Art gallery wall with various framed illustrations of buildings and scenes, with a few people seated and chatting in the foreground.
Pink circular keychain with pixel art skull and rainbow sprinkles design, purple bead chain, and black background.

Made By Jessie
Pop-Up Shop

A cream-colored sticker with a drawing of a bear raising a paw with a spark and a peace sign. The text reads, "it's not personal, I'm just cranky."

LOCATION -> Santa Cruz, California

DATE -> 2023-2024

ROLE -> Illustrator + Product Designer

This self-initiated project began as a personal illustration practice during the height of COVID. I focused on refining my style, moving from bold line-less to detailed, storybook-inspired scenes, while growing an online following and connecting with other artists across the globe.

After relocating to San Jose, I found a creative home in the Exhilo Creative Meetups community (a generous and wildly talented group of local creatives who helped push this project from concept to action). With their encouragement, I launched a year-long art pop-up at The Abbey, a well-loved coffee shop in Santa Cruz. I stocked and maintained a rotating collection of illustrated goods, including notebooks, keychains, pencil pouches, seasonal prints, and small-batch releases. Everything was designed, produced, and packaged by hand. The pop-up became a space to share my work, connect with new audiences, and build momentum for future illustration-focused projects.

Display of colorful postcards with various illustrations, arranged on small wooden stands and cardholders, on a wooden table.
Display of greeting cards, stickers, and small artwork on a table with decorative stands and a wire rack, featuring colorful illustrations including animals, nature scenes, and imaginative designs.
A hand holding a sticker of a cute cartoon dragon with a long, wavy body, a smiling face, and a small wing, surrounded by clouds.
Three sheets of stickers with cartoon characters, including a person in a flame costume, a person in a bear costume, and a strawberry. The stickers also feature hearts, clouds, a pencil, a bow, stars, and a rainbow. The background includes a planner
Display of Halloween-themed greeting cards, artwork, and decorations on a table.
A close-up of a person wearing a beige cropped sweater and high-waisted blue jeans with a keychain attached to a belt loop. The keychain features a pixelated design of a smiling face inside a yellow frame, resembling a cartoon character.
Colorful stationery and stickers on a wooden surface, including grocery list notes, frog stickers, blue note cards, and heart-shaped tags.
Two framed prints with a cartoon lettuce character and clouds, labeled with handwritten signs that read 'Limited Edition Conward Print'.
Six colorful Oreo keychains with cute pixel art faces and bead chains in gold, purple, red, blue, silver, and pink, placed on a white background.
A collection of colorful greeting cards in clear plastic sleeves displayed on a wooden surface. One card features a girl hugging a cat inside a cozy house with stars around, and other cards have various designs including welcoming messages.
Colorful printable grocery list notepad with checkboxes, made by Jessie, decorated with illustrations of food and kitchen items.
Collection of colorful cartoon stickers featuring characters in costumes, a rubber duck, a star, a flower, a bow, and small decorative shapes on a beige background.
A display of various illustrated cards in plastic sleeves, featuring whimsical and colorful designs, including a frog wearing a top hat, a cozy room interior, a landscape with a castle, a bear, and a night sky with swirling green clouds.
A clear plastic bag containing a round, peach-colored cookie with colorful sprinkles and a pink bead chain, labeled 'Made by Jessie' on a white tag with a black illustration of a crayon.
A display of colorful paper notebooks with various illustrations and messages, including a girl with a ghost saying "Head Empty," a black cat, and a girl with a ghost, alongside some decorative cards with illustrations of stars, a pencil, and a cloud
Display of colorful heart-shaped keychains with the words 'NO THX' and 'HEY QT' on a wooden surface, with assorted stickers and stationery in the background.
Hand holding a yellow note card with a cute ghost illustration, surrounded by flowers and sparkles, with a pink note card partially visible behind it.
Colorful stickers and sheets of paper with cartoon characters and drawings, placed on a wooden surface.
Timelapse of illustration of a large cat wrapped around a "Cat-fe" with trees and hidden cats in tow.

First Friday
at The Abbey

The Abbey was looking to relaunch their monthly art and music nights as part of Santa Cruz’s First Fridays. My pop-up served as the kickoff, featuring my illustration work as the opening showcase.

A framed digital illustration of a woman with long red hair standing by an open window, looking outside on a cloudy day. The artwork is displayed on a gallery wall with other framed pieces.
Interior of an art gallery or cafe with five people seated and engaging in conversation, and seven framed artworks on a peach-colored wall, illuminated by hanging light fixtures.
A display of seven framed illustrations on a wall, showcasing colorful animated art with various scenes, including a house, a tower, a cat with trees, an interior room, and a girl looking out a window.
An art gallery wall displaying framed artworks, including illustrations of animals, fantasy scenes, and characters, arranged in a mostly horizontal line with small informational placards next to each piece.
A young woman with glasses, wearing a beige sweater and gray pants, is smiling and placing her hand on her chest while talking to an older man. The man, seen from behind, is wearing a red vest and gray shirt. They are inside a warmly lit, cozy restau
Art gallery wall with framed colorful illustrations and small description labels.
Decorative stationery and accessories on a table, including stickers, notepads, and a keychain with a pink donut design.
Colorful sticky notes with cartoon designs, including cherries, strawberries, a rainbow, and a cat, alongside sheet stickers with various illustrations such as a tree and a food cart.
Text that reads 'made by jessie' inside a rounded rectangle outline
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