We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Teresa Pante a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Teresa, thanks for joining us today. What’s the backstory behind how you came up with the idea for your business?

I get most of my inspiration from the small, everyday life that surround me, often seizing ideas spontaneously during leisurely walks on the sidewalks, nature, and neighborhoods. During covid, I developed a deep interest in collecting plants for my home and I stumbled upon a Pinterest video tutorial on how to make planters from concrete just from a recycled plastic bottle or soup container. My first concrete planter was made out of a Pepsi bottle and I was so stunned that I could never imagine something so unique can come out from the mold of recycled plastic.

While stuck at home, I struggled to find the right pots for my plants. That’s when I figured out I could make concrete pottery in just a day, in contrast to traditional ceramics that take 3 months to learn and weeks to finish. Concrete pottery offers a quicker turnaround for me, usually less than a day for curing, and I could complete the final batch of products in a day or two. This has helped my collection grow from planters to home decor.

While concrete pottery can be used for many purposes, the diversity of styles are achievable from concrete. To many of those who are unaware of concrete pottery, the definition of concrete pottery means the alchemy of turning an industrial material into a work of art that reflects the resilience and elegance of the natural world. Being inspired from the minimalism of Scandinavian interior designs, I wanted to also incorporate functional designs with natural colors into concrete that can seamlessly blend and harmonize into any home. I hope that the products I make not only can be used for your daily rituals, but it can offer a sense of peace and comfort to life at home.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

Hello! For those who may not know me, I am Teresa, a filipino-american maker and founder of Mindful Cements. Mindful Cements is a concrete pottery studio based in Los Angeles that specializes in making minimalist and functional concrete homegoods.

By day, I am a full-time E-commerce Specialist and by night, I run my Mindful Cements business. I love nature, plants, cats, and doing things spontaneously! I first got into making concrete pottery during Covid-19 in 2021 while I stumbled upon a planter video tutorial. Little did I know, my passion for making planters had made me grow interested in starting my own business.  Now, I sell handcrafted home decor such as planters, vases, coasters, candle holders, and more!

While working at a 9-5 job, I didn’t want my creative skills to be limited and boxed into one place. Mindful Cements has allowed me to create whatever I want from my own imagination and turn it into something I’m actually passionate about and others can find purpose for. At this moment, I believe Mindful Cements is like my Ikigai, which is a Japanese concept that means “reason of being, motivation for yourself, and offering to the world.”

I am very thankful that with Mindful Cements, it has led me to be part of the fellow maker community,  connect with other businesses and entrepreneurs alike, and discover new skills and opportunities I never thought of having compared to a 9-5 job.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

As for hardships, growing up with immigrant Filipino parents, I didn’t have parents, connections, or even extended family I could talk to about what it’s like to run a business in America or how to get started in entrepreneurship. I had a lot of self-doubt while I was getting started and it was difficult to figure out if what I was doing was moving me in the right direction and every decision felt like a leap of faith I was making. But when I built business experience and eventually grew Mindful Cements, I felt like I could always look back and see how I’ve been able to grow something out of nothing, and I hope to make my parents proud with how much they’ve sacrificed.

During the beginning stages of Mindful Cements, it was definitely the hardest I’ve endured and there were many times I wanted to give up. I struggled with product formulation, prepping, and packing so my pieces don’t crack for my orders. There was a time when cement splashed into my eye, which I thought I’d go blind and I lost hope for my business (luckily it only turned into a stye). I sacrificed a lot of my time after work trying to perfect something for others. It is all worth it as it gets easier and it motivates me more when I receive my customers’ positive feedback and impressions.

As for resilience, this might not be for everyone. I’ve noticed when I do nothing, I feel more unmotivated and I can’t accomplish my goals. When I quit my previous job, I thought I could be independent and do freelance full-time, however, having all the time for myself actually gave me more excuses to procrastinate my goals and say “I have time for that later.”  I have a day job that will help me run my own business on the side, which makes me feel more motivated to push towards my goals and gives me the time crunch to finish things.

I’ve built up resilience over time because I got used to coming straight home from work to make and finish orders, plan projects, and prepare for markets. Also, learning and getting the most experience out of my career and having creative ideas flowing through my head continuously helps me stay motivated. As cliche as it sounds, creativity is what keeps me from quitting and doing it sooner is better than later.

Can you talk to us about how your side-hustle turned into something more.

As of now, I still want to keep Mindful Cements as a supportive side business. I am still not fully ready to place all my eggs into one basket and make it full-time due to the high inflation and rising cost of living in Los Angeles. From working full-time, I love having the hobby of doing crafty things from home. Making home decor was my favorite hobby that I liked to do at home aside from growing plants, taking care of my cat, and playing games like Animal Crossing. If I started doing this full-time, I might not be able to enjoy it as I do on the side, constantly worrying about paying rent and living expenses.

When I started this side business, I had the urge to show it to everyone despite the products not being perfect. I initially started selling and shipping my products when it wasn’t fully branded. This can be risky, but it actually helped me identify areas of improvement based on people’s feedback. With more exposure to face-to-face customers and growing my brand with the community, the experience has helped me reach unexpected business opportunities I have never thought of achieving.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.mindfulcements.com
• Instagram: instagram.com/mindfulcements

Image Credits
Pop-up Market shots by IG @hi_dakin Tai Dakin