Featured Artist JeynReyn

Artist Jeyn shares her thoughts with interview by Mycatlulu.

1. Good morning Jeyn, please tell our readers a little about yourself.

My shop is www.jeynreyn.etsy.com where I currently items like Pocket scarves, little stuffed bunnies, Felt Barrettes, Cell Pockets, and iPhone/iPod/PDA protectors. I just recently had a baby girl named Elodie Olive and being a mother is just wonderful. In the month since she was born, she has sparked me to find more Etsy mojo and create unique and innovative baby items that can help fellow moms. This is why I decided to open up a co-shop for moms and babies at www.lovemedo.etsy.com (opening mid-April or sooner). As far as the creative side of me, I learned alot of creativity from my Mom when I was really little; like watching her design, sew, knit, and crochet. I also learned alot of inventions from my Dad when I was little because he was always thinking of crazy ideas. I haven't stopped thinking of ideas since. I even have a book where I write down the drawings and ideas, so they don't go away and I can refer to them at a later time and make them.


2. Tell us how you first got involved with Etsy.

I actually discovered Etsy and joined in July of 2005 to capture my shop name, but didn't actually put anything in my shop until February of 2006! I've seen Etsy grow tremendously since they started and the information and tools that are available are so overwhelming that I sometimes spends hours on Etsy's forums or articles and links. I am so pleased with what Etsy has done and how easy they make it for DIY designers to sell their stuff.


3. Have we seen your work anywhere other than Etsy.com?

I used to do craft shows, mostly in SF for Vestiti Roupa and that was a lot of fun. I've had some consignment for my barrettes and cell pockets at Black & Brown recycled clothes shop in San Jose, as well as some arm wristlets shown in one of their annual runway shows. Also, recently my barrettes can be found at www.meepsdc.com (instore, not online), and I am currently working on a barrette order for consignment at Needles and Pens in SF. Other than that, I am still trying to concentrate on my Etsy shop and build up my sales first, as well as try to branch out to other online consignment shops and such. I unfortunately had a gap of non-posting on my shop due to going to school, but my goal is to continue to concentrate and expand my items on my shop as well as shops in the Bay Area. I've also just recently started my own creative blog at www.jeynreyn.blogspot.com. It is a great outlet for sharing my ideas and pics.


4. Your shop has some lovely fabric pieces, including this one
what was your inspiration for this?

Mostly the fabrics. I usually don't always think of the actual item until I go to the fabric store and see a fabric type and think of what I can make with it. This can get me in a lot of trouble. But this scarf is actually made from the last of this fabric that I bought in SF. I have a lot (boxes!) of unique fabric that I purchased a long time ago and knew that someday I'd have an inspiration to make something cool with it. I used to make regular scarves and found that, like jewelry, a lot of other people can do the same thing. I wanted to create something that was different and appealing to Etsy buyers (a.k.a. "cute"). Something you'd wear on a subway and other people would comment or ask you where you got it. The felt bunnies idea came from my stuffed bunnies which sold really well. People loved them and I thought I'd incorporate them onto my scarves.




5. You are a member for the street team SFEtsy, please tell us more about the team and what you have found there. Are you a member of any other teams :) (efa for example)

Yes, I found SFEtsy by being on the forums and there was Fossa (Maile-team creator). I had a question for her and eventually we ended up chatting on gmail and she mentioned that she had this SFEtsy team and to sign up. I have to say that I never really thought about signing up for a team and frankly I didn't know how this worked. Since I signed up, I've been participating as much as possible and I think the vast amounts of information and the people I've met (virtually so far) are great!. I've tried to attend a couple of parties they've held, but due to my pregnancy I was unable to go. Thanks you to you, (Becca at mycatlulu.blogspot.com), I became a member of EFA (Etsy for Animals) . I've always been a pet lover and love to give to charity, so this was a good avenue for me.


6. When you're not creating what are you doing?

I love to travel and have been fortunate enough to go to a lot of amazing places (Amazon, Egypt, Turkey,etc.), and I plan on going back to playing I've soccer since I've done that for over 30 years, but now I am a first time and full-time mother to my beautiful daughter, Elodie Olive, born in February. She has swallowed my time, but I am more than happy to be there for her (and me ;o)) and I do get some windows of time to work on my crafts.


7. What is your favorite hobby beyond being an artist?

Sounds funny, and it is not really a hobby, but I really enjoy spending time with my best friend and fiance, Patrick. Even after 7 years together, we have a lot of fun and really love spending time enjoying the simple things in life (traveling, road trips, favorite restaurants, hiking trails, picnics, watching videos in bed,etc.). We support and inspire each other and he still says "wo-hoo!" whenever I get a sale on Etsy..ha!