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Episode #16: Mexican Illustrator & Graphic Designer Itzel Islas
Episode Summary:
In this episode, I speak with Mexican illustrator and designer Itzel Islas. Itzel is a designer and illustrator from Tijuana, Mexico, and is now based in sunny San Diego, CA. She’s worked with brands like Nickelodeon, Wal-Mart, and Urban Outfitters. More importantly, Itzel runs her own brand called @YAYITZEL where she releases custom illustrated merchandise inspired directly by her Mexican heritage. Keep on listening to hear us discuss her emo days in high school, her experience going viral on TikTok, and why she decided to create designs in both English and Spanish.
Episode Notes:
Did you ever feel like you didn’t fit in with the Latinx kids at your school? This week’s guest experienced just that after moving from Tijuana to San Diego for her Sophomore year of high school.
In this episode, I chat with Mexican illustrator and designer Itzel Islas who’s worked with brands like Nickelodeon, GoFundMe, and for her own brand @YAYITZEL.
Itzel never wanted to leave Tijuana, but now she’s so thankful her parents made that decision when she was just in high school. She had a hard time adjusting to American life to the point where even the automatic sprinklers made her mad, but now she can’t imagine her life being any other way. Thankfully, since they moved right over the border to San Diego, she’s always managed to feel very connected to her Mexican heritage and grew up constantly going back and forth across the border.
Nowadays, Itzel is a self-employed graphic designer and illustrator who creates amazing bilingual products inspired by her Mexican culture. Despite originally having doubts about creating products in two languages — and sometimes even in Spanglish — now she recognizes it’s the best decision she could’ve made.
Tune into this episode to hear Itzel and I talk all about her artsy emo days in high school, how her mom helped her discover the field of Graphic Design, and how she decided to create bilingual products to stay true to herself.
Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, Stitcher, iHeartRadio, or on your favorite podcast platform.
Topics Covered:
How Itzel’s family decided to move to the United States to help her and her siblings pursue a college education
Finding her high school clique as an Artsy Mexican girl from Tijuana
The diversity of people within Latin America
How her parents didn’t want her to pursue being a Makeup Artist
How her mom lead her to Graphic Design
Paying for and attending college, and whether she recommends it now
Deciding to go freelance from a full-time, in-house job
The stress and anxiety she developed from working in a toxic workplace
Balancing work and personal life as a freelance graphic designer
How she launched her online shop YAYITZEL
Her experience creating bilingual products
Going viral and her advice for artists on TikTok
Launching a Patreon to create stable income after leaving her in-house gig
Her dream commissions under YAYITZEL
Guest Links:
Itzel’s online shop, portfolio, Instagram, and TikTok!
Free Download:
Listeners of the podcast can get a free, undated weekly and monthly planner inspired by the show from our website here.
Follow Host Fabiola Lara between episodes:
Episode Transcript (auto-generated):
00;00;10;01 - 00;00;35;19
Fabiola Lara
Hey, everyone. Welcome back to another episode of [Draws in Spanish]. This is a podcast that showcases the creative journey of notable Latinx visual artists and designers. I'm your host, Chilean American illustrator Fabiola Lara. If you want to know more about Latin American artists and designers and kind of the complexities of their identity and culture, be sure to hit subscribe, because that's what I aim to cover with every episode of this show.
00;00;36;01 - 00;00;58;26
Fabiola Lara
So for today, I have Itzel Islas on the podcast. Itzel is a designer and illustrator from Tijuana, Mexico, now based in sunny San Diego. Itzel has worked with brands like Nickelodeon, Walmart, Urban Outfitters. But more importantly, she runs her own brand called the Yay Itzel, where she releases Custom Illustrated merchandise inspired directly by her Mexican heritage.
00;00;59;06 - 00;01;21;24
Fabiola Lara
Keep on listening to hear us discuss her emo days in high school, her experience going viral on tech talk and why she decided to create products in both English and Spanish. Now let's get into the show Hello ESL. Welcome to Drawers in Spanish. I'm so happy to be chatting with you today. How are you.
00;01;21;24 - 00;01;23;21
Fabiola Lara
Doing? Hola Fabiola
00;01;23;21 - 00;01;36;00
Itzel Islas
I am doing good. I'm doing good. I'm super excited as I feel like, you know, and a lot of the people that follow me know I love this podcast, so I am truly excited.
00;01;36;18 - 00;01;38;02
Fabiola Lara
Oh, thank you so much.
00;01;38;02 - 00;01;54;13
Fabiola Lara
I am really excited because I know that you are like one of the early listeners of drawers in Spanish. I feel like I remember you DMing me like when I first launched. It's like I've had you in mind for a while and I'm really excited that we get to talk outside of Instagram DMS for once.
00;01;54;13 - 00;01;55;26
Fabiola Lara
So I'm pumped. I'm pumped.
00;01;56;15 - 00;02;04;16
Fabiola Lara
So to kick it off, could you tell us a little bit about yourself, your work and just a little bit about each set for the listeners?
00;02;04;22 - 00;02;31;26
Itzel Islas
So my name is Itzel I was born in Tijuana. I lived there up until I was about 16 years old, and then I moved to the United States with my family. I moved for a sophomore year in high school and I've been here since I studied graphic design, so I'm a graphic designer and now illustrator. I also run, I have my own shop, I guess my full time.
00;02;31;26 - 00;02;41;08
Itzel Islas
It's my business as well, so I do a bit. It just sounds funny because I feel like I do a bit of a lot of things. But yes, I guess in a nutshell that is me.
00;02;41;13 - 00;02;42;12
Fabiola Lara
So you.
00;02;42;12 - 00;02;52;25
Fabiola Lara
Came over here when you were older. How was it like shifting kind of from being in Mexico to being in the U.S.? And where were you when you moved to? How is that process?
00;02;52;25 - 00;03;16;19
Itzel Islas
Like, it's funny because I hated it. I hated it with a passion my parents never knew. I don't think how much I hated and how difficult the process was for me. I was old enough. I was 16. I had my group of friends that I had my whole life because I grew up in Tijuana, and it's a very small community.
00;03;17;01 - 00;03;36;17
Itzel Islas
So the people I went to elementary school with, it was the same people that were my friends when I was 16. So I left my whole group of friends. I left my boyfriend. I was young, but I had a boyfriend back then. And it was just totally shifting my whole life. And even though I moved to San Diego, I don't think I said that earlier.
00;03;36;24 - 00;03;44;18
Itzel Islas
I moved to San Diego and it's so close right it's from where I was to where I am now. Maybe it's a 30 minute drive. It's that.
00;03;44;22 - 00;03;46;13
Fabiola Lara
Oh my gosh, that is so.
00;03;46;13 - 00;04;17;20
Itzel Islas
Close. It's so close. Honestly, it's probably about 20 minutes. We are so close. And especially the area we moved to is Chula Vista and we are very, very close. Like I said, it's about 20 minutes. Realistically, border wait times can change that number, but in a perfect world, no way you're there in 20 minutes. So it was so close. But the culture shock was a lot for me, even though I had grown up just so influenced by the border.
00;04;18;00 - 00;04;25;01
Itzel Islas
The United States and American culture, it was still so difficult for me to adapt to everything.
00;04;25;10 - 00;04;31;07
Fabiola Lara
Do you remember if there was anything that you were like so shocked about that you were just didn't see coming?
00;04;31;19 - 00;05;08;05
Itzel Islas
I think it was just how everything shifted for me, how it was making new friendships adapting to learning in the United States. And when I first came here, I remember thinking like, Oh yes, I had the best English and my English is really good now. But when I moved and I didn't realize how much I still had to learn until I moved and seeing my papers and hearing myself in videos, I realized, wow, yes, my accent has gotten way better with the years.
00;05;08;05 - 00;05;27;05
Itzel Islas
But when I first started here, I still didn't fully 100% know how to communicate enough. But yes, that was a struggle. And then making new friends, adapting to just being here and not seeing my friends because my parents, as close as it is, they weren't going to be taking me to see Juan and to hang out with my friends anymore.
00;05;27;10 - 00;05;35;10
Fabiola Lara
Yeah, it is a hassle, right, to do that whole thing. And why did your family choose to come to the US?
00;05;35;17 - 00;05;59;06
Itzel Islas
Ever since my parents got married, their whole plan was to live in a place where we could have a good college education. That from the get go was a plan that they had. They told us this. So they are both from Mexico City and they moved to Tijuana with the hopes of one day being able to live here and having us.
00;05;59;06 - 00;05;59;23
Fabiola Lara
Go.
00;06;00;02 - 00;06;04;21
Itzel Islas
Study college, university in San Diego, in the United States.
00;06;05;01 - 00;06;06;10
Fabiola Lara
And it's funny to think about.
00;06;06;10 - 00;06;12;05
Itzel Islas
It because they thought about moving several times. I know at one point they were talking about going to Brazil and I'm like.
00;06;12;08 - 00;06;12;25
Fabiola Lara
I don't.
00;06;12;25 - 00;06;31;20
Itzel Islas
Know what my life would have been if that happened. They also I do have family that moved to Canada. So at one point we were going to move to Canada. They had all the paperwork done, the visas, everything was set. And my mom ended up finding out that she was pregnant with my youngest sister. So then that changed all the plans.
00;06;31;27 - 00;06;34;19
Fabiola Lara
Oh, wow. Yeah. So we stayed in Tijuana.
00;06;34;19 - 00;06;40;14
Itzel Islas
And then with time they eventually did decide to move here. And it was all for a college education.
00;06;40;23 - 00;07;07;03
Fabiola Lara
Wow. That's so dedicated of your parents to kind of foresee the need for that, probably based on their own experience right there. Like, I think it would be best if our kids go away for college, but how do we make it happen for them in a realistic way? And I think that's thoughtful that they took that into consideration and kind of moved you guys as a family as opposed to then later being like, you need to go to college in America.
00;07;07;03 - 00;07;16;29
Fabiola Lara
And we're saying in Mexico, that could be tough, too. You know, both situations are hard, but it's cool that they kind of took that initiative and as opposed to the alternative.
00;07;17;07 - 00;07;21;26
Itzel Islas
Yes, absolutely. Now, in retrospect, I am so thankful.
00;07;22;15 - 00;07;48;08
Fabiola Lara
So that's really smart. And like intentional of your parents. And like you said, you can appreciate it now, even though it was like really challenging. I moved to the U.S. when I was a baby, so my transition was seamless. But I can imagine how tough that was to move to San Diego. Did you end up having like a strong Latina or Mexican community once you moved to San Diego, given the proximity to the border?
00;07;48;23 - 00;08;10;13
Itzel Islas
I did. And I think it's funny to think back about it because I think because of that transition period and how hard it was for me, high school is not the most pleasant memory for me. I always look back and I felt so conflicted about it. It was just so conflicting for me personally, emotionally. I thankfully did find a LA.
00;08;10;14 - 00;08;39;20
Itzel Islas
There were so many Mexicans. It's so funny because specifically Mexicans there were a lot of people crossing from day one. They were living in Tijuana. They would cross every morning for high school. We actually did that for the first year, and then my parents decided, OK, this is enough, we're going to move. So I did have a lot of friends that were Mexican that were from Tijuana, and that felt very comforting in a way.
00;08;39;27 - 00;08;59;27
Itzel Islas
Other than that, it's funny because it's a little group that they called it Lasmezas because everyone hung out at the center by the lunch tables, so everyone knew that was where the Mexican crew was at. So that was nice. Other than that, I felt like I couldn't really relate to a lot of people when I first got there.
00;09;00;09 - 00;09;05;20
Fabiola Lara
What was, do you think, like the big differentiator that you felt in high school?
00;09;05;28 - 00;09;25;02
Itzel Islas
Yeah, well, it's interesting because in a sense I had people I related to, but also I think it was a time for me where I was starting to find out what I liked, my interests and then my personal interests didn't align with all my Mexican friends. And now looking back, I'm like, Yes, of course, look at what I'm doing.
00;09;25;02 - 00;09;48;03
Itzel Islas
Look at who I am, that who those people were. A lot of them I did for good friendships. I still have a couple so this day, but still we're so different. And I was artsy. I was here trying to be like artsy, but also trying to be very Mexican and very my Mexican friends from T J that was it's a whole different esthetic and what people are into.
00;09;48;21 - 00;09;59;15
Itzel Islas
And then I remember finding or noticing people that I thought, Oh, we could be friends, but they're not Mexican. And it's awkward for me to approach them.
00;09;59;21 - 00;10;04;07
Fabiola Lara
Because they were white, they were white people or black people or just a different ethnicity.
00;10;04;07 - 00;10;22;02
Itzel Islas
All correct. Yes. And a lot of them already had their groups because like I said, I came in sophomore year. So a lot of people already had their friends. I did make friendships with all ethnicities in my different classes, but not a lot of people that I can get really close to.
00;10;22;13 - 00;10;43;12
Fabiola Lara
Yeah, I think it is funny, like when you are like you're saying like being Mexican but not fitting in completely with the Mexican right is still like an issue. And I didn't have that specifically, but I can relate to your story in the sense that I went to middle school and I entered the seventh grade, which is the middle year of middle school.
00;10;43;20 - 00;11;02;29
Fabiola Lara
Right? So probably the worst year to enter. And I fit in with like there was like five Latina kids and I was friends with them, but I didn't fit in with them. We had totally different interest. We were doing totally different esthetics. But, you know, we all spoke Spanish. So I guess that was like our common denominator, even though we weren't of course we were not speaking Spanish in school here.
00;11;03;01 - 00;11;25;06
Fabiola Lara
The five Latina kids are not going to start speaking Spanish in the middle of this white school. But we knew in our heads, you know, that what was happening, and I relate to that. It's a tough place to be as a kid. I know you were saying like you fit in with your friends back home and you weren't really fitting in with your friends in the U.S. Was there any trends that surprised you when you got to the U.S. or that you noticed in your high school that you were like, I would never do that.
00;11;25;06 - 00;11;26;16
Fabiola Lara
None of my friends would ever do that.
00;11;27;17 - 00;11;34;24
Itzel Islas
I remember random things, but like I said also, this was peak angst, peak anxiety. It's in.
00;11;34;25 - 00;11;36;09
Fabiola Lara
So I know.
00;11;36;09 - 00;11;46;18
Itzel Islas
It was just such a weird time for me to transition I know it probably wasn't easy for any of my sisters, but I remember it just it was I felt like it was so difficult.
00;11;47;01 - 00;11;57;17
Fabiola Lara
What was your vibe? What was your esthetic peak angst? It's in that you felt like what were your core identities at that time that you felt like weren't fitting in with the rest of your high school.
00;11;57;24 - 00;12;18;07
Itzel Islas
And it wasn't the high school. I guess my group of friends because I did see other people. So here's the thing, and it's funny because in high school I was kind of emo kid emo style so I had my hair. My hair was dyed like now and so funny because I went back to my natural hair color for a long time.
00;12;18;07 - 00;12;40;12
Itzel Islas
And I think, well, now it's been like seven years since I had died hair. But I look more like the person I was in high school now, which is so funny to think about. So all my friends where I know this is probably very specific to area, but the style was Hollister, Abercrombie, and I think everyone was into.
00;12;40;12 - 00;12;45;09
Fabiola Lara
That like, no, no, no, that's I very high school. I know it was just like the.
00;12;45;09 - 00;12;49;19
Itzel Islas
Little combos of like Hollister and Coach and Hollister.
00;12;49;20 - 00;12;51;19
Fabiola Lara
You know, the Little Mexican was such.
00;12;51;19 - 00;12;58;23
Fabiola Lara
A classic combo. I am like shocked and surprised. Are you saying that that even the Mexican crew was wearing this or.
00;12;58;24 - 00;12;59;04
Fabiola Lara
You.
00;12;59;14 - 00;13;01;03
Fabiola Lara
Or not? Or you're talking about white kid?
00;13;01;03 - 00;13;03;14
Fabiola Lara
No. Yeah, interesting.
00;13;03;14 - 00;13;06;03
Fabiola Lara
Interesting. OK, and what were you doing?
00;13;06;03 - 00;13;24;18
Itzel Islas
What were you rocking? I had I remember it was skinny jeans, different color chucks. My hair was dyed bright pink, black and turquoise. And then my t shirts were band t shirts, urges, cool, colorful t shirts.
00;13;24;23 - 00;13;25;13
Fabiola Lara
You're not going to get.
00;13;25;13 - 00;13;28;12
Fabiola Lara
Away with just saying band t shirts. I want at least three.
00;13;28;12 - 00;13;29;27
Fabiola Lara
Specific t shirts.
00;13;30;06 - 00;13;39;21
Itzel Islas
Well, I was super into the Mars Volta back in the days. I remember The Mars Volta, The Doors, The Beatles. I had My Little Pony the.
00;13;39;23 - 00;13;42;10
Fabiola Lara
Classic emo kid combos.
00;13;42;13 - 00;13;43;22
Fabiola Lara
Yeah. And like I said, it's.
00;13;43;22 - 00;14;09;17
Itzel Islas
Not different from who I am today, which makes me feel really happy now to tap into that person that was then and explore that now with the as a person, as the adult I am today. But back in the day, you know, you put me and then to all next to all my friends and it just looked and I had my studded belts and it was just so mismatched and I felt that.
00;14;10;05 - 00;14;11;08
Fabiola Lara
Yes, you were.
00;14;11;08 - 00;14;31;13
Fabiola Lara
Doing hot topic emo meets like San Diego, sunny vibes, colorful. I get it. And I see you and I understand what it's like to be the odd one in your group of friends that you kind of default to that group of friends because like, you don't know where else to go, especially when you're coming in midway. It gets really tricky.
00;14;31;27 - 00;14;53;07
Itzel Islas
Yes. Obviously I did make friendships and everything and it was fine, but I think deep down it was just that conflict where I felt like, Oh, my house, I'm not from here. That whole disconnect of I should be insecure and I never wanted to move. I remember even hating the sprinklers because we had sprinklers and that wasn't a thing I grew up with and I hated the sound of sprinklers.
00;14;55;05 - 00;15;10;26
Fabiola Lara
But something that's such a specific memory. You see, when I asked you about what was culture shock, it was that sprinklers answer and tell you there's always something that you're like, Why is this happening to me now? It was a sprinkler because you know what?
00;15;10;26 - 00;15;28;20
Itzel Islas
To even make it funnier in retrospect, I remember we moved. We had a house in Tijuana. My parents still own that house, but we moved to a small apartment in San Diego, and I heard it out the window for the longest time, I thought I heard snakes. This sounds really silly.
00;15;28;25 - 00;15;31;13
Fabiola Lara
You see, you didn't know what that noise was. Yeah. One day I.
00;15;31;13 - 00;15;39;10
Itzel Islas
Realized, no, I never had heard the sprinklers. So one day I found out and I was like, Oh.
00;15;40;00 - 00;15;46;05
Fabiola Lara
I hate this. Frankly, this is such bullshit. Yeah, these sprinklers suck.
00;15;46;17 - 00;15;48;18
Fabiola Lara
Especially because don't they go off, like, really early?
00;15;48;27 - 00;15;50;16
Fabiola Lara
Yeah. OK, so.
00;15;51;01 - 00;16;02;04
Fabiola Lara
You had this very complex transition from Mexican culture and being in Mexico to living in San Diego and kind of adapting to, like, American Way of.
00;16;02;04 - 00;16;02;21
Fabiola Lara
Life.
00;16;03;04 - 00;16;20;26
Fabiola Lara
So how did you feel that you were able to stay connected with your Mexican culture even while being in the US? I know, like you weren't going back as often as you probably wanted to back then, but how did you feel? You stay connected and even till now, like it doesn't have to be back then. Like, how are you staying connected now?
00;16;21;04 - 00;16;45;23
Itzel Islas
Back then, like I said, a lot of this shock I think was more internal. Well, there are big differences that I'm not going to start naming everything right now. But even though people in the United States like 30 Minutes difference makes so much difference in how you can talk to people, how people communicate to you. I just felt like it was so easy to talk to people.
00;16;45;24 - 00;17;12;16
Itzel Islas
And before nine here, everyone was colder. So just there's so many differences, but that being said, luckily I was so close. I did have a lot of Mexican friends, people from Tijuana specifically, and I was in a Mexican household and we speak Spanish. So in that sense, it wasn't the most difficult transition, as in I didn't feel like I lost my roots.
00;17;12;27 - 00;17;22;19
Fabiola Lara
Once you were over here, did you feel like there were any Mexican stereotypes that you were fighting against or just like didn't understand.
00;17;22;28 - 00;17;38;23
Itzel Islas
The one that comes to mind immediately and even heard it here before and I felt the same way for ever is that Mexicans are lazy Latino people, and Mexicans specifically for that reason are lazy. I disagree. 1000%.
00;17;39;13 - 00;17;59;06
Fabiola Lara
Yeah. I don't know how that got started. Or how just like infiltrated punch lines. But yeah, I agree with you. It makes absolutely no sense. I mean, at the bare minimum, Mexican people and Latin American people are just as lazy as any other as any other people. I don't know why it has to be like extra lazy.
00;17;59;16 - 00;18;02;03
Fabiola Lara
It could just be the same and.
00;18;02;04 - 00;18;19;04
Fabiola Lara
On top of that, I actually think Latin American people are more hardworking because they have more to prove here. So it doesn't make sense. But I totally get that. Is there anything you wish people knew about Mexican culture or even Tijuana that you don't think people commonly know?
00;18;19;05 - 00;18;45;04
Itzel Islas
I think even to this day, there's a lot of people that aren't aware, and I think this applies to Latino culture in general, just how diverse we are. And even going back to high school and having I do remember and I think because my accent was thicker or stronger or say but back in the day, I remember just getting the questions of where are you from?
00;18;45;04 - 00;19;15;18
Itzel Islas
And this whole thing, and I don't get it that much now. I feel like back in the day, it was such a thing and having to be like, yes, I'm Mexican and having I think there's still people that don't realize. There's redheaded Mexicans, tall Mexicans, really short Mexicans. You know how that goes. It's just we come in all colors and sizes, and I think that's still a thing that a lot of people don't are so amazed by.
00;19;15;28 - 00;19;32;12
Fabiola Lara
I think people have like a very narrow view of what they think someone from Latin America should look like. And when you don't fit in that little view, suddenly it's like, are you sure you're from there because you don't look like how I thought you should look and it doesn't make sense anymore.
00;19;32;12 - 00;19;34;05
Fabiola Lara
You're like, I'm sorry, I don't know what to tell you.
00;19;34;05 - 00;19;52;12
Fabiola Lara
But the same way that there is like every type of American there's every type of Latin American. And yeah, it can be weird. Did you always feel I mean, I think you already alluded to this before, but did you always feel creative growing up? And if so, like, what were those things that you were up to?
00;19;52;23 - 00;20;17;19
Itzel Islas
Definitely. And I don't think my whole life it was I was expressing it or I would view it how I view it now. I think it was manifesting in different ways. There you go. But as a kid, yes, my parents would always get me things to draw with and little packs of colors and watercolors. And I remember my dad would buy me sketchbooks all the time.
00;20;18;09 - 00;20;24;09
Itzel Islas
In in middle school. I was drawing a lot and I had this phase of drawing chairs.
00;20;24;11 - 00;20;27;29
Fabiola Lara
Interesting. Wow. You picked a very interesting object yeah.
00;20;27;29 - 00;20;32;02
Itzel Islas
I don't even know it was charcoal. So I remember my dad would give me, like, charcoal.
00;20;32;02 - 00;20;33;28
Fabiola Lara
And a lot. It's a very long.
00;20;33;29 - 00;20;37;01
Fabiola Lara
Classic art school assignment, by the way.
00;20;37;06 - 00;20;38;16
Fabiola Lara
Let's say that.
00;20;38;17 - 00;20;39;12
Fabiola Lara
You, like, caught up.
00;20;39;12 - 00;20;41;03
Fabiola Lara
On clay. Well, also.
00;20;41;03 - 00;20;58;08
Itzel Islas
They were never, like, normal till this day. I struggle with perspective, so I just want everyone to know my it was not good. It was just in my head, just different kinds of chairs I imagined, and just drawing fairies and silly little things like that.
00;20;58;13 - 00;21;01;01
Fabiola Lara
Oh, fairies. That's the one. I haven't.
00;21;01;01 - 00;21;01;19
Fabiola Lara
Heard fairies.
00;21;01;19 - 00;21;05;14
Fabiola Lara
Before. OK, yeah. And then I think I.
00;21;06;01 - 00;21;29;00
Itzel Islas
I did draw but not as constant in high school. But another thing that's always been a thing for me has been fashion and not in the way of like the runway, just having fun and expressing myself through what I wear and how I look. I guess. So in that sense, I guess I've been expressing that side of me since I was a little kid.
00;21;29;00 - 00;21;50;08
Fabiola Lara
Yeah, that's fun. I feel like. I feel like, yeah, there's a ton of different ways that's happened to creativity, and I feel like you do that now, right? Like, you've been doing, like, little outfit tech talks and reels and like, I can totally see the evolution there. You've always been interested in doing that, and some people have that sense and some people don't so as long as you follow it, I think there's always cool to see how like the dots kind of connect.
00;21;50;17 - 00;22;05;29
Fabiola Lara
Like you're saying, like now you're an adult, but you see a lot of yourself, like as your high school self kind of coming through to who you are now. And then like, yeah, you're being authentically you. I like that. It's always nice when you see something like kind of come full circle and you're like, Yeah, that wasn't a phase.
00;22;06;02 - 00;22;07;06
Fabiola Lara
I know I look.
00;22;07;06 - 00;22;32;06
Itzel Islas
At and I look at my work now though, more and more that I embrace this person who I am as a designer, an artist, illustrator, and what I make, it just feels so fulfilling to me to look at it and know Oh my 16 year old self would have liked this. It just feels so authentic that and for me, it makes me so excited.
00;22;32;17 - 00;22;58;10
Fabiola Lara
I want to move into your career now that we're talking about it. And I wanted to know. So I know you mentioned earlier that you studied graphic design. You went to college for graphic design. So how did you decide to go to school for graphic design? Because I feel like that's like sometimes like a difficult decision. Well, it's always a difficult decision to figure out what you want to go to college for but also design, I think is like not often shown.
00;22;58;10 - 00;23;09;13
Fabiola Lara
Like when you're in school, they don't usually say like you can be a graphic designer. They say like you can be a doctor or you can be a nurse or whatever. And they don't say that you can be a graphic designer. So I'm curious how you came to that decision.
00;23;09;21 - 00;23;13;20
Itzel Islas
Yeah, I didn't know that was an option. I have no.
00;23;13;20 - 00;23;17;04
Fabiola Lara
Clue. I feel like no one knows. I feel like no one knows. I had no idea.
00;23;17;04 - 00;23;24;07
Itzel Islas
That's why I love talking about it. And I am so happy that the Internet exists to this degree.
00;23;24;21 - 00;23;25;10
Fabiola Lara
Because.
00;23;25;16 - 00;23;53;24
Itzel Islas
For all the kids to see what they could see all the options because yeah, I didn't know it existed and it's funny because I remember being a senior and I was close to graduating and I had no clue of what I was going to be. I was really into photography at the time. Oh, I guess that was also a way how I express myself super into photography and getting film cameras and digital cameras and exploring that.
00;23;54;04 - 00;24;04;02
Itzel Islas
And I was thinking of going to the School of Santa Barbara for photography because also before that I had mentioned to my parents, Well, maybe I'll be a makeup artist. And they were like, No.
00;24;07;00 - 00;24;09;29
Fabiola Lara
Immediately, no cute idea.
00;24;09;29 - 00;24;10;18
Fabiola Lara
It said.
00;24;10;22 - 00;24;17;10
Fabiola Lara
No. Yet, like, we didn't move to the US to go be a makeup artist. Yes.
00;24;17;10 - 00;24;27;22
Itzel Islas
And now, I mean, there's so many successful makeup artists, but yeah, I can say they're like, No, I don't think so. And I was just trying to figure it out.
00;24;28;04 - 00;24;31;23
Fabiola Lara
So I'm laughing because it's like such a parent thing. Yeah, yeah, it is.
00;24;32;10 - 00;24;55;24
Itzel Islas
And I was like, Should I do fashion design? And interior design? What could I be? And then I was like, OK, photography, because I remember telling my mom, I just don't know what I'm going to do. I can't picture myself doing a normal job. I can't be a doctor. There's no way. There's just no way I could ever be that I don't think I could do accounting.
00;24;55;26 - 00;24;57;10
Itzel Islas
I just don't know what I'm going to do.
00;24;57;15 - 00;24;59;07
Fabiola Lara
And so.
00;24;59;07 - 00;25;17;29
Itzel Islas
Conflicted. And I had settled I had decided photography. And then my mom said, hey, I have a friend whose daughter is studying graphic design at the school. Are you interested in checking it out and seeing what it's about? It sounded like things you might like to make sure.
00;25;17;29 - 00;25;21;10
Fabiola Lara
Yeah. Ah, that's so good that your mom kept an.
00;25;21;10 - 00;25;27;24
Fabiola Lara
Eye out and, like, didn't just be like, Oh, I have a friend whose daughter's going to school to be a nurse. Have you considered.
00;25;28;16 - 00;25;31;09
Fabiola Lara
You know, like, she could have pushed you in another direction? For sure.
00;25;31;22 - 00;25;37;08
Itzel Islas
Thankfully, my parents have always been super supportive of my goals. Except no makeup.
00;25;37;15 - 00;25;42;25
Fabiola Lara
Except not makeup. Makeup, but not. But then that.
00;25;42;27 - 00;26;03;25
Itzel Islas
Yes. So I do remember the day we went to the school. It was the Art Institute of San Diego. Doesn't exist anymore. But we went there, we toured it, and they showed me what it was. And I remember thinking, Oh, this has computers. I love computers. Ever since we got to computer, I think I was about ten when we got one.
00;26;03;25 - 00;26;21;27
Itzel Islas
I was all about the computers since a young age. So I was like, OK, I love that you can take photos still. I love that. And then there's advertising kind of in it. That sounds interesting. OK, yeah, I could try this. Let's do it. And I just went for it without fully understanding what it was.
00;26;21;27 - 00;26;25;20
Fabiola Lara
I love that though. That's just like, it's like going to see a.
00;26;25;20 - 00;26;26;25
Fabiola Lara
Movie without reading the.
00;26;26;25 - 00;26;28;03
Fabiola Lara
Description. Yes.
00;26;28;05 - 00;26;30;06
Itzel Islas
Except it costs a hundred thousand.
00;26;30;19 - 00;26;36;12
Fabiola Lara
Exactly. Quite more expensive than a movie ticket. Arguably movie tickets have gone up in price, but not that much.
00;26;36;21 - 00;26;37;20
Fabiola Lara
So yeah, it was.
00;26;37;20 - 00;26;42;19
Fabiola Lara
A leap, an expensive leap of faith. And you could say that you liked it.
00;26;42;24 - 00;26;51;16
Itzel Islas
I am so glad I am so happy. I am happy it worked out. I love it till this day. I'm so happy I chose graphic design this.
00;26;51;23 - 00;27;02;22
Fabiola Lara
So would you recommend going to design school nowadays now that there are so many resources out there? The Internet has grown exponentially from the internet that we used to have.
00;27;02;26 - 00;27;30;13
Itzel Islas
I feel like my answer for this question has shifted through the years, especially. Yes, given the amount of resources we have now and a lot of them are either free or very affordable, which is so amazing. I think so. But I always do tell people it is a huge commitment, it's a huge financial commitment, and I recommend looking into it.
00;27;30;13 - 00;27;58;14
Itzel Islas
I recommend maybe trying out some YouTube, some skills, your classes, just seeing if it really is something you're going to enjoy and something that feels like it is for you. Because like we said, it's a great financial commitment, so making sure that it's the right fit for you. And also, I also understand some people just don't have just can't commit to that financial investment period.
00;27;59;03 - 00;28;08;15
Itzel Islas
So thankfully there are. Yes, like we said, YouTube, Skillshare, there's so many creators giving away information for free on how to do exactly what they do. It's amazing.
00;28;08;27 - 00;28;35;08
Fabiola Lara
I want to add to that. I feel like like with any career, whether it be design whether it be whatever any degree you want to pursue, pursue it within your means. Maybe instead of going for a graphic design program at the really expensive school, maybe go for it at the more affordable state school or community college because at the end of the day, obviously, like theoretically if you pay more, you should get a better experience.
00;28;35;17 - 00;28;55;09
Fabiola Lara
But that can be very arbitrary. And since there are a lot of resources out there nowadays, it's like if there's a specific thing you want to get into and your design program doesn't offer it, you can get into it on your own or and that goes for any program. Like if you go to a communications school or you're pursuing a journalism degree, you can do the same thing.
00;28;55;09 - 00;29;05;16
Fabiola Lara
So in my opinion, I'm always like, get go to school. If you can afford it, find the one that you can afford, right? Whatever major that is, because you can supplemented in so many ways.
00;29;06;01 - 00;29;34;29
Itzel Islas
The one thing I do say, and I still feel this way, at least for myself, is I do really like structure, and I just don't think I graduated so young. I started school I think I was 18 when I started studying graphic design. So I think back then I just needed that structure that school gave me to follow through and to be to graduate.
00;29;34;29 - 00;29;47;29
Itzel Islas
So it also depends on your personality. If you're like, Now let's be real. If I do it on my own, I'm probably not going to get as far as if I go and sit down at a class every single day.
00;29;48;13 - 00;29;53;21
Fabiola Lara
And I'm being graded and I'm being you know, held accountable. I have homework projects. Yeah.
00;29;53;29 - 00;30;24;13
Itzel Islas
Totally. And there's also based like foundations that I think regardless if you're trying to pursue it, you do need a course on it. So you understand the rules, the base of what it means, whichever career you choose. But like we said, it can be City College. I know for example, San Diego has a great City College design program, so you don't have to go to a university and spend like the 100,000 probably no more, but just that amount of money if you don't need to.
00;30;24;22 - 00;30;47;17
Fabiola Lara
I always think like, yeah, if you can do the program like yours and you're ready to commit to that kind of financial investment, go for it. If that's like your dream, go for it. But if your dream maybe is has financial limitations, then be realistic. You know, and that's OK. I feel that. And I also think like, yeah, there's so many resources now, like you said, like if you have the personality to do something on your own.
00;30;47;23 - 00;30;48;04
Fabiola Lara
Or.
00;30;48;09 - 00;31;08;12
Fabiola Lara
If you know yourself and you're not can do it on your own. You could use help from like a community or a city college, go within your means. So I know that after you studied design, you ended up working in house for quite some time and now you're freelance. So how did you know it was time for you to go freelance from your in-house job?
00;31;08;25 - 00;31;33;16
Itzel Islas
I did have two in-house jobs before going freelance. The first one was right after college or right after graduating. I was there I think a couple of years, and then my last job, I was there for eight years, and towards the end of it I knew it was time for me towards the end of it because I felt like I wasn't growing anymore.
00;31;33;16 - 00;31;55;24
Itzel Islas
I wasn't learning more things. I was already as fast as I could be, and there was a room to grow. You can really move up, and it wasn't a place where I wanted to move up in just because that company I've been talking more about this recently, but the company I was at was very toxic, so it wasn't really a place I wanted to stay.
00;31;56;06 - 00;32;24;01
Itzel Islas
And luckily I had started doing my personal work on the side for a couple of years before that. And towards the end I was realizing that it could be something that people were responding to my work in a positive way. So there was more for me to explore. So I knew that I was very scared and unsure of when to actually quit, so just go for it.
00;32;24;01 - 00;32;51;28
Itzel Islas
I was so scared and that took me a long time and it actually when I ended up quitting was during the pandemic. And it wasn't really because I guess I did make the decision, but it wasn't really because I was like, Oh yes, this month I am ready. I'm going to quit. It was less glamorous than that because what happened was my work was extremely demanding and during the pandemic there was no room to adjust.
00;32;51;28 - 00;33;12;13
Itzel Islas
And there were all these things being asked of us. And long story short, I ended up having a breakdown one day. I ended up having panic attacks back to back, and it left me feeling really sick. I was in bed for a few days I went to the doctor. I was I didn't know what what was going on with me.
00;33;12;21 - 00;33;27;14
Itzel Islas
And I was like, Oh, I'm sick. I'm definitely sick. And it turns out I was just suffering from acute stress, just extreme stress. And during that time, I realized I couldn't go back.
00;33;27;23 - 00;33;34;04
Fabiola Lara
Yeah, that was like an eye opening moment, right? Because you're like, Oh, this is causing me physical illness.
00;33;34;20 - 00;33;46;07
Itzel Islas
Correct. I never experienced anything like it in my life before. And at that point, the option of going back just didn't exist in my mind anymore because of how I was feeling.
00;33;46;10 - 00;33;48;07
Fabiola Lara
You're just like, Oh, this feels impossible.
00;33;48;07 - 00;33;49;02
Fabiola Lara
Yeah, yeah.
00;33;49;02 - 00;34;12;01
Itzel Islas
Even the thought of going back gave me anxiety, so I was like, OK, well, and remember, I kept asking for a week off and then I extended that to two weeks, and then I had to get a doctor's request for a month, and then I had to be like, I'm not coming back. The work environment was extremely toxic and the owners of the company were extremely toxic.
00;34;12;01 - 00;34;23;00
Itzel Islas
So yes, the art department I worked with and my coworkers were lovely people even my direct boss. But yeah, like management, the people above were terrible.
00;34;23;06 - 00;34;23;28
Fabiola Lara
So yeah.
00;34;23;29 - 00;34;51;12
Itzel Islas
I had to I had to say I'm not coming back and unfortunately I don't think I can work because also there was this was really difficult for me because I pride myself till this day in being completely professional. I just love to be professional and on time and responsible. So not being able to even go back to work and put in my two weeks and work in two weeks just felt so wrong and so difficult for me.
00;34;51;29 - 00;35;07;14
Itzel Islas
But at that point, I couldn't literally my body couldn't, and that took me months to recover. It took me months to recover from that. And it sucks because till this day I have anxiety. I deal with it. I didn't deal with for that moment.
00;35;08;13 - 00;35;09;10
Fabiola Lara
Oh, wow.
00;35;09;10 - 00;35;19;11
Fabiola Lara
So it's left you with like residual, almost like a PTSD from that work environment. That's really tough. I'm sorry that you went through that because it.
00;35;19;11 - 00;35;20;01
Fabiola Lara
Sounds.
00;35;20;08 - 00;35;28;09
Fabiola Lara
Horrific, but I feel like with whenever it comes to like toxic work environments, you don't know how bad it is until you leave.
00;35;28;24 - 00;35;40;13
Itzel Islas
It was a thing of I knew it was bad and I knew I was putting up with it, but until I left, I was like, oh, wow, that was terrible. Why was I putting up with it? Why is anyone putting up with it? Like, what.
00;35;40;13 - 00;35;41;13
Fabiola Lara
Are you all doing?
00;35;41;23 - 00;35;59;17
Itzel Islas
Yeah, I was I really a lot of people have left. The people that used to work in the art department had been there for so many years, even more than I just everyone had been there forever. And little by little, a lot of people left and there's still a core group that are left there. And my my wish is just for everyone to quit.
00;35;59;17 - 00;36;01;28
Itzel Islas
I just just know when you're so.
00;36;02;00 - 00;36;04;25
Fabiola Lara
Yes. Yes. Yes, yes, yes.
00;36;05;02 - 00;36;12;20
Fabiola Lara
I was going to ask you, looking back, is there a time you think you should have quit before getting to that breaking point? Like now that you look back on it?
00;36;13;18 - 00;36;37;17
Itzel Islas
I have this conversation often and I don't like to dwell. And I know there's no use in me thinking, what if because that moment does not exist I do think at the end of the day, I proved to myself I was ready to leave. And now, of course, it makes sense. I'm super hard working, I'm dedicated, and of course, I was going to figure it out.
00;36;37;18 - 00;37;03;28
Itzel Islas
I had my work ethic and all my years of experience to back me up but in that moment, baby, and also during the pandemic, just thinking of leaving during such a scary moment, losing my health insurance, losing my stable income, that was just, OK, now I'm going to have to stay here for longer. That's not an option. But looking back, yeah, of course, I could have left earlier, but I think everything happens for a reason.
00;37;03;28 - 00;37;08;06
Fabiola Lara
So what's one thing you've learned since going freelance about yourself?
00;37;08;20 - 00;37;33;02
Itzel Islas
That I was ready that I was 1000% ready and I knew it. But yeah, like we said, there's just so many thoughts and it's so scary. To jump into the unknown. And especially I don't know how you are, but I normally, I think less now because of things that have happened, but I did like to have just control.
00;37;34;06 - 00;37;37;14
Fabiola Lara
Yes, yes. I feel you 100%.
00;37;37;15 - 00;37;37;25
Fabiola Lara
Yeah.
00;37;38;03 - 00;37;45;26
Itzel Islas
I like and I know what's going to happen I almost wanted to leave was like knowing exactly what was going to happen, which there was no way like.
00;37;45;27 - 00;37;51;19
Fabiola Lara
Even if you're going freelance, even if you have a like a contract or a project, lined up, that project could drop.
00;37;51;28 - 00;38;08;07
Itzel Islas
Yeah. And I was in that place, like we said, I was in that place where I had my money saved up. I experienced check I had gigs going on to that. I was doing freelance. I was freelancing already. So I had everything. I was just scared.
00;38;08;24 - 00;38;27;17
Fabiola Lara
It's just scary. It is very scary. And anyone listening who is feeling like they're at this crossroad where they have to go there, they think they want to go freelance, it's always going to be scary. We say Just go for it. And I agree with that. But it's going to be scary. Like we say, just do it knowing that it will be fear, but there will be fear.
00;38;27;17 - 00;38;43;26
Fabiola Lara
Oh, any time that you you take a risk and freelance is a huge risk. But I feel like I mean, I'm not I can't speak for you, but I feel like it balances out at some point. Like you start to pick up that momentum and you can feel a little bit more in control and you're not going to get there until you start freelancing.
00;38;44;05 - 00;38;46;14
Itzel Islas
Yeah. Yeah. You just have to go for it.
00;38;46;14 - 00;38;50;18
Fabiola Lara
I know you've been freelance for a while now. I think you had like your first full year freelance, right?
00;38;50;18 - 00;38;51;21
Itzel Islas
Yes. Yes.
00;38;52;10 - 00;38;59;04
Fabiola Lara
So what does your schedule look like these days? How are you balancing your freelance projects and also your life?
00;38;59;11 - 00;39;26;04
Itzel Islas
Before, when I had my full time job, I had I was working a lot, a lot, a lot and not a lot of boundaries, not a lot of I would work, obviously, my full time job, what was that, nine to five or whatever. And then I would work on my freelance and my personal projects at night time. I would work on the weekends, and now I pretty much work Monday through Friday.
00;39;26;13 - 00;39;45;26
Itzel Islas
Most of the time I work a solid 8 hours. I do work my full time job, but just for myself and I give myself Saturday and Sunday, unless there's a project that I need to work on, unless there's something I personally actually want to work on now, I don't I don't work on the weekends and it feels really, really nice.
00;39;45;27 - 00;39;48;03
Fabiola Lara
Yeah, that's so good.
00;39;48;09 - 00;40;06;19
Fabiola Lara
I feel like, you know, it can take a while. A lot of the times when you're freelancing and like sometimes a client sense that's like a random deadline and you don't have that much control over that. But otherwise like you can really manage your time and figure out how you want to do things. And I know that you have an amazing online shop and you create so many products.
00;40;06;28 - 00;40;20;25
Fabiola Lara
So I feel like that also you're able to work kind of for yourself in that sense and kind of set your own timelines and that has to help with with that balance. So tell me about how you launched your online store and like where you're at with it now.
00;40;21;00 - 00;40;48;04
Itzel Islas
So my whole Instagram account and my brand started as a little side project for fun to doodle and not have anyone tell me anything. And I just started some people started responding to it and there was a point where I made a sticker and then I made another sticker and then I made a keychain and a t shirt and I would make these products every now and then.
00;40;49;00 - 00;41;15;26
Itzel Islas
But obviously since I went full time freelance, I just went I'm dedicating way more of my time to my shop because I am seeing that response from people even a year before I went full time. I was feeling a really good response where I knew if I put more time and energy into it, I can get more. So now I constantly am making products.
00;41;15;26 - 00;41;43;16
Itzel Islas
I have a lot of fun. Like you said, I'm going back to say you said, What have you learned? And just everything has been a learning experience so far. Even the shop because I always hippies. I am a designer, I am not a business person. So the business aspect of it I am learning it as a go. At first I would just like create products to create and it was just so fun and that's it.
00;41;43;16 - 00;42;11;05
Itzel Islas
And now I did my taxes, which that was a whole freaking learning experience for me. I'm thinking about my shop. I wasn't even aware of the money I'm supposed to be spending. I didn't know. And so now I'm spending I'm having to say I'm not going to say the number, but so much money that before I was like, Now I know, oh, I can make more products and put this into my business as an expense.
00;42;11;07 - 00;42;23;04
Itzel Islas
Because before I was thinking, Oh, no, I need to be careful with not spending too much money on my products, not making too many things. What if people don't buy them? And now I know I could have spent a little more money.
00;42;23;13 - 00;42;46;21
Fabiola Lara
But year over year, right? You learn a little bit more. You learn a little bit more about business and how to manage your shop. I know you have a lot of products that are both in English and in Spanish and maybe a little a little mix of Spanglish. So I was wondering how you went about deciding to create like that, because I know that there's a lot of people out there who, like, feel like they have to make in English or in Spanish.
00;42;47;01 - 00;42;51;17
Fabiola Lara
Right. And you thankfully create in both. So how did you decide that?
00;42;51;23 - 00;43;00;05
Itzel Islas
Yeah, I remember when I first started my Instagram account, I was torn and I felt like I could only do English.
00;43;00;08 - 00;43;01;29
Fabiola Lara
Yeah, people always ask this. Yeah.
00;43;02;00 - 00;43;21;03
Itzel Islas
And there was a point where I remember telling my boyfriend, I want to do something in Spanish. I just that would be cool. But I don't know. He was like, Just do it. And then I started doing a little by little because I remember telling him it would feel accurate to who I am to do both English and Spanish.
00;43;21;04 - 00;43;52;29
Itzel Islas
I can't just do all English. That's just not who I am. And I started doing more Spanish, more Spanish, and people were loving it. So that made me feel like, Oh, OK, it's not bad. To do this. It's a good thing I can do it. And now, of course, now I don't even think about it. Now I create and whichever English or Spanish or I combine them because my whole purpose with my shop, my brand is just have it to be really authentic to who I am.
00;43;53;09 - 00;44;20;01
Fabiola Lara
Well, and that's so helpful because as you create from this authentic place of like who you are, it also attracts people who are just like you, who are in the same situation. And that's a lot of people. And I feel like sometimes we forget that in the US because the US is so like English and like you know, it's like everywhere and it just like consumes every aspect of everyday life that it's hard to remember that.
00;44;20;01 - 00;44;33;26
Fabiola Lara
But yeah, there are people just like you, just like me, who can manage both languages and it's who they are, you know? And you're speaking directly to those people. Every time that you put out a product or make an Instagram post that is like that.
00;44;33;26 - 00;44;47;21
Itzel Islas
So yeah, just like you said, because people do ask me and I'm like, Do it. Just do whatever feels right for you. And it's silly to think back and remember how torn I was about picking languages.
00;44;47;21 - 00;44;49;10
Fabiola Lara
Yeah. And then at the end of the day was.
00;44;49;10 - 00;44;51;19
Fabiola Lara
Your boyfriend who was like, Just do it just to shut up.
00;44;51;23 - 00;44;52;01
Fabiola Lara
Yeah.
00;44;53;06 - 00;45;03;27
Itzel Islas
Yeah. It's just so funny to be like, Why was I even concerned? Why was that even a thing? And also there's so many more people like me so many more bilingual guests.
00;45;04;00 - 00;45;06;06
Fabiola Lara
Exactly, exactly. But we just forget.
00;45;06;06 - 00;45;09;24
Itzel Islas
Yeah, yeah. That was for nothing. So just do it.
00;45;10;13 - 00;45;31;27
Fabiola Lara
That doubt is also because, like, that's not what you see commonly on Instagram, especially probably when you are deciding, right? It's like, Wait, I'm not seeing anyone else do this. So this feels very weird now that there's a lot of people doing this, you included, it feels a lot less weird. But I'm sure the reason that you still get that question is because perhaps people who are in Latin America are unsure right?
00;45;32;07 - 00;45;41;04
Fabiola Lara
And there is like this whole thing of like, you know, you want to reach the right audience and blah, blah, blah. But, you know, at the end of the day, you will reach those people if you stay true to yourself.
00;45;41;10 - 00;45;41;28
Fabiola Lara
Yeah.
00;45;41;28 - 00;46;03;07
Itzel Islas
That's actually exactly it, because when I started my Instagram was probably about five years ago, and now we see a lot of Spanish and Latino content. But yeah, this is pretty recent is as much as it feels so normal now and so common, it's pretty recent that we see more of this being represented.
00;46;03;07 - 00;46;08;15
Fabiola Lara
I know we're talking about Instagram, but I don't want to talk about Instagram anymore. I want to talk about Tic TAC.
00;46;09;14 - 00;46;10;29
Fabiola Lara
I know you had a.
00;46;10;29 - 00;46;17;01
Fabiola Lara
Recent viral video experience on Tech Talk. So first tell me about it.
00;46;17;14 - 00;46;42;26
Itzel Islas
So it's tick tock. As you know, we kind of started having this conversation before. It's interesting to me and I downloaded it with a lot of people when the pandemic hit and we were just for trying to find something to do. I started recording random little videos and then I had a few of them go viral. And then the algorithm changed not too long ago.
00;46;43;24 - 00;46;53;19
Itzel Islas
And that's when I realized not a lot of things what was working for me wasn't working anymore. So I was like, OK, I guess I just don't know this app anymore or whatever.
00;46;53;26 - 00;46;59;02
Fabiola Lara
OK, I guess I'll just give up. But yeah, I guess I'll just give up.
00;47;00;24 - 00;47;13;16
Itzel Islas
I've posted about my greeting cards and I remember that day I was telling my boyfriend I This is not working. It's not doing anything anymore. I wish someone saw it, but whatever, I'm just going to do it.
00;47;13;16 - 00;47;15;09
Fabiola Lara
That's the attitude. And your boyfriend.
00;47;15;09 - 00;47;16;16
Fabiola Lara
Being like, Yeah, just do it.
00;47;16;23 - 00;47;18;04
Fabiola Lara
Let's move on. He's like, Oh.
00;47;18;04 - 00;47;24;07
Itzel Islas
Yeah, he's probably going to be fine. And I was like, Yeah, no one's going to see it. Who cares? And then I posted.
00;47;24;07 - 00;47;25;05
Fabiola Lara
It and then.
00;47;25;05 - 00;47;27;16
Itzel Islas
I remember because we were together and I'm like.
00;47;28;05 - 00;47;28;29
Fabiola Lara
Oh, look.
00;47;29;07 - 00;47;47;09
Itzel Islas
It's moving a little bit. So people are kind of seeing it. And then I think a couple of hours went by and I got a sale like I got to say earlier, this hadn't happened through Tick Tock in a while. So this is cool. Hopefully a few more people see it and then I don't know what happened. It's like wildfire.
00;47;49;04 - 00;47;50;20
Fabiola Lara
And it just.
00;47;50;20 - 00;48;03;21
Itzel Islas
Started going and going and going. I think it was about 3 hours and then it stopped and then the next day it picked back up because that is the thing with the tick tock algorithm. Things can.
00;48;04;11 - 00;48;05;00
Fabiola Lara
Move.
00;48;05;11 - 00;48;27;05
Itzel Islas
Because I do see that everywhere. Like don't hide your videos, give them time because the algorithm works in interesting ways. So yeah, it's completely, I think for a full day. And then it went back again. I sold out of my greeting cards completely. I had to order more. Luckily, they did arrive in time and a lot of them sold out again.
00;48;27;05 - 00;48;47;16
Itzel Islas
I had never had I had sold out of some things before and tick, but I think I had like it was a sun catchers and I had 35 or 40. It wasn't that many and with this I saw this year, I was like, I'm going to be so prepared and have extra greeting cards. And I just felt so good like, oh, well I'm going to have some leftovers.
00;48;47;16 - 00;48;50;13
Fabiola Lara
So next year, probably much. Yeah, yeah.
00;48;51;04 - 00;49;15;05
Itzel Islas
For me obviously because I'm not a big store, so I don't even carry giant numbers to begin with. But it all sold out and I just was getting comments and comments and followers. I think it had a hundred thousand views, I think, which I know the reviews can go in, can be in the millions for Tick Tock. So that's but for me that was wild.
00;49;15;05 - 00;49;26;05
Itzel Islas
And also like we said, it sold out and the income I made in two days from those greeting cards was probably the same I made in three months last year.
00;49;26;16 - 00;49;45;10
Fabiola Lara
OK, I love this because I know a lot of artists are interested in Tick Tock, myself included. I'm on Tick Tock, but it is so hit or miss, it feels like and so do you have any advice for people who are just joining Tick Tock and want to participate now that you've seen like different iterations of the algorithm?
00;49;45;10 - 00;49;49;01
Fabiola Lara
I know before it was like a lot easier on Tick Tock. Now it feels like it's a little bit harder.
00;49;49;10 - 00;50;12;11
Itzel Islas
My advice is to just make videos, just make them just make them. Because even when I started, I was like, I know I can't do it because I don't have the fancy camera and I don't have the equipment. Because also when it first started, it was like all the people with the crazy, with the tripods and with the transitions and just everything.
00;50;12;11 - 00;50;42;13
Itzel Islas
So HD and then slowly it started shifting into just people holding their phone and recording and video. Just the quality was normal or not the greatest, but people are all about it. It doesn't matter. So my advice is to just make things and see what works for you because A, you can hide them eventually. I hit a lot of my early videos because I'm like, Oh, that doesn't, I don't really want those anymore anymore.
00;50;42;15 - 00;51;03;12
Itzel Islas
So you can do the same also, the one good thing the tick tock algorithm has, it is really good. I think the algorithm is on point. Once it figures out who you are, it will put you, the people who are like you, who need to see your work will see it where that doesn't really happen with Instagram. Now.
00;51;04;04 - 00;51;21;12
Fabiola Lara
Right? Because like you go on tick tock and you expect to see new people that you don't know versus like when you log on on Instagram, like you want to see the people that you specifically that you followed. Like that's what we're trained to do, but we're not trained to to behave that way on tick. We're open to new people.
00;51;21;12 - 00;51;35;22
Fabiola Lara
So like when you post on TikTok most of the people who are going to see yourself are brand new people. So you're reaching brand new people every time. That's like such an advantage, right? Because like you said, you were able to get your cards out to a whole new group, a whole new audience just from one video.
00;51;36;16 - 00;52;00;15
Itzel Islas
TikTok is very much luck. It feels like if the algorithm kicks in and there's something about it that it likes, it's going to do well. A lot of people will be able to see it. And you can get a lot of followers and you can get you can sell things. But also, yes, that might not happen again for days, months.
00;52;00;29 - 00;52;07;17
Fabiola Lara
Yeah. You kind of have to like play the numbers, right? Like the more you throw yourself out there, the more likely something will do.
00;52;07;17 - 00;52;39;13
Itzel Islas
Well, exactly. Just like keep going with it because and it also it does feel really weird going from something like you said, you experienced it to something getting a lot of use. And then your next video is like nothing sometimes. For example, I feel like my own followers don't even see my videos on TikTok. I do. For example, compare to Instagram where I've built such a I feel like I know my audience and they know me and they know my story and tick tock.
00;52;39;13 - 00;52;46;23
Itzel Islas
I am not sure if they know who I am. I feel like they just followed like a bunch of people just followed.
00;52;46;24 - 00;53;11;16
Fabiola Lara
Yeah, it is definitely harder to get people to consistently see your stuff on Tick Tock like though you are reaching new people kind of. Every time that you have a video, you might reach 90% new people. It's really hard to to reach the people who already follow you. It's like kind of fickle that way. But that's kind of the reason why even though a lot of people, especially a lot of people and Tick Tock are always like, Instagram is dead.
00;53;11;17 - 00;53;26;15
Fabiola Lara
I'm just like, I don't know the people that follow me. They're like, stay really engaged. It's easier to have like a community on Instagram. On TikTok, it's still very much feels like I like videos and I don't necessarily invest into the person. I'm just like, Oh, that was a cute video next.
00;53;26;20 - 00;53;27;01
Fabiola Lara
Yeah.
00;53;27;26 - 00;53;42;13
Itzel Islas
But if you think about it, there's a lot of creators on Tik Tok that have huge followings, and people are literally waiting for their next video and know their whole story. So that is an option.
00;53;42;20 - 00;53;44;25
Fabiola Lara
Yeah, it just depends how much you share, I guess.
00;53;44;25 - 00;54;06;10
Itzel Islas
Yes. I think people do love the sharing. You do have to be more constant on it and makes sense because all these platforms, what they want is for you to be on it constantly. I just think Tik Tok and Instagram, as much as they feel similar, they're completely different platforms and we just have to adapt to what they each mean.
00;54;06;12 - 00;54;22;18
Fabiola Lara
Yeah, just try it out. Anyway, I think that was plenty on tech talk. I feel like if you weren't sure if to join Tick Tock, this is a clear conversation guiding you towards Tic TAC, telling you go try it out. If you want to.
00;54;23;00 - 00;54;23;15
Fabiola Lara
Grow your.
00;54;23;15 - 00;54;27;09
Fabiola Lara
Brand, grow your shop, kind of that kind of thing. Go on, tick tock.
00;54;27;20 - 00;54;58;18
Itzel Islas
The one thing is I was conflicted because I feel like we said the community. It's not like Instagram where people might not know you immediately. So that to me was kind of not something I enjoy from the platform. That being said, over time and over the videos I've been putting out and the ones that have been viral I have accumulated an amount of followers, even though they don't constantly shop from my online shop where my Instagram followers do.
00;54;59;02 - 00;55;21;16
Itzel Islas
That has opened the door. Tick Tock has opened the door for other opportunities. Like, for example, I recently got I'm going to be doing a gig. I signed my first NDA, so I cannot talk about it. A But it was because of Tick Tock. So it's this big company that we all know about that I'm so excited to share about when the time comes.
00;55;21;27 - 00;55;45;05
Itzel Islas
But if it wasn't for me putting my random videos out on TikTok and growing my platform there, I wouldn't have gotten that opportunity. So in a way, I'm not selling things consistently from my shop through there, but people are finding me and these companies are finding me and hiring me for design, et cetera, purposes. So for that I do think it's worth it to.
00;55;45;29 - 00;56;08;09
Fabiola Lara
Yeah, it is like an awareness play, right? Like the same way that the first designers who were on Instagram were able to establish themselves. Now the same thing can happen on tech talk like that. The designers and the illustrators who manage to make kind of a name for themselves on TikTok are going to see benefits. Like not to say that if you're not on it, you're not going to get those opportunities.
00;56;08;09 - 00;56;26;26
Fabiola Lara
It's just like easier in a in a sense, because if brands specifically want people with Tick-Tock audiences because X, Y, Z, you're available, you know you're there. So like anything like the first to, to kind of join and get started are going to see a benefit. And it's not too late. Still, like it's still really new.
00;56;26;29 - 00;56;36;06
Itzel Islas
I think it's still an easier way to grow an audience really fast. So whatever that means, something could come from it.
00;56;36;20 - 00;56;56;23
Fabiola Lara
So I know that you have a Patreon account, and I'm always really curious when I meet artists and designers that have Patreon because I just find it so fascinating because I love the concept of it, but I'm also so intimidated by it for some reason. So I'm just like wondering if you could tell us about your Patreon and like when you launched it and how that was like.
00;56;57;10 - 00;57;28;19
Itzel Islas
Yeah. So when I look for a full time job, my thing was I need to figure out as many possible streams of income as I can, and I do highly recommend this to people listening that want to leave their jobs. So one of them was Patreon and basically it started with the Sicker Club because I make so many stickers and I thought it would be fun to create a new sticker every month and email it out to whoever was down.
00;57;29;24 - 00;57;53;05
Itzel Islas
So essentially that's what I do. That's the main one. I've been wanting to expand on it, but honestly, just haven't had the energy to expand it maybe in the future. And I'm also trying to figure out something where I don't have to create or physically do things, if that makes sense. I would love to figure out something.
00;57;53;05 - 00;57;54;01
Fabiola Lara
What does that mean?
00;57;54;01 - 00;57;55;00
Itzel Islas
I know I know.
00;57;56;01 - 00;57;58;04
Fabiola Lara
OK for me because at.
00;57;58;09 - 00;58;12;15
Itzel Islas
The end of the day, even when I first started it, I price it a certain number. And then with all the work that it means, all the hours and the material and the platform fees, shipping fees, and.
00;58;12;23 - 00;58;12;29
Fabiola Lara
Then.
00;58;13;18 - 00;58;41;18
Itzel Islas
It was actually I wasn't getting that much money from it. Then I repriced it a little bit. The price did a couple dollars higher just so I can make my money back and have it be more sustainable. So I think even that whole thing has been a process in itself. And like I said, I am trying to figure out something where I would love to do because people sometimes approach me asking for advice on their portfolios or things like that.
00;58;41;18 - 00;58;57;12
Itzel Islas
So I would love to do a Patreon tier where, for example, I give people advice. So it just literally requires me and my knowledge versus me creating products and packaging and shipping.
00;58;57;13 - 00;59;00;20
Fabiola Lara
And that's something that really intimidates me about. Patreon is like.
00;59;01;00 - 00;59;01;16
Fabiola Lara
The.
00;59;02;06 - 00;59;21;16
Fabiola Lara
Monthly kind of redundancy of it, right? Like having to like show up every month, create a new sticker, send it out, send the like, you know, I know you make you write notes and like all of that takes time. And I think that at first when you're really excited, it's easy. It's easy to, like, underestimate because you're like, what?
00;59;21;17 - 00;59;34;22
Fabiola Lara
It's time people. And then suddenly it's like 300 and you're like, Oh, crap. Like, what do I do now? So what do you think are the pros and cons of running a Patriot on account? I'm still very interested. I'm probably going to do it one day. But I hesitated.
00;59;35;17 - 01;00;02;14
Itzel Islas
Yeah, well, and you were mentioning the monthly thing, and I do have friends that do, for example, they charge $10 a month, but they mail every three months and it's something slightly bigger. So even I'm curious and doing something like that, expanding it in that way where I don't have to commit to every month because yeah, there's a lot on my plate now, but something like that could be a good idea for you.
01;00;02;14 - 01;00;21;14
Itzel Islas
Too, or for other people. I don't. So far, the pros, I do really love the community I built on there. I like that I go to all my patrons for their I just show them all my work before I show it to everyone and I have them help me decide what I'm going to make.
01;00;21;19 - 01;00;24;11
Fabiola Lara
Oh, cool. Cool. So you have like almost like a focus group.
01;00;24;11 - 01;00;49;08
Itzel Islas
Yeah, I get their feedback or they help me choose. We just chose the my newest shirt design. So there were four ideas. We narrowed down to one. So I do like that process with them. And I also do love mailing the stickers. I love creating stickers and I love mailing them out the cons. I know a lot of people don't like the platform BS, so there is that.
01;00;49;17 - 01;00;57;12
Itzel Islas
But then again, at least to me, like, well, what doesn't have CS? So it's just it comes with it I feel for me.
01;00;57;12 - 01;01;02;14
Fabiola Lara
Tell us about the Sticker Club again, just for those who don't know who maybe want to join yeah.
01;01;02;14 - 01;01;15;08
Itzel Islas
So for $7 a month you receive a different sticker monthly. I we've been doing a lot of glitter and holographic stickers lately, so it's been extra.
01;01;15;08 - 01;01;23;18
Fabiola Lara
Yeah, your stickers are high end. Like they're not like little agenda tiny stickers. These are like large stickers, right? They're like good sizes.
01;01;23;18 - 01;01;35;28
Itzel Islas
Yeah. Yes. They're all the minimum is three inches. I am a sticker fan since I was a kid, and I am very picky about my sticker quality. I do not like flimsy or cheap, like cheap stickers.
01;01;35;28 - 01;01;56;25
Fabiola Lara
Boom. That's why that $7 is key for getting a high quality sticker here. I love it. I've seen them and you and you share them on your Instagram too, right? Like the designs that are that are going out before they go out. So if anyone wants to take a take a peek go check out. Itzel's Instagram and you'll see the kind of stickers that she's working with, which they're also cute.
01;01;57;01 - 01;02;08;22
Itzel Islas
Yes sticker and no. And then it's the behind the scenes. So I do audio updates. We like we said, we pick all the new merch and then just little surprises and freebies I throw in there.
01;02;08;24 - 01;02;14;12
Fabiola Lara
Do you have any upcoming projects that you can share with us that you're excited about our merch drops?
01;02;14;28 - 01;02;35;15
Itzel Islas
I do have merch drops coming soon. I actually I design a bunch of new merch they're all in production right now. So this is a thing where we're seeing a lot of it is very new for me to be super transparent. I'm still not like companies are like, Oh, spring, like Q1 and no, we're not doing that here.
01;02;36;10 - 01;02;37;29
Fabiola Lara
We're not at that point. Yeah.
01;02;38;10 - 01;02;39;02
Fabiola Lara
Me either.
01;02;39;20 - 01;02;40;13
Fabiola Lara
Don't worry.
01;02;40;18 - 01;02;58;20
Itzel Islas
So I didn't have that plan from last year. I am very with my design, I'm very spontaneous. I'm like, What do I want to make? Oh yes. It sounds exciting when we make a whole collection and let me have everything made. So right now everything's being made. I do have a lot of results that people have been asking for.
01;02;58;20 - 01;03;01;27
Itzel Islas
Like there's a mug that people love.
01;03;02;04 - 01;03;02;26
Fabiola Lara
Where does it say.
01;03;03;06 - 01;03;22;27
Itzel Islas
They kind of buzz a little cloud one? And then we have those check the tote bag, restock. So I'm doing three socks pretty soon. Those should be hopefully towards the end of the month, like around March 24th. And then I just have more drops coming soon. There's a lot of where I'm really excited about that I've never done before.
01;03;22;28 - 01;03;36;14
Itzel Islas
There's one item particular to that I'm making new products I've never done before. There are going to be a little bit trickier and more expensive, but that I normally love wearing, so I'm super excited.
01;03;36;15 - 01;03;59;04
Fabiola Lara
Oh, exciting. I can't wait to see. I cannot wait to see. OK, this is going to be my last question to wrap up the interview. We've been talked. I feel like we could talk forever. I still have a ton of questions left too. But I'm just like, we're trying to get through a little bit of everything. So what's like a dream project for you, either for yourself that you would like to do or like if it's a client dream?
01;03;59;19 - 01;04;01;05
Fabiola Lara
I mean, if it's a dream client.
01;04;01;16 - 01;04;12;22
Itzel Islas
Yeah. There's a lot I feel and I have my little I'm looking because to my left, I have a little notebook where I was writing. OK, I'm a little manifesting.
01;04;12;22 - 01;04;18;03
Fabiola Lara
Yes, I like it. What's one project we would like to manifest right here? Right now?
01;04;18;21 - 01;04;39;14
Itzel Islas
As always, since I was in college, there's been two clients that I've always wanted to work with. One is Target I used to design for Target and had a lot of my shirts shirt designs in store at my last company, but I would love to design for it. By myself, like on my own.
01;04;39;14 - 01;04;41;18
Fabiola Lara
As you as you said. Yes.
01;04;42;02 - 01;04;49;18
Itzel Islas
And specifically, I want to make a little gift card. The Target gift cards. I want to design one of those.
01;04;50;11 - 01;04;51;16
Fabiola Lara
I've always wanted to.
01;04;51;24 - 01;04;59;11
Fabiola Lara
I could totally see that for you. I can envision the card already so I feel like you're a perfect fit. I hope it comes to life because I can.
01;04;59;11 - 01;05;14;12
Itzel Islas
See me too. And then I would love to work with a Mexican company. I've always thought like Starbucks, Mexico, would be really fun. Who knows who specifically, but just awful. We'll see. I am open.
01;05;15;04 - 01;05;41;13
Fabiola Lara
I can totally see that one for you too. I'm I am hopeful that these things will come to be one way or another. Eventually. You'll end there. I'm sure of it. OK, well, it's well, I think we covered a ton of stuff, so thank you so much for your time, for your energy, for sharing your life story from growing up in Tijuana to high school stories to designing now and having your Patreon.
01;05;41;13 - 01;05;45;23
Fabiola Lara
I love to see it. Thank you for your time. And yeah, that's it.
01;05;45;23 - 01;05;57;12
Itzel Islas
I think from your life. It was such a pleasure. I am so excited. I as well feel like we can keep going. Maybe there will be a Part two sometime.
01;05;57;26 - 01;05;58;21
Fabiola Lara
Season to.
01;05;59;07 - 01;05;59;18
Fabiola Lara
Season.
01;05;59;18 - 01;06;23;00
Itzel Islas
Two, but I hope there's something that people can resonate with and can get inspired by. And also, I always love to say if anyone has a question, does DM me most of the time I get I try to give back to everything and I try to be helpful to people. So yeah, good luck with your journeys to everyone.
01;06;23;00 - 01;06;45;13
Fabiola Lara
Definitely, definitely. I'm sure everyone's going to go follow you. I'll leave like always. I always leave everyone's links in the show notes, so go check those out and you can find it's all on Instagram, on TikTok, because we mentioned it on Patreon, whatever. She's in many places OK, guys, that's our show for today. Thanks for listening to me.
01;06;45;13 - 01;07;03;13
Fabiola Lara
And Itzel talk and discuss everything about her life. I feel like we covered so much in this episode. Please be sure to check out her Patreon Sticker Club. It'll be linked in the show notes, which you can access directly in your podcast app. Once again, if you want more from me, I share videos on my YouTube channel every other week.
01;07;03;13 - 01;07;34;08
Fabiola Lara
Between podcast episodes, you can find my channel linked below or just search for add for your little draws in the YouTube app. Finally, like always, if there's a Latinz visual artist, that means designers, photographers, 3-D artists, literally any visual medium based here in the US that you think I should speak to on the show, go ahead and nominate them by going to Drawsinspanish.com/nominate if you enjoyed this episode, please make my day and hit subscribe so you don't miss the next episode of Drawers in Spanish.
01;07;34;18 - 01;07;37;07
Fabiola Lara
Thank you and see you next time. Bye bye.