Meet Jeff & Lacy Keeler | Owners – September Sun Creations, LLC

We had the good fortune of connecting with Jeff & Lacy Keeler and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Jeff & Lacy, as a parent, what have you done for you children that you feel has had the most significant impact?
We are the parents of four stellar kiddos. Our son is soon to be 19 years old and our three daughters are 16, 10 and 8 years old. The most important thing that we have done as parents is leading by example in (almost) everything that we do ranging from working hard, finishing what we committed ourselves to doing, making healthy lifestyle choices, being available, and being mindful of practicing kindness as often as we possibly can, etc…

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
We are a husband and wife team who, truly, enjoy getting dirty to beautifully update existing spaces. We’ve been married for 8 years and together for nearly 12 years.

When Jeff decided to branch off on his own, we spent days and days and days trying to think of the “perfect” name for our business…and then our, now 16 year old, daughter said “what about your old art business name, September Sun Creations?” That was the end of that conversation.

To bring you up to speed, back in 2012, we started a Woodworking business creating “functional art” which we thoughtfully named September Sun Creations. The relevance of our business name is that both of our birthdays are in September. We were actually both born on Labor Day in the years that we were born. There is also just something about that sun in September in Colorado!! This art business was more a side hustle as we both had full time gigs and it kind of fizzled out when we had a couple more kiddos.

Jeff has been in the Home Repair trades for 22 years and is the brains of the operation. He really has a lifetime of experience and has been “keeping food on the table” as the owner of September Sun Creations since early January of 2020. He has a genuine, precise, honest, patient, kind, reliable and creatively intuitive persona which keeps a steady growth of our clients. There is something special about building a relationship with someone who you are inviting into your home and trusting them with, most of the time, a pretty pricey project that needs to be executed with perfection the first time.

I, Lacy, come with a background in the service industry, retail, teaching and outside sales. I had just transitioned roles when COVID shut the world down and when we lost our Nanny to an internship that she couldn’t pass up. After leaving Corporate America and wearing the hats of Mom, Teacher, Principal, Warden, etc. while the kids were participating in remote learning, the World started to become a little more “normal” and the kids went back to in-person learning. Jeff invited me to a job that he was starting. I gladly accepted that invitation, to simply get out of the house. Who knew that I was really stinkin’ good at painting and REALLY liked doing it!? I am so grateful for that invite because I have learned SO much in the trade due to Jeff’s patient teaching skills. Plus, I totally dig getting to work with Jeff, when my skill set is needed, because any time spent with him is magic.

Being honest and setting clear next steps is the most important lesson that we have learned in our time as business owners. As long as there is clear communication, all relationships should remain in a good state.

P.S. We have re-incorporated the functional art side of September Sun Creations back into our lives. We have inventory in two local shops in Colorado Springs, Meraki Springs in Old Colorado City and Sign of the Rose Florist in the Woodmen Valley Shopping Center. We also have an ETSY shop.

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 recently went on a 4,300 mile road trip and covered a lot of different terrain. We definitely take the radicalness of Colorado Springs for granted due to seeing it everyday!!

We’d start our adventure with a stroll through our neighborhood…we live in a cool little nook pretty much in the middle of Colorado Springs and we are very proud of our humble home! I, Lacy, grew up very close to our home and am thrilled to raise my kiddos in the same area. After our stroll, we would head NorthEast to explore Jeff’s stomping grounds in Black Forest and then on to Palmer Lake. We’d totally grab some grub at O’Malley’s!!

We’d then head South to camp on our sliver of land in Colorado City. There is a most lovely lake that’s less than a mile away so we would totally bring the boat and paddle board. San Isabel National Forest is right up the road too so a visit to Bishop’s Castle would be a necessity!

We’d then head Northwest and visit Salida. After playing in the Arkansas River, indulging our pizza dreams at Moonlight Pizza and taking Salida in, we’d head up Monarch Pass and stay at the Monarch Mountain Lodge. This establishment is so old and needs SO many updates, but there is just something about that place that we LOVE! When the leaves are changing is THE best time to visit this area!!

Only open for a few months of the year due to the hazardous conditions that the weather allots, the views and history that our next stop offers is exciting!! On to Independence Pass we go, which we consider the “crown jewel” of the passes in Colorado. From there, we would hop into Aspen and partake in all of the touristy things.

Speaking of “crown jewels,” if it was on our route, we would squeeze in a drive down the “Million Dollar Highway” too…which would take us into Ouray where we would dine, explore and snooze in a quaint B & B.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
Naturally, our Family members have always been the loudest crowd in our cheering section!! Jeff would like to single out his Uncle Mike who is a Husband, a Dad, a Grandpa, a Rancher and a Vietnam Veteran. Throughout his adult life, his crafty side shined through his pottery and woodworking pieces. He is truly selfless, unconditionally dedicated to his family, extremely hardworking and easy to look up to.

Who’s heard of “The Secret” by Rhonda Byrne. We are firm believers that what you put into the Universe is what will come back to you…it is the Law of Attraction…like the Golden Rule.

We are, of course, insanely grateful for all of our clients and their trust in us to spread the word of our offering.

Facebook: @SeptemberSunCreations

Other: ETSY: https://www.etsy.com/shop/SeptSunCreations?ref=shop_sugg_market TikTok: @lacycheslakeeler (we use this platform to create before/progression/after videos of projects coupled with some family fun.