For the last two and a half years, Shawn Cartwright, self-taught, “solo-preneur,” has been turning his passion and creativity into works of art for businesses and customers worldwide. Based in Newport News, Cartwright Creative Craftworks (CCC) takes on projects big and small from all over the country, and even internationally.
Cartwright specializes in creating custom signs and installations, as well as woodworking and engraving services. Cartwright recalls visiting his grandparents as a kid and working with his grandfather in his woodshop to create small projects. His earliest memory crafting was a little cut-out bear.
Throughout his schooling, Cartwright didn’t take the offered woodshop classes in his school; instead he gravitated to visual arts and music, even getting a music degree.
“What I do now in my business started as a hobby,” he says
About a decade ago, Cartwright picked up wood-crafting in his spare time. As he honed his skills, he found people taking interest in his work, including friends and family and people on social media.
Soaking up knowledge from people around him and those online, he began researching different techniques to better himself as a crafter. Through studying online and trial by error, Cartwright’s hobby turned into a profession.
In 2019, he began selling his creations as a test market. By the beginning of 2023, Cartwright Creative Craftworks became his full-time job deciding to “give a chance,” he says. “If not, I will always regret it.”
A native of Atlanta, Cartwright moved to the Virginia Peninsula with his wife Melissa and their two daughters in January 2011. He operates his business independently, although occasionally bringing in extra hands for larger projects and large installations. Cartwright’s family will occasionally jump in to lend a hand but for the most part have watched and supported his work as he created. Operating out of his garage, Cartwright says, “It’s all done out of my home base.”
Approximately 80 percent of Cartwright’s work is commissioned signage, with the balance being smaller pre-made pieces he sells at popup markets.
To create his intricate pieces, Cartwright uses a variety of tools including a scroll saw and other power tools to handcraft every detail. He also uses an advanced CO2 laser to engrave and cut materials.
The business aims to materialize the concepts customers bring to them, whether those ideas are premade or intangible. “What I always tell people is, ‘Let me know what you want, and I will help you bring it to life,’” he says.
In the coming years, Cartwright hopes to expand what started as a hobby into even more than the full-fledged business he currently operates, adding other skilled craftsmen . But for now, Cartwright does most of it by himself. “I refer to myself as a “solopreneur,” he says with a smile.
TO THE POINT:
Cartwright Creative Craftworks
Contact: Shawn Cartwright, owner, operator
Phone: 757-210-9861
Email: shawn@cccraftworks.com
Website: cccraftworks.com
