June 30, 2011

Trying on Warby Parker Glasses

Got 5 pairs of frames in the mail from Warby Parker today to try on after seeing Twinkie Chan‘s try-on session. I was too lazy to take photos and do a write up on these glasses, so you guys get a video this time. And you might have to turn the volume up a little…sorry, i mumble. (and this is also uncut)

Other things I forgot to mention: Warby Parker has a one-for-one program, which means they donate glasses to someone in need when you buy a pair. If you’re looking for more glasses in similar but different styles and a little cheaper, you might want to try looking at Spex Club.

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June 28, 2011

Sneak Preview: Late Summer/Early Fall 2011

Been working on a new jewelry collection that will be available at Leanna Lin’s Wonderland in August. They’ll be available just in time for WONDERLAND (Leanna Lin’s 1yr Anniversary Show). And of course, the show will feature CROWDED TEETH, Axelhoney, Seibei, and more of our friends. 
Here are some sketches of some of the pieces in the new collection. I’m not saying what they’ll be made of yet. But they’ll be vectorized this week and go into production in the next week of two. I’m pretty stoked and I’m going to start my material shopping soon. Shopping for materials is my favorite!

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June 28, 2011

Misadventures in Job Hunting

I went to a job interview today. And it totally wasn’t what I was expecting. Granted it was for a wholesale company, which I already had the expectations that it was going to be boring, tedious, and formulaic (essentially a desk job, laying out catalog pages). After the interview, I only found two of those things to be true: tedious & formulaic. The people who work there were cool and they liked me. But the work they do and the work they wanted me to do were totally what I wasn’t expecting. It was a perfect example of their website not reflecting the products they make (which can’t be found anywhere on their website). Bad branding? Their website looks very…well…wholesale company like. Very corporate looking. Very bland. But most of the products they make cater to kids in the 7–11 age range. (But my 11yr old self probably wouldn’t buy what they’re selling. And I used to like loud accessories!) I love how nowhere in the job description does it say “you’ll be designing products for kids.” And it obviously shows in their work and the end products. They really should try looking for someone who knows how to design for kids. But building them a website was also part of the job descriptions. And at no point did we talk about that being one of my duties.

The interview was with their art director who is completely self-taught. And the interview was only about 15 minutes. They really liked me but wanted to know if I can do illustration work too. And they’d have to take a look at that before they give me an answer. I agreed to send some work over but in my head I was thinking…”If you want me to do illustration work too, you’re going to have to pay me more.”They were really nice people, but I can’t see myself working there. This is what was playing in my head as I walked out of that office.

Maybe I’m being a little too harsh. Or not harsh enough. Maybe I’m being a little too romantic or idealistic about my job options. But I like to stick to my principles. I ranked that job as being almost at the same level as working retail. I’m finding it hard to get myself to work on products I can’t stand behind. I’d be essentially doing the same thing I’m doing for CROWDED TEETH there. Which is just product design and point-of-sale displays. But I love CROWDED TEETH, and it’s definitely an experience I can enjoy. Whereas with the wholesale stuff, I’m constantly asking myself…”Who actually buys this stuff?!” (The only logical thing would be to use that stuff as party favors.) I guess I’m holding out a little for that on-campus job. At least my expectations of that job actually match reality.

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June 26, 2011

Farmers’ Market Grub

Waking up early has been such a challenge since the semester ended. And today I was finally able to wake up early enough to make it over to the Alhambra Farmers’ Market. Alhambra’s Farmers’ Market is fairly small but I can always rely on it to provide me with an awesome brunch. Well what I really mean is, I love going there just to get pupusas. If you’ve never had or heard of a pupusa, it’s this El Salvadorean dish that’s kinda like a flattened grilled pancake version of a tamale. It looks like a thick pancake made of masa but it’s filled with pork, beans, and cheese. Then it’s topped with curtido, which is a vinegar-based cabbage slaw, and some salsa.


The pupusas are made on the premises by the folks from Pupusa Y Mas. And if you eat them while they’re still hot, they’re oh so gooey. 
After devouring the pupusas, I had to head over to the Paradise Cookies truck which parks themselves at the market every week. Their cookies are so perfect. They’re crunchy around the outside but gooey & soft in the inside. I love their peanut butter chocolate cookies (chocolate cookie with peanut butter chips). And unlike other gourmet/specialty food trucks (that are trendy right now), they’re local to the San Gabriel Valley (they usually only stay in the Alhambra/South Pas area) and support other Alhambra business (i.e. Fosselman’s). They serve up Fosselman’s ice cream and they also make ice cream sandwiches with it. 

Mocha Almond Fudge ice cream with Peanut Butter Chocolate cookies
And anyone who knows me knows that I can’t talk about ice cream without talking about Fosselman’s. I went to high school in Alhambra and it was very common for girls from my school to get a summer job at Fosselman’s. They’re a little family owned place that’s been in business for 91 years. And they’ve consistently been voted best ice cream in LA. Their ice cream is made with 60% butter fat and handmade using fresh ingredients. I mostly love they’re fresh fruit ice creams. They have seasonal flavors that are just as seasonal as the fruit they’re made with. My personal favs are the Peach ice cream and the Blueberry. The Peach ice cream is available now until (roughly) the end of August. So go get some! You won’t regret it! But also don’t blame me if you start craving it at all hours of the day.
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June 26, 2011

"My Favorite Dress"

I’ve always been such a sucker for covers. Although, I’ve never been a fan of Fall Out Boy that doesn’t mean I don’t listen to them. I admit, they’re a bit of a guilty pleasure. Here’s Patrick Stump doing a cover of The Wedding Present’s “My Favorite Dress”.

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June 26, 2011

Things I Can’t Afford

There are just too many awesome and gorgeous things in the world. And I’m constantly finding new things I love but definitely can’t afford right now.

So every Sunday will feature my list of “Things I Can’t Afford” of the week. And this is the first of those lists.

1. Buden Bed $3200+

2. Makr Farm Ruck Sack $184


3. Wooden Radio $200

4. Fire Kit Table Lamp $184

5. Lane Lines Bag $278

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June 25, 2011

Claw Machine Skills

I’ve never been good at those stupic claw machines but tonight I struck gold! I was in Little Tokyo tonight checking out the Ham Ba Ga show over at Q Pop. Afterwards, I headed over to Mikawaya in the Japanese Village plaza to get some mochi. What I love about Mikawaya is that they make mochi from their gelato…appropriately named mochilato. Today, they had creme brulee flavored mochi and it was AMAZING! So naturally, I had to head over to the Sanrio store across the way. I checked out what was in the claw machine today and it was Apple and Strawberry Hello Kitty! So I just had to give it a try. $1 and one try later…I scored this sweet Apple Hello Kitty. I was pretty stoked.
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June 23, 2011

Little Tiger Invades Mountain Village

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Posted in cat, tiger

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June 23, 2011

Remembering ReadyMade

I just heard the news yesterday from my friends at Poketo that ReadyMade is closing shop. They made the announcement last week but the news has been slowly spreading amongst the DIY community. It was a big shocker to all of us, but the thought of it wasn’t a complete surprise. Like many publications, they struggled to stay alive in this digital age where blogs/digital periodicals reign supreme. I felt a great sadness when I heard the news because I felt that ReadyMade played an important role in the making me the designer/creator/maker that I am today.

I remember when I first heard of ReadyMade, I was in high school and wanted to launch my own apparel company with my bff, Nisa. We had this brilliant idea to create our own polo shirt brand to sit amongst the ranks of Lacoste, LeTigre, Penguin, etc. That’s what we wore back then: Lacoste or LeTigre polo shirts that we got off eBay with a Member’s Only jacket, boot cut jeans, and a pair of Chucks (but only the ones made in the USA. aka pre-Nike acquisition). We thought that the whole silkscreened t-shirt company run out of one of our garages thing would be the more typical and expected thing to do. Which was why we didn’t want to do that. Yeah, we thought we were too cool. But we would never openly admit it. Although we never took that jump into apparel, ReadyMade inspired us  that we could really make/build anything.

The first time I saw ReadyMade’s website it was only made up of maybe 2 or 3 pages. They had an online store where you can buy one issue, 5 issues, a subscription, or various DIY kits. I even remember when Poketo made wallets out of ReadyMade. This was back when some of their first wallets were made of scantrons and measuring tape. One of the first projects I ever made shortly after discovering ReadyMade was a wallet made of old magazines and packing tape. I admired Poketo’s wallets, but I was young & broke. It was very similar to this project which can be found on ReadyMade’s website today. I called it the “I’m not a slut.” wallet. I had used pages from a crappy teen magazine that I had lying around from junior high. I tore out a page with an article about teen body image and that was the headline. Looking back on it now, I only had those magazines to fit in with the rest of the girls. But moving on to high school, I had ditched those bitches and found a group of friends who shared my interests (the kind of girls who read Giant Robot and Juxtapoz). That wallet came out pretty cheesy. And I never used it as a wallet. At least not in public.

What I loved the most about ReadyMade was that it showed you how to do everything from something as simple as stenciling a rodeo cowboy onto a pillow to building a printing press with a hydraulic press. No project ever seemed too outrageous. And the best part was that they listed what exactly what you would need, what skills you would need, difficulty level, time it would take, and approximately how much it would cost you. Everything I ever needed to know before jumping into a project!

I love you ReadyMade! Thanks for making us want to build things! And not because they were things we needed, but because they were just really cool things to make!

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June 23, 2011

Andrew Byrom on Business Cards

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