Jen Hewett

I first met Jen Hewett and saw her lovely screenprinted goods at the Renegade Craft Fair in San Francisco earlier this summer. Her hand drawn illustrations and vivid colors immediately stood out from the crowd. She's agreed to answer a few questions for me and give us a little insight into her life and creative process.

1) How did you get into art and design?

Many years ago, I had a wholesale stationery company. I ran it for four years, and then burned out. I wanted to try something different so I worked in operations and finance for a couple of small companies. I continued to illustrate on the side, doing a couple of pieces for my friend Basak’s company Small Square Design (the Bunny Joyride and Octopus illustrations are mine). Somewhere along the way, I also got into silkscreening as a hobby. When I was laid off in December 2008, I took advantage of my free time and started to get more serious about printmaking. Etsy has really changed the marketplace – small vendors like me have a retail venue to sell our wares. Before, to survive as a product designer-manufacturer, you either had to do a lot of wholesale or else struggle to make it locally through shows and local markets.

2) What's inspiring you these days?

Color. I volunteer at my neighborhood farmers’ market and get this amazing dose of color every week. The flowers are an almost unnatural color right now, and summer fruit is just so vibrant. I also bike around San Francisco a lot. The color of the ocean varies depending on the weather and the light, and on what part of the city you’re in. Through my daily activities, I get a regular dose of my much-loved reds, blues and greens.

3) Tell us about something you've been working on lately.

A friend told me that I know how to do the kinds of things that our grandmothers did – and were more than happy to stop doing once post-war industrialization and prosperity came along. I make jams and pickles (I even taught a jam class recently), I bake a lot, I cook, I sew... Right now, I’m waiting for my custard to chill so I can finish making strawberry-balsamic ice cream.

4) Is there anything else we should know about you?

I’m frugal and think of frugality almost as an art. When I was laid off, I realized that I suddenly had more time than money. I can take the time to cook amazing meals so I didn’t feel tempted to go out to eat. I started volunteering at the farmers’ market; the farmers give me extra produce at the end of the day (which has reduced my grocery bill, and it’s also providing the strawberries for the ice cream I’m making today). I love fashion and refurbish clothes that I haven’t worn for a while to make them interesting – and wearable – again. I get a lot of my packing supplies from a wonderful re-use center called SCRAPS. I try to ride my bike rather than check out a car from the local car share organization. I bake treats for my dog, Jake. Cutting spending creatively has made me feel so much more engaged with my friends and my neighborhood and my city – and, one could say, with life. And now, I spend what I do have on things that are truly meaningful to me – which is probably why some of my income goes toward buying things from other Etsy sellers!

Thanks Jen!

She's inspired me to get cooking some more. And aren't her paper dolls great? I've always loved paper dolls, and these Michelle Obama ones remind me of the presidential series by Tom Tierney.

store: jenhewett.etsy.com

blog: jenhewett.blogspot.com

house tour: http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/sf/house-tours/house-tour-jennifers-inner-sunset-retreat-san-francisco-092812