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Conversations with the Inspiring Jenna Miller

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Today we’d like to introduce you to Jenna Miller.

Jenna, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
I’m a born and raised Arizona cowgirl. I always had a real connection and affinity to the West and its way of life and knew that when I grew up I’d be doing something career wise that was related to the Western lifestyle. I just had no idea then that my career would be working in the Western film industry designing costumes.

I was an outdoorsy horse loving girl so had no interest in sewing in my early years though my mother tried to teach me. It wasn’t until I was an adult that I started learning how to sew through an amazingly talented seamstress who instilled in me a love for the craft and taught me the basics. From that moment on I was sewing like crazy and was hungry to learn the more in-depth skills of clothing construction and design. I am self-taught in my design capabilities, having learned through much trial and error. I would go into stores and stare at the insides of garments to see how the lines and seams all melded together. Then I would go home and mimic each design until I had perfectly created the same garment.

The first Victorian Era gown I ever made was a black velvet gown. I was working as a wrangler for a guest ranch at that time and wore it for some Western-style shows we did there for the guests. A German television show came to film at the ranch and put me in one of the scenes wearing that dress. It was entirely because of the dress that I got put in the scene. This was my first time ever being around a film set. Later, after I met my husband, Craig Hensley, I went to a fitting to be background in a Western movie he was cast in. I decided to wear my dress to the fitting to see if they’d let me wear it in the film. The film costume designer took one look at it and asked me where I got it. When I replied that I had designed and made it myself, she hired me there on the spot to work for her in wardrobe on the entire film.

That was the official beginning of my film career. Since then, I have worked in wardrobe for productions for the National Geographic Channel, Netflix, Discovery ID, The Travel Channel, FOX TV, A&E and many more. One of my more recent works was as the Costume Designer for the period 1880’s costuming of a Western by INSP TV called “The Legend of 5 Mile Cave.” I owe it all to that one black dress.

Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Oh, there have definitely been obstacles. I had absolutely no idea how to start or run a business when I first started out. Business skills were just not at all my forte. I am more of an artistic, creative type mind so having to learn the business side of things was a real challenge for me. It is only sheer drive and a strong passion to pursue my dreams that have gotten me through the business learning curves. The tactic that helped me was when I finally stopped looking at it all like this big huge insurmountable task and started breaking it all down into small steps.

I made a checklist of the steps and then I just tackled them all one at a time each day until I had finally checked them all off my list. Sometimes, I look back and am still amazed that I actually built a business. I truly mean this when I say that if I can do it anyone can. To anyone out there trying to pursue your dreams, I would say to you to research, research, research. Research is your greatest weapon. In today’s world, it is just astounding, the information we have right at our fingertips. You can learn how to do anything and everything simply by going on the internet. Because of this, there is absolutely no excuse for not researching how to go about something, learning it and executing it. It’s all right there for the taking. Just collect the information, then break it down and tackle it one step at a time.

What should we know about Ravenna Old & New West Vestures? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
I am primarily a costume designer for the film industry. I have worked on many different eras of costuming for films but the Western genre of 1880’s costuming is my expertise. Along with that, I and my husband, film actor Craig Hensley, own an online bespoke Western clothing company in which I sell my own film quality garment designs in both modern Western and period Western styles. As a professional milliner, I also feature in our online store the fine Victorian-era inspired hats I greatly enjoy creating.

Our company also does professional photography & digital art for Western-style events and guest ranches and just this year we have also started building our own small scale film production company. We just released our first official 6 min. short film which is a tribute to the Great American West called ‘Prairies & Plains’. We take great pride in all that we do with special attention to the fine quality and specialized detailing of our proprietary clothing designs. What sets us apart is our own unique style and the serious attention to detail we put into our work. We love what we do and put all of our passion into it.

Do you have a lesson or advice you’d like to share with young women just starting out?
Be confident in what you do. Even if at first you don’t know how to do it, be confident that you can learn it. Walk into it owning it and take each step forward with a determination and a drive to succeed. It is only in the belief in yourself that success can be found. Be professional and courteous to the people you come in contact with along the journey; firstly because it’s right and secondly because, in any field of business, networking is a power tool.

Have a good outlook on life in general. When you gain peace in yourself and enjoy what you’re doing in spite of the challenges, it will all fall into place for you. Most importantly, be unstoppable. Do not waste any headspace listening to the naysayers because all that time you spend on them is much better used in networking with positive people and improving your skills as you plow forward in your brilliant success.

Contact Info:

Image Credit:
Joseph Saadeh of https://www.facebook.com/joseph.saadeh.3, Ravenna Old West Studios, Aeon Digital Arts
Models: Julia Hastings, Beth Messenger, Rob Fields, Abigail Gibson, Sabrina Floyd and Zoe Federoff

Getting in touch: VoyagePhoenix is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.

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