Today we’d like to introduce you to Joelle Hasley.
Hi Joelle , so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
We started Moonray Resin during quarantine. Before Moonray, I was working as a medical esthetician for about five years. When COVID hit and I was furloughed from my job, I needed a creative outlet and started making resin art and ashtrays in our bedroom just for fun. I began posting them on Instagram, and unexpectedly, people really connected with them. What started as a small hobby quickly turned into a full-time business.
As the brand evolved, we began incorporating real preserved flowers, crystals, greenery, and custom elements into glass pieces, which became the signature look people now recognize Moonray for. Every piece is still handmade and made to order, which is something really important to us. We love creating art that feels personal and collectible rather than mass produced.
Moonray Resin is run entirely by myself and my husband, Casey. We do everything ourselves, from designing and creating the pieces to photography, packaging, website design, social media, and customer communication. It’s truly a two person operation built from the ground up.
A huge part of the brand is the emotional connection people have to the pieces we create. We’ve had customers customize them with wedding flowers, memorial florals, favorite crystals, pet portraits, meaningful symbolism and more. That’s what makes Moonray feel so special to us, it’s not just functional art, it becomes something personal to each person receiving it.
Even as the business has grown and reached celebrities, festivals, and collaborations, we’ve tried really hard to keep the same handmade, intimate feeling that made people fall in love with Moonray in the first place.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Definitely not, there have been a lot of growing pains along the way. Since Moonray Resin started so unexpectedly, we really had to figure everything out as we went. Neither of us came from a business background or had experience running a company, so we were learning in real time while the brand was rapidly growing online.
One of the biggest struggles has honestly been balancing demand with the fact that every piece is handmade by just the two of us. What people see online is the final product, but behind the scenes there are hours and sometimes days of designing, pressing florals, piece creation, resin work, curing, photography, packing, customer service, and shipping. As the business grew, it became challenging to keep up while still maintaining the level of detail and quality that made people fall in love with the pieces in the first place.
Another challenge has been navigating social media censorship while building a brand in the smoking industry. Since our pieces are artistic and floral functional glass art, but platforms still heavily restrict visibility for cannabis-adjacent businesses. We’ve had to get really creative with marketing and finding ways to grow organically despite those limitations.
At the end of the day, even with all the ups and downs, we’re really grateful for the community that has supported us. Seeing people connect emotionally with something we created makes all of the hard moments worth it.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
At Moonray Resin, we create custom handmade functional art pieces using real preserved flowers, crystals, greenery, pearls, decals, and other mixed media elements. While we originally started with resin art, we became best known for our floral glass pieces, especially our custom bongs, hand pipes, wine glasses, decanters, and anything glass. Every piece is made by hand and designed to feel personal, whimsical, and collectible, almost like a piece of home decor rather than a traditional smoking accessory.
What we specialize in most is customization and detail work. A lot of our clients come to us with a vision, color palette, memory, or aesthetic they want incorporated into a piece, and we love bringing those ideas to life. Some customers want soft pastel florals, others want something more bold, creative, or nature inspired. We’ve even incorporated sentimental elements like wedding flowers, funeral flowers, collected shells, personal crystals and stones and more into pieces, which makes the process feel really collaborative and personal.
In addition to our glass art, we also created Blazy Bling, which are customizable magnetic lighter leash accessories designed to combine functionality with fashion and personalization. We love creating products that feel artistic but also genuinely useful within the smoking space, especially products that haven’t really existed before in a more elevated or design focused way.
One of the coolest milestones for us recently was being invited to showcase Moonray Resin pieces at the PizzaSlime compound during Coachella. Seeing our work displayed in such a creative and culturally influential environment was surreal.
I think what sets Moonray apart is that our work sits somewhere between functional glass art and mixed media floral design. Most pieces in the industry tend to lean either heavily masculine or heavily functional, and we’ve tried to create something that feels elevated, feminine, highly detailed, and emotionally connected while still being functional art.
What I’m most proud of is that we’ve built the entire brand organically from the ground up completely on our own. Everything people see, from the art itself to the photography, branding, packaging, website, and social media, has been created by just the two of us. I’m also really proud that despite growing so quickly, we’ve stayed true to the handmade nature of the brand and never sacrificed the individuality of the pieces. No two creations are ever exactly alike, and I think that uniqueness is something people really value and connect with.
What has been the most important lesson you’ve learned along your journey?
One of the biggest lessons I’ve learned is the importance of staying authentic to your vision, even when there’s pressure to grow faster, produce more, or fit into what other people think your business should look like. Especially with social media, it’s easy to compare yourself to larger brands or feel like you constantly have to chase trends, but some of our biggest opportunities came from simply leaning further into what made Moonray unique in the first place.
I’ve also learned that building a business is just as much about resilience as it is creativity. There have been moments where things felt overwhelming, whether it was balancing an intense workload, navigating social media restrictions, or figuring things out without any real roadmap. But I think learning to adapt and keep going through uncertainty has been one of the most valuable parts of the journey.
Another huge lesson has been understanding the value of community and connection. A lot of our growth happened organically through people genuinely connecting with the work and sharing it with others. That taught me that creating something meaningful will always have more longevity than simply trying to go viral or chase numbers.
Most importantly, I’ve learned that there’s real power in creating something personal and handmade in a world that feels increasingly mass produced. People want connection, individuality, and storytelling, and I think that’s why Moonray has resonated with so many people.
Pricing:
- Contact for pricing
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.moonrayresin.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/moonrayresin/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/moonrayresin
