Metal working artist goes vinyl: Metal working artist adds vinyl for apparel and decals

Tiffany Jones has sold the hoodie off her back at least three times since she got in the custom attire business.

Fortunately, she enjoys making more.

Jones said she can spend hours upon hours putting together new designs for customers or for herself in her studio on the computer. From there, she can have the designs cut into vinyl signs, car decals, wall decals and print for hats, hoodies, shirts and other clothing.

“I can envision something in my mind. I can design it. I can create it. I can put it on something, and it’s done. It’s really cool to do that,” she said. “It’s instant gratification.”

Jones has been designing custom vinyl for about one-and-a-half years under the business name RHR Creations, she said, but has used the same software for similar work for about four years.

Jones and her husband, Chad, have worked with metal, making metal signs, metal wall hangings and other metal crafts for customers. Jones used the same process and the same software to design the metal art.

Jones said she liked working with her husband, but his turnaround wasn’t fast enough for her — she wanted to make more at a faster rate.

“I needed to turn the program into an independent operation because he was never available,” she said. “He is working all the time. … It basically became something I wanted to be able to create stuff off the computer, and it was so frustrating because he wasn’t around to put the designs on the metal.”

After some research, Jones discovered she could use the same software to make designs out of vinyl, a more manageable material than metal.

She later invested in a cutter capable of more detail and working with finer materials. The cutter worked with the same software, and Jones soon became engulfed in the work, she said.

“I became completely obsessed with the software because it had so many capabilities,” she said.

Jones started by wholesaling her items, but later switched to custom orders, selling to callers, or people who saw her designs on Facebook.

Jones said her first, and most popular piece, was the iconic Steamboat logo. She often wears a custom hoodie with the Steamboat logo on the front, and a decorative line on the right sleeve.

Jones said she wasn’t always an artistic-driven person, but got involved in the business after she and Chad decided to make homemade decorative pieces using horseshoes and other metal materials.

From there, people began to show interest in their work, Jones said.

Jones and her husband began attending craft shows in Montana, where they got into sign-making.

Jones said all of her pieces are memorable, but one project sticks in her mind.

Jones said a Wyoming Highway Patrol Trooper’s wife asked for a decorative wall hanging with a Wyoming Highway Patrol sign and a badge number.

“That was a huge project,” Jones said.

Jones said the metal wall hanging itself was difficult to make because the logo included wings and a wagon wheel with many spokes, which meant fine details, but Jones and her husband pulled it off.

Later, the trooper’s wife asked for other items that included the label, like T-shirts, a car decal and more.

Jones said other trooper wives heard of RHR Creations and also wanted the logo printed on items.

“I had all of these trooper wives calling me wanting the logo for their husbands,” she said. “I changed the trooper name and I sold them ...”

If you want to see some of Jones’ designs, check out her Facebook page, facebook.com/rhrcreations. You can also contact Jones by calling 307-710-6987.