Meet Emily Caves | Yoga Instructor, Studio Manager, & Jewelry Maker

We had the good fortune of connecting with Emily Caves and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Emily, why did you decide to pursue a creative path?
It took me a long time to settle on a career path. I explored nursing, public relations, sports & aquatics management, and medicine, spending seven long years working toward my bachelor’s degree. I ended up graduating with a Bachelor of Science in Biology, thinking medical school was in my future. I finally earned my degree, but I still felt unsure. I knew that I wanted to help people, but the biggest drive in each of these pursuits was pleasing other people. What career did my parents think was respectable? What career did my friends want me to pursue alongside them? What career would prove that I was intelligent and responsible? I took yoga teacher training the summer after I graduated on a whim. I loved the practice and the opportunity for self-exploration. By the time I completed the program, I knew that teaching yoga was the career path I was always meant to pursue. The career path that also brought the freedom and flexibility to start my jewelry business. As a yoga teacher, jewelry maker, and now studio manager, I feel empowered to be myself. There is a beautiful balance between structure (running a business demands it) and creativity. There is space to try new things, to connect with new people, to take personal influences and tastes into my career and for my career to shape me in a deeply personal way.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
My jewelry shop, The Be Electric Boutique is my passion project. I started making jewelry when the world was shut down due to COVID in 2020. It was a wonderful creative outlet for me, and it felt like a way to hold onto the exciting ways I had begun building my career. It was just a few months before the shutdown that I had quit my hospital job and committed to teaching yoga full-time. I was determined to make this somewhat alternative, artistic lifestyle work, despite the challenges of a global pandemic. So I spent hours stringing beads, creating logos, starting an Etsy page, and trying to figure out if I could actually run my own little business in tandem with my yoga career. It’s challenging sometimes when you try to turn something that you love into a source of income. Just like with yoga, when your livelihood becomes tied to this thing you’re so passionate about, you have to really be intentional about your “why”. Is it a paycheck that is driving me or is it sharing this thing I love with others? My passion for yoga and my passion for jewelry making are both rooted in the opportunity for self expression. When I focus on that: teaching in a way that allows yogis to move through life as their authentic selves and creating jewelry that allows people to express their fun side, flirty side, colorful and creative side, I feel fulfilled.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
The thing I love about Dallas-Fort Worth is I feel like there is something for everyone! You like the bar scene- we got you, want to catch a concert- there are some great venues here, you can hit the Stockyards for some country western feels, or if you’re like me- keep things super lowkey. If I were showing a friend around DFW, we would start at La La Land, my favorite coffee shop that is decked out in yellow and preaches kindness (check out the lavendar bloom latte!). We would absolutely take class at my studio, Black Swan Yoga, where we are donation based and all about yoga for EVERYONE. Then we would probably hit up the Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Gardens and close out the night with tapas and paella at Barcelona Wine Bar.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
This is a really challenging question because there are so many people who have played a role in helping me get where I am today. As I sit here and watch name after name pop into my head, I am realizing how many of them are strong, compassionate, incredibly talented women. I can attribute the start of my career to KJoy Lipson, someone who saw me before I could see myself. Delanie Hardy helped give me the confidence to start my jewelry business. Patsy Montoya has been an incredible mentor as I navigate my leadership role. Then there are the women outside of my work who have held me up and encouraged me to keep going, particularly Tracey Scopelite and Chelsea Scott. Finally, my mom, Cindy Caves, who sacrificed so much to pour love into her family and create a safe space to call home (shoutout to my Dad, too for being our rock!). There are so many people I could name who have impacted me, not by offering the highest level career advice or introducing me to the “right people”, but by seeing me and loving me for who I am and reminding me when I forget that that’s enough! Special shout-out to my partner, Zachary Braud, for doing just that day in and day out.

Website: https://theelectricyogii.wixsite.com/my-site

Instagram: @theelectricyogii and @beelectricboutique

Other: Etsy: https://etsy.me/3xhIxas

Image Credits
Lizzy Frazier Shaila Rubenthaler Serena Beatty