by Martha Rose Woodward
Shauhn Caughron, 2008 graduate from the University of Tennessee with a degree in Studio Arts, has created her own business, Upcycled Love. Caughron does a wide variety of things from her office in Seymour, Tennessee including graphic design, web design, furniture upholstery, sewing, general interior designs, and upcycling.
What is upcycling? According to Caughron, “Recycling is when items are reused or turned into another item, often less valuable. Upcycling is when those same items are turned into something better that is more valuable so that the items get a better life.”
Caughron says she learned about up cycling from several sites online including
that not only show items but give tutorials on how and what to do.
Caughron says she gets a lot of the materials she works with free from friends by word of mouth and from free stuff on Craigslist. She also finds discarded items along the side of the road and is not opposed to dumpster diving. She is an avid thrift store shopper and says she likes nothing better than to find good deals in clothing, house wares and furniture.
She works from a home office out of her house and from a “creative shed” out back where she stores supplies, upholsters and paints furniture and builds things. She is available for appointments and will work with anyone to design that special item for any occasion.
“I use the shed for projects that are too large or too messy for indoors and I find that I can leave the mess outside,” she said.
Caughron is happy that her career is also environmentally friendly. She realizes that she saves a lot of items from going into the landfill.
Caughron can be found on Facebook, by phone at 865 306 4521, and at
.
