The Art of Starting Again: Sondos Turns Decoupage into a Business and a New Beginning
The Art of Starting Again: Sondos Turns Decoupage into a Business and a New Beginning
September 4, 2026 | Navar Maarri
Originally from Deir ez-Zor, Syria, Sondos Seho studied medical laboratory analysis before the war led her to build a new life in Türkiye. In Şanlıurfa, she continued learning through physiotherapy courses and spent several years working with humanitarian organizations.
In 2023, while communities across southeastern Türkiye were dealing with the devastating impact of the earthquakes, Sondos found herself without a job. As a single mother raising her 15-year-old son, losing her income meant she needed to find a new way forward.
Sondos had always enjoyed taking old things and giving them a second life. Through decoupage, an art that uses paper, images and patterns to decorate and transform objects, old boxes, furniture and everyday items became decorative pieces in her hands.
At first, creating was a way for Sondos to fill her time and reconnect with a passion she had carried for years. Friends and relatives admired her work and often asked to buy her pieces, but she would simply gift them instead. She never thought this passion could become a business.
Soon, requests were coming from friends and acquaintances in Türkiye and abroad, and she began to see that her passion could become a source of income for herself and her son. She took online courses to learn more about decoupage and develop her skills.
In 2024, she opened an Instagram page ”Sam Decoupage" and began sharing her work. As Syria entered a historic new chapter, Sondos found new inspiration in a moment that meant so much to many Syrians. She began creating canvas art and handmade pieces carrying words and designs connected to that moment, and soon her work was finding its way into homes in Türkiye, Syria, Germany, and Netherlands
But turning a talent into a business brought new questions: how to market it, present it, reach more customers and continue growing.
Through Empowering Women-Owned Businesses in Earthquake-Affected Regions, supported by Islamic Relief USA, Sondos joined Building Markets’ network of women entrepreneurs. She took part in trainings on marketing, sales, access to finance and business development, along with one-on-one mentorship sessions tailored to her business, and had opportunities to showcase her work at fairs. Many who discovered her at the fairs later became online customers.. After more than seven fairs in Şanlıurfa and others outside the city, she watched her Instagram audience grow and found herself wanting to be part of every new fair she could.
She reached more customers and new doors opened for her business. Shops in Türkiye started buying her pieces, and she says her sales grew by at least 20%.
Sondos has also learned to adapt as her business changes. As some Syrians began returning to Syria, she started looking beyond her usual customers and exploring new markets for her work.
The business has given her greater financial security for herself and her son, but she is not stopping there. She hopes to move from working at home to having a space of her own, where she can grow her business and hold workshops for other women.
“I had the chance to turn something I love into my own business, and I want other women to have that chance too.”
Sondos is one of more than 700 women entrepreneurs reached through Building Markets’ work with Islamic Relief USA in Türkiye’s earthquake-affected region over the past two years. Through the project’s services, women-owned businesses have generated more than USD 220,000 in increased sales and created 68 new jobs, bringing more income and opportunities to their families and communities.
This project is being implemented with the generous support of Islamic Relief USA. Any views expressed herein are solely those of Building Markets.
