Today we’d like to introduce you to Elizabeth Gombert.
Hi Elizabeth, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
My partner Jay and I met in college both studying art in 2011 – we had a chance to work together in a picture framing shop during our time in school and both really enjoyed the reward of hands-on work. After graduating, we separately pursued careers in the trades – Elizabeth in a cabinet shop and Jay working for a painting company. We had the opportunity in 2019 to apprentice with a GC who was more or less doing all the parts of renovation jobs himself, and that was such a deep dive into everything it takes to renovate older homes. And then when things got unpredictable in 2020, it seemed like as good a time as any to make a go of it just ourselves, as Little Rabbet.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
We have been very lucky in that we’ve had lots of support and education along the way – former employers and mentors, and great collaborative clients. Now we are fortunate enough to work out of our studio at Able Trade, a shared shop space in downtown Knoxville. It is such a trove of resources and knowledge from all the members.
That’s not to say there haven’t been challenges- for the first five years of my (Elizabeth’s) career in the trades, I was categorically the only tradeswoman on any job site or shop I worked in. That’s still often the case today, but we’re starting to see that demographic change, and also by working for ourselves we have gotten to work for some of the most supportive and respectful clients.
We’ve been impressed with Little Rabbet LLC, but for folks who might not be as familiar, what can you share with them about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
The scale and type of projects we work on varies widely. We specialize in custom cabinetry and woodwork, but take on projects as small as one day repairs, to extensive design-build remodels. We focus on interior remodeling and have a range of skills from design and project-management, to all steps of light construction: from demo to finish painting and everything in-between. We love working in old houses, and believe one of the most sustainable building practices we can pursue is preserving and prioritizing the resources and homes we already have.
We love surprises, fun facts and unexpected stories. Is there something you can share that might surprise us?
We’re pretty open, so probably not much would surprise those who know us – sometimes people are surprised to know that we’re avid reality tv watchers when we really want to relax.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.littlerabbet.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/littlerabbet/
Image Credits
First and last photo: Aaron Ingram House of Lamar
