Last Stop: The Bolton's

My stretch from OK to Cali was long, but nothing short of spectacular.  I chose not to do a written blog for my days between OK and CA, however I did put together video edit of some of the things I saw, so check that out on my social media pages.   

I was finally on my way to see my last maker.  You could say it was bittersweet.  I couldn’t wait to meet them, but also sad that my trip was coming to an end.  I enjoyed every second of my trip and to this day, I look back at pictures and videos to reminisce about my adventure. However, it was coming to an end and my last stop was sunny San Diego.

As the saying goes…last but not least, Gina Bolton with @anchoredwooddesigns was my final maker stop.  Gina and her husband Jeff, who is also quite crafty himself and is a huge part of the operation, live in San Diego, CA, with their 3 kids.  I can't remember our first conversation or when I first started following Gina, but I know it was early on when I got started myself.  However, I do know I was blown away by her work and I probably had reached out to her to get some advice.  Gina is another wizard on the scroll saw with her own unique style and story…

“We live in San Diego, married 15 years with three awesome kids.  Jeff is a police officer here in San Diego, before that he worked as a welder in a custom fabrication shop and a project manager for pool companies.  I worked as an accountant for several years until I had the opportunity to stay home with the kids.

We've always been very into DIY and renovating our home and yard, so through project after project we honed in on the skills we both enjoy.  Jeff is big picture, I'm the details.  I realized I really enjoyed the finish work, trim work, and carpentry aspect of projects.  So when Jeff purchased a plasma cutter for his metal work, I told him it's only fair if I get a scroll saw!  So we did.  

I started making small things as gifts for friends and family.  One of the first designs was a gift for my parents of a cabin they had just sold that we had had in our family for 25 years.  I'm a huge sentimental person and their reaction encouraged me to turn these wood designs into a business.  When all three kids were finally all school age, I started up!

Now we are 3 years into this business and it has been a wild ride.  It's been awesome to provide some income for the family, have Jeff work less overtime, and still be "home" for the kids.  It really is a "family business."

We specialize in three areas, 1) House wood portraits, 2) First responder designs, and 3) recreating people's precious photos in wooden memories.  It is so fulfilling when people receive their pieces and email me that it is something they will cherish forever.  That is exactly why we do it.”

I spent the first day with the Bolton’s filming interviews and really getting to know the family, which didn’t take too long at all because it felt like we had known each other for a very long time already.  They are all down to earth and have that “chill” California vibe.  After hanging out and some filming, we had lunch once the kids got home from school.  Yes, kids got home early for some reason that day.  I think they had half days on Fridays or something?  Maybe ask Gina next time you see her.  

Day 2 with Bolton’s was amazing.  I showed back up at the house as if I were an old friend catching up.  We messed around in the shop and I got some action shots while they were working.  Their kids even decided to make some art and setup a booth right in the cul-de-sac.  Like they say, it's never too early to start your own business. 

On the second day, we sat outside for lunch with the whole family.  I think it was then that it hit me.  I realized the best part of my trip wasn’t the things I did, the places I saw, but it was the people and the families I had met.  Just months before, to all these families I was just some random guy in another state that they met on Instagram…and now I had sat at each of the families dinner tables as a guest and as a friend.  

As I’ve mentioned multiple times, I met all these families and so many other friends through social media.  However, this trip put things back in perspective and made me realize how much more you connect with someone face to face.

What I realized even more than anything else, given our current situation as I am writing this in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic, is we can’t take things for granted.  In September of 2018, I made a choice to step out of my comfort zone and take a risk to do something I hadn’t ever done before.  Looking back, the only thing keeping me from taking the trip was myself…which really puts the whole “don’t take things for granted” into perspective because the choice was taken from us recently.  

I know it’s a weird time right now and there are a lot of uncertainties, but what I do know is next time I get a chance to take a road trip, take another leap of faith or try something I haven't done before…I’m going for it.  Life’s truly too short and you never know when you will have your next opportunity for something, so don’t wait. 

My blog might end, but my dreams won’t.  Stay tuned to my social media pages.  God Bless and thank you to everyone who has taken the time to read these blog post.