We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful KC Garcia. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with KC below.
KC, appreciate you joining us today. Can you talk to us about a risk you’ve taken – walk us through the story?
Taking a big risk in something you’re not one hundred percent sure about is a pretty scary thought! At a young age we are taught skill sets to make sure we succeed in whatever job we decided wether that be medical, teaching or field jobs. To think that being a business owner is also an option wasn’t really talked about growing up. My entire adult life I worked with children and knew that’s something I always wanted to do. For ten years I worked in elementary schools and private schools till one day I decided I wanted something more. My brother and dad gifted me an iPad and Apple pencil knowing I Ioved to draw, I thought making stickers would be fun just as a little side hustle and then one day I made an Etsy and my little hobby turned into a full blown business! Sales started to come in so I figured why not give it a go and become serious about it! Here we are years later and about to celebrate our 3rd birthday! Had I not opened up that iPad, I wouldn’t have created my stickers to start my business, which probably wouldn’t have lead me to create different things like funky accessories or colorful earrings! I now have over 130 different items in my shop, offer design services for other brands and small businesses and just opened wholesale that has sky rocketed my business in just a month! I am here to tell you, that little dream or idea can one day become your dream job if you just take that risk and give yourself a chance. It might be scary and hard but the reward will always be worth it. To know someone has bought your items because they love it? There is no greater feeling! I can’t believe one little thought and a pandemic that gave me a lot of extra time to create has now put me in a position to enjoy what I do, on my own terms.
KC, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
My name is Kc Garcia and I am originally from San Antonio, TX. I am currently based here in Atlanta, GA and have lived here for seven years! Originally I moved here for a summer but then met my partner and decided why leave? I decided to take a leap of faith and make Atlanta my home. I taught Pre-K at a few private schools when I decided one day, I wanted to do more things that helped me be creative. At a young age I have always liked crafts, painting and colors so I knew that was the direction I wanted to follow. Carnation Illustrations was established in 2020 right at the beginning of the pandemic and while that was a scary time for a lot of us, it gave me the time to get creative and figure out where I wanted to take this brand. “Carnation” has a special meaning to my brand because it was my late grandmothers favorite flower. She played an enormous role in my life and I knew I wanted to honor her in some way. Carnation Illustrations specializes in handmade goods that range from stationery to colorful jewelry. I also have a design service to help other brands and small businesses bring to life their visions and help navigate their image of their brand. Carnation Illustrations was built to empower women and create jewlery that allows women to express themselves freely and colorfully. My brand was created for the average gal who allows herself to enjoy the colors of fashion in a tasteful way and build a collection of cute pieces! My earrings will ensure a pop of color to any outfit!
We’d love to hear the story of how you turned a side-hustle into a something much bigger.
Originally Carnation Illustrations started off with stickers, eventually I wanted to create stationery and other fun accessories. When I opened up my Etsy, it really took off and those funds helped me grow inventory to create jewelry! At that time I had left teaching to become a full time nanny and “pod teacher” during the pandemic. I knew juggling both my business and full time care for 3-5 kids was going to be a lot, eventually I pulled back my days and strictly became a nannying till I decided to go full time with my business back in September of 2022. It was a hard decision because again, kids are all I know! I’ve worked with them my entire adult life. If I wanted to make this work, I knew some hard choices had to be made. So the time came and full time work started! I wanted to keep the design aspect of my business and while stickers were fun to create, I wanted more, and needed good money to keep this dream alive! I then opened up my design services to assist other businesses and brands. What started off with a logo design here and there, turned into full scale brand revamps or ground up designs. I loved that part of my business so much, I decided to include that indefinitely. Here we are 2023 and have helped over 100 businesses create designs for their businesses! I have opened wholesale for my accessories and jewelry and now a fully sustainable business!
What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?
A big lesson I had to unlearn and (truthfully) still working on is time management. While it’s so easy to want to get everything done in one day, maintaining work-life balance is hard when you are self employed! I have to remember it’s like a 9-5, sometimes I catch myself already settled in bed and an idea pops into my head, I’ll get out of bed, jot it down or make a quick sample just so I can see how it looks right then and there! It could be 10pm and I’m there in my office working on something! My biggest goal for this new year was to stop that and learn to wait till it’s time to “clock in”. It is so easy to get caught up in knowing whatever you want to create is right at your fingertips when in actuality, I need rest to be my best self the following day! One day we are going to get it right! 
Contact Info:
- Website: https://carnationillustrations.my.canva.site/
- Instagram: @CarnationIllustrations
- Facebook: @CarnationIllustrations
- Other: Etsy: https://www.etsy.com/shop/CarnationIllus
- TikTok: @Carnation Illustrations
- Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/carnationillustrationsshop
Image Credits
Photographer: Jenn Allen