We recently connected with Karen Filos and have shared our conversation below.
Karen , thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Can you open up about a risk you’ve taken – what it was like taking that risk, why you took the risk and how it turned out?
Change is good. At age 50 I took a risk that changed my life entirely. I gave up my 30 years of being a successful hair and makeup artist and dove right into learning and becoming a hat maker. My husband and I launched out 3 young adult children out in the real world and moved from Georgia to Montana.
Taking risks was a trait I learned from my parents who took the courageous journey and immigrated to this country in 1970 from Brazil and planted roots in New Jersey with nothing in their pockets but fifty dollars and a lot of hope. Their unwavering work ethic and ability to create community and friendships laid the foundation for my entrepreneurial spirit. I actively seek out opportunities to expand my knowledge and capabilities. I believe there comes a time in life when you can choose to stick with whats comfortable or your can choose to grow.
For me growth is a necessary part of life that keeps relationships evolving, it teaches you new skills, expands your knowledge and invites you to meet new people and learn new perspectives. Taking risks and making changes that allow growth can lead to a more fulfilling and meaningful existence.
For my husband and I, we took a risk and made a home in Paradise Valley Montana. The beauty of Montana and all that it offers in outdoor adventure made it easy to stay for long periods of time. The challenge for us was being far from our family and friendships. However once we really decided to be open to making Montana home, we were so pleased at how naturally we formed community and connection. New opportunities unfolded during our short time here and we now have a scenic event venue on 20 acres of mountainside property for hosting events and retreats. My hat business has been so fulfilling and continues to thrive with pop ups on the east and soon on the west coast, and a new brick and mortar set to open this February in Livingston, Montana.
My husband and I have been married 26 years and have so many new adventures we are enjoying as empty nesters.
Life can change and you can choose growth at any age. Its never to late.
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.
I was born in the heart of New Jersey, my journey intertwines with the journey of my parents who immigrated to this country and influenced me with their unwavering perseverance which became the blueprint for my own ambitions.
From them, I inherited not just a work ethic and a belief, that challenges are not roadblocks but stepping stones towards growth and transformation.
Through their guidance, I learned to channel my creativity into avenues that not only fulfilled me but also uplifted those around me.
Thorough my work as a hair and makeup artist I had the opportunity to meet incredible people that also became friends and introduced me to so many avenues of creativity in costume design, film, photoshoots in addition to working with people in a salon.
My industry gave me the opportunity to connect with people on a deep level.
My creative work was most rewarding when I connected with people in conversation and when my work and designs brought them joy.
After 30 years in the beauty industry I was inspired to create hats for friends as gifts. I’ve always loved to create editorial styles on hair using many forms of props through my career in hairstyling. So it felt natural to create hats that had a personal touch to offer as gifts to friends. I received so many requests for hats that with the encouragement of friends I decided to create hats and sell them at local shops in my hometown and take custom orders for one of kind hats.
The name of my hat line came to me quickly as I often reference my late friend Naomi for being such a creative inspiration in my life.
In my time with Naomi we both worked together for years in the beauty industry and shared the love of creating editorial looks for fashion shoots and designing accessories together.
“Frik n Frak” is a play on words from the original Frick and Frack which means any two people who are closely linked in some way, especially through a work partnership or strong friendship. We were often called Frick and Frack because of our bond in our work creatively and personally during our time as roommates in the early 90’s.
As we both discovered a cancer diagnosis at the same time in 2016 we began to spend some time doing creative projects with jewelry and leather. We thought to take this time to focus on our art and develop and accessory line called “Frik n Frak” as a form of healing. Unfortunately time was cut short for my sweet, creative and inspiring friend and she passed in 2018.
In her honor I’ve dedicated my art, jewelry and hat designs as Frik n Frak Designs . Naomi continues to live in my art and heart.
Since becoming a hat maker where I mostly work alone I’ve created a way to connect women together to find their creative
spirit through art retreats here in Paradise Valley Montana.
It is truly a place to be inspired by nature and lean into the creativity that lives in us all. My journey is about shared experiences, inviting others to embrace a life grounded with creativity, balance and joy.
Is there mission driving your creative journey?
The mission behind my creative journey has always been to inspire, bring joy and hope to others.
My work is most rewarding when I see people genuinely happy from something I have created for them.
Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?
As a child I grew up relocating almost every year of my youth leaving me to figure out how to start over in school and friendships. I had to learn a trade and support myself at age 17 after my parents divorced.
Through adversity I developed the resiliency I needed to have the courage to create a life I wanted and use my trade to find work. My experiences developed the communication and leadership skills that gave me the tools to survive.
In my adult years without a college education I built and sold a business, relocated my family after suffering a massive financial loss, overcame cancer, and faced extreme challenges that came parenting my teens, and recently lost the most inspirational woman in my life, my mother, to pancreatic cancer.
These experiences could have broken my spirit and drive for growth. But instead I chose to make them opportunities to learn and press forward.
I learned that although we can’t control everything in life we can choose to make our challenges opportunities for growth. There is always a lesson when facing adversity.
We are not promised a life without problems. It’s how we handle adversity that creates our destiny.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.peaceofparadisemontana.com and www.karenfilos.com
- Instagram: @peaceofpararadisemt @friknfrakdesigns
- Facebook: Peace of Paradise Montana
- Yelp: Peace of Paradise Montana
- Other: Subtack: https://substack.com/@karenfilos
Image Credits
Photography by: Chloe Nostrant