The handmade blog: | Featured Seller

Please tell us a bit about yourself.
My name is Ryn and I'm a clothing designer, photographer and artist currently living in New Orleans. I grew up in Wisconsin and after finishing my undergrad (in photography) I moved to Japan, where I taught English, studied Japanese and sold my clothing for a year and a half. I spent a few months in Shanghai, assisting the photographer Maleonn, and then moved to Austin, TX for a year. I moved to New Orleans for grad school and have been here for a year and a half now. I've moved around a lot but I've finally found the place I want to be.

Apart from creating things, what do you do?
I am an MFA student at the University of New Orleans studying photography and video, but I guess that's creating too! I love to travel, read, watch films and make dinner with my friends. I also love going to galleries and events around New Orleans.

Where does your inspiration come from?
A lot of it comes from other artists. A few of the most influential ones are Alexander McQueen, Hans Bellmer, Cosey Fanni Tutti, Anne Von Freyburg, Maleonn and Monica Zeringue. I also get a lot of inspiration from other independent designers selling there wares online. Traveling though, never fails to be the most inspiring thing I can do. I always get so many ideas by just being in a new place, and I'm always excited to get back home so I can get to work on them.

What would yo like to do in the future?
I would like to do a lot of things! I would love to live abroad again, and I keep being drawn back to the desire to live in China. I would love to make a living doing both Altar and my art. I'm getting closer to that, but I still need to supplement my income with odd jobs. I would also like to teach digital photography in a university...possibly abroad!

What does handmade mean to you?
It means you don't have to purchase mass produced goods made under questionable conditions. It means you can support someone who is following their dream and get something totally unique and personal to boot. It also speaks of the thriving community of artisans and their patrons around the world who fight against the imposing commercial monster that our world threatens to become (but never will!).

How would you describe your creative process?
It ebbs and flows and I try to pay attention to that and honor it. I try not to force it when it's not there, but if I don't do anything creative for more than a couple days I definitely crave it badly. It's pretty much a necessity like food and water. If I'm not actually making something I'm usually doing research and taking notes for the next project.

Tell us about a funny experience you had while working.
When I lived in Japan and China I would go around taking photos of myself in my designs for Etsy and it was always pretty funny trying to explain what I was doing with the language barrier. My favorite was when I stumbled upon an abandoned army base on the outskirts of Tokyo and of course I had to go in with my camera and props and all. I actually got quite a few shots before a guard came and politely escorted me off the premises in his vehicle. We realized we couldn't communicate well, but understood enough, so we sat silently listening to classical music until we reached the border and waved goodbye. I felt like he might have been a ghost.

Some of her dresses: