Today we’d like to introduce you to Kelly Jones.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
Although I’ve always loved art, face painting was never part of my plan! I have a degree in Elementary Education and worked in elementary classrooms for several years before transitioning to homeschooling my own kids. By fall of 2022, my kids were in high school and I began to consider what life would look like once the homeschooling years had come to an end. In November of that year, my husband suffered a stroke and, as a family, we found ourselves in cloud of anxiety, facing a lot of uncertainty. During those dark days of his recovery journey, I stumbled across a photo on Facebook of a child with a butterfly face painting. It was stunning, so bright and so happy! I knew I had to try it! I started researching what brushes and paints I needed, found an online retailer, and ordered some supplies, so eager to give face painting a try! In a few days the package was on my porch, and I got right to it! The paints were vivid and smooth, and while I quickly learned it wasn’t as easy as I thought it might be, it was honestly like therapy for me to sit down and work with those paints. In a season where there was so much worry, painting allowed me to escape for just a bit and watch beautiful colors spread across the canvas, whether skin or paper. Unfortunately my high schoolers were at an age where they were less than enthusiastic about letting me practice in their faces, but nieces and nephews, and other little friends from church were game to let me practice! I loved it, and knew that even with all the business knowledge I lacked, I would be willing to do what it took to consider making this part time work. (Even as I write, the word “work” is so inaccurate! I still can’t believe I get paid to do something that is LOADS of fun for me!). The summer of 2023 rolled around and Marge Morton, the manage of the Fuquay Varina Growers Market, took a chance on me and asked me to paint at the market. And from that point business has grown at a slow but steady pace, opening opportunities for me to paint at the Fuquay Varina Growers Market for the subsequent summers, many birthday parties, Galloway Ridge in Pittsboro, NCDSA events, and more. From small kids to folks in their 90’s, it has been more fun than I could have imagined, and I am so incredibly grateful to have the opportunity to do something I love and to help support my family as well!
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Overall it has been smooth, or maybe I just dont feel like the obstacles have impacted me much because of how much I love the job. Probably my biggest challenge is exactly what I thought it would be; handling the business side of it with excellence. Developing contracts, learning how to use platforms to send invoices- those are some of the things that have been necessary but not enjoyable for me! I do feel like it will always be a work in progress; I will never stop working to improve my skills, and I am always thinking about how to make everything more efficient, both in my set up and with thinking through systems that will eliminate kids ever having to wait endlessly in line…. Every event I do, I walk away with a “next time I need to” to make things a excellent as I can.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
As an artist who services primarily children, I am always working to have a catalog of menu options that are appealing to a wide audience, fun, and elaborate, but that can be completed quickly. I’m always looking to strike the perfect balance with speed and quality work! I can’t say for sure what I’m known for; I do often overhear people commenting on how quickly I work, so maybe that’s it. Without a doubt, what I most WANT to be known for is creating a few special moments for each child that sits in my chair, finding a little bit out about who they are or listening to them tell me what exciting things they’ve done that week, making sure each of them feels loved and valued!
What were you like growing up?
As a child I always loved arts and crafts. In the early elementary years nothing was more exciting than seeing that the teacher had pulled out the easels and filled their trays with tempera paints and paint brushes! I loved creating things, whether with paint, or with clay, or creating music on the piano keyboard, so it’s really no surprise that doing those things now are a way for me to relax or to recalibrate when life starts feeling a little crazy. I enjoy people but have always leaned toward being an introvert, so the one-on-one nature of face painting is a great fit! Combining artwork and hanging out with kids is pretty much a dream gig for me!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.swirligigsfacepainting.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/swirligigs/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/people/Swirligigs-Face-Painting/100094957597568/
