Story Behind The Canvas
It’s a while since we have done a blog post so thought a peek behind the scenes into who we are.
Our print studio is located in New Zealand's stunning Waitakere Ranges in a lovely little place called Laingholm which is one of Auckland's best kept secrets ssshhhh!
My Canvas came to life in 2008 when I left my corporate job dreaming of a life working from home in the forest of Laingholm. I told myself it was to get a better work life balance and a way to unleash a little creativity. Who was I kidding lol!
I probably work more hours now but I always wanted to be my own boss doing something I loved and I do love every print I make. I wanted to create a way of life that enabled me to make the most of living in our little slice of paradise and allowed me to be at home when we started a family.
In the early days there was no studio, just a spare bedroom and the kitchen table when I needed more space.
In 2009 our son Daniel was born and after a very rocky start due to him needing open heart surgery at 6 weeks old we settled into a routine, juggling making orders and being a Mum. Lots of late nights making prints and print deliveries after kindy pick up. My young apprentice is now 11 so we have been making prints for a wee while now.
Jump forward a few years and I graduated from the spare bedroom to the garage and all the extra space that gave me. The garage was great on space but after a few years staring at walls with no windows it was time to evolve once more into a dedicated studio space. We now have windows and a view of the beautiful trees we are surrounded by. The studio is about 30 steps from my front door so the commute is easy!
We had always planned that one day Steven would leave his job in IT and join me in the business part-time and dedicate more time on his passion for music. Thanks to redundancy and Covid our plans got fast tracked and he took the plunge to try work from home life. His IT and project management skills have been super handy and he is loving having time to compose music and play more. If you hear a brass player in the background in my Instagram stories that would be him rehearsing upstairs!
2020 was our most challenging year in business when Covid hit our shores but life throws us all curve balls and we feel really lucky that our little business survived and we are excited about 2021 and what that brings.
Tracey
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