Tucked away in downtown San Luis Obispo lies a small shop where two women, the self-titled “JunkGirls,” work to turn antique goods into works of art.
The concept came as a therapeutic escape for cofounder Jenny Kompolt, according to her wife and cofounder Melissa James.
“She was seeing a therapist and going through some trauma that she was dealing with as a child, and it has been very helpful to do art as part of that therapy. So she used to go into the creek when she was little and find things and make things out of found objects.”
Before JunkGirls, Kompolt and James spent years working in design and marketing. Jenny had been a creative director at Netflix, and both worked at eBay before running a promotional agency together.
While working with a therapist, Jenny did art therapy and chose to use vintage objects, according to the JunkGirls website. Through therapy, she found a way to see the good in something damaged, old and common and give it new life as something unique and beautiful.
Melissa’s art story began with making crafts with her mother, before attending Cal Poly and
going on to work in graphic design and production.
The couple founded JunkGirls in 2009, starting out of their garage and selling their works at art shows and craft fairs. A small store in Cambria gave them a chance to test whether they could run a storefront full time.
“It turned out really well,” James said. “Having the small store up there enabled us to stop going to all the shows so much, and hauling and schlepping and setting up and breaking down and hoarding for the different shows.”
After that, they were able to move into their current storefront, a historic former general store in downtown San Luis Obispo that is over 100 years old.
Old wooden blocks become collages, and clarinets become art pieces. Jenny’s own Levi’s jeans became a piece of art depicting a 49ers helmet, displayed at Levi’s Stadium. Melissa, meanwhile, works with a different set of materials.
“For my part, I do a lot of metal stamping and bending of the silver plate and brass,” James said.
Today, they find materials through estate sales, garage sales, online listings and customers.
Jenny makes pieces depending on what she finds.
“We never know what she’s going to find, and then we never know what she’s going to do with it,” James said.