Why I Started Jamie Dreams: Bringing Ballet Back Into My Life
If you're wondering what would prompt someone to start a curated collection of ballet-inspired jewelry, art prints, training tools and more, you're in the right place.
Read on to learn how I came to offer a unique selection of treasures for dancers, dance teachers, art lovers and vintage enthusiasts, and why the shop is named Jamie Dreams.
The following elements set the stage for the shop opening:
- A complicated health situation
- My work history
- The desire to do something more meaningful
All of it led me to want to bring ballet back into my life and to share it with others.
A Complicated Health Situation
When I started the shop in May of this year, I had not danced in two and a half years. That might sound like a strange time to start any ballet-themed venture, and it was.
Instead of attending ballet class, doing intensives or performing, I was spending all my free time and available money trying to solve a health mystery that began the morning of February 14, 2023.
Other than being Valentine’s Day, it was just a regular Tuesday – and for me that meant a day to go to ballet class, and maybe do a special dinner with my husband and daughter.
But it wasn’t a regular day, and I wouldn’t be going to ballet class.
Instead, I woke up during the night and again that morning with intense bladder pain and pressure. Thinking I had a totally random urinary tract infection, I called my doctor’s office first thing asking to get a urine sample, which came back clear – no infection.
For the next week or so, I went back to living normally, or tried to, at least. But I was still experiencing bladder pressure, urinary frequency and other symptoms. So I took another UTI test a week or two later and again it came back clear – no infection.
But I knew something was wrong. At that point, my gynecological specialist suggested that I may have interstitial cystitis (IC). Also known as bladder pain syndrome, IC involves ongoing symptoms similar to a UTI, but in the absence of infection.
The specialist told me the condition has no known cause and no known cure, but said I should change my diet to remove all bladder irritants in order to “control” symptoms. She also handed me several other recommendations and referrals, none of which would help me figure out why the symptoms were happening or how to fix them. On top of that, the IC diet was very restrictive and didn’t always control symptoms, so following it didn’t allow me to get back to a normal life.
It was a very dark time physically, emotionally and financially. It felt like the whole world came crashing down. My symptoms interfered with everything, including ballet.
Aside from having to urinate frequently and deal with feeling my bladder all the time – which made it near impossible to do any kind of exercise – I plunged deep into the world of root causes, spending all my free time trying to figure out what could have possibly gone wrong. All of those efforts required spending a lot of money for testing, doctor fees and supplements, so it became impossible to pay for ballet classes.
Fast forward two years to February 2025 - I had made enormous strides in understanding at least some of the root causes of the bladder inflammation and was working toward healing. By no means was I "cured," but I wanted to move on. I didn't want to wait around for the symptoms to be gone to do other things that were important to me, because I could have been waiting the rest of my life.
My Work History
Throughout the entirety of the health mystery, my career wasn't really where I wanted it to be. Yet, I wasn't able to invest the time or money to try to shift gears. Since March 2020 – the start of the COVID-19 pandemic – I had worked part-time doing customer service for an e-commerce company, although most of my previous work involved administrative and writing-oriented roles.
I took the customer service job because I wanted the security of a steady paycheck while also having flexibility, which would help me attend to family needs and continue ballet. Plus, I was also trying to build a ballet blog, so I needed time and money to carry out that plan as well.
The job wasn't supposed to be a solely customer service role, but everything changed when the pandemic hit. It even became a work-from-home position. Business was incredibly busy at that time, so I pivoted to solely working on customer service needs.
At the same time, I was able to dance consistently at least three days a week doing ballet and pointe, including private lessons, and had the time to get my daughter to and from school and extracurricular activities. Plus, I got e-commerce experience that I would later apply to Jamie Dreams.
In the customer service role, I answered a range of inquiries from shoppers and also learned behind-the-scenes tasks, including how to work with vendors, stock a store and create item listings. Through all this, I came to understand how an e-commerce company operated and the value of good customer service. Customers appreciated being able to speak to someone about their order, and I took the time to ensure everyone's questions were resolved in a timely manner.
In addition to my e-commerce experience, a variety of other past roles also contributed to my ability to operate a web-based shop, including content writing and administrative assistance. I've also dabbled in marketing, design and visual arts.
Another factor that supported my ability to open a shop was my husband's knowledge of the documentation required to open a business. Having launched a startup of his own, he knew what state and federal paperwork to file, which helped make my own start-up process easier.
All of this was like a rehearsal for my role as the owner of Jamie Dreams, where I wear many hats to ensure that the business operates smoothly and that my vision is clearly communicated.
The Desire to Do Something More Meaningful
Around February 2025, when I started to feel like I was on the right track with the health mystery, I realized that I not only wanted to feel physically better; I wanted to feel more fulfilled overall. I wanted to work on my career and other parts of my life aside from my health, which had dominated everything for the previous two years.
First, I searched for a full-time job so I could get health insurance. I spent hours tailoring my resumes – plural, because I had more than one resume geared toward different positions. I dutifully applied for jobs, learned new software and brushed up on Spanish.
Before long, I noticed that the job market wasn't great, so a lot of people were competing for a few jobs that didn't offer great pay. When I received a few responses from potential employers, nothing really fit my areas of interest, so I decided to keep my current job and go in a different direction.
At the same time, I awoke to the idea that I might be able to dance again. It might have been a long shot, as I was still not feeling 100%, but I wanted to prepare for when I was feeling better. There was an emptiness in my life that I felt could only be filled by dancing. It was my first love, and any time I've left, I simply couldn't fill the void. If you've ever been a dancer, you might know the feeling.
Yet, finances were still an issue. I needed to recoup some of the money my husband and I spent on my health mystery – but if I was going to get back to ballet, I would also need the resources to attend classes.
I thought long and hard about what I should do, and remembered that I always wanted to align my work with my passion. So one day, I bought a domain name based on my Instagram handle, @jamie.dreams, where I've been posting about my ballet life since 2018.
Finding the Vision for a Shop
It's kind of funny, but I didn't know at first what the website would be. I thought it might be another blog, but after thinking about it, I found a need for ballet-themed items that aren't specifically for dancing.
Why? Ballet is not only a driving force in my own life – it inspires so many people around the world. I wanted to offer items that could help ballet and art lovers incorporate the beauty of ballet into their everyday lives, not just while dancing or watching dancing. I also knew that a ballet-inspired shop like this could be a great way to find gifts for dancers and dance teachers.
I searched the internet and found things like ballet-themed notebooks that would make great dance journals, cute earrings that could be paired with leotards and Nutcracker coffee mugs for festive winter mornings. I knew I was onto something.
In addition, the idea of dreams and inspiration is so integral to dance arts and my life, as I've always felt like a dreamer. And it all tied together beautifully with my Instagram handle.
Shortly after that, I started an LLC and jamiedreams.com was formed. Since then, I've curated a small but growing collection of ballet- and dream-inspired gifts, art and accessories designed to delight dancers, support studios and enchant art lovers.
Where Things Stand
Things aren't perfect, as I'm still working on repairing the inflammation that's causing the bladder symptoms, but there have been many signs of improvement. In the meantime, I'm blessed that I've been able to make a soft return to ballet while also launching my ballet-inspired shop.
And this is just the beginning! I'm incredibly grateful for everyone who has supported this dream – whether by placing an order, following on social media or simply reading this story.
If you'd like to explore the shop and see what I've been curating, you can browse the current offerings here — and check back often as I continue to add more treasures. I can’t wait to share what comes next!