She glows : Angie Carel

By Shelley Galbreath | Photo by Leaha Meinika

Angie Carel, wife, mom of four, and owner of IBA Marketing, a business she began in her home in 2007, has always loved art and admits it is the go-to happy place for her and her daughters.

“For ten years, I was a single mother, and I couldn’t afford much in the way of new tech, but art…well, I always had paper, crayons, paint, and canvases, and I loved spending quality time doing art with the kids,” she said. IBA Marketing grew into a storefront in Roanoke, where it has resided since 2012. It is currently expanding to Fort Wayne. IBA Marketing offers the Storybrand framework developed by author Donald Miller. Carel is one of few Certified Storybrand Guides in the area and specializes in telling brand stories. During the COVID shutdown, Carel, like so many others, struggled. “My oldest was sent home from college, and my twins were doing remote learning in their junior year of high school,” she said. “I also had an 18-month-old, and my husband, Bastian, was working from home. All the while, I was trying to keep my marketing agency afloat and manage my employees remotely.” One morning, in the quiet 4 a.m. hour, a moment of serendipity occurred. She had an idea. “I sent out a text asking my family to draw a smiling turtle and meet me in the living room at 7 p.m. to do a reveal. Everyone participated - even my 18-month-old,” she said. Carel said they laughed and smiled, and for a minute, everything was okay — COVID disappeared. They shared their reveal on social media and people started asking if they could participate. That’s when she accidently created a popular art community, Simple Daily Drawing (SDD) that has 35,000 followers and a private group with 11,000 members. “Before I created the private group, I thought people were using my art prompts to practice their skills — and some are. Most, however, are using it for mental health reasons. SDD has improved so many lives in significant ways,” Carel said. “I’ve received so many testimonials. I still post drawing prompts every day and will continue as long as I feel it’s making a difference in people’s lives.” About a year later, through a similar moment of serendipity, Carel had another idea — SDD sketchpads. They were an instant success. “The sketchpads are designed to motivate you to draw daily and keep track of the progress,” Carel said. The sketchpads are sold individually and as a monthly subscription. “My employees at IBA now help me with SDD. We are developing an app and working on launching some digital courses in 2023, as well as provide digital courses to artists that want to monetize their work,” she said. Carel has become an advocate for using art as a mental health outlet for people of all ages to express their emotions, get off technology, and disconnect from the stresses of daily living. She believes anyone can benefit from doing a daily drawing, no matter the talent level. When asked if she expected SDD to be so popular, Carel admitted it took her by surprise. “I didn’t see it coming. Let’s be real, I didn’t see any of it coming,” she said. “I love SDD and am determined to reach as many people as possible with the message that they can do art even if they don’t consider themselves talented and it will be fun, and they will feel better afterward. Just create one drawing every day.” www.iba-design.com | www.simpledailydrawing.com | www.facebook.com/ simpledailydrawing | www.facebook.com/groups/simpledailydrawing a

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