Category Archives: Women entrepreneurs

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The Pollination Project: ‘seeding projects that change the world’

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Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed, citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.
– Margaret Mead, American cultural anthropologist

If you had the capacity to give away $1,000 a day for the rest of your life, how would you spend your money? If you’re Ariel (Ari) Nessel, a real-estate redeveloper, peace activist, and yogi, the answer is big-hearted and impactful: Award daily grants to change-makers – individuals who have a vision to change the world with the overarching goal of spreading compassion towards all life – the planet, people, and animals. Ari and his sister-in-law Stephanie Klempner founded and co-founded, respectively, The Pollination Project, a nonprofit committed to funding entrepreneurs – specifically not established nonprofits or organizations – whose projects advocate environmental sustainability, justice, community health and wellness, and social change-oriented arts and culture.

Alissa Houser, executive director of The Pollination Project, at Cafeina Organic Café.

Alissa Hauser, executive director of The Pollination Project, at Cafeina Organic Café.

Funding audacious visions and unreasonable promises
After my friend Pamela Braxton introduced me to executive director Alissa Hauser, we met up at Cafeína Organic Café (1389 Solano Avenue, Albany, CA, 94706, 510.526.6069) in July to talk about The Pollination Project and its amazing grantees and their projects. Guided by Ari and Stephanie, Alissa, who has a history of driving entrepreneurial startups, developed the foundation’s infrastructure from the ground up. She hired a second full-time person in the midst of awarding an initial 50 grants between October and December 2012. The wave of grants created a momentum that pushed up the target date for daily giving from July 2013 to January 1st of this year. As of early July, The Pollination Project has received upwards of 800 applications and funded more than 200 projects.

Organizational partners, outreach teams, and ambassadors help to vet applications, which can number anywhere between 20 and 75 a week. A team of at least six people review and score a weekly docket of applications. While applicants with unanimous support from the team are funded, others are wait-listed and carried over to the next week or applicants are contacted to provide more details or answer questions. Because of the volume, applications are handled within the week. Since the foundation was started, many people and organizations have stepped forward and offered to serve as partners. “That list is always growing,” Alissa said. In recent news, The Pollination Project partnered with the Earth Island Institute’s Brower Youth Awards program to provide funding for some of the top youth environmental leaders around the country.

Filmmaker Carolyn Scott (courtesy of The Pollination Project).

Filmmaker Carolyn Scott (courtesy of The Pollination Project).

While topic is important, how the money is used is just as critical. For example, while The Pollination Project has funded documentaries in the past, the money needs to be applied at a particular stage where a thousand dollars can make the most difference, according to Alissa. Documentaries need to have distribution plans, partners, and connections to ensure that the documentary is seen. May grantee Carolyn Scott of San Rafael, CA, is at work on a documentary called Conversations with Unreasonable Women, which profiles four women who are fighting through direct action to save their communities from environmental destruction. Her goal is to “ignite a movement” in which women from around the country come together and implement solutions highlighted in the film in areas where the environment is threatened.

As a result of what they were seeing from applicants, such as requests to pay for their 501c3 nonprofit status, The Pollination Project developed an online resource, which, among other things, provides information such as crowd funding and best practices. The foundation has also become a destination for individual donors looking for projects to fund because of its access to hundreds of startups that most foundations aren’t soliciting or looking at, according to Alissa. “As we evolve, we’re really turning into a platform for others to be able to give in this way,” she said.

Compassion: The Common thread
The grants fund projects that address a wide range of issues, all with the common thread of compassion. Trust me: There are more than 200 – and that number is obviously growing daily – great stories to profile and all worthy of mention. With Ari and Stephanie being long-time animal rights activists, along with partners, team members, and ambassadors, projects focusing on compassion towards animals have been widely funded. Documentary filmmakers and grant recipients highlighted the largest animal rescue in the United States – some 50,000 hens were abandoned in a poultry plant in Turlock, CA. Several Los Angeles-based animal rights groups worked night and day to rescue the starving hens. “When you see something with your own eyes, it shifts your perspective on it,” Alissa said. “This is true about issues around animals because we don’t ever think about where our meat comes from, the animals that we consume – the eggs and dairy products. Most of it comes from profound cruelty and inhumane treatment of animals. Unless you see it, you just don’t know or want to know.”

Linda Beal (middle row, fourth from left) of Kids Five and Over.

Linda Beal (standing, sixth from left) of Kids Five and Over.

Numerous and diverse projects focus on compassion for people. It seems fitting that The Dress at 50 applauds grantee Linda Beal of Portsmouth, NH. Throughout her years of teaching in public schools, Linda observed the financial difficulties of parents who couldn’t support their talented children with instruments for band, shoes for dance lessons, or money to pay for lessons. She recalled a little girl who performed at a school dance recital and persevered in worn ballet slippers that kept falling off her feet. On her 50th birthday, Linda and her friends threw a party and raised money to purchase equipment and pay for lessons for these artistic kids, which was the beginning of the program Linda spearheaded called Kids Five and Over. The program, which also offers mentoring opportunities for the kids, has already gotten local support from volunteers and service organizations.

Shodo Spring expressing her civil disobedience (courtesy of The Pollination Project).

Shodo Spring expressing her civil disobedience (courtesy of The Pollination Project).

The Pollination Project funds projects that expand compassion for the planet. Shodo Spring, a 65-year-old grandmother of four, Zen Buddhist priest, and spring grantee, is currently leading a group of supporters on a three-month, 1,300-mile Compassionate Earth Walk, which started in July in Alberta, Canada, and will end in Steele City, NE, in October. Back in 2011, she was arrested for protesting against the Keystone XL Pipeline (see picture at left). The intent of Shodo’s pilgrimage, which marks the route of the pipeline, is to draw attention to the development of the Canadian tar sands and its contribution to global warming and climate change. The Buddhist Peace Fellowship connected Shodo and her Compassionate Earth Walk with The Pollination Project.

Calvin Duncan (courtesy of The Pollination Project).

Calvin Duncan (courtesy of The Pollination Project).

Beyond the thousand dollars
“It’s about the money, but it’s also not about the money,” Alissa said, of the grants. “It’s about the credibility and recognition.” Many grantees have leveraged their $1,000 to gain momentum for their cause, do more good, and generate more change. Calvin Duncan of New Orleans, who was falsely imprisoned for more than two decades and trained himself to become a paralegal, got help from the Innocence Project to work on his exoneration. While he had gathered the evidence that proved his innocence, it took another eight years to get released. Duncan now trains paralegals to help prisoners with their legal needs and his grant is being used to support other falsely imprisoned inmates to gain access to documents that prove their innocence. To honor his perseverance and hard work, the Open Society Foundations recently awarded Duncan its prestigious Soros Justice Fellowship.

May Shea Penn (courtesy of The Pollination Project).

May Shea Penn (courtesy of The Pollination Project).

Several grantees have been lauded by other organizations, including two youngsters whose passionate and tireless work on behalf of animals and the environment is nothing less than inspirational. A February grantee and 13-year-old from Atlanta, Maya Shea Penn not only is a seasoned entrepreneur – she started her eco-fashion website at age 8 – but is also a philanthropist, designer, artist, animator, illustrator, and writer. Her grant, which enabled her to discuss environmental issues in classroom visits using a book she had written and illustrated, is yet another validation for her work. Among her many accolades, Maya won the Black Enterprise Teenpreneur of the Year Award in 2013 and is scheduled to speak at the TEDWomen Conference in San Francisco in December. “She’s one of many who have leveraged the recognition to the next step,” Alissa said.

Thomas Ponce (courtesy of The Pollination Project).

Thomas Ponce (courtesy of The Pollination Project).

Thomas Ponce, a 12-year-old animal rights activist from Florida and The Pollination Project’s 100th grantee, created a website called Lobby for Animals, which teaches people how to lobby their congressional leaders about animal rights. Already recognized by People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, he was given the Youth Animal Activist Award by the Farm Animal Rights Movement at the 2013 Animal Rights National Conference in Washington, D.C., in July. “The recognition from the grant means so much to them that it’s worth almost more than the money itself,” Alissa said.

“It’s fun to meet people and to see their beauty and vision,” Alissa added. “It’s important and memorable to me that we give people permission to dream about something and then make that dream happen. That’s what I love.”

Editor’s Note: If you have or someone you know has a project that would be a good candidate for a grant from The Pollination Project, you can access an application here.

Tana Hakanson: The Artist’s journey home (Part II)

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Nobody can go back and start a new beginning, but anyone can start today and make a new ending.
– Maria Robinson, American writer

Tana working on a painting of a figure in her home studio.

Tana working on a painting of a figure in her home studio.

Abstract painting: The Balancing act
Abstract painting is much more difficult than many people may imagine, according to artist Tana Hakanson. Balance, composition, color, and contrast are as equally important in non-representational art as they are in representational art. “I’m learning to let go of thinking about what I’m doing too much and let the painting process evolve naturally, while at the same time evaluating the piece along the way for all of the elements that make a painting work,” she said. “It’s a balancing act between letting it happen and making it happen.” Artists can plan out the process when working on a representational piece of art, such as a painting of a still life, because they have a preconceived notion of the end product. In abstract painting, however, the work evolves as you go along, according to Tana.

Sketch of a dancer.

Tana’s sketch of a dancer.

“Each painting seems to takes on a life of its own, so trying to get the materials to do the same thing that they did the day before is futile,” she said. Her best paintings have “seemed to come easily and happen by themselves.” The director of her graduate program’s art department painted while watching television to distract him from the act of painting so his art would just “come out.” While Tana appreciates his theory, she prefers to be more engaged in the moment. “I wouldn’t want to miss anything!” she said. Being in the moment happens away from the canvas, as well. Sometimes she’ll wake up in the middle of the night or be walking outdoors and “get colors in my head.” When those moments come to her, she says, with a big smile, “I get inspired. And that’s the magic of it.”

Art and nature
Not surprisingly, Tana is inspired by nature and glazed pottery, specifically textures that occur through natural processes such as geologic formations and colors in rocks, which make the end product unpredictable and unique. Last year she experimented with paint flowing vertically. This year she is playing with organic shapes, as well as letting paint flow around the canvas, with her only manipulation being the choice of colors and size of the canvas, then working with what comes out of it. With each painting changing as it dries, Tana says she never knows what the outcome will be. “I would like to think that my paintings are like nature at work and I’m participating in the play of nature,” she said.

Tana's painting from her series of wood paintings.

Tana’s painting from her series of wood paintings.

Tana is fascinated by quantum physics, fractals, and how nature creates “incredible, beautiful things.” She’s also interested in chaos theory and how nature is predictable in its unpredictability. “Perhaps since we are nature ourselves, we are drawn to nature’s aesthetic, which, though it has patterns, also always has something different thrown in which creates vibrancy,” she said. The works of artists who inspire her share similar themes. San Francisco artist Saundra MacPherson, whose work of layers upon layers of texture is informed by geology, invited Tana to her studio six years ago when Tana saw her work online and wrote her a letter of appreciation. She credits MacPherson with encouraging her to keep going and keep experimenting with her art. Local artist Stephen Bruce, who works with acid on metal, which creates forms via natural processes, is another source of inspiration.

Tana captures the fluidity of dancers in her sketches.

Tana captures the fluidity of dancers in her sketches.

Doing what you love: Tana as inspiration
A philosophical person at heart, Tana has experienced “a lot of existential angst” in her 46 years. Finding daily tasks “often dull and boring,” and “modern life to be sometimes disjointed and vapid,” she has always been on a quest to get deeper into the “essence of things,” which is why she was drawn to art early on and why it was inevitable that she returned to painting. “I’m not sure what it all means, but I have learned that life is short,” she said. “If you’re cutting yourself off from the things that you love and that have meaning to you, you’re not helping the world. So do what you love – even if it’s carving out a bit of time for it initially. Make it work somehow, no matter where you are in your life.”

Tana Hakanson will show her new work at this year’s East Bay Open Studio, sponsored by Pro Arts the first two weekends in June (1-2 and 8-9), from 11am to 6pm, at her home at 1633 Mariposa Street, Richmond, CA 94804. You can also see her work at Tana Hakanson Studio. Support the arts! Let Tana know that you read about her work here.

Editor’s note: Part I of Tana Hakanson: The Artist’s Journey Home was published here on Friday, May 24.

Tana Hakanson: The Artist’s journey home (Part I)

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The object isn’t to make art, it’s to be in that wonderful state which makes art inevitable.  – Robert Henri, American painter and teacher

Preface
I’ve known Tana Hakanson going on eight years this autumn, when our first-born sons entered kindergarten. Thus began years of volunteering at our children’s elementary school and seemingly endless, idyllic afternoons on the playground, our homes and other friends’ homes, and at various child-centered venues for playdates – while we worked outside of the home full-time. As we got to know one another, we developed a special kinship centered in the arts: Tana is an artist, a painter, and I am a fiction writer. Our bond was deepened by our love of paint and words, respectively, and the shared frustration of not having the time or energy to explore our craft and nourish our souls. Through the years, we commiserated with one another, offered encouraging words, and congratulated the incremental victories of finishing a painting and completing a revision of the novel.

Two-thousand thirteen promises to be an important year for the both of us, as we dive deep and make headway into living our creative lives: My novel, after a 16-year journey, will finally be completed later this year, and Tana, who launched her art studio website earlier this year, is preparing for her second open studio.

Tana Hakanson works on a painting at her home studio in the Richmond Annex.

Tana Hakanson works on a painting at her home studio in the Richmond Annex.

The Artist emerges
This time, last year Tana Hakanson reluctantly signed up to participate in Pro Arts’ East Bay Open Studio last June, at the urging of her husband Mauricio Monsalve. She had returned to painting a year and a half ago, when Mauricio suggested that she reduce her hours as a systems specialist for an adventure travel company to four days a week. But at the time, she felt she didn’t have enough work to present, even though her free Fridays allowed her the block of time she needed to paint. Mauricio knew she was ready, but just needed a push. By the end of the open studio, she had sold 21 paintings and was overwhelmed by the enthusiastic response to her work. As Tana sets up for her second open studio next month, she is better prepared with more work to show and more inspired. More importantly, she has grown so much as an artist.

Tana as a child and budding artist.

Tana as a child and budding artist.

Artistic beginnings, hiatus, and return
As a child, Tana loved to draw. When she went to college, however, she studied music under scholarship. She switched majors and graduated with a degree in English and a minor in music, although she managed to take a lot of drawing and painting classes. When she went on an overseas study program in Indonesia, she fell in love with the local art and was inspired by the colors and how art is part of everyday life in Bali. She studied traditional Balinese art and stayed on after the program ended, painting and selling her work to individual art patrons and in a local art gallery in Bali.

After graduation, Tana tried her hand at commercial art, attempting to combine her love of art with earning a living. She did illustrations of books on dogs and cats. “It was really fun, but I realized it wasn’t exactly what I was trying to get out of art,” she recalled. For Tana, art is “personal and spiritual.” She applied to graduate school, hoping to explore that aspect of art. Most of the programs out there, according to Tana, were more conceptual, socially driven, and intellectual, and not focused on the spiritual or philosophical experience of art. The arts and consciousness program at John F. Kennedy University in Berkeley stressed the process of art over art itself and the transformative aspects of art making. Many graduates of the program become art therapists; but Hakanson said, “I didn’t know what I wanted to do with it [the degree], but I knew it was what I wanted to study.”

Getting her masters jump-started her to develop her art further. When she gave birth to her son Marcelo in 2000 and then her son Mateo in 2003, however, Hakanson focused on motherhood, which she describes as a “deep and ongoing experience.” Although she continued sketching – taking her sketchbooks on family road trips – she stopped painting altogether. Working at Wilderness Travel (1102 9th Street, Berkeley, 94710, 800.368.2794) and taking care of her sons after school didn’t leave any time, especially big blocks of time, for painting.

Tana and her family on a recent trip.

Tana and her family on a recent trip.

She carved out a little time to take up dance, specifically flamenco, which was a different medium for releasing her creativity. “I love the body and I love movement,” she said. “Movement is a way to connect to nature and that energy of life, and it’s transformative in the same way art is.” When her Fridays were freed up, she contemplated dropping flamenco to focus completely on painting. But the movement aspect of dance and dance’s ability to fuel her art and give her energy were important enough to keep both going. “For me, a big aspect of my work is movement,” she said.

Tana's sketch of a dancer.

Tana’s sketch of a dancer.

Abstract painting: Freedom to experiment
Tana is devoting the next two years to developing her painting, and then marketing her work. For now, with Fridays as her only day for painting, she has just enough pieces for next month’s open studio. Tana feels that she’s learned so much in the last year in terms of working with the materials. “The more I paint, the more I understand how to use the material for what I want to do,” she said. One of her many goals this year is to work with disparity in the tones to create more contrast, which creates depth. “I tend to avoid contrast, because this kind of boldness doesn’t come naturally to me – in painting or in real life,” she explained. “But just like in any aspect of life, you have to face it and keep trying if you want to grow. I have a vision of where I want my art to be, but it’s not something I can really pinpoint.”

An abstract painting from Tana's series of water paintings.

An abstract painting from Tana’s series of water paintings.

Experimenting with “liquidy” paint gives her the sense of movement that she is seeking, in both the process itself and the work. “As the paint settles, you can see the energy and flow of movement,” she said. “For me, it’s about freedom to try new things, seeing where it takes me, the unexpected, and surprises along the way,” she said. “The process is the thing for me – then something interesting comes out of it that eventually becomes a painting. Sometimes it just happens naturally – like magic. Sometimes it involves some working and struggling along the way. Mostly it’s some of both, and that interplay makes it compelling.”

Tana Hakanson will show her new work at this year’s East Bay Open Studio, sponsored by Pro Arts the first two weekends in June (1-2 and 8-9), from 11am to 6pm, at her home at 1633 Mariposa Street, Richmond, CA 94804. You can also see her work at Tana Hakanson Studio. Support the arts! Let Tana know that you read about her work here.

Editor’s Note: Part II of Tana Hakanson: The Artist’s Journey Home will be posted on Monday, May 27.

The artist's studio.

A painting dries at the artist’s studio.

Transitions and Transformations: Heidi Werner of Lava 9

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Nothing ever succeeds which exuberant spirits have not helped to produce.
– Friedrich Nietzsche, German philosopher, poet, and composer

Heidi Werner spends a lot of time making sure her customers find what they need.

Heidi Werner spends a lot of time making sure her customers find what they need.

When Heidi Werner and her two business partners opened up Lava 9 (542 Hayes Avenue, 415.552.6468) in San Francisco in 1991, the impoverished Hayes Valley neighborhood was years away from being gentrified. The economy was down; yet, Werner pointed out, “It [the recession] always opens up opportunities, too.” Driven by youthful exuberance and cheerful indifference of economic conditions, Werner said of that time, “You just go for it!”

Werner knew the owners of Nomads on the block and was drawn to the diverse and eclectic vibe of the neighborhood. The rent was low and the storefronts were small, blank slates, which enticed not only Lava 9 to lay down stakes but other young entrepreneurs, as well. “We created that neighborhood,” Werner said. Nomads, Zonal, and Lava 9 are the original three shops from the early days that are still standing.

Amazing, unique rings on display.

Amazing statement rings on display.

One of her partners, a jewelry designer, already owned a store called Volcano, which figured into the name of their new store. The three of them randomly added the “9” because Lava was too short and the number 9 “sounded good.” The other two women were jewelry designers, while Werner was a leather artisan, creating mostly jackets and bags. Conceived of as a gallery, Lava 9 comprised a showroom for their leather and metal wares and a stage that served as their workshops. They sold their creations and soon afterwards carried other wares, most of which were handmade and selected on Werner’s buying trips.

More Lava 9 jewelry to drool over.

More Lava 9 jewelry to drool over.

A True entrepreneurial spirit
Werner supplemented her income by working at another leather store, but quit when her business partner called one day to inform her that someone had stolen five of her leather jackets. Convinced the theft wouldn’t have occurred on her watch, Werner told herself, “That’s it!” The spontaneous decision to quit and put all of her energies into the store did not rest on whether or not she could do it financially. “It was the true entrepreneurial spirit,” Werner said, of the drive that sprang forth from her. She had told herself back then that it had to work. “And it did!” she exclaimed. When funds were low, Werner would sell two leather jackets the day before rent was due. “Things just worked out,” she said, simply.

An ethereal dress and lots of leather purses.

A casual yet modern dress and lots of leather purses.

One partner dropped out after three months, and the other left before the end of the first year after creative differences. Although the partnership didn’t work out, starting a business with others gave her a sense of security and “more power to do it.” When they left, she carried on without hesitation. “I was fine – I was the most determined,” she said, of the business venture and the solo effort. To this day, Werner, now 54, still subscribes to the philosophy of “Just do it” and not get too caught up with issues. At the same time, she has been frugal from a business perspective. “That’s what helped me through the downturns,” she explained. Just as important, Werner invested in a lot of sweat equity. “Hard work pays off,” she said.

A Passion for sewing
When Werner was a girl in Germany, her mother enrolled her in a sewing class, which sparked her passion for sewing and led to her taking design and pattern-making classes. As a teenager, she often designed and sewed outfits a few hours before going to parties. Although she earned her degree in special education, when Werner came to the U.S., seeking adventure, she turned to making small leather goods, which she sold at small venues such as the Haight Street Fair and other neighborhood street fairs. It often took weeks to craft a leather jacket because of the custom work – Werner would make the pattern, buy the leather and findings, and then sew the garment. She eventually hired a pattern maker and tailor. She still designs some bags, which are made by her tailor.

Lava 9's inviting storefront near the top of Solano.

Lava 9’s inviting storefront near the top of Solano in Berkeley.

The Rise of Lava 9 in Berkeley
Werner opened up her Berkeley shop (1797 Solano Avenue, 510.528.5336) more than four years ago at the former location of Soap Sistahs after a experiencing a midlife crisis. At that time, she wanted to do something different and had designs on becoming a dog trainer (Werner has rescue dogs). But when she heard that the owner was closing the soap store and retiring to Mexico – a scenario that also greatly appealed to her – Werner decided to convert the storefront into the second Lava 9. The new location was ideal because Werner lives in Berkeley, but more importantly, designing and setting up the compact, rectangular-shaped store renewed her passion.

Although there is some crossover, the two cities boast different clientele, which means Werner must offer different products at each store. The Hayes Valley client is younger with more disposable income, whereas the Berkeley clientele is older. Interestingly, some of the Berkeley clients used to live in the Hayes Valley neighborhood but are now mothers whose kids attend the local school around the corner from Solano Avenue. For them, finding one of their favorite San Francisco stores in the East Bay is a pleasant surprise.

A great display of purses on a ladder.

A great display of purses, belts, and clothes on a ladder.

While many designers come to her to show their wares, Werner actively searches for solo artisans, both local and European, whose works are unique, eclectic, and multi-dimensional. One of her biggest challenges is offering something that isn’t carried by another local store. “It’s an ongoing struggle to be different,” she said. In addition to offering unique products, her philosophy is to be able to sell something to everybody – from 14-year-old girls to 86-year-old grandmothers. Thus, Lava 9 carries wares ranging in price from $15 headbands to $4,000 rings. While the handful of economic downturns through the years has led her to introduce more affordable items, her aesthetics and her customer service have created a large and loyal customer base. As an added personal touch and a Lava 9 trademark, purchases are carefully wrapped in high-end designer fabric – scraps supplied by a friend who works in the industry – and tied with festive ribbons.

More gorgeous jewelry beautifully displayed.

More gorgeous jewelry beautifully displayed.

Werner and her staff spend a lot of time with their customers, providing a personal shopping experience not found in most retail clothing stores. Managing the business and running between the two stores takes her away from making it an everyday experience, but the customer interaction is the thing that always draws her back and reminds her why she is still in business. “I love the people; I love all my customers,” she exclaimed, after helping one woman find the ideal belt and short trench, and another choose between two embellished scarves. Indeed, if you’ve ever been to Lava 9 and leisurely browsed through the collections of purses, scarves, belts, clothing, and, of course, jewelry, you can always expect a smile and being drawn into a friendly conversation.

Come in and say hi to Heidi at Lava 9.

Come in and say hi to Heidi at Lava 9.

Insect love

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Checking out the insects in our backyard, in navy lace short jacket, maize silk skirt with linen appliques, and amazingly comfortable Frye platform sandals.

Checking out the insects in our backyard.

As Gregor Samsa awoke one morning from uneasy dreams, he found himself transformed in his bed into a gigantic insect.
– Franz Kafka, The Metamorphosis

I know how beneficial spiders are, but it doesn’t mean I have to like them. I’m okay with daddy-longlegs, but any hairy spiders in the house are destined to wind up in the vacuum cleaner bag with lots of dog hair. Spiders belong outdoors and not in my house. I’m arachnophobic; just ask my old college roommates about how much I fear spiders! All other insects are interesting when they are also outdoors and not in my house, and not in my son’s room, where a tarantula exoskeleton, which once belonged in my mother-in-law’s classroom when she was a teacher, resides. I suggested to my son that he donate it to his science teacher’s classroom. If this is how I feel about insects, how to explain my love of jewelry inspired by insects? I don’t have an answer for that.

Vintage reclaimed spider bracelet by M.E. Moore (Gorgeous & Green, Berkeley), beloved cicada necklace by Lotta & Djossou (Lava 9, Berkeley), and cicada ring (End of Century, NYC).

Vintage reclaimed spider bracelet by M.E. Moore (Gorgeous & Green, Berkeley), beloved cicada necklace by Lotta & Djossou (Lava 9, Berkeley), and cicada ring (End of Century, NYC).

It all began a few years ago when I was browsing the display cases of jewelry at one of my favorite accessories shops, Lava 9 in Berkeley (1797 Solano Avenue, 510.528.5336). I came across a sterling silver cicada on a long chain. I didn’t get it then, but months later, when I returned to purchase it, the sales person informed me that it had sold. I was disappointed, even as she told me there was a chance the store could order it from the Swedish company, Lotta & Djossou, though it was from a collection from a previous season. As I turned away, I caught sight of some jewelry at eye level in a glass case on the main counter, and lo and behold, there was the cicada in all its etched glory. The necklace apparently had made its way from Lava 9’s San Francisco store to the Berkeley store. Just for me.

Jan Michaels loves insects as much as I do: bumblebee cuff (Philly) and necklace and pin (Lava 9).

Jan Michaels loves insects as much as I do! From left to right, bumblebee cuff (purchased at a Philadelphia shop on North 3rd Street) and necklace and pin (Lava 9).

There was something about it that reminded me of both the Victorian and Art Nouveau eras. It was edgy yet romantic, something Stevie Nicks would have worn back in the early 1970s. Two years ago, I met a local woman as part of a consumer group for a retail clothing and accessories company at their headquarters in Philadelphia. She was wearing a vintage Art Nouveau butterfly necklace. It was stunning – the kind of jewelry that you wear alone, and if you did wear another accessory it would be deemed fashion blasphemy. She told me she had admired the piece for a long time, and then when the vintage shop owner decided to close her business she gave the necklace to her. I stopped short of asking her to name her price, though I knew such a request would be futile. Thus began my hunt for a vintage butterfly necklace via eBay, Etsy, and antique and vintage shops – all in vain so far.

Dragonfly necklace and beetle cuff made from reclaimed metal by Alkemie of Los Angeles.

Dragonfly necklace and beetle cuff made from 100% reclaimed metal by Alkemie of Los Angeles.

Butterflies and cicadas. Soon bumblebees in earrings from Anthropologie and an ornately wrought cuff became part of my insect jewelry collection. I got the bumblebee cuff while in Philadelphia and got a good laugh when the sales person told me the artist was Jan Michaels from San Francisco and not from a local jewelry designer. Then I added a dragonfly and a beetle, both from Alkemie, to my small but growing collection. Beijo Brasil makes beautiful butterfly earrings and necklaces out of translucent resin. I found a cicada ring at End of Century in New York last fall. I was tempted by a couple of thick sterling silver cuffs with row upon row of beetles, but I didn’t succumb, at least not that visit. And then I came full circle to Lava 9, adorned with more winged insect jewelry.

Bumblebee necklace (Fossil), bumblebee and rhinestone studs (Anthropologie), translucent resin butterfly necklace by Beijo Brasil (De Young Museum, San Francisco).

Bumblebee necklace (Fossil), bumblebee and rhinestone studs (Anthropologie), translucent resin butterfly necklace by Beijo Brasil (De Young Museum, San Francisco), and winged insect necklace (Lava 9).

I’m pretty particular about the look and feel of insect jewelry. I’m drawn to both Art Nouveau and Art Deco, vintage and edgy. I’m still in search for that perfect vintage butterfly necklace. If you share a love for insect jewelry, I welcome you to share it with me and other fellow admirers. If you can’t shoo insects out of the house, adorn them on your fingers, wrists, and around your neck.

Piling on the insect jewelry!

Piling on the insect jewelry!

Transitions and Transformations: Jen Komaromi of Jenny K

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Progress always involves risk; you can’t steal second base and keep your foot on first.
– F.W. Dupee, American literary critic, essayist, and English professor

Multi-tasking Jen Komaromi rings up a purchase while listening to a local customer.

Multi-tasking Jen Komaromi rings up a purchase while listening to a local customer.

Jen Komaromi was raised in a family that has been in the automobile tire business for three generations – in fact, since its invention. Her grandfather had managed a rubber factory in the Philippines post World War II. Her father was an international sales representative for Firestone, with Africa and Southeast Asia as his territories. (Komaromi was born in Liberia before her family relocated to Hong Kong.) Her father didn’t enjoy working for someone else and after starting a company with a group of former employees, he built up his own distributorship and sold tires wholesale and retail in the Sacramento area. Not surprisingly, owning a family business was not a goal of Jen’s because she had witnessed firsthand its many challenges. The entrepreneurial desire was hardwired, however, and surfaced when she worked at a café and bakery in Tahoe while also holding down a job in the forest service. Jen worked mostly by herself, standing up the restaurant’s newly opened bakery. During this time, she discovered her natural ability to sell things and help people out. “I really enjoyed it,” she said. “That was the very first taste [of wanting to run a business].”

The Beginning of Jenny K
When Jen moved to the Bay Area, she got a job with a Berkeley-based wholesale jewelry manufacturer that produced pewter charms. The gift industry intrigued her because it was full of innovation and mostly comprised small mom-and-pop-type outfits. “I loved it right away, and I’ve been in it ever since,” she said. In 2001, she decided to work on her own as a sales representative and upon the suggestion of a co-worker named her rep group Jenny K, which was an easy company name for her customers to remember. Jen sold manufacturers’ merchandise to retail stores – as small as her current store and as large as Cost Plus and Red Envelope – and landed key accounts that comprised a healthy percentage of the company’s business. While she thoroughly enjoyed the wholesale world, gas prices were rising and the industry as a whole became more challenging.

A Ryan Du Val mural above the storefronts graces Jenny K gift store and Well Grounded Tea & Coffee Bar.

A Ryan Du Val mural above the storefronts graces Jenny K gift store and Well Grounded Tea & Coffee Bar.

At the same time, Jen had developed a website and was soon filling product orders for this growing part of her business, which prompted her to convert her wholesale website to a retail site. When the paperwork and inventory of her online business began overtaking her house, her husband Kevin O’Neal suggested she find an office. The small space she found within her price range, which is two doors down from where she currently resides, had a storefront, which made it ideal to display her goods. The time she put into the store took away from being a sales representative, and she eventually threw her energy full time into Jenny K as a retail store (6921 Stockton Avenue, El Cerrito, 510.528.5350). Given her love of traveling, Jen was reluctant to give up her wholesale business and imagines going back to it one day, but she says she “finally embraced retail.”

Learning from the family business, following her instincts
Jen credits her staying power to her father’s “eternal optimism,” which she says is a necessity of owning a business. She remembers her growing-up years of living frugally and witnessing her parents struggle. “Because of that, I’m willing to make the sacrifices, whereas not everybody is willing to do that,” she said. Not that being in wholesale didn’t have its moments of difficulties – Jen recalled the early days of being a sales rep when she called her father in tears and he coached her through the rough times. “He trained me to be a salesperson,” she said.

Customers can find glassware and a large selection of greeting cards.

Customers can find glassware and a large selection of greeting cards.

The idea to operate both a gift store and a café – Kevin runs their Well Grounded Tea & Coffee Bar (6925 Stockton Avenue, 510.528.4709), which opened in 2005 after Jenny K was established – came to her early on when she was a sales rep. Jen observed that one of her best customers in Scotts Valley, whose gift shop was next door to a Starbuck’s, was always busy. “I saw how successful that concept was,” she said. The other inspiration was the Cracker Barrel chain, which operates in the south. The model incorporates a gift shop and café, with patrons having to walk through the gift shop to get to the food. The gift store chain is the most successful in the nation in terms of sales volume, Jen pointed out. While Cracker Barrel’s theme is country, she wanted to create a California version of the chain store.

Jenny K has something for everyone.

Jenny K has something for everyone.

Jen and Kevin pitched the idea of a café to group of people, but when no offers surfaced, they decided to do it themselves. “My husband is crazy enough to go along with my ideas,” she said, laughing. At the time, Kevin had a full-time job, but he soon quit to run the café side of the business. For many couples, the thought of working so closely together in a business venture is overwhelming, but Jen said, “We’ve been able to make it work.” It helps that their traits are complementary; whereas Jen comes up with ideas, Kevin follows through and gets the job done. “We balance each other out,” she said. “I couldn’t really do the business without him, and he couldn’t really do it without me.”

Jenny K is stocked with beautiful gifts such as these floral slippers.

Jenny K is stocked with beautiful gifts such as these floral slippers.

When they first started, it took a while to play off of each other’s strengths and compensate for each other’s weaknesses, but they soon found their working relationship groove. Jen is quick to point out that if the retail store and café had started somewhere else other than El Cerrito, their business likely would have failed. “The community really embraced us, and forgave us for our faults,” she explained. “We are really learning how to do it all. We’re growing into our business.”

Abloom with resin and satin and tulle roses.

Blooming with jewelry – earrings and necklace by Yotl Designs – from Jenny K.

One thing Jen hasn’t had to learn is finding and offering high-quality products at a price point that local customers will support. Having grown up with parents and grandparents who collected antiques and art, Jen had long honed her sense of timeless style and an eye for distinctive products. For quality and environmental reasons, her store is devoid of tchotchkes. “I don’t want to create more garbage in the world or sell things people don’t want that end up in landfills,” she said. Jen has applied her green philosophy to both businesses. She likes to stock consumable products – her soap line is, in fact, her biggest selling product – and chooses goods that everyone can use. Using organic ingredients in the café distinguishes Well Grounded from other cafés, but it also honors Jen’s and the community’s commitment to being green and supporting organic lifestyles. El Cerrito has a long history of recycling and supporting green practices, and its newly redesigned recycling center received the highest rating for green building.

Bath and beauty products are popular items.

Bath and beauty products are popular items.

Jenny K in 2013 and beyond
Currently in the midst of a renovation that includes the addition of a bathroom and café seating along the big picture window at the front of the store, Jenny K will be completed in time for the Stockton Avenue May Art Stroll, an event Jen and her husband established six years ago. The stroll, which has been in hiatus the last two years, will be making a comeback this year.

With all the extra space to fill, Jen is expanding her product lines and range. The store boasts an upstairs “play space” that will soon be home for classes for older kids and adults, while the main level will be available for hosting birthday parties. Jenny K “tested” a paper airplane class in the fall, and its success has prompted her to plan a series of classes based on the Klutz craft kits.  The first set of classes will debut in April.

There are all kinds of toys and books for every age group.

There are all kinds of toys and books for every age group.

Expect more fundraising and other community events to take place now that Jenny K has more room. This past November, Jenny K held a week-long fundraiser for Portola Middle School, with 20 percent of the purchases being donated to the school. The fundraiser, which raised more than $700, culminated in a Friday evening soiree with wine and hors d’oeuvres and a jewelry trunk show with two local jewelry designers. “We’ve always been supportive of the community,” Jen said. When she and Kevin first came to El Cerrito, they were involved in helping to restore the Cerrito Theater. One of the big benefits of owning a business, according to Jen, is how much they can give back to the community. “It’s definitely one of our goals,” she said, of helping to create that sense of community in El Cerrito.

Jenny K carries a wide variety of jewelry designers.

Jenny K carries a wide variety of jewelry designers.

Jenny K has been on Stockton Avenue since 2004. For now, the retail business works well for Jen, who has a son in kindergartener and a three-year-old daughter – both of whom can often be found “helping” Komaromi in her store and café. “It [the store and café] enables us to have a business where we can be here for our kids,” she explained, as she watches her kids race through the store and up the stairs to the play area. As a national sales manager in wholesale, she was on the road 30 percent of the time, traveling around the country, which is not conducive to raising a young family. Once her daughter is in elementary school, however, Jen wants to find a location that is more densely populated and would enable the gift store and café to truly be integrated and exist on a “grander scale.” For now, Jenny K and Well Grounded Tea & Coffee Bar are bustling and welcoming fixtures for the locals, especially on weekend mornings.

The Komaromi-O'Neil family greets customers at the entrance of Jenny K.

The Komaromi-O’Neil family greets customers at the entrance of Jenny K.