JULY 2017 PARKER COUNTY TODAY our success : SOMETHING SPECIAL
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Rarely-Still Watters Run Deep
After 30 years , Sherry O ’ finds new ways to spread her creative wings
BY MARSHA BROWN
Sherry O ’ opened her business in a small corner of a two-story office building on Palo Pinto that housed the insurance agency owned by her husband Dennis Watters the summer of 1987 .
“ Dennis asked me to answer his telephone while he was out and to include some of my crafts in the little room attached to his office ,” she recalled .
Her business operated in its corner until Operation Desert Storm began , and he was deployed .
“ While he was gone , I moved his office upstairs ,” Sherry said , adding
Photo by Steve Schillio that she began a business of her own on the street level . “ I was afraid it would cause a divorce when he came home .”
But her devoted , always-upbeat hubby was fine with the whole new arrangement . “ I just told him that my business grew so fast while he was gone that I really didn ’ t have a choice ,” she said .
Actually the truth was that her business had grown . The growth for Sherry and Something Special Boutique has continued to this day . She celebrates the 30 th anniversary of her business at her York Street shop on July 21 st , at 11:00 in the morning .
Sherry designed the first Christmas on the Square Shirt her first year as a fulltime business , and has produced one each year since .
‘ It ’ s a collector ’ s item for a lot of customers ,” Sherry said . “ Over the years I ’ ve designed a lot of Peach Festival shirts as well .”
From across the country , celebrities , entertainers , and special people make their way to this “ one of a kind ” boutique , where she uses boots , shoes and apparel of every kind as her canvases creating , “ wearable art .” It ’ s all original , using no stencils , no patterns , painting each piece by hand , adding a variety of embellishments ranging anywhere from Austrian crystals to seed pearls and Conchos .
“ I started out with five painted shirts and a few crafts ,” Sherry said . “ I wondered what the public really wanted in the way of my craft .”
Sherry had been involved in art and crafts most of her life . “ I had worked for several national craft companies , including Tandy ,” Sherry said . “ I sold my designs to a number of national magazines .”
While working for Tandy Corp . in the late 60 ’ s , Sherry designed crafts for the company , even though she was just out of school . She painted shirts and blouses
for customers , on the side , at $ 3.50 a shirt .
“ That was years before the fabric painting made a hit in the craft market ,” Sherry said .
Over the years , numerous celebrities have commissioned her to create one-of-a-kind pieces for special events . One of the most recent was Madison Ward who wore Sherry O ’ creations to compete in the Miss Rodeo Austin Princess competition , which she won and then to compete for the title of Miss Rodeo Texas . She took First Runner- Up .
“ That outfit was inspired by me and I wanted something that was a fiesta theme ,” said Ward . “ My best friend ’ s mom is a fantastic seamstress and she made it , but Sherry O ’ put the yellow roses on the dress and the boots . She did some fabulous work for me .”
Sherry ’ s first real celebrity client came into her little Palo Pinto Street shop . Larry Hagman , a Weatherford native and television star was at the
Madison Ward in Sherry O ’ s wearable artwork . Courtesy photo .