Escondido resident Liz Huller Eisemann said an interest in fashion coupled with a creative nature inspired her to design jean jackets that blend colorful fabrics with unique accessories.

Eisemann said the first jacket she made in 2004 received so much positive feedback that she created a business, goldfish, to sell them to the public.

"I just came up with all of these ideas to make good jackets," she said. "It never occurred to me to start a business."

She said the name of the jackets, goldfish, is commemorative of how she brought seven of her goldfish with her when she moved to California from Boston eight years ago. She said one goldfish, Dizzie, is still alive today.

Since 2004, her business has expanded to also selling speedway jackets, which feature NASCAR, Champ Car and the Indy Racing logos. This year, she said the International Speedway Corp. bought 48 NASCAR Daytona 500 jackets to sell at the event.

Eisemann, who graduated from the Syracuse School of Visual and Performing Arts in New York, said her jackets have been sold in boutiques such as Matti D in Del Mar, as well as stores in Florida, Washington and Arizona.

Although she has been selling the jackets wholesale, she recently launched a Web site, http://speeedwayjacket.com, to reach the public directly.

Prices of the jackets range from $250 to $500. This year, she has grossed more than $16,000 in sales.

For the goldfish line, Eisemann buys wholesale jean jackets, and cuts off the sleeves and collars. She replaces them with colorful fabrics, including quilted satin, and finishes them off with accessories such as rhinestone-studded zippers.

She said she treats each jacket "as a blank canvas that I can play with" to make sure each is unique.

In addition, she said the speedway jackets are "made from scratch" and feature NASCAR, Indy Racing or Champ Car patches and other accessories.

Although Eisemann said she isn't a fan of racing events, she said she made the speedway jacket because she believed there was a market. "I want them (the speedway jackets) to be fashionable and not just fitting well," she said.

Before she launched her clothing line, however, Eisemann had to learn to sew. "I have always loved fashion, so I took a basic sewing class," she said.

She realized, though, that she didn't have the patience for it. Now, she hires professionals at the Sewing Room in Escondido to make the jackets, which she designs and decorates from her home office. While she wants the jackets to be "high fashion," she said, "I also want to do normal clothes that you can wear all the time."

Name: Elizabeth Huller Eisemann, who makes goldfish and speedway jackets

Phone: (760) 233-0051

Web site: http://speedwayjacket.com

E-mail: liz@speedwayjacket.com

Year established: 2004

Services: Sells jean jackets with unique styles

Number of employees: One employee, and professionals from the Sewing Room in Escondido who make the jackets

Gross sales for 2006: $16,000