Meet Teagan, the 9-Year-Old Behind Miles of Vials
One April Fool’s Day snake surprise sparked a love of reptiles, and eventually a kid-run business that turns real reptile sheds into colorful, one-of-a-kind creations.
In Teagan’s own words:
“Hi! I'm Teagan, and I'm 9 years old. I was inspired to start Miles of Vials after my dad brought home a snake on April Fool's Day. We thought it was a joke! Then I fell in love with reptiles and now we have 12! I specialize in reptile shed jewelry, but I also make clay guys, ornaments, and ink-stamped cards. Selling at business fairs has taught me responsibility. I have to take care of my pets, so they grow and shed, and I have to make sure everything is ready on time for the fair. At shows, the most important thing is being kind to my customers! I'm excited for the fair because I can talk to people about reptiles. They aren't scary! They're beautiful and really important for our environment. That's why my catchphrase is ‘Miles of Vials-for the love of reptiles.’ If you want to feel a real snake shed, stop by and see me at the fair!”
Those colorful pendants are made using real reptile sheds, preserving the scales and patterns beneath glass to create jewelry that is part art, part conversation starter and part celebration of the animals Teagan loves.
Follow Teagan’s creations and reptile adventures on Instagram at @milesofvials.
Kidpreneurs Fair Pennsylvania Returns September 19
Miles of Vials will be part of Kidpreneurs Fair Pennsylvania 2026, where young entrepreneurs ages 5–16 build real businesses, meet customers and make real sales in a one-day, farmers-market-style marketplace.
The fair gives young founders the chance to do much more than display a craft. Participants develop a product or service, think about pricing, marketing and startup costs, create a brand and then operate their own booth in front of real customers.
When: Saturday, September 19, 2026, 11 a.m.–5 p.m.
Where: Messiah University Campus Store in the Eisenhower Campus Center, 1 University Ave., Mechanicsburg
Who: Young entrepreneurs ages 5–16
Booth fee: $35 per business
Business teams: Up to three children may work together
Hosted by Ashruta Shettar and Pradeep Patil, the fair began in 2022 with 60 young entrepreneurs. Organizers report that participation grew to more than 85 young entrepreneurs in 2024 and nearly 160 in 2025. For 2026, the fair will accept up to 100 businesses.
For shoppers, this is a chance to meet the kids behind the businesses, ask questions, support their ideas and leave with handmade finds you probably did not know you needed until a very persuasive young CEO explained them to you.
Look for Teagan and Miles of Vials at the fair, where you can see her reptile shed jewelry in person, feel a real snake shed and learn why she thinks reptiles deserve a little more love and a lot less fear.
Business Review
This Is Exactly What Kidpreneurship Should Look Like
There is a lot to love about Miles of Vials before we even get to the fact that Teagan is turning actual snake sheds into surprisingly beautiful, colorful jewelry.
At only 9 years old, she has connected something she genuinely loves with creativity, responsibility and entrepreneurship. Her reptiles need care before there can ever be a product to sell, her creations need to be finished before fair day, and when customers arrive, she already understands something plenty of grown-up businesses could stand to remember: being kind to your customers matters.
But what really makes Miles of Vials special to us is that Teagan isn't just selling something. She's sharing something she loves. She wants kids and grown-ups to meet reptiles with curiosity instead of fear, touch a real shed, ask questions and discover why these animals are beautiful and important to our environment. Her booth becomes part kid-run shop, part tiny hands-on science lesson, and we absolutely love that.
And then there’s the jewelry itself. The colorful reptile sheds tucked beneath glass look almost like tiny jeweled mosaics, preserving all those incredible natural patterns in a completely unexpected way.
Our favorite part? This entire business exists because Teagan’s dad brought home a snake on April Fool’s Day and everyone thought it was a joke. That is one spectacular origin story for a 9-year-old entrepreneur.
