A journey from Seoul, Tokyo, New York, New Orleans, Ithaca and now Newark...
This is my story I wrote (with the help of my husband) for "Featured Shop" on The Etsy Blog:
Hello. My actual name is Yeonsoo but ever since I have lived in the United States I have gone by Soo. I was born and raised in South Korea. I studied Fabric Art as well as furniture/industrial design in Seoul and New York City respectively. I worked in New York City for many years as a furniture and interior designer where I met my architect husband. We eventually moved to my husband’s native New Orleans and I opened my Etsy store called Pale Fish. My brother came up with that name years ago when he came to visit me in New York and found himself helping me with an all-nighter charrette for a deadline. He told me I was like a pale fish, pale for having not seen the sun for days. The fish part can be explained by a Korean expression that literally translates as “a fish that met water.” It refers to a fish that is in water is most comfortable, the opposite of the English expression “fish out of water.” My brother, while poking fun at my predicament, was telling me that I was good at what I was doing. I loved the name and it stuck.
I knew I always wanted to design jewelry. In Korea, when two people get engaged, both families exchange a suitcase full of jewelry pieces as a part of the wedding gifts, almost like a dowry only less compulsory. Mothers often start assembling pieces of jewelry or gemstones for future wedding gifts as early as the kids' teen years. My mother proudly showed my siblings and me the diamonds for our future husbands and wife's wedding bands when we were 9 or 10. My sister and I tried on all my mom’s and my young brother’s future wife’s jewelry and acted out our favorite princess fairytales. I felt my mother’s love and care every time I put them on because to me they represented her planning for my future life and happiness. My mother also had jeweler friends who made my own design pieces. It was such a wonderful feeling to see and wear my own designs. However, it wasn’t until years later when I was introduced to Etsy.
When I look forward, I first think back to the afternoons spent with my sister in my mother’s jewelry box. I aspire to create pieces that mothers can pass down to their children and that will have a story that starts from my hands and continues on through their lives. My goal is timelessness.
