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FAIRFIELD – One of the recently empty storefronts in downtown Fairfield has a new tenant, who has turned the inside into a showroom for her custom signs.

The business is called GG’s Signs and Designs, and is located at 51 W. Broadway Ave. No. 102 in the alley north of Central Park. The owner is Gail Hunter, who opened her shop a few days after Thanksgiving on Nov. 29. Hunter sells her own custom-made signs, décor, barn quilts and more. She also has space set aside for other vendors selling their own wares, and soon hopes to add classes that might cover projects such as rock painting, knitting or stained-glass work.

Hunter has always been the creative, artistic type, and remembers when she was a little girl, she asked Santa for a paint set for Christmas.

“In high school, I took all the art classes I could,” she said.

Hunter studied graphic design in college because it was the major that best allowed her to express herself. She turned that love of art into a career teaching art in Ottumwa, and later teaching elementary school in the district. She’s also taught English Language-Learner classes and High School Equivalency Test (HiSET) classes at Indian Hills Community College’s Fairfield campus.

About three years ago, Hunter began finding other outlets for her creativity such as barn quilting, and set up a business to sell her creations online. She and her husband Dennis raise Simmental cattle on an acreage 5 miles west of Batavia. Last spring, Hunter started looking in neighboring towns for a place to open her own shop. After a plan to open one in Eldon didn’t pan out, Hunter got in touch with Fairfield realtor Beth Alonso, who told her about the open storefront in the alley north of Central Park.

The storefront had a colorful mural painted on it courtesy of artist Jenny Sammons and the Fairfield Beautification Commission’s “Creative Spaces Project” to connect potential tenants to vacant properties downtown. Hunter recalled that the interior still bore evidence of the dog-grooming business that once occupied the space, but after cleaning up all the hair and power-washing the walls, the building was ready for move-in.

Hunter does custom signs and has made several of her own, reflecting her sense of humor, like one that reads “I work hard so my dog doesn’t have to.” She said she’s enjoying this new experience of owning her own shop in a town she’s lived near for a long time but is just now becoming immersed in.

“I’ve lived around Fairfield all my life, and I never realized what a cool place it is,” Hunter said. “I’ve met so many awesome people walking through this door. One of the things I’ve loved the most is meeting all the artistic people of Fairfield.”

GG Signs & Designs is open 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. Hunter can be reached at ggsigndesign@gmail.com or 641-799-8024.