At Hood College, Carolyn studied for two years, majoring in Home Economics and learning a variety of domestic skills, such as sewing. After graduating, Carolyn was presented with a number of related opportunities. A friend once asked her to make her wedding dress and the dresses of her bridesmaids, while Foxridge Sportswear tasked her with designing a range of leather sports attire. Through these deals, Carolyn gained more customers, most of whom came by recommendation from previous customers who were delighted with the results. In her early days, Carolyn lived in a tiny apartment on Park Avenue, which also served as her workplace. She once stated that she could sew for hours without getting bored.

Relationships

Carolyn was the former wife of actor Orson Bean; they met when she designed a dress for his three-year-old daughter, Michelle. Bean was not famous when they began dating, he was just a minor stage actor. They married in 1965 after a few years of their relationship and had three children together: Ezekiel, Max, and Susannah. Wanting to expand their horizons, they moved to Australia, but this ended up being a mistake as their conflicts and arguments increased. Bean had affairs behind her back and they believed someone had put a curse on them, causing black magic to hurt their son.

They moved back to America to get away from the curse and felt a cure that removed the black magic from their son. With all the issues, they decided to get a divorce in 1981 after 16 years of marriage. Their daughter Susannah died in 2012, causing significant grief for the family. Carolyn only acted in a few TV shows after their divorce, while Bean went into depression and started doing drugs. He was able to recover and his acting career took off.

He wrote several books, including Me and The Orgone, which were about his life and Orgone therapy. He married Alley Mills in 1993 and built a happy life together in Los Angeles. Carolyn did not marry again after her divorce from Orson Bean.