Stan and Yona

Hi!! I’m a musician, educator and performer, with a keen interest in music and arts for young audiences. I’m a mother to an 11 month old budding bookworm, and am learning to juggle between motherhood, creating and working.

How did you go from being a founder of a piano school to also working in theatre for young audiences,

especially in creating works and music for early years?

I actually started in the field of Theatre for Young Audiences in 2007 before I founded my piano school, My Piano Room, in 2013. With every show I did, I learnt and took away ideas and experiences that I collected in this bubbling pot and combined these with my love of teaching, and started off with Cardboard City – an installation for pre-walking babies in 2018.

I’ve also been creating piano pieces and fun music games for my students for the piano syllabus that we use in the school so this was really a very natural progression in my creative growth.

Baby Yona will be turning one soon. How has motherhood treated you and has it

impacted your work in any way and if so, how?

I’ve actually had to be more creative to find ways to engage Yona and give her various opportunities to explore different things. Being a mother has been very rewarding and insightful, teaching me things about myself I never knew and knowing the strengths I never knew I had. Sometimes, work has to take a backseat in the daytime, so my work meetings are almost always after 9pm at night or a quick one during her nap times.

You are a super DIYer/ crafter-maker of pretty things! From unique sensory play thingamajigs, crochet outfits to yarn artwork, we love all the DIY stuff you make for Yona. Plus, you make the process look so simple and fun.

Do you have any tips for other parents trying their hand at DIY and making?

Pinterest is my go to for times when I have an idea but don’t know how or where to start. I try to find the easiest pattern / plan to start on and along the way, build on the skills I already have to complete the project! Also, I try not to beat myself up when the end product is not as pretty as I want it to be, and I try again the next time.

I also keep things like bottles, toilet paper rolls, cardboard in storage, etc. and I’m ready to bring them out when I need to make toys or add them to my next DIY project!

How do you stay so creative, for both your work and hobbies?

What are some of your inspirations?

I get inspiration from Pinterest, Instagram as well as the books that I read to Yona. I try to think out of the box and play around a lot with the different things an object can be. Also, sometimes my creativity is born out of a simple need or a want to make something. For example, the other day I wanted to make Yona a dress so I searched for patterns. I tried to simplify the patterns so I could get it done quicker.

With My Piano Room closed and theatre performances on hold,

how are you managing this circuit breaker?

It has been rather challenging times. Performances have either been cancelled or postponed to 2021, and so my income has dwindled a fair bit. I have been working on a few ideas for works that can be produced and put online so I’m really excited for what lies ahead in the next half of 2020!