About Polina

Hi, I’m Polina! I’m originally from Central Illinois, but now based in Santa Barbara, California. I love to run, make dinner with friends, and play pickleball. A fun fact about me is I used to be a level 10 competitive gymnast!

Over the past several years, I’ve grown my experience in marketing and design through roles in corporate, small‑business, nonprofit, and ministry settings. On the side, I always had some sort of project going - any excuse to put my creative energy to use. Whether planning a neighborhood pop‑up or capturing content for a friend, I had so much fun helping people bring their ideas to life. Those moments made me start dreaming about what it could look like to turn this passion into my own creative studio.

Moving to California opened new doors and gave me the space to create more, which eventually led to officially launching Kreu.

Kreu (pronounced “crew”) comes from my last name, Kreuz, which means cross in German, a small way of honoring my family and faith. I also love that it sounds like “crew,” reflecting my vision for this studio to bring people together and build community through creativity. If you'd like to hear more about Kreu or chat through your own ideas, I'd love to connect with you!