During the pandemic, it was hard for people to gather and celebrate usual festivities like birthdays, graduations and anniversaries. Dara Norman found a way to make those celebrations a bit more vibrant.

With her business Designs by Dara, she turns yards into a life-size personalized card using her custom-made signs with letters and graphics for any occasion.

She got into the business after making her own shirts back in March during the Black Lives Matter protests. Once that took off, she still knew she could help the community come together by making yard signs.

“The pandemic was actually the perfect timing for it. I actually started getting plenty of orders across town,” Norman said.

She offers daily rentals or hourly based rentals where she sets up on an as-needed basis and takes the signs down when the time comes. She also designs yard signs that can be purchased and kept.

Soon after the signs became a hit, she began to offer bouquets for special occasions as well. The bouquets contain miniature versions of her yard graphics along with candy and gifts that can be personalized to the order.

Eventually, she moved on to more customizable items for her customers.

“After the signs, I feel like I got a niche for crafting and design, so I made T-shirts and I started making wine glasses,” Norman said. “I make anything now, all the way up to decals that I put on mailboxes for people.”

Norman said the community has embraced her business and her ability to unite families during times that might not have otherwise allowed it.

She’s even grown to the point of having customers in Newburgh and Henderson.

“I get people that tag me in posts all the time or referrals consistently,” Norman said. “And all of my customers are repeat customers. I get new customers all the time but once they come once, they normally come back.”

To learn more and how to book Norman, head to her website for more information.

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