Ethical, Sustainable, and Mixed: An Interview with Jewelry Entrepreneur Yoyo

AUBAIE.COM was started by Yoyo, a high school student from Austin, Texas, in October of 2019. Yoyo's mission is to create timeless jewelry that will last over time at an affordable price while promoting ethical and sustainable consumer practice. We had the fantastic opportunity to interview them about their work, check it out below!

Yoyo: I’m Yoyo, I’m seventeen, I’m from Austin, Texas. I am half-Taiwanese and I run a jewelry shop!

Prair: Hi, Yoyo! I’d love to start with your upbringing.

Yoyo: My mom is Taiwanese, and I was raised homeschooled by her. I’m so grateful for that because she wanted to homeschool me so that I would preserve my ability to speak Mandarin, as it is my first language. She didn’t want me to go to public school and whitewash myself completely, and she knew that was very possible because I am half-white. But, I was brought up with a strong conenction to my culture, to my heritage. My Taiwanese grandmother lived with us for a while when I grew up, passing down where she was from, our family history, what it means to be Taiwanese, what it means to speak Mandarin.

I grew up with a stronger connection to my Asian side than to my white side, which is funny, because I feel like I look more Caucasian than Asian. My parents recently told me when I was little, I would introduce myself to people as Taiwanese, because I wasn’t even aware of my white side sometimes! I partially attribute that to my father’s speaking only Mandarin around me until I was five. It’s funny to think about because I’m perceived as white. 

Prair: Yoyo, I wanted to ask if your mother is a first generation American too!

Yoyo: My mom is a first generation immigrant! 

Prair: Thank you so much for sharing that bit of your story. As it relates to your identity, do you want to talk about how your Taiwaneseness influenced your style and your identity?

Yoyo: Most summers of my life, I’ve spent in Taiwan. Taiwan has a pretty big street-wear scene; the fashion culture is pretty big. I would say it has influenced my style a lot, as I’ve followed Taiwanese and East Asian trends. I usually have to get creative with it though, because as much as I love East Asian style, a lot of it encourages consumerism and feeding into fast-culture. As any culture does, but I feel as though especially in East Asia, there is a huge culture built around buying clothes that you’ll only wear a couple of times, and child labor like in America. In Taipei, you’ll walk outside, and you’ll see knockoff clothes and shoes, and all of it is made by children in Southeast Asia, usually. What I like to do though, is upcycling, thrifting, buying clothing from textile landfills that mesh with the aesthetics I enjoy and try to adhere to. 

Prair: You dress so well!!

Yoyo: Thank you!!!

Prair: You have an amazing jewelry business, and you’ve told me that your grandmother strongly influenced that and your being in Taipei as well? So tell me all the things!

Yoyo: Yeah! Ever since I was a little kid, my grandmother gave me a lot of jewelry that she wore when she was younger or that my mother wore when she was younger. I wear three gold rings on my left hand that are from my grandmother, and all the jewelry she passed down to me really influenced the style of jewelry that I create. All these East Asian jewelry styles from the 60s, 70s, 80s are kind of flashy, but also modest-ish for what East Asian women wanted to wear during those decades. A lot of brands say this, but I genuinely make jewelry that I want, or things that I wished existed, so then I just make it!

Prair: That very much comes across! Because when I’m thirsting over your jewelry, the theme always changes and evolves. You’re not someone who is tunnel visioned, and you’re so creative. I love how you don’t force yourself into something that isn’t authentic to your person: it comes through!!

Yoyo: Thank you so much! That is exactly what I go for. My style is always evolving, and I’m always learning new techniques to incorporate. My grandmother’s inspiration is always there. But, like my clothing, I try to keep it as ethical as I can. All of my supplies are either sourced from people who hand make them or resell vintage supplies or pieces taken from vintage jewelry. My pearl supplier is from a family-owned pearl farm. So, there is no ethical consumption under capitalism, but I am trying to keep it as people-focused as I can. Everyday, I encourage people to support businesses run by real people and not by corporations. 

Prair: Thank you so much.