Meet Dara Tiscareno | Personalized giftmaker

We had the good fortune of connecting with Dara Tiscareno and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Dara, we’d love to hear more about how you thought about starting your own business?
I always knew that I wanted to work for myself and become my own boss. I am self motivated and creative so at the start of the pandemic I knew that this was the time to begin my journey as an entrepreneur. Shortly after my son was born in January of 2020 my husband gifted me a cricut for my birthday to get my creative mind going. In June of 2020 I officially began to take orders and started my crafting business. I worked in the medical field for 11 years prior to starting my business. Due to the pandemic I knew I wanted to stay home and care for my son so going back into the medical field was not an option. I wanted to stay home but at the same time I still wanted to make money.
Its been a wild journey, becoming a new mom and starting a business at the same time. There has been a lot of sleepless nights, and a rollercoaster of emotions, but as I look back at the decision I made to start my business I am so glad that I went for it.
Its been 2 years now that I have been a stay at home mom and small business owner and I have loved every second of it. I wouldn’t change it for the world, being home with my kids and I am so thankful for the love and support from my friends, family and customers.

Please tell us more about your work. We’d love to hear what sets you apart from others, what you are most proud of or excited about. How did you get to where you are today professionally. Was it easy? If not, how did you overcome the challenges? What are the lessons you’ve learned along the way. What do you want the world to know about you or your brand and story?
In a over saturated world where there are several other small business that do what I do, I feel what sets me apart is by the quality of products and work that I do. All items are handmade with a lot of love and every item packaged and shipped I am truly proud of. It has taken me a lot of practice and patience to learn different techniques to be able to make beautiful glasses and shirts that customers love.
There is a lot of trial an error when it comes to the crafting world because not all designs are alike. I try to bring aesthetically pleasing designs that I personally love and hope my customers will love too.
I have wasted time and material to perfect designs in order for them to be sold on a global level like Etsy. I hold myself to a high standard when it comes to selling items that people enjoy purchasing.
I have learned that its about community over competition when it comes to the small business crafting world and I am so proud to be apart of this community. We all can learn from each other and help each other grow along the way.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
We would start the week off in Chandler eating brunch at Hash kitchen. The restaurant has amazing food, drinks and is guaranteed to start your week with overall good vibes. We would then take a road trip up to Sedona and go on one of the many amazing hikes Sedona has to offer. The next day we would head over to the Grand Canyon to see one of the worlds most amazing national parks. Heading back into town we would grab lunch at Gen Korean BBQ restaurant by the Tempe Town lake and then do some paddle boarding after. The Following day we would enjoy a staycation at the Fairmont Scottsdale Princess Resort. They offer amazing spa packages and allow you to relax pool side. The following day we would head into downtown Gilbert and have brunch at Snooze. We would walk down town and do some local business shopping and end the night eating at Postinos Wine cafe to enjoy some of their amazing bruschetta boards and wine. We would finish off the week by hanging out at Top golf and going to Blue Wasabi for some of their delicious sushi and martinis.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
None of this would be possible without the support, and encouragement from my husband foremost and my parents. Without my husbands help in the evenings with the kids so that I can work on orders, I would not be able to do this. He also helps me so much with packaging and loading my items for market events. He helps build my boxes on packaging days and drops them off to the postal office. He’s my accountant who manages all the financial side of my business so that I can focus on the marketing and creating aspect. It takes two to run this business with kids and I am so thankful for my supportive husband who has pushed me to keep going on the days I didn’t think I could. His encouragement, and love has been the number one reason Daras Designs is still going strong today.

Second shout out goes to my parents. They are my cheer leaders who have been so proud of what I have accomplished since the beginning. They help us out with the kids as well and come to every market I have ever been apart of.

It takes a team and I am so thankful to these individuals and their major part in my business.

Website: beacons.ai/darasdesignsanddecals

Instagram: daras_designs_decals

Facebook: daras_designs_decals