B'fly was created at a Kitchen Table

Mea B'fly Designs began with heart to heart conversations with BFF/Creative Lefty Andrea (Drea) Preston of DreLynn Design over a kitchen table. Andrea and I met through a mutual friend and shortly figured out we had both dabbled in beadwork for our guys. We had collected beads over the years and did little projects here and there but wanted to learn more because we both loved it. All it took from there was a show and tell of our bead collections. I had this tackle organizer box thing from the fishing section of Walmart that held 48 little drawers full of beads. When I got married I had decided I was going to master beading so that I could do it for our son and my husband. I got early lessons on how to bead by watching my dad's little sister do it and then again from my sister in law when I moved to Nebraska to live with my husband's family. It wasn't until I really got to know my husband's brother's wife, Nikki, that I really got into the different kinds of beads- colors, finishes, sizes, threads, findings, etc- that I began sketching out my own designs to use. The first thing I ever beaded was this square 4" by 4" feather triangle design on canvas- the canvas had no support because I didn't know any better- just flabby and my beads looked it. I tacked down rows of 8-12 beads so they were all puffy, crooked lines but I loved it and was so proud to attach it to my 2 yr old son's belt as a little mock pocket. From then I met other people in Winnebago who were more knowledgable and they would come over to my house and share what they could with me. Beading became social and from that I gained confidence and a sort of self reassurance that I was being a good wife/mom which is huge to me. Fast forward to 2008 and I was at the kitchen table with Andrea beading over conversations and Vitamin Waters. I don't remember the actual conversations but I do remember how it felt to be so engaged in both- it's comfortable, quite, secure, and warm. Drea and I were sharing the most vulnerable pieces of our existence while creating with a technique aged over generations. I'd found my comfort and it was for life.

Around this time, Myspace was at its prime. Everyone was on Myspace, everyone felt the need to share everything on Myspace. Our lives and beadwork was no exception- it started out with showing our table full of our supplies because we though it was funny how our little organized spaces on each side of the table went everywhere over the minutes and hours leaving a mess of tea cups, leftover thread, stray beads, pizza boxes, magazines, nail polish, make up brushes, and the random bits from our purses.   Next, we began wearing our earrings everywhere- especially to the infamous Phx Blunt Club! I loved being able to match my earrings to my Air Force ones- bright pinks, purples, blues, oranges! I'd began making a new pair each week to wear to the Blunt. Like all 25 year olds, we'd be taking selfies, BFF pics, group pics and sharing them on Myspace. People would add us to see these things and comment on them, we'd engage with replies on what we were working on, what color polish was sitting next to that teacup and so on. Drea and I would sit side by side at my computer in the evenings giggling over our new friends' comments and our replies. It was fun!
Then the question came that started everything- "Can I buy these"?  I remember the first for me was an overnight comment on a pair I'd titled "Waves of Change" and by the time I'd gotten ready for work three other ladies asked where they could get a pair. We'd stumbled upon a market, a need for Native American women. I ran to Drea and showed her big eyed and starstruck... "someone wants to give me money for these"?!? LOL We were so young and goofy!

I remember coming up with Mea B'fly- I won't admit what my first suggestion to name my biz was because it's hella embarrassing but I will say it wasn't personalization but more an over-generalization- and the name just kind of fell out of the sky and out of my mouth to Dre. As its origin story goes, I am Mea B'fly because

•  1. Mea is short for Maria and a childhood nickname. If you call me Mea then consider yourself family- at the time only family called me Mea which is normally spelled Mia (phonetically thats My-ah) so I changed it to Mea in a sort of pun-intended spin on "Me A" B'fly.  These days everyone calls me Mea and I get such butterflies when I hear it because its a feeling of happiness to see family when I turn to see who called out my name. I don't mind being called Mea- these days I prefer it :)
• 2. B'fly is short for the ebonic phrase "Be Fly" and Butterfly. Butterflies have always been reminiscent of my Great Grandmother Lucy Dasheno- everytime I think of her seems to be in the Spring/Summer and I will always see a butterfly fluttering along. I like to think its her and in that aspect butterflies have always been a sign of being on the right path. They give me faith and iconically remind me that no matter how slow I feel I'm crawling along in life, I will soon soar. These examples could get cheesier and more majestic but I'm sure you can assume how much butterflies mean to me. :) If you prefer to hear me gush more about it- email me. LOL

The next few days and months we sat with our thoughts on the how's, why's, and want's and then excitedly giggled them to each other over the kitchen table never loosing eye contact. It was so adventurous but scary for me so I left it to Drea to figure out a majority of the logistics because I was also a Supervising Director at the time which took up 12 hrs a day. She'd be sending me links through out the day, suggestions, and proposals. After work, we'd meet at the table and discuss our hang ups with it or agree on moving forward. She gave me little assignments on which things to read or she'd prepare little packets for me to look at. On the weekends when I didn't have to work we'd be at our sides of the table,  I always sat on the East and Drea on the West, reading little suggestions people would give us and recalling how our past experiences could help us. We were on to something and by this time it was almost Christmas- our first selling gig was going to Phoenix Indian Hospital Christmas Art Market.
YIKES! How do we do this?! Drea is a very gorgeously detailed person- her vision is amazing. We had to figure out how to stage our product and the purchasing experience. We scoured every craft store we could for baggies, earring findings like hooks, and possible earring racks for display. We spent late night hours googling and researching online sights for product displays and I ran across a project on HGTV.com where a lady had taken chicken wire and a frame to wind her vines through in her garden. Viola!! I ran to tell Drea all about it and there's where our Earring Screens emerged. I had just gotten into thrifting and remember seeing cheap art frames that we could buy and spray paint. It took Drea though to make it aesthetically beautiful like I knew she could- she took my idea and we executed this huge gorgeous frame to use. We found the hooks we wanted to be known for and we found packaging-we were set.
The night before we were up ALL night- we had no sleep. We finished up earrings, packaged, and perfected our Earring Screen. We stopped for coffee and walked over to the IHS lawn where the market was held. Next thing we knew we were being scolded by this rude security officer that we can't just "walk up" and get a table, we must get in line like everyone else. The line was a 2 miles stream of cars being herded into the IHS compound one by one and given a numbered table area to set up at. It took us an hour and half after we arrived to set up. We felt defeated already but then we had to take this huge screen- almost the size of white Costco table - out to and hang earrings on it. The stares and looks we got when we flung that bright purple screen up on the table were Epic! I don't think anyone knew what was coming. As always, Drea took all our earrings and hung them nicely and evenly one by one. I prep the area- make sure we have enough bags, business cards, all the earrings have hooks, all our paper work is in order, and we look on point! LOL Check, Check, Check! We were selling- Mea B'fly and DreLynn Design were in the game!! Swarms of ladies came to our table and it was really overwhelming but so awesome. We took our spots on our sides of the table like always and shared our art. We were so uneducated on our art's worth- we stumbled over asking $10 a pair. As the customer left our table we'd shake with big eyes and giggle with glee at each other repeating the same thing- "they gave me $10 for those"! It was surreal and I was in love with accessorizing Native women- better yet I get to do this with my best friend and my family.

Fast forward to now, 2013, I have 30+ Graph-ery earring designs and I've sold at major Native American powwows like Gathering of Nations and Manito Ahbee in Canada. I've appeared in Native Peoples magazine and been mentioned in 5 publications through out Native America. I was apart of the beginning of Beyond Buckskin Boutique and their first Look-book which continues still. I have had the opportunity to share my heart through my art- I've reached more people without saying a single word than I could screaming at the top of my lungs. I'm so grateful for this opportunity and am excited for what still lies ahead through the surname Mea B'fly.

Mea B'fly is more than an earring company- it is a lifestyle. I want to more than Inspire but to Empower people to take what I've, We've done and go farther. I want each B'fly lady to take their earrings with them on this life journey and find their own path to a strong, happy, healthy and balanced life.