Today we’d like to introduce you to Feben Teffera.
Hi Feben, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I was born in Ethiopia and as a little girl I was always into fashion and dance. I used to dance for my family whenever they asked and they asked often and I was all in. I would get up in the morning and dress up even just to go to breakfast. I didn’t believe in hanging around in PJ’s and I still don’t.
At school, at some point, I had a nickname that translates to “from outer space.” That came when I was about 12, after my mom moved to the US and started sending me the most outrageous things. That nickname stayed with me and to this day I still feel like I’m meant to live up to it.
Fashion was never just clothing for me. I would always modify what I bought and turn it into something else. I never tried anything on in stores because I could see it in my head perfectly. Maybe once or twice I got it wrong and I shopped a lot so that’s saying something. I would buy things just because I loved the color or the texture no matter the size and I would make it work. My family was always entertained by that and honestly so was I.
When I had my son, I carried that same energy into how I dressed him. I didn’t want him in big box store clothes so I started making his clothing by hand. I stitched everything myself even though it took forever. He loved it or maybe he just didn’t know any better since he was 3 or 4.
My dream after high school was to move to Manhattan and study design or interior decorating. That didn’t happen because I come from a first-generation immigrant family but I did manage to live in Manhattan on my own and spent 15 years working a very serious 9 to 5 life in NYC while also living a bit of a wild one.
At 33, I left the corporate world, the only adult life I knew, got married, moved to Hawaii two days after the wedding, soon after I got pregnant with my wonderful son who is now 16,. I was a stay at home mom for most of his life and not having a career for a long time was a lot for me. That transition took a toll and I found myself in a challenging place.
That time forced me to really look at how I was living, what I was consuming, and what actually made me feel alive again.
But fashion and beauty brought me back.
I would dress up, dress my son in pieces I made by hand, and we would go for coffee and the library every day. That ritual made me feel alive. Looking back, if it wasn’t for fashion, beauty and books, it would have been a very bumpy road.
At the same time, food had always been something I was very particular about long before I knew what conscious eating even meant.
For years I was labeled picky but I always knew it was something deeper. My body just didn’t agree with it.
As I learned more, everything started to make sense. I began cooking intentionally, feeding my son real food, and building a life around what felt right in my body.
Life kept moving and with all the relocations, due to my husband career, I needed something that could move with me. That’s when I trained under a master tailor and built my brand, now known as FabyCo. I didn’t just follow what felt good. I stayed with it, learned it properly, and built it over time even when it wasn’t easy.
Then we moved to California and I had to reinvent again. That’s when I moved into leather and started creating handbags and accessories.
Eventually everything came together.
My love for beauty.
My sensitivity to food.
My need for intention.
That’s how the restaurant was born.
I knew I couldn’t do it alone so I called my aunts and close friends. If they said no it wasn’t going to happen. Luckily they said yes.
We created Ebony. Organic, vegan, gluten free restaurant.. Clean food that makes sense to your body.
Today it’s more than a restaurant. It’s a space where people come to feel good not just from what they eat but from how they experience it.
And this is really what I care about showing up in your most authentic self with beauty, awareness, and intention in what you wear, what you eat, and how you live.
Because for me this was never just about fashion or food. It’s about a way of living that I’ve tested, lived, and now share with others.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
It was actually never a smooth road and it still is not smooth. So many challenges rise up every week. The trick is knowing and accepting things will come up and you will deal with them, as they come up.
With the Ebony (the restaurant) I have business partners to share the work load with therefore it’s been so much easier to build it up.
With FabyCO it’s a solo venture and it been very challenging. The biggest thing being, marketing and getting my name out they. It’s very hard for me to make as well as promote my work. I am always asking for help within my friend group for help and getting mentors to help with scaling.
Time is also a big challenge as I have to be available for both business as well as family and social life.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I am the founder and maker behind a one-woman leather goods brand, where I create handcrafted leather bags and accessories entirely by myself. I specialize in making timeless pieces that are thoughtfully designed and built to
I am involved in every single step of the process. I source the leather and hardware, design each product, create the patterns and templates, handcraft every piece,
I have two lines of products. The first is my collection of functional beauties—bags, wallets, keychains, and other everyday leather accessories that are both useful and thoughtfully designed. The second is what I call my fun projects, where I get to focus more on beauty than function, creating pieces like leather vases and candle holders.
These pieces are especially unique because they allow me to experiment with leather in unexpected ways, transforming it into objects that are not traditionally made from this material. I enjoy pushing the boundaries of the craft and changing the texture and appearance of the leather so it looks like something entirely different from what it is.
Every bag and accessory that leaves my workshop has passed through my own hands from start to finish.
I am most proud of building a brand that is truly my own. There is no production team or factory behind my work—just my vision, craftsmanship, and dedication. I take pride in creating products with intention and authenticity, while sharing the story and process behind them with my community.
What sets me apart is the personal connection I have with every aspect of my business. My customers are not just buying a leather bag or accessory; they are investing in a piece that has been carefully designed, handcrafted, and brought to life by one person who genuinely loves the craft.
Do you have recommendations for books, apps, blogs, etc?
This is so hard to narrow down, books are my obsession and I do listen to podcasts while I work.
I am currently reading, Outsmarting Reality by Neo Knowledge. I love Alain De Botton books, as well as Brianna Wiest books, Austin Klein books got me started on my journey. The White Tiger was a favorite fiction, I don’t read fiction much, but that one I was not able to put down, especially since I was reading it on the flight back from India and it was a fresh topic at the time for me. I Also love David Sedaris books. I can go on forever but I read mostly, 98% non fiction.
Podcasts, I love The Model Health Show with Shawn Stevenson, The School Of Greatness, Telepathy Tapes, Inner Cosmos and so many more depending on the day.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://Www.fabyco.com
- Instagram: @fabyco_ and @ebony_slo
