Walking through the Oak Island Mardi Gras Festival market, checking out all the vendors, I was drawn to one tent like a magnet. There were pens, lots of pens, hundreds of pens, no two alike. I have a weak spot for anything analog and I’m the guy who always begins reaching into his pocket whenever someone says “Anyone have a pen?” So I had to check this out, and that’s how I met Ellie Hummer, an 11-year-old sixth grader at Southeastern Christian Academy in Shallotte, an entrepreneur, a creator, and proprietor of Beady Creations by Ellie. 

Ellie’s Beady Creations are pens that have been enhanced with little plastic beads and rubber insignia. You’ll find your favorite sports team (I bought a Penn State pen of course), logos from popular brands (the Lulu Lemon pen is best-seller), animals, and characters from books, movies, cartoons and all other parts of our culture. There are so many different pens, it’s a bit overwhelming really. 

“I love dogs!” Ellie said, showing me one of her favorites that is made to look like her own dog, Cali. 

I asked Ellie long it took to make all these items. “A million years!” she exclaimed with a huge smile. Ellie’s mom and business partner Cindy assured me it wasn’t quite that long, but that Ellie did indeed have quite a bit of time invested. 

“I buy the pens and the beads and I put them together,” said Ellie. “One of my friends was making them and I just started making them too. I was just getting bored sitting around the house.”

Ellie doesn’t have time to get bored now. Since beginning the business in February of 2024, Ellie and her mom estimate they’ve done around 50 markets. While I spoke to them, Ellie and her mom were busy setting up and laying out pens for the Oak Island Spring Fest market. They said it takes about two hours to get everything ready for sale. 

Ellie gave a little sigh and said, “I wanted to sleep in today, but…..”

She said it’s fun to make the pens, but she also enjoys making some money. When asked how much Beady Creations had made so far, she said she had a bank account with “around two million dollars.” After a look from mom, she reduced her estimate a few times before finally admitting she wasn’t sure how much she’d saved so far. “She’s been able to save for some things she wants,” Cindy said. 

It’s Ellie’s job to deal with the customers, handing our business cards, taking in money and making change. While we were talking, a young girl customer walked up and asked Ellie if she had made all these pens. “You do a really great job!” she said, promising to return with some money and pick a few out for herself. 

Ellie sells her pens outside of markets as well. Beady Creations by Ellie are available at the Coffee Cottage and English Tea House in Calabash, Books and More in Carolina Shores, and Little River Nutrition. You’ll also find them in some places where pens are needed, such as Truist and TD banks and the Milk and Honey Restaurant, where Ellie says she has equipped many of the wait staff.

“All my teachers have pens and I gave one to my principal,” Ellie added. 

If you need a pen with a little personality, and who doesn’t really, Beady Creations by Ellie’s next markets will be April 12 at the Bridgewater Craft Fair in Little River, Taste of Calabash on April 26, then back to Oak Island for the Seafood Festival on May 3. You can find Beady Creations on Facebook, Instagram, Etsy and TicTok if you’d like to keep up with future market dates. 

As we were wrapping up our interview, Ellie looked up at me jotting down notes and said, “You need to upgrade your pen!” Of course I left with a new Donald Duck pen and a warm heart knowing the entrepreneurial spirit is still alive and well with the next generation.