Meet Rubylena Asylum | Fashionista & Jewelry maker

We had the good fortune of connecting with Rubylena Asylum and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Rubylena, we’d love to hear more about how you thought about starting your own business?
I started my business back in December of 2020, at the beginning of that year I went back and forth with the idea of opening my own small business for awhile until, I would say around June of 2020 is when I decided to go with the idea. TikTok, Etsy and other platforms were a definite inspiration to opening my own small business, next was going through ideas. I rested on doing ribbon chokers and other jewelry and accessories. I chose ribbon chokers to focus on because I’ve been sewing since I was 7 and being a fashion designer has always been a dream. Making collectible, artistic chokers sounded like a dream come true. As for the other jewelry and accessories I make, those I wanted to make so I’d have a little something for everyone as my mom loves my work with my chokers but she can’t wear them. So I decided to make sure my shop is a place everyone could shop at. Then it went into the thought process of designing my website, its themes and business cards. Along with packaging, shipping and the over all set up of my business itself, once o decided to open up my shop I also started posting on social media. my business has come along way since, my name started at Bomei Sapphire Shop, it’s changed to Rubylena Dragon Boutique to my current shops name which is Asylum’s Wonderland. I don’t get many sales at all if I’m being honest, but I couldn’t ask for a better job. I’m hoping to put a lot more effort into my small business this year.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
My form of art is in my sewing, it could be anything from clothing, to blankets, to my chokers. I put a lot of love into what I do, my inspiration for starting actually came from a Barbie movie, specifically Barbie and a fashion fairytale. When I first saw that movie at the age of 7 that’s when I decided I was going to be a fashion designer. That feeling has never gone away since, the creativity I felt, that passion to pick up even a needle and thread and to start creating clothes and bags just has stuck with me. When I turned 13 I got my first choker and was obsessed with them. A few years later when i was 16 I came across another artist who made chokers from ribbons, lace and other materials and it instantly clicked something inside me that I also could make chokers from ribbons, i immediately begged my mom to take me to Michael’s or Joanns so I could get some ribbons. When we got home I immediately went to making a choker and that feeling hasn’t gone away since. I am now 22 and my form of art is perfection to me, I am so proud of how far my sewing skills have gotten me. I actually hope sometime in the near future I can start introducing clothing, bags, even stuffies to add to my shop, because I love making those as well. As for professionalism, challenges and lessons I’ve learned. There isn’t much to those. I’ve been sewing professionally for 15 years, ever since I started sewing it was never just for fun it was always so I could get better, so I could make myself a career from my something I loved so much to do. For challenges and lessons, I haven’t really noticed any I’ve come across, I take everything in stride. Without the smallest inconvenience my form of art wouldn’t be anywhere near what it is today. About the only challenge I’m running into is getting word out of my business and how low my sales are. Which I’m still trying to get past, and learning how to get better at marketing and social medias.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
My favorite places is manitou springs, westside stories bookstore and poor Richard’s. I also love down the rabbit hole a restaurant in downtown and Fargo’s pizza. Then I’d go to bjs ice-cream or the Dutch bakery for dessert. And I would definitely take anyone who wanted to go to the zoo because our zoo is the best.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
My shoutout is going to be to my husband actually, he currently is trying to be a streamer on twitch. And trying to post to YouTube to be a gamer YouTuber. He plays anything from first person shooters to adventure games and a lot more. He’s hoping to try and get a better setup and to up his quality over the next few months so he can stream more. His twitch username is Dwarvenninja773 and it’s the same for YouTube.

Website: https://www.asylumswonderland.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/asylums_wonderland/

Twitter: https://mobile.twitter.com/RDragonBoutique

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/RubylenaDragonBoutique?mibextid=hu50Ix

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@AsylumEclipsa

Image Credits
The second photo is of myself and my aunt Dominique.