Gifts by AnnLee: Meet the Creatives Behind the Brand

Today, we thought it would be a great time to introduce us, the creatives behind the brand: Gifts by AnnLee.

We are Ricky & Kristy Dunlap, and we have been married for 25 yrs. We are a veteran family, we have 4 adult children, and 2 rambunctious grandbabies. Our time is always best spent travelling, whether to and from visiting family or out of the country making a lifetime of memories. Travelling has been with us from the moment we said, "I DO", and the Marine Corps moved us straight to CA.

We were both born and raised in NC, and even spent our honeymoon exploring the Appalachian Mtns and daydreaming of what our life could be "post" military. We had thought of going in business together, and what that could look like, but honestly raising 4 kids and just LIFE in general kept us on our toes.

In 2019, I (Kristy), decided to take a leap of faith and started a small fiber art business. I crocheted, and did macramé, that I took to a local farmers market. Ricky was always there, helping me set up my Etsy, to setting up at the farmers market, and helping me navigate all the paperwork involved in starting a little tiny business. I love the fiber art world, and getting to make and create custom pieces for my customers has been very fulfilling work.

In 2023, we made a "couples' trip" to Mexico, and revisited old conversations we had had several years ago on our honeymoon. We started daydreaming again, of how we can have my little, tiny business involve Ricky on a much larger scale. It was there in Mexico, that we made up a plan, and as soon as we got back home, we ordered our first engraver!!

We have ideas flowing thru us like crazy, we both work regular jobs, and we have added a market schedule to our list. We are sooooo busy, and in our workshop every second we are not at work or doing something else...and it feels great! Like we were always meant to be doing this!! Handcrafting everything, from the ground up, and staying true to ourselves (and not following trends) is what has made our work so special to us.

I can't wait to see what the end of our 2024 will look like, but I have no regrets. In fact, the only regret I would have had, would have been NOT taking this leap of faith with my life partner. Everything we do is with the utmost purpose and intention. We have been learning new equipment, which hasn't been easy, and new software (very challenging), and how to "marry" the fiber art to the wood~ but we are soooo happy!

Although there is always "more to the story", we hope that you have enjoyed getting to know a small part of us and getting to meet the creatives behind our brand. Continue to follow along with us on this journey, as I am sure it will be a wild ride! If you find yourself at one of our market events, swing by and check out our work in person and don't be afraid to say Hi!