A Conversation with Alayna Taylor, the Pittsburgh Artist Behind Creature Comforts' Unique Upcycled Jewelry and Wearable Art
Driven by adventure, fashion, and a passion for sustainability and self-expression, Alayna Taylor provides a safe space within her business, Creature Comforts, for others to feel vulnerable in their creative pursuits.
Alayna, who is originally from North Carolina and now based in Pittsburgh, first launched Creature Comforts almost two years ago. While she says she was scared to start her business, fighting fears of imposter system, Alayna’s growing product line of upcycled jewelry and clothing is introducing wearable art to a growing community. This is boosted through pop-up artist markets and her impressive social media presence where she shares almost daily photographs of her work, featuring cascading mosaics of timepieces and silhouettes adorned with treasures crafted from unique items like seashells, Miller Lite bottlecaps, keys from forgotten doors, and Polaroids.
We met up with Alayna in her home studio located in the Strip District to learn more about her tools to navigate this journey. (The below conversation has been condensed for space and clarity.)
You post almost every day on social media. How do you find ways to not only keep that self-motivation going but also not burn yourself out? What a question. I feel like I've definitely not figured out how to avoid burnout. Motivation-wise, I have no issues with staying motivated. The problem is getting all of these ideas, and then frantically starting with seven things. Then, I'm surrounded by them, and I'm, like, “I don't know where I want to go first.” The fun part is the dreaming. You can get so lost in it. And then, I have to actualize this daydream that I had. That part is just much more difficult.
You recently documented a trip you took overseas, which you described as “a beautiful lesson in patience, resourcefulness, and curiosity.” I was wondering if you could touch upon that journey from recalling the fears of self doubt you described while traveling through Spain, where you discovered the book, Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear, versus the empowered, self-assurance you found via your description from Greece a week later. I'm the oldest of four kids. Being the oldest, there's some perfectionism that I've put on myself, including a lot of fears around failing, not making it, and not being good enough. And that will probably take a lifetime to heal. Life finds its way into our bodies and minds and creates these habits and patterns and beliefs about ourselves. So, I was really happy that Big Magic immediately started talking about fear.
"In this life, I am going to live a creative life."
I feel like through my trip this summer and through reading that book, I'm more able to kind of get out of my head as a business or proving myself to people. I think that that had been driving me a little bit. It would go, “OK, it's sales. Next thing, next thing, next thing.” I make this amazing piece, then I don't even think about it, and I’m on to the next. I was not allowing myself to recognize what I was doing.
I feel like my trip and the book helped me recenter around the idea that creativity just is. It is out there. It is a force. In the book, [author Elizabeth Gilbert] talks about how none of us are geniuses. It's more as though we're open to allowing creativity to visit us. Because then it also helps shake off the ego of saying, “I’m an artist.” No, we’re in commune with the artistry. I am just a conduit. Towards the end of my trip, I had seven weeks away from creating, and I was inspired. And I also just allowed myself to realize that I am going to be creative. In this life, I am going to live a creative life, no matter how many sales, how many posts, etc. And that's beautiful.
The community you built over the years has been incredible to watch and I love that your page centers around freely expressing oneself and others through custom collaborations with your clients. Has there been a favorite custom piece that you've made so far? There have been so many fun ones. I get really excited any time I get to make something out of someone's family member's heirloom and it has real emotion behind it. One was from another lovely small business gal, Sabrina. She came to me and told me that she had this watch from her grandma and it either didn't fit her wrist or she didn't want to wear it as a watch. So, she was, like, “Could you make it into a necklace?” And then one of my co-workers, Diane, had this gorgeous, intricate, golden filigree pendant with gems in it; I got to make a necklace for her. So those are always so fun. I am always scared sometimes because this is someone's family, and that can stress me out. But I get through the fear. Then, when it's done, I get to give it to them and it’s so beautiful to see their reaction.
You describe yourself as an assemblage artist. What inspires your jewelry and clothing creations? I love fashion. I would say that is my internal drive. I love art. But all of those kinds of classical routes like drawing, painting, etc. I am not the best at, yet I knew I wanted to be creative. And since I was young, clothing is what I would pay attention to. For example, in any movie I would watch, I'm watching what they're wearing. So I feel like my inspiration and my art is basically: How can I wear something that isn't supposed to be used this way? I love subversive fashion. I love breaking the rules.
