Catelyn Silapachi, The Distillery Market

Frequent Traveler, Antique aficionado, dog advocate, and bibliophile just begin to describe Catelyn Silapachai, founder of The Distillery Market.

Kayla Giles       Profiles       08.17.2018

Catelyn began her career in finance, but always knew she would be selling antiques. “I made the decision to major in finance because it was the responsible thing to do” she explained.  But her fascination with antiques began when she was just a child. Catelyn is excited by the element of “the hunt” sifting through thrift stores, estate sales and antique shops-finding old things and making them new again. Her love for traveling and learning about history through antiques inspired her to create something where she could bring both passions together. Burned out from finance and ready to move to Austin with her husband, Catelyn decided to open The Distillery Market

Looking for antiques can be a lot like hunting for treasure. It takes patience, creativity and time.  With jewelry it's mostly traveling through Europe and Asia and going to antiques markets there where the jewelry is more plentiful.  "Even if it's just a fun trip for me and my husband, we'll have at least one or two days where we're waking up really early and going to a flea market."  One of her favorite places to visit while sourcing out new finds is Thailand.  When sourcing jewelry, Catelyn looks for pieces that are interesting, look like they have a long history, and are easy on the eyes. Catelyn sometimes takes the jewelry she finds and gives them a second life, taking pieces of different finds and fusing them together for a new creation. A lot of Catelyn’s jewelry are inspired by different books she’s read.

"Take a book, leave a book"

Catelyn Silapachi, Owner of The Distillery Market talking about her Free Little Library.

Her love of reading and the inspiration it provides for her work sparked the idea to start her own, "Little Free Library”, which is a “take a book, leave a book” free book exchange. This program gives Catelyn a chance to share her favorite books with the community and grow her own collection.   

Catelyn is also the co-founder along with her friend, Melissa Massello, of the program 1Dog1Hour.  They created the program to not only promote health and exercise but to change the lives of rescue dogs by taking an hour of the day to walk them.  Catelyn is a huge advocate for dogs and positive community impact and she has a lot on her plate.  

So what are her tips for staying on top of a busy schedule?

Between creating art through her finds, catching up on her reading, saving the planet one dog at a time and running The Distillery, Catelyn is perfecting the craft of time management. Using tracking apps to stay on schedule and deleting social media to not get distracted are a few ways Catelyn stays organized. Google Calendar holds everything from times she’s volunteering to the simple things like chores and making time for herself.

 Being constantly active and living our her passions can be pretty exhausting at times for Catelyn.

What's her secret for self-care?

Therapy, an awesome support system and knowing when to power down. Catelyn admits that this can be a challenge for her, “It’s hard for me to know when to step back." Recently, Catelyn looked for ways to cut back on activities to make room in her schedule. One of the decisions she made was to step down from the Board of the Greyhound Rescue, a cause she has contributed to for years. She will continue to be involved from time to time and is grateful for her time there and all that she's helped accomplish.

It can be challenging to know where and when to cut back on your time, but she has special people in her life to remind her that it’s okay to relax when you need to. As a mom to be, Catelyn is focusing on preparing for the birth of her baby and some much needed time off. Reflecting on all that she’s done and continuing to do, Catelyn likes to say that she’s “re-defining success” and we certainly agree with her. “To be able to do something creative and manage your own schedule...It’s totally different.”

Follow her on Instagram: @thedistillerymarket 

If you want to learn more about 1Dog1Hour visit them at 1dog1hour.org 


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