Today we’d like to introduce you to Taylor Treviño.
Hi Taylor, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
In a way, the story of how I got started goes back as long as I can remember. I’ve always been “artsy” and had dreams of making any one of my creative hobbies my full-time job, but it wasn’t until this year that I was finally able to make that happen.
I’ve been sewing since I was a kid, and I learned how to embroider in one of my college art classes. It’s a hobby I would pick up every now and then in the years since, but I definitely wasn’t a pro. I picked it back up again this summer, and the circumstances made it a particularly joyful experience this time.
For the past two years, I had been working as a middle school teacher. While I loved my students and how I was able to serve them, the job itself was incredibly difficult and very time-consuming. The 2020-21 school year ended up being the most difficult year of my life for a variety of reasons, and all I wanted was time for myself where I could do the things I enjoyed and feel like myself again.
I resigned at the end of the school year without a job lined up or any idea of what was next for me. I had some savings and a couple of paychecks on the way, but that was it. Before long, I started embroidering again just for fun and at some point, I realized I could turn it into a business. Part of me was saying, “What are you thinking? This is a lot to take on. People won’t take you seriously.” And Taylor from a few years ago may have let those feelings win. But a big part of me was saying, “Go for it. You have nothing to lose. There is no better time than now to make it happen.” This sense of fearlessness and self-assuredness came over me and stayed, and on September 1st of this year, I launched Voz Embroidery.
Another aspect of my business is my mission and what I aim to communicate with my art. When I started thinking about what I would do after teaching, I knew it had to be something that “mattered” and where I knew I was making a difference. I’m really interested in politics and I try to do what I can to advocate for different causes. Instead of making pieces with a purely aesthetic purpose, I decided to focus my work on social justice, celebrating Latino culture, and sustainability. “Voz” is Spanish for “voice” and my goal has been to encourage people to use their voices and get involved with whatever matters to them.
I’m still learning so much and there are so many more things I want to do, but I’m proud of where I’ve come in the almost three months since. There’s nothing else I’d rather be doing and I’m glad I made the choice to honor myself and pursue what was important to me, as opposed to finding a traditional job and just going through the motions.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Things are never as easy as we expect, but I’ve been lucky not to have faced too many challenges so far. The biggest thing I would say is trying to manage everything that comes with running a business, plus everything else in life. As a solo artist/entrepreneur, you wear so many hats, and it always feels like there’s not enough time in the day to make everything happen. I have high expectations and I put a lot of pressure on myself, so it constantly feels like I’m not doing enough. I need to learn how to manage my goals with what’s practical and possible so I don’t find myself back in the constant state of stress and anxiety that I lived in for two years. At least now, I know everything is in my hands, so it makes it a little easier to overcome.
Another thing that I’ve been slowly learning is how to be confident in my work. When people ask what I’ve been up to, I want to explain what I do with the mindset of an established artist or a businesswoman and not someone who’s just exploring a hobby. When I’m around other creatives or scrolling through Instagram, I have to constantly remind myself not to compare. I wouldn’t call it full fledged imposter syndrome, but certain “symptoms” do pop up every now and then. I just have to remind myself that I’m where I am for a reason, and what makes my work different is why people enjoy it.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I make embroidery art focused on celebrating Latino culture and advocating for social justice. I also make scrunchies, and I make everything (embroidery included) from upcycled fabrics. Sustainability is really important to me and using repurposed materials is one way I can do my part.
Lately, most of my work has focused on the cultural aspect. I like making hoops with sayings in Spanish and recreating Lotería cards with embroidery and watercolor. I’ve found that people really connect with these pieces (definitely my best sellers), and it’s cool to be that extra layer of representation in this medium and in art in general.
I would say that the combination of my medium and subject matter is precisely what sets me apart. There are lots of other embroidery artists, but I haven’t seen anyone highlighting Hispanic culture or making any type of political statement. Very few work with upcycled materials. There are plenty of brands that are all about la cultura or social justice, but usually it’s clothing, 2D art, or things like that. I love when people comment on my work saying they’ve never seen something like it before.
I’m probably most proud of how I’ve stuck to my mission of making things with a purpose and keeping everything as environmentally friendly as possible. Yes, I do have some pieces that are just cute or pretty, but it would be easier to do that all the time or to make pieces just because they’re funny. (No shade to anyone who does that! Every piece of art is valuable in its own way.) It would also be a lot easier to go fabric shopping at a craft store instead of a thrift store, but that’s hard to do knowing how many tons of fabric go to the landfill or get shipped overseas each year. My business is also plastic-free and all my shipping materials are recyclable and made from recycled materials themselves. Running an intentionally sustainable business is challenging in that it creates more parameters to work within, but it’s well worth it.
Can you talk to us a bit about the role of luck?
I don’t think luck has had much of a role in my journey. I think a lot of it comes down to what opportunities you set yourself up for and what you do when things don’t go as planned. That said, I did get lucky at the first market I ever vended at. A local artist and gallery owner happened to be there, saw my work, and invited me to teach a private embroidery workshop at her gallery. It was a great experience and hopefully, it leads to more professional opportunities in the future. But for the most part, I believe that there are logical reasons why things happen the way they do. I believe that my success so far is due to the hard work I put in and the years of creative experience I have.
Contact Info:
- Email: vozembroidery@gmail.com
- Website: https://vozembroidery.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/vozembroidery
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/vozembroidery
Image Credits
The photo of me is by Jami Trevino. All others are my own.
