Rocks are hand painted by Carrie Sharp on Gaston Avenue. (Photo from Facebook)
Keep your eyes peeled, Lakewood — a Gaston Avenue artist is in the midst of the cutest little Halloween scavenger hunt. Carrie Sharp is hiding about 20 rocks every night, each one hand-painted with a fanciful holiday scene, all across the neighborhood for children to find and enjoy.
“They’re hidden in plain sight so the little kids can find them,” she says.
She leaves her house on Gaston every night and walks in different directions, so if you want to take up a search, you could start there. She plans to keep hiding rocks up until the week before Halloween, meaning there should be plenty to find as you walk around Lakewood.
“I have about 2,000 rocks,” she says, although she’s not sure how many of those she’ll hide.
Rocks are hand painted by Carrie Sharp on Gaston Avenue. (Photo from Facebook)
Sharp has been painting rocks for several years, ever since her granddaughter handed her one and said, “Grandma, can you paint this for me?” She sells her colorful designs all over the country via her Facebook page, but at the end of the year she likes to empty out her inventory to make room for a new crop.
“I usually have a big sale at the end of the year,” she says. “This year, I just decided to give them all away.”
The rocks are coated in a clear sealant so they stand up to the weather, as they’re meant to be placed in garden beds or front stoops. Sharp said she got the idea from a client in Washington who loves her rock designs, and planned a similar scavenger hunt for children in her hometown.
“It’s just something I wanted to do for the kids,” she says, admitting, “Although it is good advertising for my rocks.”
Rocks are hand painted by Carrie Sharp on Gaston Avenue. (Photo from Facebook)
In addition to selling her artwork on canvases and rocks, Sharp teaches painting to children at ArtLoveMagic. Her rocks come from Classic Rock Stone Yard in her hometown of Rockwall, where she trades paintings for stones.
“My friend owns the Hobbit House over there, and her parents own [Classic Rock]. She wanted painted rocks and gives me [unpainted] rocks as a trade.”
