Jhoanna Monte Aranez is part of a new breed of crafters producing wonderful soft toys that are as appealing to adults as they are to children. An artist and inventor as a child, Jhoanna has always loved to make things with her hands but it took the birth of her two daughters to really move her into the realm of commercial art. Now, with a toe in the water via her website, www.oneredrobin.com, and a number of international exhibition opportunities coming her way, Jhoanna is navigating the varied paths of wife, mother, part time worker and artist, hopeful that her creative work can eventually become a full time vocation.

“One side of the family is very creative,” Jhoanna says. “My grandma was a seamstress and there are painters and graphic artists in the family but, honestly, my earliest crafty memories come from watching Play School.”

Perhaps that early exposure to the world of Big Ted, Little Ted and Jemima gave rise to Jhoanna’s affection for toys. Whatever the source this Information Technology (IT) professional had always wanted to study design and architecture but her parents cajoled her into doing something less artistic. When her first daughter came along Jhoanna, who had been reading plenty of crafty blogs (web logs), was looking for something different that she could make for her little girl.

“I thought I’d give soft toys a shot and that first one was from a very easy pattern I designed but she loved it then and still does and I really enjoyed making it.”

In 2006, with encouragement from her husband, Jhoanna launched her website - oneredrobin.com [oneredrobin.com]. “My first sale was to someone in the UK and I was astounded,” she says. Jhoanna also has an online store on Etsy.com [etsy.com] but is yet to sell products ‘in the flesh’ at markets and the like. “I just don’t see how I could find the time right now,” she says, referring to the fact that she works a few days a week in IT amidst her responsibilities at home.

Currently Jhoanna’s craft time is limited to the hours between 8pm and midnight five nights a week when the house quietens down. She says she bought so much in the way of materials at the beginning of the venture that she is still really trying to recoup costs and, because of the toys’ bespoke nature, she makes and sells one at a time. “Maybe if I got into mass production it would be different but the one-off nature of these toys is a great part of their appeal.”

Jhoanna carries a sketch book with her everywhere she goes and is often inspired by her daughters and the funny expressions they make. Fabrics also inspire her and she is often won over by cute Japanese aesthetics. While her little ones understand that the toys in the craft room are not to be played with they do play a role in terms of customer feedback. “The four-year-old in particular is keen to be involved. She wants to learn to sew and already helps me stuff things. The younger one (almost two), she just wants to hug everything,” says Jhoanna.

Adults are by far the biggest customers for these toys that in Australia are most commonly referred to as ‘softies’ but often carry the title, ‘plushies’, in the active USA market. In the last year or so Jhoanna has had toys featured in both Australian and overseas exhibitions and she says recent media reports point towards a backlash against mass made items and a return to toys and other items that remind people of their childhoods. Jhoanna herself is an avid collector and often buys one-of-a-kind soft toys from other artists. She also buys a lot of art prints from the internet and is astonished at how much beautiful, original art can be purchased so cheaply.

Her goal is to develop her business to a point where she can work at it full time and pursue other ideas she has such as items for the nursery and baby gear. She also loves to work in mixed media collage. For now, though, she will have to be content dealing with the results of her participation in the world’s largest plush show in the USA (Crammed Organisms in June) and getting ready to exhibit pieces in Sydney this November at ‘Plush It’, on show at Ruban Rat gallery in Newtown, Sydney.

Meanwhile Jhoanna ‘s blog remains a great place for everyone to keep up with her exploits. “One of my goals in maintaining a blog is to motivate me to try new craft projects and actually see them through to completion... to keep me accountable and it’s also meant to act like an online scrapbook of all the lovely things I find on the Net that inspire me to keep those creative juices flowing,” she says.

Name
Jhoanna Monte Aranez

Based
Victoria, Australia

Website
www.oneredrobin.com [oneredrobin.com]

Email
jhoanna@oneredrobin.com

Jhoanna’s online ETSY shop:
www.jmaranez.etsy.com [etsy.com]

Jhoanna’s stockists:

Toys only:
Modamuse:
www.modamuse.com [modamuse.com]
My Poppet:
www.mypoppet.com.au [mypoppet.com.au]
Meet Me At Mikes: 63 Brunwick Street, Fitzroy 3065 Victoria
Sewing patterns:
Duckcloth:
www.duckcloth.com.au [duckcloth.com.au]
Patchwork on Central Park:
www.patchworkoncentralpark.com.au [patchworkoncentralpark.com.au]
Quilt Fabric Delights:
www.quiltfabricdelights.com.au [quiltfabricdelights.com.au]

Other useful links:
Crammed Organisms
www.crammedorganisms.com [crammedorganisms.com]
‘Plush It’ in Newtown, Sydney
www.myspace.com/rubanrat [myspace.com]

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