About two months ago I moved from the beautiful city of Portland, OR back to my hometown of Denton, TX. The catalyst for the move was my family, namely my niece who will be a year and a half at the end of the month. But as much as I love them, my family wasn’t enough of a reason in itself to pick up and move over 2,000 miles and leave a city and lifestyle that I love, a wonderful job and an amazing group of friends.
Throughout my life, I have found that my work is more often than not the main motivating factor in my decision making. I moved away from Austin because I wanted to gain an experience outside of anything I’d ever known and found myself working on a goat ranch in SW Colorado. After a few farm seasons and a couple of years working for an architect in Colorado, I decided I wanted to gain experience in non-profits and entrepreneurship which lead me to Portland.
When deciding where in Texas to move I thought long and hard about Denton, how it’s changed since I last lived here over 10 years ago, where it’s headed and how I might incorporate what I want to do into the growth of the town. Denton is a pretty cool town, if I do say so myself. It’s got a thriving music scene and you can catch quality live music any night of the week. The art and craft scene is also booming with galleries, craft shows, and First Fridays gallery walks. The downtown is anchored by the county seat courthouse and surrounded by blocks of coffee shops, bars, restaurants, galleries, theaters and shops.
It is because of the growth, and the attitude of the town that helped me make my decision that Denton, not just Texas was the place for me to move to. It is receptive to creativity without being inundated by designers and makers. I believe that there is room for me and my work here and I want to help Denton continue to grow in a way that values local businesses and embraces the creative energy that lives here.
And so I moved back. And I set up shop in my parent’s garage which is where I will rework materials that inspire me to transform them into something new. I will make light fixtures, I will teach myself how to upholster, I will strip away layers of paint and salvage pieces that I see the potential in. I’m grateful to finally have the space to make.
First draft business card
My stock of decorative paper stored in whiskey containers.
The only piece of furniture I moved back with, my lovely vintage white cabinet filled with fabric and leather.
Shelf loaded with materials I will transform. I see makings for at least 6 different lighting fixtures.
Some items I moved here with, most of them I scavenged from my mom’s pile. Can’t wait to see what comes from the old croquet set holder.
My first order of business, now that my space is set up. I will use library books to teach myself to make a box cushion and turn this piano bench into an adorable automaton.
The wares that I make will be for sale starting in March. Check back for details!
fab:refab 
Looking forward to the new upholster skills. Your space is looking ready for creating. Yay!
Very cool! I similarly moved back to my hometown for reasons like you. I’ve been here for a little over a year, and it is challenging, but also really rewarding to make things work in a smaller city!