Today we’d like to introduce you to Angela Wyatt.
Angela, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
After graduating from Baylor University with a degree in Athletic Training/Sports Medicine almost ten years ago, I was a little lost. I was working, but not fulfilled at all. I decided to spend my free time working on building a website and community, for women, by women. I have always had some sort of personal blog, dating back to the days of Xanga when I was in high school. But for this site, I aimed to create more of a community. I wanted essays and articles from my friends that I knew had interesting perspectives on the world. So I created a WordPress site, a logo, and some social accounts and got started writing and gathering content. I was having so much fun with it all, so I decided to go back to school to really learn the graphic and web design skills that I was trying to teach myself via Google and YouTube.
Choosing to go back to school was probably one of the better decisions I’ve made in my adult life. I got my first freelance client while I was still in school, and got to put my newly-discovered graphic design skills, along with my copywriting and social media skills to use in the real world. From there, I started working full-time, and for the past five years, I have been working as a graphic designer, copywriter, social media manager, blogger, content creator, and all-around creative for everyone from small businesses with a handful of employees up to an international company with 60,000 employees around the globe.
I also realized that I love the creativity that running Instagram accounts provides and started taking my own personal Instagram more seriously a few years ago. That is probably where I have the most fun creatively. I’ve made it my personal mission to bring as much color to the world as possible via peoples’ phone screens – via my colorful home, colorful, instagrammable restaurants, and DFW’s fun pop-up art installation scene. We have had so many pop-ups the last couple of years, like Sweet Tooth Hotel and Museum of Memories, and they provide the perfect canvas and inspiration for a color lover’s ideas.
I also run an Instagram account that is dedicated to trying all of the coffee shops around the Metroplex, which allows me get creative with photos and captions in a different way (and also keeps me caffeinated!)
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?
Is anything ever a smooth road??
The main struggle of my entrepreneurship/freelancing journey has been finances. In the beginning, I would have more clients some months, and then some would drop off, so the experience of never really knowing how much money you would bring in each month would really wear me down.
There is also the issue of people not understanding the value of what a creative does, and not wanting to pay you what you’re worth. I am finally in a place where I’m comfortable, but it took many years of learning to value myself and my work, overcoming the impostor syndrome that so many creatives face, and gaining confidence in my abilities to get here.
So, as you know, we’re impressed with Wonderland Design & Creative – tell our readers more, for example what you’re most proud of as a company and what sets you apart from others.
Wonderland Design & Creative is a full-service creative boutique. We handle everything from graphic design of marketing materials, logos and brand identities, copywriting and blogging, and social media consultation. Everything we create is colorful with a touch of whimsy, which I think helps me and my clients stand out a bit more.
I think the aspect that sets Wonderland apart is that I am fully immersed in the online creativity world. I am constantly learning, digging, exploring, and making sure I am on top of trends, changes, strategies, and everything else that is part of that ever-evolving climate. I love the culture of social media and am so interested in where it’s going to be 5 or 10 years from now.
My own personal blog and Instagram account are also part of Wonderland, which is probably what I’m most proud of. My biggest focus in 2020 is going to be the growth of those platforms.
So, what’s next? Any big plans?
In 2020, I would really like to focus more on branding than I have in the past. Creating complete branding identities is something I really have a passion for, and I hope to be able to bring in more clients in that area. It would be amazing if Wonderland Design could be a full-time branding studio in the near future.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.wonderlanddesigntx.com
- Phone: 817.235.3602
- Email: angela@wonderlanddesigntx.com
- Instagram: instagram.com/angelawyatt
- Other: agirlandadoodle.com
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