like ornaments!), graduation announcements, birthday signage, new homeowner, fitness studio signage, and so much more. It’s not just limited to signage either. My motto is as long as I can write on it, I can letter on it, and I’m always up for the challenge. I letter on champagne, wine, and liquor bottles which make for awesome gifts any time of year or occasion, and lately I’ve also been doing leather jackets.
After recently getting married myself, I’ve recognized that as cute as all the “Mrs” and “fiance” merchandise is in the moment, no one has a need for it (or the storage space) after the wedding, which is why I offer signs for rent. Through participating in multiple open houses and various styled shoots, I’ve created a wide inventory of signs and to my husband’s horror, I’ve taken over the guest room and turned it into a sign and material storage. I have ready-made signs that already have quotes on them that brides can use and rent out for their big day, and I also have blank signs and mirrors that brides can request a custom quote/design to rent out the piece. Of course, the signs and mirrors are always available for purchase for the brides, but the idea is to make things easier for the bride and remove the step of them having to source the materials themselves.
I’m proud of how much I’ve learned along the way, and how sustainable my little business has become in a pretty short amount of time. The best part is getting to play a small role in someone’s big day; it’s an incredibly rewarding feeling. I absolutely love seeing pictures of my work “in the wild”, and seeing how someone uses it and the joy it brings them. That’s what makes me proudest.
Is there a characteristic or quality that you feel is essential to success?
I’ll pick two qualities that kind of go hand-in-hand: hard work and persistence. You don’t have to be the smartest or most talented person in the room, but if you work hard and work your ass off, you will get there. I’ve always been the person who puts way too much on their plate, sometimes to my detriment, but I like being busy and I like working hard. It forces me to be organized and on top of my A-game 100% of the time. It can be incredibly stressful at times, but it definitely makes life interesting. Whether it’s for my corporate job, my side hustle, or something else, I apply the same mentality; I always stay on top of something until it gets done, and a lot of times I’m persistent to the point of being annoying. I was working on a really important, huge initiative for my corporate job and I had to quickly coordinate input from lots of people and I kept following up with them via email, IM, in person, etc. until it got done. Was I like a little mosquito buzzing around in their ears? Probably. Did I care? Not really, because getting the result was more important. TCB and GSD.
Oftentimes I’m so tired and it can be so hard to keep going and pushing through, but that persistence helps me move forward. I think as someone with a side hustle, you have to be able to work hard and not be scared to get your hands a little dirty, you have to be persistent and be able to keep going when the going gets tough, and sometimes you have to be a little crazy to go after your dreams.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://linktr.ee/fairview.design
- Phone: 4698673527
- Email: paulina@fairview.design
Image Credit:
@looandlollie, @cactusandcoastphotography, @melissaclairephoto, @brunakitchenphotography
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