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sun, snow, leather + the skimm
in STYLE
my weekly goals #1
in STYLE
This is my first Weekly Wishes post! I've been wanting to do something like this for a while, but haven't. I tried out my Sunday Slowdown posts for a while, but I realized what I like most about these posts is the community building aspect. The Nectar Collective started a link up where you have to comment on the person that linked up before you (hello, welcome to the jungle ;) - which I love! So here goes.
MY GOALS LAST WEEK
- Organize my tax documents I was really hung over Sunday thanks to the kalimotxo my sister made for a night out. I also hadn't really eaten dinner because I was so nervous about #2. Point is--I was stuck in bed anyway on Sunday so I just decided to bite the bullet and do my taxes. It was annoying and hard because last year was a combination of W-2s, 1099s, business income in another state, etc. I finally sorted everything out, only to find I am missing a few documents. At least it's ready to go after I get those!
- Photo shoot with Zophia I had a photoshoot planned with Betsy, CEO of Zophia, a badass bespoke pencil skirt company here in DC. I met Betsy at a local fashion designer meet up a few months ago and I was totally excited to work with her. Problem: I was literally out of town for a month, so it was a little hard to plan and I just was generally stressed to work with someone I admire so much! I mean her pencil skirts are amazing and her unique business model is something I am totally into. My sister was modeling and we were working with one of Betsy's photographers. I had only ever done full creative direction/planning on my own photoshoot once before, and that was with just my sister and a good friend (also named Betsy) as photographer, so I was nervous about working with new people. Long story short, we had an amazing time. I haven't seen Dustin's photos yet, but I'm sure he got at least a few good ones (because I did ;) ! Val did really well, especially since we made her stand outside in the cold. My original location didn't work out, but the second one did and afterward Val, Dustin and I bonded over bagel sandwiches and a desire to go winter hiking. I'm totally in my element during a shoot, so it wasn't until after it was over that the adrenaline hit and I was like--ahh I can't believe that all totally worked I hope everyone got what they wanted!!! And this is why I didn't eat dinner. And #1 happened.
- Sign up for German class One of my New Year's resolutions is to get back into German. It's a language I've dabbled in and I really wanted to start classes again and go back to Berlin soon. Luckily, I got picked in the Global Language Network lottery and I am all signed up!
MY GOALS THIS WEEK
- Organize myself By myself I mean my business, my blog, my apartment, my job...yeah. So it's kind of ambitious but I did a lot of work tonight and I feel better already so I'm gonna say CHECK.
- Send out my monthly newsletter In doing #1 I realized I need to send out a monthly newsletter and share the wonders of the etxe wallet and the Skimm. I'm getting faster at writing newsletters so another CHECK! It goes out tomorrow AM.
- Hang out with my friends in DC I am so so so thankful to have friends all over the world. A lot of them are on the west coast right now and I just got back from a long trip during which I got to see most of them. It was amazing -- to spend everyday with a really good friend. They are all just so amazing. Some of them moved from DC to SF, which means I have less friends in DC. I only moved out here a year ago, so it really hasn't been that long to make friends as a late twenty-something-year old ya know? I also am pretty content with having a glass of wine and reading a book, alone, in my house. Or going to an art show, alone. Or spending full weekends in the sewing studio working on designs, alone. But if I'm always busy doin my thang than I can't really complain about not having much of a social life in DC. Thus, I'm going to make more of an effort to hang out with friends IN DC. So, if I keep texting, emailing, facebook messaging you-it's 'cause I think you are super amazing, you inspire me, and I wanna hang out!
What are your goals for the week?
Want to start sharing your weekly wishes? Details at the Nectar Collective!
in the studio: wine + watercolor with K.Mala Studio
Friendship is a funny thing--you never really know how it will twist and turn and grow up. I'm lucky to have some amazing friends and really thankful that I get to spend time with them as we all live in different places. I'll be posting more from my recent west coast trip where I got to catch up with a lot of my good friends.
I met Kim of K.Mala Studio years ago in San Francisco and we've kept in touch ever since then. We bonded over LA love, sun, margaritas and a desire to build a life around the things we love.
We now live on opposite coasts, but I got to spend a good chunk of time with her in Laguna beach over New Year's. It was absolutely amazing: gorgeous SoCal days, clear skies and the perfect beach for running, reading and dog walking (hi Mr. Bailey).
One of my favorite nights was when she taught her Wine + Watercolor class at Sourced Collective.
Our class was NYE themed. I'd never really done watercolor before so I was a bit nervous. Other people in the class were also newbies, but Kim helped us sort out our ideas and put pencil to paper. After we had a sketch going she taught us how to add the watercolor and build on our work.
I loved it so much that I am going to order a set and start painting!
Kim is a really talented artist and a great teacher. She'll be teaching classes the last Wednesday of every month, starting January 28th, at Sourced in Laguna Beach. It's a great way to unwind and enjoy some creative time with friends. If you are interested, you can sign up here for Wine + Watercolor.
Hope you are having a great New Year so far!
xoxo,
Stephanie
DTLA: mocha mexicano, artisan goods, market madness, sushi + hidden jazz bar
in TRAVEL
Now that I live on the East Coast, I try to make it out to the West Coast at least a few times a year. I was pretty lucky this last year and got to spend a good chunk of time on the West Coast, including downtown Los Angeles.
Art gallery found on walk to work on Olive near 10th street.
DTLA
DTLA is short for downtown Los Angeles. When I was in college at USC, I lived on Figueroa and Pico, or Fig and Pico. I never, ever used the train that came in from the South Bay, but did occasionally use the Dash to get to campus. I never knew where that train station by my house went, but in the past year I've used the blue line a few times to get to work (when I was staying in Belmont Shore). Now there are a lot more public transportation options downtown, especially with the new metro, and uber rides in the downtown area are pretty cheap. Of course, if you want to go out of downtown you definitely need a car...baby steps -- it's LA!
The rooftop pool at my Airbnb
Downtown is no longer a ghost town like it used to be when I was in school. There have always been pockets of activity, but now there are long stretches of art galleries and restaurants. I used to go downtown for destinations like the Smell, Seven Grand or the Edison. Now I can literally just wander and stumble upon gems without a pre-determined destination. I prefer to stay in downtown when I'm in LA--it's close to my LA offices for work and a central place friends can meet me (or pick me up :).
Tierra Mia Coffee
on my way to get coffee on 7th street
A few years ago Tierra Mia Coffee opened up on Spring at 7th Street and has since expanded to Northern California. The Latin-inspired coffee shop features house-roasted beans, single-origin espresso and unique drinks like the horchata latte and mocha Mexicano. Ulysses Romero created the local chain with the Hispanic market in mind--and has been expanding ever since his original location in South Gate.
According to the Pew Hispanic Center, 38% of Californians are Hispanic and 51% of K12 students are Hispanic. There are more Hispanics in California than in any other US state or the District of Columbia, and most are Mexican. Why does this matter? Because Tierra Mia is trending and I suspect other Latino-themed or inspired experiences will be on the rise. Also, I'm Mexican! My great-grandparents got married on Olvera Street and it's awesome to see the Latino experience celebrated and accepted as normal instead of shunned or pushed out, as it was in previous decades (and still is in some areas).
Artisan House
If you're looking for a cafe, market restaurant or bar, check out Artisan House. It's a large industrial chic space with outdoor seating and a weekend buffet brunch. There's Monday night jazz and acoustic Sundays, as well as art up on the wall. Currently hanging is a photography series by Eric Cacioppo. #Buslife is a collection of photographs taken with a Samsung Galaxy s3 using the VSCOcam app from Cacioppo's daily bus trips to work.
Fatherhood by Eric Cacioppo on view at Artisan House on Main and 6th street.
Articulum General Store
Near Artisan House is a new artisan goods store that features independent and local designers. I spotted my friend's block printed toiletry bags! The shop feels like a showroom with a carefully curated selection of unique products--from indigo-dyed pouches to handmade jewelry to charcoal soap. This is the perfect place to pick up a gift for a friend or special piece for yourself. A much needed addition to this part of DTLA!
Grand Central Market
Grand Central Market has become much more...how do I say...bourgeois? Take a walk through the market and you'll see the diversity of LA and it's range of inhabitants. It's intense and it's raw and it's not like any other urban market because it really includes a little bit of everyone. You have the Ferry Building in SF, Chelsea Market in NY and Union Market here in DC, but those all cater to a really particular type of person - the kind that can shell out $7 for a slice of cheese. Grand Central Market is not that. You can shimmy up to a Chinese-diner and sit amongst first-generation Mexicans speaking Spanish in their local dialect. Or wait in line for 2 hours to try Egg Slut with uber-hip Korean teenagers. It's all there--whatever you want, whatever floats your boat. We had Thai street food from Sticky Rice and it was amazing. I also got a boba with red bean paste. YUM.
Komasa Sushi
There are a ton of great sushi spots in DTLA, but my favorite is probably Komasa Sushi. I like that you can get seated pretty quickly if you are only two and you can sit at the bar and watch the chef prepare the sushi right in front of you. It's super fresh and melts in your mouth. They are also close to the mochi place. YUM x 2.
The Blue Whale
My friend has been telling me about this jazz bar in Little Tokyo so we had to go when I was in town. It's in the other part of Little Tokyo where that ramen place is. There's usually a cover (~$15) but you're guaranteed an amazing show. We happened to catch two sets by Rachel Flowers and other jazz musicians. Flowers put on one of the best performances I have ever seen. The space is super intimate and the sound just reverberates around you. Her voice is angelic without being cheesy and her command of melody via keyboard, piano or flute is just incredible. I was pretty blown away, and inspired. Oh, and she's blind.
So there you have it, some places to check out next time you are in #DTLA. And don't say I didn't warn you about apartments--buy them now. It won't be semi-affordable to live downtown for long.
dreaming of sun in snowy DC,
Stephanie
mid-January update
in STYLE
Can you believe it's the middle of January? I figured I'd give a quick update - more for the sake of remembering what I need to catch up on as I am way behind on blog posts and a little bit behind on life in general.
Christmas in Arizona was beyond amazing.
NYE+ in Laguna was magical.
San Francisco was perfect.
And now I'm in Los Angeles, sitting in this airbnb loft with one of my best friends who just happens to be in LA at the same time. Making the magic happen. Conjuring friends in places I want to be with my friends. I'm in town for my day job--live blogging a USC event. It's always a little surreal to be back in LA, and even more so to be back USC campus.
I'm almost done with the book Clothes Clothes Clothes Music Music Music Boys Boys Boys by Viv Albertine which absolutely rocks. I just signed up for the newsletter of a crush I have that will probably never see again. A co-worker told me about a sewing training program in Thailand that also helps out independent designers that I need to follow up on. I'm eating carrots and hummus. I'm drinking wine. I need to write and get some serious alone time in before I go nuts. I have to plan a photoshoot, make some mood boards for upcoming collaborations, blog a ton about my past few weeks ('cause they rocked) and apply for some thangs.
But it's Friday night. So I'm gonna throw on my favorite dress and go meet an old friend at Pattern Bar in LA. 2015 is off to a great start.
xoxo,
Stephanie
International Radio Vibes
in TRAVEL
Ok, I’m still in Laguna and the beach is just so shiny it’s hard to do anything else but run in the sand and stare at it. Or sit and stare at it. Or read and stare at it out of the corner of my eye.
My friend sent me this post about creatives in DC (A Creative DC) and I’m really homesick to get back to my home! I love to travel, but I love living in DC and being surround by so many inspiring creatives. You have to dig a little, but they are there. And they’re real.
Anyhow...this week's travel Tuesday theme is music. A Compass Rose shared her favorite songs for travel, and I’m sharing my favorite radio stations to listen to anywhere (with an internet connection).
I’m a nostalgic soul, so for me listening to radio stations from places I love helps connect me virtually. I also used to DJ a radio station when I was in university (long live KXSC). I LOVE RADIO.
I mostly use TuneIn to listen to these stations. You can follow me here at my TuneIn profile.
RNA Radio Tres
Spain’s public media has an excellent music station. They have really unique shows and often focus on one particular artists (from past or present) or play novellas. My favorite show is on Saturday mornings when the DJ plays a song in English and then translates the whole thing while the song is playing into Spanish. It’s awesome.
Radio Eins
Whenever I’m in Berlin my friend’s always playing this fantastic station that plays an eclectic mix and always introduces me to some new artist (way before they make it across the pond ;). It’s a little random but always satisfies.
KCRW’s Eclectic24
Hands down best go-to station if you want to chill out, dance it out or feel it out. It is very SoCal and even though it does not include Nic Harcourt (those were the days) it IS the very ethos of his reign as Music Director at KCRW in Santa Monica. They’ve been playing classical music here and there lately, which Iove.
WAMU 88.5
Washington DC’s local NPR station has the best in news updates, local traffic and talk radio. I particularly love Art Beat with Lauren Landau and The Diane Rehm Show.
KX 93.5
Since you can’t get any other FM radio stations in Laguna, they created their own. Need a little bit of sun and surf in your life? Tune in to the local gem.