Written by Ying Chia |
A one-woman show featuring the roles of mum, wife, designer, artist, entrepreneur, and many more, in the whimsical, wonderful world of Jellybean Dreams, Joanita Zain is finding that sometimes the best things in life are often all in good time, and best in His timing. Deviating from her original plans of saving the world with a Masters of International Politics majoring in Transitional Justice and Geopolitics and Climate Change, Joanita is now saving lives in her own little creative ways — almost a decade on, Jellybean Dreams has turned from a simple desire to decorate her first-born’s room, into an inviting 2D extension of her colourful, wonderful approach to life that is now globally available in seven countries outside of Brunei, including London, Singapore, Malaysia, Dubai, and Australia. Her ability to be vulnerable with her real family life and struggles with Polycystic Ovary Syndrome, make her not only relatable but ultimately, likeable. We sat down with the self-taught artist and graphic designer, to talk about leaving behind the corporate life to focus on her family, finding strength to rebuild after tragedy and how things really do just work out in the end.
How did Jellybean Dreams come about?
Joanita Zain: I first came up with the idea of drawing nursery prints when I had my daughter. I wanted to decorate her room but found out there wasn’t much in the market for affordable, customised art, so I thought I’d try design myself. A few of my friends and family commissioned pieces from me and in 2014 I launched ‘Jellybean Dreams’ on Instagram. I still remember how nervous I was posting my first designs! Initially there were 12 different ‘templates’ for parents to customise — these were called the ‘Starlight’ Collection. I thought that’d be it, but I’ve since done murals for our national hospital and around 4000 custom art pieces and commissions from corporate and government too. It’s been a journey!
It seems like, and this is the time I like about your journey to have been dictated by your life and what your life has required.
Joanita Zain: Oh definitely! Nursery prints for my young children, to ‘Baby’s Blessed Milestones’ in time for my 3rd child, to a matching game on Brunei and recently a Bruneian themed puzzle. As my kids have grown, so has my product range! My children loved matching games and puzzles, so being able to produce something unique that they get to play with too has been fun. Getting into product development meant steep learning curves for me, with designing taking weeks to months to complete. Then there’s sourcing of suppliers, production, logistics, marketing and distributing — so many things go into bringing a passion project to life. With so much to do, I find I need to take time out from commissions to fully concentrate and commit to it.
Well, that’s a good perspective to have because a lot of small business owners can get caught up in a ‘I must do everything, all at once, now’ mentality. And it can be hard to get out of that.
Joanita Zain: I think there’s a perception that the more you take on, the busier you are – the better. Of course the more projects you have – the more income you can make, but I find for me this is how I make the most mistakes and completely burn out. Working towards small goals, achievable wins and trusting the process has worked for me.
If we go a little further back, where did your love of art and drawing come from?
Joanita Zain: My dad was the creative one, always with a camera in his hand, capturing life, taking photos and videos. Both my parents encourage me to do art when I was young, I found it therapeutic. As a kid I remember going to my school’s library to study this collection of children’s books that had beautifully drawn fairies in them. I was always attracted to whimsical, magical, dreamy illustrations. Art is just so endless in what you can do with it. For my Bachelors I took up electives in graphic design and animation and really enjoyed creating art digitally. So whilst I did my MA in International Politics and worked at the BEDB — on the weekends I would relax by nurturing that creative side.
What do you think gave you the confidence to do the business?
Joanita Zain: To start it, I knew at the time what I offered hadn’t been done before, so doing something niche is always good. Occasionally someone will share with me what my art has done for them, and reminds me of the ‘why’ I do this. I love that through art I can celebrate what is meaningful to people and recently with my products, put Bruneian made work into the international market.
I would say that you’ve really come into your own style, it’s so recognisable and as a brand too. Was that a conscious thing when you were developing Jellybean Dreams?
Joanita Zain: No, not really! To start with I don’t think I had a strong art style, so I tried my hand at many. Watercolours, pastels, pencil, different ‘moods’. I remember attempting the minimalist style — black, white and greys — and I just couldn’t do it. It became very apparent that I love colour! We are so lucky to have such a vibrant world. I refer to nature a lot — especially Brunei’s sunsets. Those dreamy sunny, pinks and lilacs are just so captivating.
What’s a piece or commissioned work that you’ve done that’s taught you the most about yourself?
Joanita Zain: I’d have to say ‘Baby’s Blessed Milestones Cards’. I sat on that idea for years and years, always unwilling to bring it to life because of fear of failure. The drive to get it done was when I was expecting my youngest — I thought, if I’m able to develop this to a level that I am happy with — then anything else is a bonus. It showed me to believe in my own ideas and style. Once it was lunched and enjoyed by many, it even showed me that going international was possible! Wardah Bookstore in Singapore was the first stockist to take a chance on my work and then in 2021, DARE brought the Milestone cards to Dubai’s World Expo to feature in Brunei’s Pavilion. That’s how stockists saw and bought them for their shops in Dubai, Bahrain and Oman and since then, Kinokuniya in Singapore and Malaysia, and shops in London and Australia have also stocked the cards.
How do you mitigate those negative factors of doing business here?
Joanita Zain: Getting products out internationally is not the easiest thing to do. I send out emails to stockist all over the world and only a handful reply. When there is interest, it’s all about leveraging on contacts — friends and family to get the products to store. I do wish there was a scheme or a subsidy for shipping locally made items abroad because shipping rates are so expensive — it does cut into profits.
Let’s touch on your Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS) story, which you;ve been open about. How did you find the strength to keep rebuilding after losses?
Joanita Zain: It’s been a whole journey of loss, hope and joy. I learned I had PCOS in my teens so it’s something I have managed for most of my life now, though PCOS can present itself later in a woman’s life too. Anyone who has been diagnosed with it knows how it can present itself differently to the next person, with symptoms linked to hormonal imbalances. Treating it is often confusing, as what works for some, aggravates the symptoms even more for the other — so it is really a lifelong quest to get to know your own body better. Whilst I had both skin and weight issues, the real challenge PCOS brought for me were fertility struggles. I was told by a doctor that I wouldn’t be able to conceive naturally and should go straight to IVF — and this was devastating to hear just newly married! I went on to conceive naturally and now have 3 children, but have experienced the loss of 3 pregnancies. Trusting in His plan, my family and close friends helped me rebuild. I think the struggles to conceive are often done in silence and I’m glad to see nowadays, more women are sharing about their struggles so we can support each other. Opening up about my miscarriages on the Jellybean Dreams platform was not easy to do, but through that I’ve connected with other women who were on the same journey of loss and hope. It’s nice to know we’re not in it alone.
What have each of your pregnancies taught you?
Joanita Zain: That for some, the journey of conceiving is a real emotional rollercoaster. It’s easy to be happy when things go as planned. But growth happens in hard times — so with the losses, there was the lesson of surrendering what I so wanted, to what will be — and trusting in a Higher plan. And despite the difficulty, to be grateful for the silver linings — the family and friends who helped me along the way, and finding beauty in the simple things.
Speaking of sisterhood, I think we’ve entered an interesting age of individuality so how have you built a community for yourself and why is that so important?
Joanita Zain: I think what we lose the most of in an age of individuality, is real connection. Some of my closest friends live abroad, so it’s one thing I’m grateful technology has given us — to remain close despite the distance. Family is really important to me and I’m grateful to have such a supportive and caring extended family. The friends I’ve made as my kid’s social world expands too have been great, it takes a village to raise children! Working as a solopreneur means I work from home — and whilst I love the independence and flexibility, I sometimes miss those opportunities for connections made in the office environment — although I know that’s not always rosy! Lately I’ve been featuring my artwork at pop-ups and fairs, and this helps to balance that out. I recently did a pop-up in Seria and it was lovely to meet customers in person and make those connections.
What’s coming up next for Jellybean Dreams?
Joanita Zain: Earlier this year I launched the first Brunei themed puzzle and I’m so thankful for the love for it! I’ve been working on a new Bandar themed puzzle with lots of details — landmarks, monuments, activities the diversity found in Bandar. It will be a little more challenging to puzzle, I think 500 pieces. Look out for it coming soon!
Is there anything else you’d like to do in the next couple of years?
Joanita Zain: Definitely a children’s book! I was in the U.K last year and visited an exhibition by a very famous children’s book author, Julia Donaldson. My kids love her work, especially the books ‘Room on a Broom’ and ‘Snail and the Whale’. I learned she worked a full career in broadcasting before embarking on writing children’s books — at the age of 44! This gives me so much inspiration and hope that one day I could do the same. Maybe not right now, but when the time is right.
How do you know when it’s ‘the right time’?
Joanita Zain: That’s a good question! At the moment my ‘cup’ is so full with kids activities, school runs and trying to be an involved mum. Whilst juggling all of this — it makes finding time for such a project like writing and illustrating a children’s book so hard. With the new Bandar themed jigsaw puzzle, I pondered on it for months — just allowing it to brew in my head. Sometimes I wish I could speed that process up, but I guess these things take time — and the allowance of giving it it’s due respect is what makes the final product so satisfying. One morning the lightbulb will go on, like a ‘Eureka’ moment — and then it’s pure energetic, gathering all those ideas on to paper and going full force into designing and bringing it to life. Things start to ‘click’ whilst I work on the design — and that’s when I know it’s the right time.
