Joanne Williams
Editor

(Photo provided – No matter what the material [usually], the occasion, the person, the pet, Marilou Ayers has a tool and a talent to design a gift or memento.)

Who could forget the way Dr. Evil (in the Austin Powers) movies, said “lasers,” with his voice and hand gestures?

Or that laser is an acronym, which stands for Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation? It is a device “that makes a very tight, focused beam of light” that is used for many purposes including cutting metal or scanning bar codes.

Or that lasers can be used to create unique, decorative art?

It takes a skilled hand to operate – with the help of technology – the precision of a laser engraver, as designer Marilou Ayers found out. It also offers her a level of creativity and talent she has finally been able to embrace full-time.

Marilou is from Brant, Michigan, and now she and her husband live in the Charlotte area.

She began life with a creative mom who loved to draw, crochet and create other things.

In high school in Ashley (The Bears), classmates recognized and complimented her artistic work, yet, later, like many seriously going off to college, she settled in to a business degree.

That degree saw Ayers through 43 years at Consumer Energy, working her way from the mailroom to the management level in all variety of areas. “It was high stress, but I enjoyed it a lot and I learned a lot about serving customers and being business-minded,” she said.

Once retired, she again searched for ways to foster her creativity. Her best friend and sister-in-law bought a laser machine for engraving, and that sparked an excitement to use her artistic talent and learn the laser engraving techniques.

Now, a dedicated space in Marilou’s garage holds this sort of spaceship-like looking machine which she has come to understand well. Using her technical and creative skills, she began Country Farm Creations Laser Engraving and started producing all types of personalized and marketing items for people and businesses.

“I get to do a lot of cool stuff. It is really fun, seeing the end product and the satisfaction of my customers,” Ayers said.

The creative aspect is what energizes her work, but it is the production that stimulates her tech side as she keeps finding better ways to engrave on all types of materials, from tumblers to rawhide leather, wood and glass, awards and much more.

One of her favorite creations was a family tree, engraved on live edge walnut wood. She actually did the project twice, after finding a better way to make the design stand out.

Her passion for “doing things better” should come as no surprise.

When she was 9 or 10, Marilou submitted some work to the “Draw Me” ads that populated newspapers at the time. Representatives from the sponsoring Art Institute came personally knocking at her door, and her dad encouraged her to take correspondence classes, which she did.

Those days, she dreamed of working at Disney World. Now she is owner and operator of her own artistic world.

Marilou is a member of the Locals in Business in Charlotte.  She is also a proud member of the Awards and Personalization Association (APA). She participated in the nationwide APA conference earlier this year held in Las Vegas.  These relationships have helped her grow and build a successful business. You can find Country Farm Creations on Facebook or contact Ayers at mkward6179@yahoo.com.