Behind the Tea Table

Flickr Journal BackLog

2011-10-11T06:43:00.001-07:00

I have been slow over the last year in updating my Flickr page. There have been moments after an event that I am quick to upload the most recent photos, but for the most part, I am behind on an entire year's worth of uploading. I apologize! I'm getting on it however. Today and this weekend I have uploaded nearly 600 photos from the last year, and I haven't touched several months' still.

So take a moment and look through my sets. I have added only some of the photos from my trip to Europe; I have added only a few more photos of my students at Alphaville; and I have added only last November's events in my Taipei album.

I implore you to check back to my Flickr page with frequency! Even though it can seem overwhelming to sift through each shot, I do my best composing and selecting each photo, as I hope each one can stand on its own.

Also, feel free to comment on the photos! I would really appreciate hearing from you, on Flickr and on Blogger.

Illegal/ Eye-Legal

2011-10-10T21:03:00.000-07:00

My little ~~Uncle~~ Cousin Sam is on his way to the hippy liberal socialist agenda, and I couldn't be more proud!

Growing up in a "border-state" in a "border-town" influences our opinions about immigrants coming into the US, with legal documentation or not, and we learn at an early age the difficulties people undergo, crossing deserts, mountains, rivers trying to find work on the US side.

Of course, in the US currently, fewer people are making the journey, as the dangers have increased tremendously over the last few years, deportation happens more than ever, and job availability has skimmed down to a trickle.

As a result, many US Americans, like myself, have moved abroad in search of work, and we take on not only an "immigrant" title, but sometimes are considered "illegal." and Trust me, throwing around that word in reference to yourself makes things seem a whole lot scarier. No body wants to get deported.

My migration to Taiwan has not been easy, per se, but it has been a helluva-lot simpler than most Asians or Latinos coming into the US, even when they have all their documents in order. I think its much easier to remain an "illegal" immigrant here in Taiwan than it is back in California, although I don't recommend it to anyone.

I've always felt that somehow we need to change the language on immigration, and increase our sympathy and compassion for those involved in changing their lives. Immigrating takes such courage and determination, and there are numerable factors that most Americans are too passive to imagine, that prevent them from always being "legal."

Sometimes, its simply coming up short on America's very expensive visa fees, or having a boss in the company you work for who doesn't follow through on their end of the deal regarding your work permit that will determine you "illegal." and for many struggling to stay "legal," they have spent the majority of their lives living in America, going to American schools, in American homes, in American dreams, but when they turn 18, if they aren't able to pay their $1,500 to the US Government on a monthly basis (let alone rent, food, utilities, etc) they will be deported to Mexico, which isn't necessarily their country of origin.

So I stand with ~~Uncle~~ Cousin Sam on dropping the term "illegal" from our language regarding immigrants in the USA. Let's work on a better national policy and open our doors a little. America's economy is hurting, and more than ever we're going to need the expertise of other nations to work in our country, train us for a tougher tomorrow, and help build our nation back towards its previous power. Let's have more respect for those who want to and have the skills to work in America, and not impose "illegality" by having such strict immigration laws.

Poetry? eh.. Romance?? bleh..

2011-10-02T13:29:00.000-07:00

Every now and then I feel inspired to write poetry. Whether or not its good, well, I haven't asked for anyone's opinion! Something about writing poetry always feels so much more raw than writing prose. Perhaps its the selected word choice that reveals more about the directions one's thoughts turn, even more so than the material being discussed. Regardless, I have always felt incredibly timid to publish or share my occasional poetic attempts with anyone, but when I sat down to write this one it was for the sole purpose of getting it published. I think we as a society have turned our backs on poetry (because the majority of its terrible??) but I read it, study it, appreciate it.

Early last July, a friend of mine started a new blog, called CashforSex. I would link it here, but since the last time I checked it, it has become a private blog (or defunct?). The point of that blog was to engage in open dialogue about the nitty gritty of sex and relationships, especially tied in with the modern woman, fears of intimacy and commitment, and the realities of breaking hearts. The author wanted submissions, stories that other modern-daters could relate with, to highlight and create honest (& satirical) discussions. I am so bummed this blog is no longer available to the public, because it was off to such a great start! It was an anthropological analysis rich with theory, humor, and honesty. The entry that inspired this poem particularly discussed the frustrating state of women making excuses for bad treatment, and how we distort our perceptions of what's acceptable so that we're capable of brushing off these displays of disrespect with (feigned?) cool. Many Hollywood films these days romanticize this by creating the falsity that the man falls in love first. This of course tends to perpetuate the hopes in single women who think that if they just put up with the bull shit a little longer, Mr. Eh He's OK-Kinda Dodgy will become Mr. Right, or Mr. Right Now.

Here is a quote from CashforSex that I grabbed while it was still up, dated July 2011:

"...Somewhere in the 2000s, the tone of feminist thinking regarding sex shifted massively; no longer do we care to reform ne’er-do-well men or even expect much from them. No, the new solution is to get evermore strong, like a mighty little kite tugging away at its string, and volunteer to not care. Our reward (mainly for the under-35 set, you know, the ones whom claim their lives were changed by Fight Club) is a rewarding string of ho-hum low-stakes internet dates in which we justify our boredom by finding something wrong with the potential suitor within the first fifteen minutes. Gone are the days in which something odd or powerful seduced us and lead us down a juicy, sweaty path of vulnerable uncertainty. Now, if you can choose a cool beer and talk about NPR, you get to take us ladies out on 3 dates before we ultimately choose either lackluster sex or to stick with good ol’ non-embarrassing sterility....

...And as great as pointless beer-filled fun is, it’s nice to pepper that, every now and again, with something that challenges us a little. Or at least disgraces us. It’s our homework to feel something, as humans, so let’s go do our fucking homework.
And trust me– feminism won’t die if you tell a man that he has to be nice to you or you’ll really, truly, and actually feel sad. A nation of weathered, leathery apathetafeminists and grown-assed babies doesn’t sound fun."

***

Bridesmaids-- a highly flawed film about "female friendship"-- is the only movie I've seen that comes closest to reality when it comes to excusing truly bad behavior (male or female).

and the 1st 30 seconds of the trailer is a good example...

ps~ Jon Hamm always seems to portray the asshole we hate not to love.

I did my best to think about the Modern Woman's position on dating... strategy, defense, resolution. I won't make any further disclaimers, but I was really trying to speak on behalf of so many single ladies who are caught in the tangled web of romantic intentions and, essentially, games with ourselves. It is, in a sense, the anti-romance. You will probably never again find a published poem by me..

you've etched your name across the leathery callous of my heart
without sustaining, without expelling--
without further investment in the toils of love--
I am unchanged:
your impression fades,
yielding a lethargic stock.

if only given more reason to--
I could have, might have, begun to feel
and let you cast deeper grooves into my soul
deepening the canyons of intimacy between our legs, between our hearts
particles colliding, and coming, unified...

Heisenberg triumphs.
aspirations, a fervency to fondle, infatuation: aborted.
'futility' too extreme to describe what is left,
my shoulders shrug off your touch and you are forgotten.

Big Update

2011-09-22T04:41:00.001-07:00

Like much of the last year, Hong Kong was amazing! I love the fact that walking through the city gives zero indication of where you could possibly be in the world. There is not one single homogenous identity in HoKo: people, languages, food, and otherwise. Its hills are steep like San Francisco, its buildings tall and numerous, and in general, very beautiful people wherever you look. It truly is the center of the world, and it seems to me the kind of city that promises to provide all the entertainment I miss from back home, while still offering really cheap flights to everywhere else in Asia for the more-exotic weekend trips. For when I'm ready to return back to school and tackle that Master's Degree, I think I'll be doing it in Hong Kong!

But I promised to write more about my year &1/2-long experience in Taiwan. It definitely took some getting used to, which upon first arrival I didn't think was a necessary process for me. I've traveled Asia before (long before), and I'm familiar with Asian foods, but what I didn't anticipate was my body malfunctioning on this tiny island. I rarely get sick, but my first several months in Taiwan more than made up for the last three decades or so of having few health issues. I had a fever that I swear lasted the entirety of Summer 2010, and a hacking, grueling cough that lasted until February 2011 (no exaggeration, I promise you). I had several hospital visits, a bruised rib, and a variety of other poor-health issues that all resulted from one small infection in my lung, after breathing in a neighbor's chemical fire. Eventually I went to a Chinese Medicine Doctor, and after only a couple weeks of eating little packets of what tastes like sand, I stopped coughing, my entire body returned to normal, and life in Taiwan started getting really really good.

I suppose the first big change was that I began taking weekend trips instead of sleeping. I went to Kaohsiung, Taichung, and spent a week for spring break in Kenting, for the massive party known locally as Spring Scream! Before going I doubted the intensity of what I was about to experience, but in fact it was the best spring break of my life! Six people camping in one small tent on the beach on the tropical side of the island, attending parties tens-of-thousands of people deep, with terrible DJs and thousands of bon fires feet from the ocean, thousands of fireworks lit feet from our faces (some injuries did result, but not to us!), snorkeling and 40' high cliff jumping into the warm-tempered ocean, getting to & from on a tour bus filled with at least 40 drunk 20-somethings from all over the world. The shenanigans were numerous, many of our friends ending up viral on youtube, even covered by the news..

Me, about to jump...
photo courtesy of Scot Hastings

The Victorious Five, having made the jump
photo courtesy of Hanna Taskinen

and as special as Kenting was, my spring also led to two weeks in Germany and France, several weekends surfing at Taiwan's northern beach WaiAo, and a week in Moalboal, the Philippines' Cebu Island, for snorkeling, river-tracing, and a beautiful seaside adventure with friends. I've also taken up scuba diving in Taiwan's LongDong Bay, and beginning my explorations under sea. I have promised myself as well, that as soon as financially able, I am purchasing a scooter so I can explore beyond the trappings of the public transit system.

Other things are quite normal here. I spent the majority of my year working 12 hour days, 6 days a week, teaching all ages in the classroom, trying to decipher if this is a career I am truly interested in. In so many ways, yes of course! I love teaching! I have several pairs (sometimes dozens) of eyes glued on me as I lead the class in whatever lesson I've planned out... planning the lesson being the key note here. I've learned how much preparation I actually need to perform well on the job, and how unsatisfied I am with my own attempts if I do not in fact prepare. I am not a fan of shoddy teaching, and I find that when I don't prepare I don't like my job as much. I've learned so much about classroom management, and I still learn new things everyday. It is perhaps, the toughest part about teaching, but once you've got some sort of handle on it, your students will love you for it. If even my biggest problem child will approach me and tell me he loves me, then I know I can't be too far off from success on that front.

Mickey II Graduation Performance

Otherwise, I ride my bike, I eat out with friends, go shopping, visit the gym and the local hot springs and sometimes I even step foot inside a club or bar, although its really not something you can count on me doing very often. Life here is fairly normal and good, and this many months into my SE Asian adventure, I feel like normalcy can be achieved, but it will always feel more adventurous than whatever you could be doing back home, just because of the cultural differences. So, I'm still here, and I'm still going, and many more blog posts to come in the near future. XD

Overdue, Insufficient Update

2011-08-27T08:00:00.000-07:00

I'm not sure how I let the year go by without updating this blog. I know there was a time several months ago when I had begun writing an entry that was to be the update of all updates-- complete with researched background information and beautiful transitions from one topic to the next, my opinion about nearly everything I've experienced thus far… but then my computer crashed, and with it my draft. Before I knew it, more time had passed since the last attempt, and today I thought that once again, it is time for another attempt.

Writing usually isn't so difficult for me, but I feel that so much needs to be said. In the last year I've traveled to six countries, not including my residence here in Taiwan. I have gotten incredibly sick and had full recovery. I took on a new career with almost zero previous experience and persevered through my tumultuous beginnings and in the end learned how to really enjoy it. I meet new people daily, and am challenged by my inability to communicate much of anything in Chinese. I've taken up scuba diving, learned a lot about local tea culture, studied Vajrayana Buddhism, started surfing, gone cliff-jumping, and am about to buy a scooter so I can explore the country further by road.

I am about to spend a week in Hong Kong, and I promise that I will blog about my adventures there. Upon returning, I promise to blog about my doings here in Taipei, as I'm not ready to silence my virtual voice. In the meantime, be sure to visit my Flickr page, which has many of my adventures photo-documented.

Moalboal, Cebu, the Philippines.

Thanks for hanging in there with me!

Glossy Black & Taxidermied Art

2011-02-14T09:15:00.000-08:00

Bold Color, Small Space: The Black Apartment | Cindy Gallop | Glidden from gary nadeau on Vimeo.

This apartment is almost too outrageous for my taste, which is saying a lot. I'll gladly take the golden alligator and Gucci chainsaw, the armadillo and better yet, the wall of books. The ultimate bachelorette pad indeed, especially if you plan on remaining a bachelorette...

Charlie Chaplin, City of Lights

2011-02-03T12:34:00.000-08:00

Charlie Chaplin's City of Lights is definitely worth revisiting. Its a beautiful love story with excellently choreographed sequences that portrays Chaplin's genius and incredible work ethic. My goodness, Chaplin was an exceptionally talented individual, and a bit of a hottie too ;)

Polly Morgan

2010-08-11T06:15:00.000-07:00

Polly Morgan is Another (Magazine) artist who uses taxidermied art to create new magical creatures all her own.

My interest in taxidermied art comes from childhood memories of preserved animals (mostly birds, and lizards) found dead in the wild, and collected like objets d'art in our garage. Friends always found it creepy (and so did my mother), but my father-- blogger at Desert Roadkill-- and I found it hilarious to collect such things, and at least I found it fascinating to preserve the lives of such small and innocent creatures (hence his blog: a project I strongly encouraged him to begin).

Unlike Polly's so-called "fear of death," I find an appreciation for both life and death through her use of the tiny feathered bodies to create organic "living" structures that defy our comfort levels of organisms on this planet. I suppose that's what I really love about all taxidermied artists I've mentioned on this blog, is their manipulation of existence and their ability to challenge our comfort levels. Some people really feel that the dead should be left in memory only, or to rot forgotten in the ground. Perhaps for our loved ones-- our relatives, or the dogs & cats we've cherished through the years, it would be appropriate as such to leave them be, as their lives were will be fondly remembered for years to come. But by using these tiny animals: birds, rodents, reptiles and the like whose lives we never witnessed-- using them to create something in the "now," preserved and molded into sculptures bigger than themselves, it creates more meaning to their lives, and to that I applaud.

Alphaville, Snoopy III

2010-07-26T07:11:00.000-07:00

Really, there isn't too much more to say than this photo shows. I love my students. Teaching them requires unbelievable patience, an understanding of how 18 four year olds should act when stuck in a classroom all day without a proper recess, and lots of candy & stickers to bribe them with.

They are smart kids, and the smartest ones simply don't do well in a traditional classroom environment. These kids will be pushers & movers when older, and I look at them fondly knowing they will in fact be well-rounded people, if they're allowed to grow.

Downsides of teaching this age:: well, mostly that teaching is limited to few concepts, and kept to very simple curriculum. I think I excel in essay writing, editing, and English conversation, as my English Literature degree portrays, concepts reserved for an older student-ship. Not that UC students think much of it while at school, but five years post-graduation and looking back on a year's worth of making the Dean's List feels pretty great, and shouldn't be confined to daycare.

I present my new Teacher's Resume, also found on my currently-under-construction website. Here in Taiwan, it is necessary to include your picture with your resume. Why not choose one of my latest self-portraits to depict my friendly, fun nature?

GQ VOGUE Cafe Magazine

2010-07-13T07:49:00.000-07:00

Conde Naste apparently has a seasonal rag called GQ VOGUE Cafe: Art, Landscape, Park Life, Urban Garden, that can be found at the local Starbucks in Taipei. The Summer Issue #10, features a wide array of landscape designs around the city that involve vertical gardens... unfortunately its all in Chinese. As far as I can tell, they don't have their own website, just the style blog linked above...

However, the Western names in association with the designs are legible amongst the Chinese. Patrick Blanc is mentioned first, and his all-flash website is abundant with photos of his vertical gardens. According to his website, he has designed the hanging garden at Taipei's National Theater... with orchids.

Azuma Makoto is a Japanese landscape artist who was recently featured at Milan's Design Week. He too is mentioned in the magazine, but I'm unable to determine is he is having an exhibit somewhere in Taipei.

Jeff Koons' Puppy is also featured, alongside Peter Walker, Murphy/Jahn aka Helmut Jahn for their work with the Kempinski Hotel. Burckhardt + Partners is mentioned for MFO Park in Zurich, what looks to be an industrial jungle of steel and plant matter.

The article may have been inspired by Taipei's upcoming Flora Expo... In any case, it appears to be a cool little magazine, and I really wish it had its own website with English translation so I could participate in its readership.

Home in the City

2010-06-24T20:44:00.000-07:00

I was wandering about Da'An last weekend and I stumbled across two community gardens, both growing various herbs, and one had several fruit trees.

(more community garden shots)

It provides such urban relief to find these pockets of nature and community spirit. In Los Angeles, there are so few community gardens, and the most important ones are under constant threat of further urbanization...

I've been a little slow at new posts, or uploading to Flickr, as I've spent most of the last week getting lost in the city, almost every time carrying heavy bags and feeling the strain its put on my body:: everything aches, mostly my neck and feet. The MRT is my best friend, and the bus seems more like an abusive boyfriend. Seeing as how the bus is entirely in Chinese, I've had major issues using it to my advantage, especially without assistance from others. Also, Google Maps does not know the proper locations of restaurants or businesses, and so far has been the main culprit in getting me lost: sometimes its just a few blocks' difference... sometimes its several miles...

Also, I've recently moved from Shida Road in Da'An to Bitan in Xindian. I moved from Foreigner-Student Mecca to what's more like the suburbs of the city. Its cheaper rent, and I get incredibly beautiful scenery. This is a picture taken from my apartment building at night:

The bridge changes color every few seconds. Visit my flickr page to see more.

A view from the rooftop, during the Dragon Boat Festival:

I admit, my Flickr has become my sole journal so far on my travels. I take my camera with me everywhere, and I include little notes on each photo. I have a link to my albums both on my blog here, on the right-hand sidebar, as well as on my facebook page: I have a tab linked at the top of my profile (if I know you, I will Friend you, with a request). I am working on a redesign of my website, which is far from completion, but it will make all of my various pages easily accessible, and my portfolio more presentable.

Recently, I've added a feature to my blog, to help non-English speakers join in on the fun: on the right-hand sidebar, I've installed the NE PARLE PAS ANGLAIS? NO HABLA INGLES? 没有说英语? feature, allowing for translation in just about any language! There should be no reason now, for lack of readership, lol.

Digital Grant Application, Matthew Lucas

2010-06-04T20:10:00.000-07:00

What I really like about this, is not that we're just helping out a teacher who is applying for money for his school, but that today as digital citizens we have more opportunity than ever to spread the word about good causes. This widget and the video, for starters, is now on my blog, and I've posted via Google Reader. A similar one is on my facebook page, all available through the Pepsi Refresh Everything website.

Matthew, although not a personal friend, but more of a friend of a wife of a friend, has created an amazing curriculum based on digitizing his classroom, and he totally proves his worth for the grant through his video grant application, using creative animation and typography to add so much weight to his plead.

So, be sure to vote! Good luck to Matthew and all his students~!

Wall Gardens and Other Successful Urbanization Projects

2010-06-04T02:36:00.000-07:00

Wall gardens! They are everywhere around the city, including construction sites. In America, if there's street or building construction going on, the public is forced to view hideous netting and cement blocking until construction is complete. But here in Taipei, the netting is lined with pots holding plants, thereby adding organic beauty to the otherwise unpleasant scenery.

This particular photo was taken outside the MRT Station at the Zhongshan Station, near Taipei's MOCA. The wall gardens are similar to the Woolly Pockets I mentioned in my previous entry last July.

In addition to my thoughts on the efficiency of the MRT, I've since learned from Discover Taipei Magazine, May/ June 2010 Issue, that Taipei has issued more than 1.82 million EasyCards, quick-pay, non-contact, re-chargeable payment cards that include payment of transit, parking fees, and now even some small purchases at local 7-11s.

There are other ways in which Taipei has worked towards a happy, sustainable living environment: in July 2000, Taipei implemented a system of "Per-Bag Collection Fee," thereby reducing the cost of household waste from 2,970 metric tons per day in 2000, to 1.009 metric tons per day in 2009:: a decline of 67%! During the same time period, recycled goods grew from 2.4% of waste to 45%. Taipei-nese take out their garbage nightly: 10pm strikes and the streets are awakened by trucks with loud speakers playing classical symphonies, much like America's ice cream trucks. Materials are separated: paper, plastic, recyclable bottles, and compost. Yes, the Taipei-nese compost all wasted food goods, and the Taipei government then feeds these kitchen leftovers to pigs or it becomes agricultural compost, as is filtered sewage sludge. The city's Department of Environmental Protection also refurbishes or repairs old furniture or bicycle tires for re-sale, and ash from the incinerators is used by private companies as an additive for concrete, surfacing roads and backfilling pipe trenches.

Taipei's Urban Development

2010-05-31T20:58:00.000-07:00

Taipei’s residential, commercial, industrial, administrative, cultural and educational districts, public facilities, and other urban districts make up 49.3% of Taipei’s total area. Agricultural, scenic, conservation, river districts and other non-urban developmental regions constitute another 50.7% of Taipei’s total area, signifying plentiful natural resources.
----- Department of Urban Development, Taipei City Government

I had an epiphany yesterday, on my way to a job interview in the Neihu district of Taipei, as I was riding the MRT The Rapid Transit system is so clean and efficient in its construction and implementation. Essentially, the MRT has transformed Taipei from being a congested polluted city of the 1970s to being an environmentally sound and organized city that it is appears today. Its been an incredible influence on every aspect of the city, as some residences and businesses had to relocate (ok, eminent domain isn't exactly the nicest thing), the metro system became more efficient, traffic de-clogged and neighborhood economies began to soar city-wide.

(photo via Taipei Rapid Transit Corporation)

23 million people live in Taiwan, with 3-7 million living in Taipei City & County, respectively. There are 80 MRT stations, running from 6am- midnight daily, and since its inception in 1996, it has transported over 3 billion passengers. With this many people in the area, you'd think Taipei would have litter... especially since there are virtually NO trash cans anywhere in the city!

No trash cans, no litter, an excellent public transport system, beautiful parks and waterways and::: maybe I'd like to become an urban planner? specifically sustainable design? I would love to help bring this efficiency and sustainable building to Los Angeles, where traffic is a constant nightmare and its neighborhoods are economically varied from one to another, and racially divided and, let's be honest, there's trash everywhere, especially where there are trash cans available street-side.

Of course, I'm here to be a teacher, not to become an urban planner, but I'm always looking for what Graduate School possibilities I could get my feet wet in. Certainly, one could get inspired by Taipei's beauty and efficiency.

I met a San Francisco man this afternoon who has friends that are grassroots vegan sustainable developers that I'd like to get in touch with. According to Mr. Cookie, who may or may not have been exaggerating, said his friends like to build houses out of mud and grass. Although I have great interest in building environmentally sustainable home like those seen in Garbage Warrior, I am more fascinated by the every day ways in which the Taiwanese improve the health of their city.

(photo via Taiwan Deal)

One way they do this is through rooftop gardening. It seems every building, no matter the size, residential or commercial, has a rooftop garden, or at least hanging gardens from the balcony. I had feared that Taipei would be an urban sprawl with nothing but cement, but in actuality there are plants and mini gardens everywhere. Some even produce fruit, or herbs. My first day here I came across a community garden (on my way to a bike shop), and if I had had my camera I would have taken a picture. I will have to return and update this post with some of my own imagery. But in addition to these gardens, there are parks everywhere.

I truly believe the statement made above by the Department of Urban Development that over 50% of Taipei is scenic and/or non-urban. Because even in parts that are urban-by-zone have more greenery than one Angelino such as myself would expect for such a dense population.

Bus People & Gettings Around

2010-05-28T08:23:00.000-07:00

Sometimes the benefits of getting on the wrong bus in a foreign country are difficult to see at first-- especially when it makes you an hour+ late for a job interview-- but getting to witness the city's landmarks and common people by public transportation is an extraordinary experience. One thing I learned today is that bus people are the same in every country.

Of course, I couldn't understand a single word being spoken, but when two strangers on the bus start yelling at each other, and other passengers then turn to stare, or chuckle to themselves over the scene unfolding before their eyes, you know the argument must be colorful.

The incident had certainly relieved some of the stress and frustration I was feeling from knowing I was risking the loss of employment by the company I was supposed to meet with. Luckily, when I did eventually arrive at my destination, my interviewer was kind and understanding of my situation. Seeing as how I've only been in the country for four days, I've yet to set up a phone plan or subscribe to WiFly (which only works at 7-11s, Starbucks, and the MRT stations). If I had had a working phone or mobile internet, I never would've gotten myself into the the mess I was in (on the right bus going the wrong direction). At least I would've been able to inform the office I was going to be late.

Which brings me to rant about another topic: international phone and data plans. Companies like AT&T that have a monopoly over iPhone users make living abroad 10x more difficult by charging outrageous fees! Finding a "crack" and a foreign phone company that provides a plan in English is near impossible. Its bizarre marketing, if you ask me, by limiting the customer base by so much...

One thing I find comforting about Taipei:: Starbucks is still Starbucks. While I was sitting in one at Tien Mu, Taipei, I was drinking my venti iced coffee and listening to the old school sounds of Louis Armstrong and resisting temptation to indulge in the delights of the pastry display. Of course, Tien Mu is a more international part of the city (resembling Beverly Hills by the choice of retailers present), and hearing American English spoken by Taiwanese school children is apparently common. There is both an American & European school system in the area, and I was hoping to get in with a pre-school/ kindergarten that combines the international students with local Taiwanese. The job is only part time, does not offer ARC or health benefits, and doesn't begin until the end of August. But I liked the rest of what the school had to offer.

See more photos from today's adventures here.

Taipei, Taiwan

2010-05-18T17:29:00.000-07:00

I'm moving to Taipei! My flight leaves the 24th of May, and I'm hoping to teach English as a second language... but there's always the chance that I'll just have an amazing time spending every last dollar I've ever saved. Either way, I'm up for the adventure.

I hope to escapade through photography, calligraphy, and culinary adventures, so check back here, subscribe in your reader, and keep in touch!

I'm Sorry

2010-02-25T13:07:00.000-08:00

I'm Sorry

Follow Me on Google Reader

2010-02-07T13:50:00.000-08:00

I've begun sharing things on Google Reader, so if any of you actually care about the things online I find interesting & fascinating, feel free to follow me.

I've been avoiding the blogosphere since shortly before my move, so for the last few months I've been out of touch. But rather than bulking up my blogger with posts about every random article I find worthy of sharing, I'm going to use the Share feature on my Google Reader.

Palm Springs Living

2010-01-10T12:59:00.000-08:00

I've returned to building my website, after a break of almost three months!

Not that I've been lazy the last three months:: I moved back to my hometown of Palm Springs, I celebrated the holidays with old friends and family, and I've begun the search for an ESL job in Taipei. I will certainly update everyone with the details once I have some! I've also been enjoying the desert mountain views, with 15 mile bike rides with my father, and 6 mile walks with my mother. I wish we could do it everyday, but I'm not in as good shape as they are...

Pictures available ~~soon~~ here... in the meantime, check out Desert Roadkill, a cycling blog that I'm setting up for my father. He's an avid cycler, who often rides 50+ miles in an afternoon, and tracks all his rides with his Garmin. I'm looking for a widget online that will allow him to post his maps and stats, if anyone wants to help out in my search.

Palm Springs has changed considerably since the years when I grew up (its been nearly ten years). The growth of the city has been significant, although it will never have the kind of social activity as Los Angeles. Still, its something to see businesses remaining open year-round, and young people (under 40) walking the strip. So far, however, the only restaurant I've discovered that reminds me of the hipster modernity of Los Angeles is Cheeky's. The food is delicious, the setting friendly, and the prices reasonable. The service is not for those who want a quick meal-- the wait staff definitely lets you relax and chat with your luncher, which although isn't necessarily a bad thing, I can't imagine being able to return to work within your lunch hour.

I also have to give a shout-out to Koffi, where I do all my internet work. The staff is friendly, and the coffee is never burnt.

Lovely Package

2009-12-10T09:13:00.000-08:00

Thanks to David Airey (a designer I admire & follow regularly), I discovered Lovely Package, a website & blog devoted entirely to stunning packaging design.

Its tough to pick out just one or two design finds from their blog to display...

-- Fruits and Passion, by Bertuch
-- Zubrowka, by Elizabeth Limi

-- Nairobi Coffee, by Mayday
-- Bravado, by Marc Atlan

IKEA's Billy Turns 30

2009-12-10T08:45:00.000-08:00

Its a good week for stop-motion, it seems! I love this seeing all those Billy's frolicking Switzerland's countryside, getting out for a good raf around town with friends. hmm... makes me think about what I'll be doing for MY 30th bday (thank g+d I've got two+ years to consider it still).

Jan Svankmajer

2009-12-09T10:06:00.000-08:00

Last night with some friends we sat and watched the Czech film Alice (1988), by Jan Svankmajer. The stop-motion animation is completely fascinating, and the bizarre story of Alice in Wonderland is emphasized in its absurdity by Svankmajer's use of very dead animals and scary plastic dolls as characters. I'd say the only major drawback in the film is Alice's narrative interruptions, but otherwise its a total must-see for anyone who doesn't have issues looking at freaky taxidermied animals with bugging plastic eyeballs. A bonus on the DVD is the claymation Darkness Light Darkness.

A much earlier film by Svankmajer is Picnic with Weissman, which shows some of his dark humor applied to a very (normally) pleasant setting.

All Hallowe's Eve

2009-12-07T12:33:00.000-08:00

I've recently had to come up with an ESL lesson plan for Kindergarten students using Halloween as the theme. I couldn't help myself in illustrating a harvest moon style header for my lesson plan-- the goth girl in me comes out with over-sized moons, spooky clouds, and skeletal-like imagery.

This isn't the first time I illustrated a harvest moon. Years ago I did a CD design, when I was new to Illustrator. I can see how my style has changed over the years, if only a little...

Other CDs I've designed for class purposes have had similar spooky imagery. I especially like how I incorporated hand-drawn sketches into this mock CD cover for Devendra Banhart.

Teaching San Diego

2009-11-30T13:20:00.000-08:00

A couple weeks back I visited my best friend Zoë Randall, 6th grade teacher at High Tech High's Multi-Media Arts Middle School, and guest lectured in her class room as a professional graphic designer, there to discuss copyright laws and their ability to protect or infringe on the rights of the artist. I had a fantastic time leading the students in this discussion, using the legal case of street artist Shepard Fairey vs. Associated Press. We explored our current understandings of copyright laws, what is considered copyrighted (such as images on the internet, music samplings, videos, etc), and how the Associated Press has established laws to protect its work that may infringe on our rights as knowledge seekers and artists. I believe the students learned some useful information, and were able to engage in classroom discussion, asking the same questions many adults ask when confronting the use of so-called copyrighted materials. We also discussed ways to find, use, and share royalty-free artwork, through search engines like Getty Images, and Creative Commons.org. The following class assignment was to rebel (in-class only) against these laws and to find an image & quote stolen off the internet (without crediting the origin) and create a piece of artwork using photoshop to manipulate the image as they see fit, similar to that of Shepard Fairey, or the collaborative creation by Zoë & myself.

"The Test of Democracy is Freedom of Criticism" ---David Ben-Gurion

(please excuse the less-than-flattering photo)

some of Zoë's students manipulating their imagery using photoshop.

See more photos of our classroom exercise here.

Typography by Ronnie Bruce, Poem by Taylor Mali

2009-11-21T12:47:00.000-08:00

Typography from Ronnie Bruce on Vimeo.

I saw this over at Swiss Miss & LOVED it. I've been fascinated with "valley-girl speak" since I was a child, having mastered it as "Karen Carlyle, age 16, from The [San Fernando] Vall-ey" for a short scene I did as a Musikid. Later, as a Women's Studies minor I engaged in classroom discussions that focused on the typically-female (although it has definitely spread to males as well) tendency to invalidate their opinions by ending each sentence in a question mark. The "ya-know"s and "totally"s and "like"s are a way to seek validation from those around you, and according to our gender studies, women do it more so to gain approval-- part of the clique culture that sucks away our self-confidence as middle schoolers.

I think this poem is an excellent call-out to those of us who too-often interrupt our thoughts with these validators, and the typographic animation is totally stimulating. Like, for reals. Its motivating, ya know? ... word.

Veteran's Day Parade

2009-11-16T13:30:00.000-08:00

Here are just a few photos from the Veteran's Day Parade in Palm Springs. See more at my flickr page.

This is my dad, who served as a medic in the army in '68. He's very active in the Veteran Community.

This is Snake Jagger, local artist, in the process of installing more of his work in a shop window downtown. He's got a great style of whimsical surrealism, and really knows how to paint our desert well.

Turtle Kit for Sale!

2009-11-16T12:31:00.000-08:00

I can't resist turning every mundane task into an easy design project.

Craigslist Ad

Beautiful Things

2009-11-14T15:04:00.000-08:00

I saw this in Obvious Newsletter, and just find it inspiring. Jiyeon Song created a sculpture with the words of a Sijo poem perforated into the structure. Its result is a day-long reveal of a poem reflecting life & nature.

Experimental Typography, by Jiyeon Song

Leave it to Japan to create trippy barcodes.

I've been busy the last couple weeks with various new life projects, and thus ignoring my productive design work. I should have pictures up fairly soon, but in case your curiosity is overwhelming you, I spent a few days in San Diego observing and even teaching 6th graders at High Tech Media Middle School, and visiting the folks back in Palm Springs where I attended the Veteran's Day Parade (I'm proud to say my dad served in Viet Nam). I also played photographer for a friends' family wedding.

I really enjoyed the classroom experience (from the teacher's perspective), but of course, I'm sure it helped that they were great students. Fantastic kids with a promising future ahead of them, and such a wonderful opportunity to attend middle school at HTH-MMS (I certainly wish I had!). I'm sure Zoë (Ms. Randall) would agree with my that her students are incredibly lucky!

I'm also proud to say a friend of mine is having an art opening at Robert Berman Gallery tonight: Mr. Alejandro Gehry. He's a swell guy, and I congratulate him on yet another exhibition! I look forward to seeing him & any new work he's put out. Its always titillating, and stimulating, to say the least.

hR Biz Card Concept #2

2009-10-27T15:15:00.000-07:00

This week I've played with morse code as an identifier. My first name is a palindrome, and therefore opens up some concepts for plays on pattern; Morse code-- by sound or by visual pattern-- creates an interesting approach to palindrome-play.

When I originally began picturing my attempt at portraying my name in morse code, I was expecting to be able to die-cut the code in my business card, having it read "han" on the front, and "nah" on the back. However, when actually writing it out, I discovered that in fact a die-cut of morse code does not work. Frontward, the card may read "han," but the back of the card will read "anh," and not "nah" as I had hoped. Therefore, morse code does not translate into 3-D die-cut, and instead must be printed on the card.

hR Biz Card Concept #1

2009-10-19T13:37:00.000-07:00

This is my first concept for my business card. Tell me what you think; I gladly take constructive criticism.

I envision glossy writing against a textured, bluish, heavy card-stock, rounded corners. The logo is engraved (plus shadow?). I ask for your opinion, friends!

Following Up

2009-10-16T15:11:00.000-07:00

The Joy in Mobility t-shirts are underway... working on the hang tags, and hoping that the printers will take good care of my artwork:

In the meantime I'm building my website, functionality first, then I'll focus on the snazzy design. I admit I've never sat and studied the layouts of webpages before, although I've been able to recognize when something isn't working for me, both visually and functionally. Eventually, my site should be both. At this point I'm quite proud to have uploaded any pages to the server, and have a form that actually sends potential information to my email! And this blog, embedded by iframe into the page.

Currently I'm heading for a very corporate look on my pages, although I intend to change that as I work on it. I've been studying grids, and reading XHTML/CSS books in my spare time... I have more free time than ever, now that I don't have television-- or internet-- at home. But as I begin throwing my artwork into it, I would really like to ditch the corporate setting and liven it up w/the boho artistic flare that more closely reflects who I am! Sometime I work backwards like that...

I should also mention that I've been designing my business cards, which is inspiring changes to the website. My favorite part of the design process is the evolutionary stages that take place, from one project to another, how the concepts give birth to other concepts when applied to different media/ mediums. I think that's why I get a kick out of corporate branding so much...

Sadly, Rock LA isn't very interested in [paying for] web design right now, so the site I've built for them remains in my files, as a mock page to add to my portfolio.

A Type of Nerd

2009-10-01T08:25:00.000-07:00

~~Two~~ Three nerd-tacular finds lately: First off, I scored 18/20 in detecting the original Helvetica over Arial. Want to test your own typographic know-how?

Visit the Ironic Sans quiz page and take it yourself!

and this:

aww.

I love color, and any opportunity to film it in motion.

EepyBird's Sticky Note experiment from Eepybird on Vimeo.

Rock LA Lookbook

2009-09-17T12:27:00.000-07:00

Several more photos will be making their way onto the RockLAfashion.com, with its anticipated release at the end of this month. Here are just three more photos that will be on the pages and in the lookbook:

Persepolis

2009-09-14T23:48:00.000-07:00

I appreciate the transparency-- the patience-- available with animated films.
I am very much inspired by animation created from real stories, especially if its roots are in graphic novels.

There's some introductory discussions being launched regarding a project of this scope. The universality of war and the graphic arts are powerful messages that don't age with time.

Curtain Design

2009-09-11T21:23:00.000-07:00

A while back ago I began pondering a shower curtain design, and had done some vine sketches.

Two things I love is monochrome nature sketches & typography. Now turn type to computer code, and mix it with the aforementioned, and you've got a very cool graphic.

The ASCII Code Curtain, by Nienke Sybrandy

RockLAfashion.com, part deux

2009-09-09T23:25:00.001-07:00

I'm giving a slight re-design to RockLAfashion.com, as it hadn't quite turned out how I wanted it previously. The pages I had put up were honestly just place holders while I prepared for the trade show. I've only completed the Index thus far, but I'm not worried about any deadlines with it at this point.

I say new website launch date by the end of September.

Ann(Redleaf) Personas

2009-09-08T22:10:00.000-07:00

I tested out my own online Persona(s) at Personas, a Metropath(ologies) Installment by Aaron Zinman at MIT.

Basically, it presents my online relevance through color bar.
I have a long way to go before AnnRedleaf is widely recognized online... and my real name conjured up zero results. But actually, I prefer it that way-- for now.

T-Shirt: Joy in Mobility

2009-09-05T21:53:00.000-07:00

This is still a work-in-progress, but I've gotten very close to completion, and am anxious to share: I would just like to tweak the layout of the logo and campaign motto in order to align with the curve of the wheel on the back of the shirt, and I'm still playing around with how it appears on the front of the shirt.

Also, I'm having strange troubles when saving the pdf:: Its not recognizing the radial gradient feather I have on the back of the shirt, to bring down the opacity of the wheel & gears, to help pop the list of sponsors. I'm curious to see if the t-shirt printers will be able to respect the wrap-around idea, as well as the on-sleeve printing. I envision the spokes or maybe the mid-level gray to be in a metallic ink, so as to be reflective.

Another idea I had was given up on before I could finish it. By taking a high-res photo of a bike, and through repetition and slight perspective distortion, creating a wheel chair from the overlapping images. This is as far as I got, although I would like to clean it up and remove the odd parts on the sides and such, making it more coherent as a wheel chair.

Its a bit edgier, this photo-realism, but I've seen a few other bike shirts out there that (successfully) pull it off. Although its currently not working fantastically at the moment, I think its a concept worth exploring further.

Kseniya Simonova

2009-09-02T14:39:00.000-07:00

Like a sand ballet, ending in a classic Metallica ballad.
She's incredibly beautiful too, might I add.

No Pictures on This Post...

2009-08-30T17:01:00.000-07:00

Work has kept me very busy-- working many hours overtime-- to the point where I come home and crash. I've spent most of the last decade partying and staying up late hours with ease, but since my last birthday passed earlier this month, I've hardly left the house, and gone to bed somewhere between 9 & 11 every night. I am feeling AGED... like the blue cheese I add to most of my meals these days.

When I'm not at work or sleeping, I've been bike riding, beaching, babysitting, and photographing-- all things that make me happy and don't involve a computer. Using the handful of birthday dollars I acquired, I bought myself a Holga plastic-lens camera: yay lomography! I was strongly considering the Diana, but was advised against it by the folks at Sammy's-- I guess its much more difficult to do simple things like load/unload film, and knowing when to stop winding to the next film strip without visible numbers. The Diana did have great features, however, such as the ability to switch out the lenses for fish-eye, or pinhole. That, sadly, I will miss with the Holga.

I've almost completed one roll of film (only 12 shots per roll!), and am anxious to view the results. I've played more with double/triple exposures, and extended shutter release than I have with color flash. Yesterday I took the camera with me on my bike ride to the beach, and was attempting shots of the plumes of smoke rising above Los Angeles...

Also, I've begun two very different t-shirt concepts for Incight.org's Joy in Mobility campaign. And have been approached by a friend for some logo designs for a couple clothing lines she's starting. In late October I may play Wedding Photographer too. Eventually I might get paid for some of this work (hint hint).

Last night I watched Waltz with Bashir, the first Animated Documentary. Its incredibly visually stimulating, and the final scenes had me weeping with the women whose husbands were brutally massacred.

Its a must-see film, very informational, and really connects the audience to the brutality of war without making us vomit, and without glamorizing heroism like so many US wartime films do. As a graphic artist, I find the animation inspirational, especially when watching the special features and listening to the animators discuss the painstakingly long, tedious process.

Rock LA Trade Show Materials

2009-08-30T16:43:00.001-07:00

I updated the postcard (posted previously), and it became a large poster as well:

and created a second poster... which I'm not crazy about, but they requested photographic examples of our clothing on mannequins, and lots of color, and information, in a very small amount of time. Its a great example of the family of mannequins I work with daily.

On top of this I created & compiled four color print catalogues of our inventory: Beach Rays (brand), Junior's, Plus-sized/Missy, Children/Men's. See just a fraction of my daily work at Off Price Market.com.

Promo Card-- Rock LA

2009-08-06T16:51:00.000-07:00

We are preparing for the Off Price Show at the end of August. For the show I created the revision of business cards, the promotional post card featured below, as well as banners & posters advertising our clothing lines & products. One of the posters involved a photoshoot with all of our mannequins; it was really fun to spend the entire day with several non-speaking, immobile human-shells, dressing them and posing them while I dance away to my music under the hot lights. The poster should be done by tomorrow or Monday.

Its been very busy, as I must do all of this ontop of my normal workload.

Rock LA & Divinity grow up

2009-08-03T15:01:00.000-07:00

New business cards (front & back) as well as large banners will be made with the following themes for Rock LA & Divinity fashions:

hAnnAh HannaH haNNah

2009-07-28T22:43:00.000-07:00

I've been struggling for years to create a logo for myself. So many things had to be considered first, most importantly: which name to use.

The impact a name has on one's identity has fascinated me since I was a youth, being named after my grandmother Hannah who never used that name, instead going by Helen. I was nicknamed Annie, and have gone by such until only the last couple years. 'Ann' was never a name I felt comfortable with... it sounded too rigid for me, especially as a kid, yet it became part of my online identity (AnnRedleaf). and Honestly, most of my childhood I wanted to change my name, to something beautiful and strong like 'Jade.' Recently, my real name has been peaking her graceful head out behind the 'A,' unsure when her cue is for debut, mostly just presenting herself in the professional crowd. Just last month I switched my gmail account to read "Hannah," which shocked many of my friends who had forgotten that part of my identity.

I never used to like Hannah, but there's something incredibly sophisticated about it when spoken with an accented tongue.

Its taken me my entire life, but I'm ready to be officially Hannah. It means "grace" in Western circles, and in Japanese means "flower."

As far as branding myself, there's so much fun to be had with the palindrome. For personal representation of type I love American Typewriter, Zapfino, and what I eventually chose: ITC Avant Garde Gothic Std. Each typeface has completely different connotations, perhaps touching upon each of my names, and the personalities that accompany. I have such a long, strong name, and so creating a logo with its entirety seemed overwhelming.

I'm beginning to build a website for myself, which will someday be hannahrothblatt.com. Here's a sneak peak:

Changes are sure to take place... fickle that I be. I mean, if I can't even decide on what to call myself.....

Its the Time of the Season for...

2009-07-22T00:04:00.000-07:00

Dodger games, late night bike rides, fireworks, swimming, cinespia, roof-top parties & many-a-mini skirt:

Dinner for Two

2009-07-21T01:31:00.000-07:00

Recently I had a dear old friend of mine join me for dinner, in the grand style we cherish so much. Unfortunately, my camera was off with another dear old friend in Alaska, taking incredible photos, and I was unequipped with nothing but my iPhone. Sadly, the pictures do not do the meal justice, no matter how much I try to Smart Sharpen and Reduce Noise!

To actually see what the food looks like, click on the links to the recipes, and you'll understand how delicious the meal really was.

First off, we had fresh bread from Marina Pastries with the balsamic/oil duo. I drank a pinot noir, and baked my tea cookies.

The salad was the Lemony Shaved Fennel Salad (with prosciutto instead of Bresaola). The simple dressing made our taste buds dance, it was really exciting to taste, and clean feeling after.

Then for the entrée we made Pork Chops with Cherry Sauce, with garlic-y mashed potatoes (the tri-color medley of roast potatoes), topped with blanched asparagus.

As I've mentioned before I really love finding innovating ways to incorporate fruit into my dinner cooking, and to quote my dining companion, "the cherry sauce was the bomb!" (well put, I think). It wasn't at all too sweet, thanks to the reduced port and the spices that were rubbed into the pork. Thankfully, the pork itself was tender, and juicy, and not in the slightest bit dry...

All in all, an incredible meal.

Next up, Alaskan Halibut!!

Los Angeles, I Love You

2009-07-20T13:24:00.000-07:00

Maybe some people wouldn't recommend a young woman go walking alone in the ghettos of Los Angeles by herself, but that's where I work, so occasionally, that's what I do. I discovered near by an area right next to the traintracks, right under a freeway ramp, that creates the most amazing sounds. I often wish I had an audio recorder... with the cars rolling up above, the steam shooting out from the trains, the random clanks and clacks and booms of train cars bumping about, all echoing and rolling off the slanted hill of the ramp... its fascinating.

Then, best of all, I got to see this:

I actually ran after the moving train to take the photo.

Is this grafiti art?? or a train car filled with Smurfs?? It stuck out against the otherwise unmarked cars (aside from your usual tagging).

Coffee & Tea

2009-07-20T11:41:00.000-07:00

Reading through my DesignBoom email I saw this fascinating design concept for coffee and tea intake.

Coffee Culture by Gilad Davidi:: Shenkar College of Engineering & Design, Ramat Gan

Erez Bar Am

The tea cup is rad and all, but the interesting part of this image is the 3-edged star of sugar that dissolves into floating spheres.

Apologies

2009-07-19T16:30:00.001-07:00

~~Please pardon the layout of my blog while I figure out how to work the html in blogger.~~

Say hello to the new graphic for Behind the Tea Table! It is one of many to come, I'm sure, as I constantly try to up the ante.

It took me all day but I was finally able to decipher the code in the template and find the many steps needed to alter the layout in the way I like. One thing I find frustrating about "help" on the internet for internet layout, is that rarely does anybody explain what it is you are adjusting.

Onward and Upward~!

Desert Flower

2009-07-18T22:54:00.000-07:00

I went on a hike a few weeks back with some friends, and one of them picked me this tiny desert flower. I kept it tucked behind my ear until I got home, when I added it to my favorite little metal sculpture of a couple on a park bench. Photographing it, I've turned it into a graphic arts project that I've been working on slowly over the last few weeks. I don't consider it done yet, but its nice to explore in photoshop this way.

Joe Liao

2009-07-15T22:53:00.000-07:00

I've been considering my next educational steps, towards getting my Master's in Design, Media Arts, &/or perhaps another SMC certificate in the Entertainment Technology's Animation department. I'm craving further exposure to all applied arts right now.

Doing research for schools & programs, I came across UCLA's design dept, and its attention on student Joe Liao, of Hong Kong.

I really dig his Type in Motion. I also LOVE his blog layout. I'm feeling inspired.

Hanging Gardens

2009-07-07T22:52:00.000-07:00

I have a pale green thumb... an almost-wilting thumb, if you will, when it comes to gardening. Things stay alive, and sometimes thrive, but not without suffering some very close calls. I grow a lot of cactus (well, I am from the desert), and I try to grow herbs for cooking (I'm trying to break out a little more though). I have an abundance of pots on the ground, and not enough hanging, and so my eye had been looking for a great hanging pot, until I saw this a few weeks back:

and actually I had seen them in person many times before, riding my bike to and from the local art store, visiting the galleries, and had always been fascinated with how the plants were growing from the wall. They were growing so thick I couldn't even see the pockets holding them on. Finally, after one too many times passing by on my bike I decided to look up the address when I got home, and discovered that Smog Shoppe and the people behind the Woolly Pocket Garden Company had designed the vertical garden using these innovative woolly pockets.

I love hanging gardens, but unlike any typical pot, these woolly pockets allow for such versatility that could include vegetables without bulking awkward from the wall. At least, not when layered. At this point they're still out of my price range, but its something I'm keeping in mind for any future living situations.

Advertisement, Rock LA

2009-07-03T21:06:00.000-07:00

I had a lot of fun working on this. Maybe I've been inspired by the premature fireworks being set in the neighborhood, but I feel this ad reflects a youthful, exciting summer of fashion.

I believe it will be featured on the back page of Off Price Magazine.

Photoshoot, Rock LA Style

2009-07-03T11:19:00.000-07:00

This week I'm creating another advertisement for Rock LA to be on the back page of Off Price Magazine this summer. My last ad was graphics-based and used our old brand identity. I wanted to spruce things up for the new ad, really presenting ourselves as a stylish company. Unfortunately we don't have models for a photoshoot, but we do have A (singular) mannequin, and so I did my best to make her look as life-like as possible. I'll only use one or two photos for the ad, but will include the rest in a look-book of sorts on our web page when I'm done photoshopping, with a link to our online stores so that customers can shop on their own.

This one is my favorite so far:

Believe it or not, I photographed her in front of a white wall. The rest was does in photoshop.

I want to present her (Lacey, the mannequin) in very L.A. situations, as many of the people we do business with are from overseas. This photo I envisioned Lacy waiting outside an upscale club downtown LA, where its grungy and urban on the outside, but in a hip way. There's enough controversy around the contrasts of hip downtown living and the reality of excessive homelessness, and I feel this contrast is the epitome of true Los Angeles life.

Other scenes I have in mind include the Santa Monica pier, modern work spaces, Silverlake-style hipster spaces, and a yoga studio.

Apparently we do have some other mannequins lying around the warehouse somewhere, and I am anxious to get to them for further shoots, as well as our plus-sized mannequin. My boss keeps promising to take me shopping, so I can get mannequins and forms of men and children.

Rock LA & Divinity, re-vamped

2009-06-21T21:13:00.000-07:00

There's been lots going on at Rock LA Fashion lately, between expansion on the clothing lines Divinity & Rock LA (plus-sized, junior's, missy, panties, and even men's!), a real focus on the denim production, and most of all, my complete re-vamping of Rock LA's branding.

From the get-go I wasn't too hot on our old logo, and the branding I did from that. I was never satisfied with it, no matter how much I tweaked it. Its since gone through several transformations, and I'm happy to present the new logo, with website to match (see post below). I've taken the new logo, and made a return address label that will be printed on all our envelopes.

Its clean, fashion-forward, and I love the typography (Zapfino, Myriad Pro, bold & regular, respectively). The Zapfino matches that of Divinity, which has since been placed against a gray background, and the halo made less-lipstick like.

Manuel's Mellow Master Mix

2009-06-21T18:05:00.000-07:00

I created a fairly amazing compilation for a friend at the beginning of this summer, using Illustrator and Indesign to design the CD Labels. Its an eclectic mix of contemporary dancey/ club, with indie rock, and 60s sounds. A mix for the true music lover.

Call Me (Spanish version), Blondie
Shuffle Your Feet, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club
Man, The Bird & The Bee
Parties 08 Extreme, Benji Hughes
Under the Pines, Bodies of Water
Time is Tight, Booker T. & The MGs
Stereo, Boombox
I'm Your Man, Leonard Cohen
Miss You So, Lilian Offitt
Let it Fall, Lykke Li
Take Out Your False Teeth Daddy, Margie Day
California Soul (Diplo/ Mad Decent Remix), Marlena Shaw
You're So Pretty, The Meemies
Kiss Factory, Miss Kitten
Watermelon Man, Mongo Santamaria
Things You Do, The Morning After
Anyone, Moving Units
Hold On, Hold On, Neko Case
Too Drunk to Fuck, Nouvelle Vague
Kiss Kiss Kiss, Yoko Ono with Peaches
Momma Sed BlesteNation, Puscifer
King of You, Psapp
Let's Go Get Stoned, Ray Charles
Black and Gold, Sam Sparro
Manila (Headman Remix), Seelenluft
Send me a Postcard, Shocking Blue
All the Pretty Girls go to the City, Spoon
Glass, Concrete and Stone, Talking Heads
Jubilee, The Willowz
Young Lovers (Sam Sparro Remix), Love Grenades

rockLAfashion.com

2009-06-21T17:28:00.000-07:00

I'm excited because as of tomorrow morning I will have uploaded to the domain several pages of the new rockLAfashion.com.

Not every page is complete yet, but enough so to have a basic, functioning, informational web page. I still have to design the wholesale and news portions of the website, as well as the sites for the two different brands we're manufacturing, Divinity and Rock L.A. However, we haven't yet had the clothing delivered to the warehouse, so there's no real way for me to build a site for them at this point. In the meantime I have the above "Under Construction" page, featuring your's truly.

It would be nice to get models for the clothing to put on the website, but doubtful my employers will pay for such to happen.

Its a very basic site using Dreamweaver and Photoshop slices. All photography is by me, except of course, for the "Under Construction" page, where I am the model.

Meow Cat Returns

2009-06-21T11:32:00.000-07:00

My cat returned 10 days after having gone missing. After almost a week I decided to put up a Craigslist ad, as well as make flyers for neighborhood distribution. The night before doing so I was out with friends, and I said how I had been designing the flyer in my head for days... one of them got mad at me and said "this isn't a design job, this is your missing cat!!" Naturally I'd like to respond "what's the difference?" but of course, I do see that a line should be drawn. I decided to keep it quite simple, straight-forward, printed b&w.

I got a few responses from around the neighborhood, and one of them admitted to having her. The next morning, 6am, Chloë returned, looking well-groomed and happy to be home.

She hasn't left since.

Female Arm Wrestling Tournament

2009-06-21T11:04:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago I attended a Female Arm Wrestling Tournament at a friend's loft down town Los Angeles. Nearly 40 hipsters in a side-lit room provided excellent photographic results.

It was a really fun, exciting way to spend a Sunday evening. Friends, beer, and 100% feminine. I was sad at first I couldn't arm wrestle (due to a bum shoulder), but taking pictures was a great way to participate. Many of these photos are people's profile pictures on Facebook.

photobucket guest password: redleafguest

Gifting-- Graduation

2009-06-14T10:32:00.001-07:00

Recently I attended the college graduation party of a young and rather new friend of mine, and as usual wasn't too sure what to give him for a Grad Gift. I thought back to my brief career as a corporate gifter at Bovary and Butterfly, where I had access to the lovely world of custom card-making and pretty package-arrangements. I was not hired on permanently because I'm terrible at tying bows, and at the time my Illustrator skills were non-existent. Well, I've come a long way Bovary!

I thought back to my college graduation, and remembered all those things about life that no one warned me about... I don't have to list them here, I'm sure any cynical reader knows what I'm referring to. So, I drafted up this little card for him, and I quite pleased with how it turned out.

I used the exact PMS colors for Loyola-Marymount University, his now-alumnus, and used Illustrator to sketch his glasses off a picture of him. The card remains subtly personal.

Gifting-- Tea Cookies

2009-06-14T10:11:00.000-07:00

My whole life I've been terrible at arranging the perfect gift for someone, and often today I'm still at a loss. But one of the many great things about being a graphic designer is being able to turn the hand-made gift into something a little more special.

This weekend I said goodbye to a classmate who is moving to the east coast, traveling by car. We weren't terribly close friends, by any means, but she's a lovely beautiful person whose dog I took care of last summer, and who is always out-doing us on class projects with her impeccable style and skills. So, not sure how to say good bye, I decided to bake her cookies from this delicious recipe I discovered at Tartelette.

Upon deciding this, I knew exactly how I wanted to package them.... I guess I should mention here that the last class my friend and I took together was Packaging Design-- Studio III at SMC. I also knew where to buy the desired packaging-- Surfas, in Culver City. Surfas is fantastic for everything kitchen-related... it is where I bought the organic apricot jam for the cookies, as well as the ravioli-cutter that shaped them. Then, after a quick showdown in Illustrator, I designed a label and had a great little going-away present for my friend to eat while driving across America.

The Chinese take-out box is a perfect little carry-away for a dozen or so cookies, and its so pretty in the pale green!
I'm eating this batch on my patio, with a hot cup of Peppermint tea.

June Gloom

2009-06-13T11:47:00.000-07:00

Sunsets lost in
Skies of hazy greys
June gloom sets in
Puts me in a daze
Nothing changes
All we do is wait
Our heads hanging
Shaking in dismay
Cuz everyone's afraid

Winter's coming
Still we're soaked in sun
Summer somehow
Split us one by one
Days are darker
Than they've ever been
But who could tell when
Summer never ends
(we've capsized in our end)

Words don't change a thing
Sun disguises darkness
Wish that I could save you
Wish that I could stop this

Looks like the end of days
But it takes so much more
For anyone to say
We need another way
But if we wanted one
We'd do it just the same

June Gloom, The Like

I've been lost in my own June Gloom this last week, as my cat Chloë hasn't come home since Saturday morning, when this picture was taken, mid-lick:

I miss her. Ever since she showed up one morning on my patio, a stranger who enjoyed smoked salmon as much as I did, and wasn't too shy to curl in my lap, even though we had just met. Since then, I'd grown accustomed to seeing her waiting for me on my roof each time I returned home.. or race me up the driveway.. and having her sleep at my feet every night. She was such a great roommate, who appreciated the cheap rent and food in exchange for a little company.

She was a great model, an endless muse. She loved having her picture taken-- she knew she was beautiful. She had this way of rolling on her back in the sunshine, when she'd look up at you and meow, "rub my belly..."

Also, there's this spot near her chest she loves having scratched... the hind leg will kick like Bambi's Thumper, and she licks her lips to catch the drool...

I hope she's ok. Since she came to me as a stray I know she can survive the weather, the ferals, the nomadic lifestyle. But I know that she's vulnerable as well. One night she came home to me, having soiled herself after she was attacked by some animal, and I bathed her and checked her temperature until I knew she was going to be fine without a visit to the vet. She's a cat that's generally scared of the dark, and is not amused by dogs, or raccoons. My biggest fear is that she's found a new home to entertain, or worst, is being held somewhere against her will.

In the year she's been with me, I have never "kept" her. She has her own entry, and the freedom to stay for as long or as little as she pleased. On good faith, I always leave her food and water, and she's almost always been home waiting for me if I've been gone.

Joy in Mobility

2009-06-04T20:20:00.000-07:00

Incight.org has commissioned me to sketch out a promotional card for their Joy in Mobility project, which encourages the community to take part in physical (mobile) activities including and on behalf of youth with disabilities. This is a statement from the organization:

Joy in Mobility is a fun youth development, education, employment project targeting all youth and especially those with disabilities, through health, fitness, job skills training and development, after-school-activities, public service, safe transportation, public safety, and especially community-service. This project seeks support from everyone who is willing to “ride for those who can’t.”

The card is for local, hand-to-hand distribution in the Coachella Valley:

VitA-ALE

2009-06-04T19:27:00.000-07:00

This week I'm wrapping up my last Graphic Design course I'll have for a while. With only one elective left in order to achieve my certificate, there aren't any classes being offered at SMC that I haven't already taken between Summer and Fall. Its a bummer that-- with limited resources to begin with and the pending cuts in our public educational funding-- I'm not able to earn my degree due to lack of teachers and courses. But I am looking forward to having the time off to work on my personal projects and build my portfolio with freelance work.

For my final class project we were to create the packaging for a vitamin marketed towards teenagers, the problem of course being how to entice moody, jaded teens that daily upkeep on their health is important, or at least enjoyable. To me, the question at hand isn't so much about the packaging, but the product. I reflected back to my adolescence and recalled a liquid vitamin that was available only in miniature brown bottles... it looked like beer to me and my friends, and we enjoyed the attention we received when taking swigs from the brown bottle (sometimes wrapped in a paper bag) during our "Nutrition Break" in high school. The idea that we would be mistaken for doing something illegal on campus and in broad daylight was what drew us towards the product... especially since we were being entirely well behaved.

Similar ideas in teen marketing have sprung up the last few years, most notably BLOW. When this product came out a few years back I was working for an entrepreneurial product design firm, and we developed vitamins, fat loss supplements, energy drinks, and male enhancement formulas. BLOW was introduced in our conference meetings and its controversial success was something we admired. We experimented with options on how we could create a similar product that pushed the envelope while staying safe from blatantly exploiting drug culture. Eventually we received an endorsement from a rehab-graduate celebrity with heavy teen-influence as long as we avoided the drug reference. We went with a powder to mix with water that came in exciting flavors and creative packaging... needless to say, we avoided controversy, and lost notoriety.

Taking all this into mind, I developed a non-alcoholic vitamin drink called VitA-ALE, which by logo design reads like "vital." I wanted something modern and subtle-- I tend to think that teenagers (unlike pre-teens, or tweens) shy away from products that look like they're trying too hard for their attention. Also important was the clear indication that the drink is non-alcoholic, so that parents won't feel suspicious when buying it for their kids, and say, campus officials won't hold merit in punishing students drinking the product. I chose orange-- not just as an indicator of flavor or health-- but because its bright cheery color stands out and looks great against the sophisticated black. Sold in 6-packs, VitA-ALE lasts the week through, minus one day to ensure the consumer returns to the store.

I didn't want to stop just at designing the package, however, so I went ahead and designed (for presentation) the entire product. Red Stripe Lager worked great as a template.

We have a 6-pack carrier, front and back label, and bottle cap designs.

As a side note I would also like to mention that these product photos were taken with my new iphone~! Considering the low, unflattering light of classroom fluorescents, the pictures turned out pretty good!
I ❤ my iphone, as I am a total mac nerd. I'm hooked!!

Class Project, Water Ad

2009-04-28T23:48:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow evening I have a collaborative class project due in which we were to work with a photography student and together create an advertisement for food. For us Graphic Designers, it was a test on our Art Direction.

I never met my photographer Bogdan Shahanski, but over the last month he and I have managed to communicate through email a concept for an eco-sensitive, carbon-negative style bottled water company, similar to Fiji's Green Campaign.

My idea was to portray the value and rarity of clean drinking water in a drought-ridden world with its vital resources quickly diminishing. I imagined water inside a treasure chest against a dry desert landscape. Bogdan supplied me with the following images:

With these and lots of photoshopping, I was able to create our ad just in time to get some sleep the night before the project is due.

The typography isn't spectacular, both in title and body copy below, but I impress myself with my ability to manipulate the imagery to create a fairly nice composition using photoshop and illustrator. The lock, for example, is completely fabricated in Illustrator, using textures and filters to create wood and metal effects. Also, the high & low lights on the box are various layer effects that help the box look real, considering that 2/3 of the box were created in photoshop. For a final piece, I will work on the title to create higher contrast from the background, and insert columns into the body copy, for starts, to ease readership.

Divinity @ Rock LA

2009-04-22T00:28:00.000-07:00

Rock LA has decided to change the name of their plus-sized denim line (and keep it open for "regular" sized women as well), and I spent last Thursday alone brainstorming names and coming up with the following. I envisioned "larger than life" beauty, that feeling a woman gets like she's invincible when she finds that amazing pair of jeans, of John Waters' Hairspray "Hefty Hideaway" and the notorious Divine. Upon a quick Google & U.S. Trademark search, I settled on Divinity.

I've been told that the texture applied to the halo makes it look like lips... not my intention, but I'm hoping that when embroidered or printed with gold foil that it will look less like lipstick marks and more like a holy glow. Also, two people have made the connection between the plus-sized jeans line with the See's Candy chocolates, which may or may not entice the Bigger Mama's from buying the jeans.

I also designed the Care Tags, and there is a Hang Tag along the way. So far, the Hang Tag looks quite similar to the inner label at this point, but I am attempting to take it a few steps further with an illustrated graphic, foil/ metallic print, and well, we'll see. I did some further brainstorming of "holy fashion" items that I can throw into Illustrator and with a few brush tools create a feminine but edgy graphic for the tag. Given my time restraints, it will certainly be a challenge.

Rock LA, Big Mamma Style

2009-04-14T20:40:00.000-07:00

I received a welcome interruption from the usual beat of the drum this week at work: it was requested that I expand our corporate branding to incorporate our new fashion line. Without damaging the integrity of our current logo, I did a slight redesign to be used for a line of plus-sized (Big Mamma) jeans currently in production. It was during this design process that I learned my employers had already attempted to use our logo for a men's swim shorts line... in which the patch was much too large, and the color was pink instead of purple. I suppose that's what they get for not consulting me first!

We are still looking at the possibilities of creating a separate brand for our production, but in the meantime we're having 60,000 plus-sized jeans made with my brand identity all over it. Of course, Rock L.A.'s logo was not an original created by myself, but the continued development of the brand has been entirely mine. Seeing as how this is my first true graphic design job, I'm very excited.

So far the plus-sized line requires a hang tag, waistband embroidery, and inside label.

(Embroidery with simulated denim background)

(Embroidery without background).

As a note, I had suggested to my employers that we remain consistent with color and have a silver or light grey stitching for the swoops behind our brand name, but our Director of Production felt that the subtlety in color would be too expensive. He requested that I create my design with an aqua swoop, which I can do nothing except go along with what he wants. I find it unfortunate that even though I am The Designer, which should place me as an authority on these design issues, that my opinion, in the end, does not matter. I understand that when designing, cost efficiency and the client's happiness are most important, yet I still would prefer to attach my name to something that I know was the best that I could possibly manage.

I think I realized how excited I was to be involved in this production once I was adding the Universal Laundry symbols to Side Two of the inner tag. Of course, had I more than an afternoon to create all of these labels I would be more careful in the typography on Side Two, making sure the spacing of each line were better aligned, and at least had one person spell-check my Spanish.

Monterey, CA

2009-04-08T00:30:00.000-07:00

Recently I went to Monterey, CA to visit one of my bestests:: my old college roommate is getting married within a few short weeks! Amongst our frolicking, I took a few photos:

(like of the breakfast she made me in bed)

(and the beautiful California Poppies with the beautiful bride-to-be in the background)

(the Eucalyptus)

(and images from the pier:)

La Chasse Aux Truffes

2009-03-18T21:43:00.000-07:00

Tonight I turned in my Sporting Advertisement for class, and unfortunately I am not satisfied with my work. I still love my concept, and I have appreciation for the basic execution of my pig, the truffle chair (designed by Jean-Marie Massaud), and I like how I designed the type for La Chasse aux Truffes... the rest of it, however, I feel I really failed on.

I chose a purple background because I felt it brought out the yellow in the green Euro & Dollar signs, which I use to represent the financial rewards received with finding the biggest truffle, but also to create a sense of being in the woods...? But as my classmates informed me in critique, this might not be necessary to emphasize, and it certainly isn't effective. However, I do think that the cross-strokes in the Euro help provide an art deco quality to my piece, which is an undercurrent I hoped would be evident with the flatness of the illustration.

I might prefer to have no background at all, or maybe a forest of photo-realistic quality. I'm not sure... this is certainly just a piece to revise endlessly until one day it looks right. I highly encourage you all to offer me suggestions and further critique. I need help!

In other news, I spent an hour or so today at work brainstorming for a junior's panty (underwear) line. The best name we came up with-- Queen of Hearts-- is unfortunately a hippy clothing line based in Berkeley, CA and we weren't able to use it. But before we found this out, we drafted up a really cute logo:

Besides a heart with a crown, the logo resembles a pair of cute butt cheeks wearing a thong. This is just a quick thumbnail, as shortly after we decided to follow through on sketches we discovered the hippy clothing line.... what does one do when the company that owns the name we want is using it to create such distasteful clothing (or other products)? How many crocheted halter tops and knee length skirts does CA need? Oh well.. I didn't stick around long enough today at work to see what was decided on, if anything at all. Some other options were 'Lil Love, Peaches n Cream, Puss in Lace, Cookie, and... the list of really bad and too riskee names went on.

Truffle Hunting Advertisement

2009-03-14T18:00:00.000-07:00

I've been hard at work juggling full time employment, three weeks of school, and my sometimes overwhelming social life. I've been all over Los Angeles, Long Beach, Orange County and San Diego since my last post, going to friends' art shows, seeing live music, visiting museums, and spending time with old friends on boats. I often have the intention of posting about it all on this blog, but rarely remember, and eventually its so lost in the past it seems no longer relevant. But I will manage to post my latest work, and that is a direct result of my first class assignment of the semester.

We have been instructed to do an advertisement for a sporting event, to be viewed in a magazine (8.5" x 11"). I did some quick brainstorming for my project, and at first was inspired to do a slightly offensive football ad, encouraging women (or man-haters) to join the National League of Women's Football. It seems since football as an industry promotes itself by sexualizing women (cheerleaders, sports-bar waitresses dressed in revealing jerseys or coach's uniforms), perhaps a man could be sexualized instead? This idea and some of my other brainstorms are on this page from my sketchbook:

However I thought the imagery might be tough to find/ manipulate, and I couldn't really work a slogan I liked. Then I started trying to think outside the box for sporting events... I wanted to focus on something elitist, and thought of fox hunting: nobility (and the British) hunt for fox, boars, deer... and make for good meals. This concept of hunting and food-- besides making me hungry-- made me a little sad for the animals: I love to eat meat, but I could never kill an animal myself. So my mind turned towards a certain sport limited to only a few regions in Europe-- and supposedly a county up in Oregon-- that envelopes all the notions I was hoping to work with: food, hunting, sophistication, and most importantly, competition with high reward: Truffle Hunting!

Doing some brief research on truffles, I learned that the bigger they are, the more money they churn in; they taste great in pasta; and they make a great design for a chair. This chair was designed by Jean-Marie Massaud, a french designer whose blimp has made international attention, and whose other works I highly admire.

Inspired by Massaud's chair, I decided to pay homage to his greatness and include it in my ad design. Going for a modern appeal, I sketched up this idea:

I've since begun throwing it all together into Illustrator, although I've yet to complete my re-construction of the Perigord. Here is how my pig has actualized:

If I had more time I'd like to practice my gradient mesh skills on both the pig (and the chair), as I do not have a strong handle on that tool. But the two-dimensional quality of the pig recalls posters of the 1920s, sporting that modern quality I love so much. This image is not finalized, but enough so that I feel vindicated to continue working on the chair and background of my ad. I've already chosen my caption for the ad, but I'll wait to reveal it with the final product.

Rock LA Fashion Development

2009-02-04T20:59:00.000-08:00

There's been some further developments with the Branding of Rock LA Fashion, as in some very minor tweaks to the logo, and the addition of business cards (including the back of), purchase orders, and a banner for our upcoming trade show in Las Vegas.

I really like how the logo stands out against the black background on the back of the business card, and on the banner.
Work has kept me incredibly busy, and traffic has kept me incredibly exhausted, but it feels great to be back in the grind.

Rock L.A. Fashion

2009-01-16T20:26:00.001-08:00

Although I still have a few remaining classes to take before I earn my AA, and there's hoards more courses I'd like to take, I had to go out and get a full time job. I have been happily hired as a Photographer and Graphic Designer for a clothing manufacturer/ middle-man buyer called Rock L.A. Fashion-- there currently is no website, but they're beginning to look at options.

My job consists of taking photos of the product and creating Inventory breakdowns of what's available in the warehouse. Its not a glamorous job, by any means, but the day flies by as I get to focus on my photography & photoshop skills... and dare I suggest that I actually have fun at work?

Today I worked on the logo for Rock L.A. Of course, they wanted it completed in an hour or so, and my coworker had already bought the rights to an image she wanted to use for the logo, so I didn't have full creative license. But, I got to show off some of my Illustrator skills, manipulating font and color when I could with an efficiency she did not have. My coworker-- who is not a graphic designer-- made all the decisions in the end about where we would take it, and I was merely executing her directive, but in toying around within my limitations I managed to make some interesting options with color and font that she eventually appreciated.

-- Mind you, I really like my coworker, but I would've preferred to be given the opportunity to really show off my creativity. Buying the rights to and deconstructing someone else's work, especially when I didn't pick out the image, isn't my ideal design situation. But I understand that this sort of thing will come up again and again in my area of work.

So, I present the new logo-- the color is still not set in stone... and again, its not exactly what I would present as a final piece to a company if it were entirely up to me... but the client is always right.

When I was originally propositioned to work on the logo-- told that they wanted to use a crest-- I began researching various existing logos that I thought could potentially be turned into something. I was picturing a tattoo-style foundation (to represent the fun, young juniors' line that dominates our trade) with an elegant script reminiscent of chic fashion label initials.... I may still go out of my way and work on some comps, but these are just a couple of the logos and motifs that stood out to me:

Keeping a Pace

2009-01-05T21:34:00.000-08:00

The holidays are over, and I have some time & motivation again to churn out some concepts. There's also a small project underway for Redleaf Resources, and I hope to be posting completed works soon. So far I've created a logo:

I've also changed the layout of my blog, with a little help from Phinds.net.

Complete: Casa Bella Brand Identity

2008-12-16T17:38:00.000-08:00

My favorite class of this last semester was Studio II, of which the curriculum was geared towards the development and execution of a complete brand identity: logo, stationary, advertisements, newsletter, website, and promotional item.

If you recall from my earlier posts, I chose to re-design my neighbor's freelance waxing company Casa Bella Wax, starting with the logo. I chose a dandelion theme to continue with her original design (and current logo) of an Egyptian dandelion; pink circles to resemble hair follicles, continuing the upward motion of the wind-carried dandelion spores; a script font (Zapfino) to present the artistic and sophisticated flair of the business owner, and a modern sans-serif (gill sans light) with wide kerning for a modern sensibility.

I chose a theme of brown and pink to reflect her eye for interior design-- I personally love the combination of brown and pink in the home, and to me it represents sophisticated, contemporary, modern style.

While designing the newsletter, I finalized the direction I wanted to pursue for the complete Brand Identity. I applied a brown to white gradient, which lightened the color palette, and got the chance to divide colors in the logo, using brown and white in the type effectively, without damaging the integrity of the original logo.

The business itself-- as mentioned a freelance endeavor-- is not looking for much growth, and is aimed towards a target audience of friends and family of the business owner (within the LA area). Competition is high, but Casa Bella's lower prices and intimate, friendly, casual location of Bella's home is what sets her boutique apart, making it unique and enticing. As such, I wanted advertisements to capture the sense of humor of the business owner-- an opportunity not always present in the advertising world for salons & boutiques. There were four different ads created for this campaign: newspaper, magazine, billboard and bus ad.

Hair is such a sensitive topic for society to approach-- from feminine beauty standards (did you know Americans started the under-arm hair removal trend in the 1800s?? prostitutes were able to claim they were the cleanest in the world: by removing hair from under their arms, they were able to stave off fleas and mites), to the recent trends of hairlessness for men-- thanks to the uprise of athleticism in the '80s, the aero-dynamics of a smooth chest and back are considered sexier than the Burt Reynolds of yesteryear. Designing the hairy ads for Casa Bella Wax were truly fun for me, as my own radical sense of humor got to shine through.

I carried the theme with both the website, and the promotional item: a stress ball for clients to grasp during the waxing process (ouch!). Although I've personally have no issues with the pain of being waxed, I can't imagine what men must think the first time the forest is ripped from their chest. Out of all my promo item concepts-- t-shirts, underwear, baby powder-- the stress ball seemed gender-neutral, funny, and most useful.

On the final day of class we had critiques from guest designer/ teachers, who awarded Certificates of Excellent Execution to those believed to have grasped the ability to extend their brand development effectively through all aspects of the class assignments. I was one of the lucky four (out of a class of approximately 30) to receive this award.

And so I bring you the
Award Winning Brand Identity

of
Casa Bella Wax!

Veronika Burian: The Charm

2008-12-16T15:28:00.000-08:00

Here is my final portfolio submission for my Typography project on Veronika Burian. You can see Part One Here, and Part Two Here.

As you can see I adjusted the original columns into one, flipped the layout at the bottom, made the body copy diagonal and justified. I also followed the triple green line to cover the bold text on the dates of the show.

I wouldn't mind continuing to play with it, adding graphic quality to the background... maybe diagonal rays of pink coming from behind one of the letters in "Bree," or something to add a sense of depth. Maybe make it look like faint laser beams shooting around the background? As is kind of has a feel from the '80s with its color palette.

Rosie Day Finale

2008-12-11T17:41:00.001-08:00

I've been working very hard this week on all my finals, and its been quite successful thus far. In the coming days I will post something for each class, but for now I will provide you with the final creation for my Motion Graphics course, which we had the option to take our FCP projects from the week before, and add on to them with After Effects (or, create an entirely new project in either FCP or AE).

I decided to add on effects to Rosie Day, hopefully making it all the more enjoyable for your viewing pleasure.

I had a lot of fun working on this assignment, and didn't at all mind spending my entire Thursday in the unusually warm computer lab playing with the program and discovering once again that all dreams are possible, as long as you can figure out why AE isn't rendering when you want it to.

I bring you the final rendition of Rosie Day:

Rosie Day Finale from ARothblatt on Vimeo.

Rosie Day

2008-12-04T17:08:00.000-08:00

I have just completed my first project using Final Cut Pro. All images were created by me, and the music is "CottonMouth" by my friend Sam Sparro, whose single "Black and Gold" has just been nominated for the Grammy's as Best Dance Track!

This is merely a humorous project, and its content is not to be representative of myself, or any of my plastic figurines.

Rosie Day from ARothblatt on Vimeo.

I found FCP non-intuitive, but with a little bit of help with initial navigation, I was able to understand how the program is set up. It can be so daunting at first! But now I'm excited about the possibilities of using this program... there are many things I would love to throw into video and edit down... paired with After Effects one can make some really powerful statements.

For our final we're supposed to combine FCP & AE, so I think I'll add onto this video some text & additional effects for a dramatized "high," using filters perhaps. Perhaps perhaps...

Veronika Burian, Part Deux

2008-12-02T00:09:00.000-08:00

My typography teacher gave me a positive review of my exhibition poster for Veronika Burian. She suggested I rework the body copy at the bottom of my poster, allowing at least 40 characters per line (instead of the double column I had), and perhaps reflecting some of the diagonal featured on the top half of my design. However, given this constructive feedback, she said my poster would make an excellent portfolio piece.

So after a little tweaking, I've come up with this, and I'm awaiting further feedback from Ms. Tanaka. In the meantime, feel free to leave me a comment with your suggestions.

I agree I like it better like this, although I miss the sterility of the columns at the bottom. It seemed clean, and structured. But now it breaks convention without breaking the balance, and its easier to read.

Sunday Brunch

2008-11-23T20:37:00.000-08:00

This morning I engaged in one of my favorite activities: Sunday Brunch. Getting together with a small group of good friends in West Hollywood sets the tone for the week to come. Originally, we intended to dine at Taste, but with one extra person (myself), we were unable to change the reservation, and would have had to wait over an hour and a half for the five of us to be seated. Instead, we crossed the street to visit Comme Ça, who accepted a last minute reservation for the five of us. Within ten minutes we were seated and ordering our drinks.

Brunch Menu

Photos a la Curbed LA & LA Eater.

The setting was beautifully stylized. Things that stood out to me: the chic black & white motif, the black chalkboard menus, the chairs...

Since two others decided on the Croque Madame (personally, my favorite style breakfast sandwich), I settled on the Jambon et Gruyere Omelette. I was slightly disappointed that my plate didn't come with a more colorful palette, or with a house-sauce or something. Instead I was served a very clean plate of a perfectly wrapped omelette (it was delicious), and three or four slices of plain wheat bread (fresh butter and jams served on the side). The Madame Croque in comparison was stimulating to look at, and because I was generously served just-a-bite of the sandwich, I can honestly say that it may even have tasted better than the omelette with almost identical ingredients.

Also ordered was the Omelette Fine Herbs and the Comme Ça Burger, which required a hinged jaw and tolerance for a very pink medium rare. Again, the Omelettes looked boring in comparison on the plate. Coffee was strong, and so was the bloody mary, served with lots of spice, olive, pickled onion, and bell pepper. Bowl of fruit comes with fig, amongst bananas & melon.

For appetizer we ordered the Selection of 3 Assiette de Fromages. We were served a buttery brie that was so creamy, perfectly paired with dried bueberries and caramel; a goat cheese paired with dried cherries and teeny peppers; and a sheep's cheese, paired with almonds to match in nutty flavor. Learning about the cheese (which further information I sadly, did not retain), was rather exciting-- a little special treatment goes a long way for a(n aspiring) food connoisseur.

Other things greatly appreciated during my dining experience: the attention paid to the tableware. It was sophisticated, under-stated, and incredibly chic. An excellent representative of its West Hollywood location.

I left the table with a smile on my face. The prices weren't terribly damaging, the waitstaff was friendly, attentive, and informative, and the quality of food was deliciously fresh, comparable of Parisian gourmet. This authenticity is verified only upon taste, setting it apart from the rest of so-called French cuisine.

Braised Chicken

2008-11-19T23:36:00.001-08:00

Another Martha Stewart recipe that filled me up and left my taste buds dancing with joy! Braised Chicken, w/dried prunes (I couldn't find dried plums, but it was still incredibly delicious), with instant mashed potatoes.

Two chicken thighs, cooking in white wine and its own juices.

Sitting down for the feast...The sauce was tangy from the wine, but sweet from the prunes. I was surprised by how tasty the prunes were, as I never eat them regularly. It seemed appropriate for me to pair them with such juicy bird meat.

All that's left over~! I'm stuffed. The instant mashed potatoes are so tasty... I added a little garlic salt, a lot of ground pepper, and some dried thyme. In the future, I might add a bitter greens salad on the side, to add contrasting flavor.

Casa Bella Billboard Ad

2008-11-18T20:05:00.000-08:00

I am posting this with the added ability to zoom into the image. Playing with html is still a new concept to me, other than adjusting fonts here and there.... Big thank you to Mr. Sean at Phinds.net for helping me figure it out.

I think this ad works better for a magazine, or on the back of the bus, which I have in my school files, but not web-ready.

Mushroom Turnover

2008-11-18T14:35:00.000-08:00

Its been a while since I've posted anything other than class projects, but today's lunch-pre-study-session seemed appropriate. Using one pack of white button mushrooms, and one sheet of puff pastry, I was able to create Martha Stewart's Mushroom Turnover with ease.

Ok, so it could have been easier, say, if I had a rolling pin, or even the counter space to properly roll out the dough. And it would've tasted a little bit yummier had I used a mushroom medley, and let it cook for maybe five minutes longer to make sure all the edges were fully cooked. But it still tasted delicious.

Next time I will make smaller puffs, and serve these as the perfect appetizer. But for lunch, with a dopple of plain yogurt (instead of sour cream), it couldn't be better.

Casa Bella Bus Ad

2008-11-14T22:01:00.000-08:00

I'm going to continue to tweak this image, perhaps make it stretch across the entire length of the bus, and/or place it on the back of the bus. I also need to create a billboard of different content. I will continue to experiment with different comps until I find the best.

In the mean time, I think this is hilarious!!

BattleBots Title Sequence

2008-11-14T14:05:00.000-08:00

After Effects!

BattleBots Title Sequence from ARothblatt on Vimeo.

Veronika Burian

2008-11-13T01:32:00.001-08:00

A typical Typography course assignment, I was to pick a type designer and create a poster advertising an exhibition of his work. Most of the designers suggested to us for possible use were men... I believe the only female on the list was Jill Bell, out of maybe nine male designers. Well, I didn't like this one bit, so I did some research looking for female type designers, discovering type-together.com, and from there, vikburian.net, and typeladies.org, introducing me to the type designs of Veronika Burian.

I was having a tough time with the assignment, A) since I don't own her fonts (I used Bree), and B) I couldn't get a feel for a layout that I felt represented the fun spirit and modern aesthetic of her font. I think I went in a very playful direction, but I would love to hear feedback and see other designs that would bring higher sophistication to her font.

Criteria for the assignment was the name of the designer, exhibition time & place, and a few paragraphs explaining her work. We weren't to use heavy graphics, placing full emphasis on the type itself. So, I created graphics out of the font. I had some other ideas, but I felt they didn't place her type in its true contemporary setting-- they would've been more "modern" or "post-modern."

So, such a silly thing in the end, I can't decide upon placement of the time: left or right? One fills a void, which is kind of neat... the other is a bit more balanced.

After Effects

2008-10-31T16:11:00.000-07:00

This is just pure fun. Playing with shapes, gradients, and 3D in AE.

AE Fun from ARothblatt on Vimeo.

The Wax Fax

2008-10-30T00:29:00.000-07:00

In further development of the Casa Bella Wax brand identity, we were required to design pages 1 & 4 of a duotone newsletter published by the company. I came up with The Wax Fax, and stuck with the brown and magenta color theme used in the stationary set.

I really like how elegant it turned out. I think I want to go back and experiment with gradients instead of solid brown on the letterhead and maybe fashion the envelope more similarly to the mailing box on the newsletter.

I actually get a big kick out of designing newsletters. My original intention for going into graphic design was to design layout for magazines (preferably my own magazine), and I genuinely enjoy the process. I know my style varies depending on the content, but usually for class & professional projects, going with clean lines and elegance is most effective. But with the appropriate content, going punk is a lot of fun.

Penelope

2008-10-28T00:27:00.000-07:00

One of my favorite novels ever written is the now-banned-in-public-schools Ulysses by James Joyce. He is considered to have one of the best written depictions of the female mind in literary history... I don't know about that, exactly, but the final chapter is a looong non-punctuated stream-of-conscious by Molly Bloom, the protagonist's wife. Molly has been cheating on her husband Leopold, and on the night of those infamous 24 hrs, Molly thinks back on the budding relationship she had w/Leopold, and the afternoon he asked her to marry him.

"...I wish some man or other would take me sometime when hes there and kiss me in his arms theres nothing like a kiss long and hot down to your soul almost paralyses you...I love flowers Id love to have the whole place swimming in roses God of heaven theres nothing like nature the wild mountains then the sea and waves rushing then the beautiful country with the fields of oats and wheat and all kinds of things and all the fine cattle going about that would do your heart good to see rivers and lakes and flowers all sorts of shapes and smells and colours...after that long kiss I near lost my breath yes he said I was a flower of the mountain yes so we are flowers all a womans body yes...then I asked him with my eyes to ask again yes and then he asked me would I yes to say yes my mountain flower and first I put my arms around him yes and drew him down to me so he could feel my breasts all perfume yes and his heart was going like mad and yes I said yes I will yes."

My annotated version of one of the most sexy passages is probably my favorite quote of all time: I love the imagery, I love the rhythm, I love how the reader is drawn into an intimate moment on which the novel (all 1000-or so pages) closes. Molly could have been left alone as a flat character: a cheater, a little dense, perhaps short-minded. But Joyce gives her a voice... a chapter consisting of 8 sentences, with only 3 punctuation marks, totaling 4,391 of the most revealing words.

As Molly's masturbatory climax is reached, so is the most positively climactic moment of her life: when she accepts Leopold's proposal. The memory is during a simpler time in her life: before the complications of child-death, and before her marriage fell apart. Flowers, cows at pasture, sunshine, romance, and the cool temperament of Ireland's history... something I hoped to capture in my image.

Annie 3D

2008-10-24T17:54:00.000-07:00

This is just a quick little exercise playing with Lighting & 3D Effects in AE. I've yet to understand it at all, but with quite a bit more practise I should have it down eventually...

Annie 3D from ARothblatt on Vimeo.

Redleaf Records Part Deux

2008-10-23T23:04:00.000-07:00

We were to create a 30 second TV Bumper in After Effects utilizing our previous animated logos and incorporating sound. So... as a quick and easy solution, I created this (song intro borrowed from Happy Hollows, downloaded from Little Radio):

Redleaf Records TV Bumper from ARothblatt on Vimeo.

If only I had more time (& inspiration). But, its not terrible......

Breakfast Burrito

2008-10-16T20:42:00.001-07:00

I haven't been making a proper breakfast for myself all year, but lately I've been itching for eggs with my coffee each morning. Now that fall is here (although this last week in LA its been 85-90 degrees), root vegetables are popping up in the markets, which allows for a delicious addition to my standard breakfast burrito: sweet potatoes!

Many people put some sort of potato in their breakfast burrito, but I always resent the heavy starchiness of such a meal. Yams, or sweet potatoes, have a sweeter taste and come enriched with more nutrients than your typical potato. Plus, they provide a lovely orange color usually devoid in breakfast.

Other ingredients:

wheat flour tortillas
egg beaters
fresh guacamole
refried black beans
red onion
cilantro
Mexican Blend cheese
spicey salsa

Might I add that I purchase Cafe Feminino coffee at Trader Joe's and grind the beans myself. I first read about Cafe Feminino while attending UC Santa Barbara in one of my women's studies courses, where we learned about the Peruvian women & the NGO that helped empower them to break away from oppressive social standards and create a woman-run farm. This allowed for the women to keep all income for themselves, to spend within the community as they see fit instead of what had been happening when their male counterparts were in charge of all business. These women were able to rise up within their community and gain respect in the male-dominated political realm. This has allowed them to put in place women's protection rights against domestic violence, and keep their family's money from going towards male-bonding activities such as drinking and drug usage. Cafe Feminino is truly a sustainable-economic system enriching the lives of women-- not only in rural Peru-- but everywhere.

Plus, it tastes delicious and I usually take it black! Its a tasty bean for true coffee drinkers.

Autumn Bloom

2008-10-16T20:27:00.000-07:00

My parents gave me a little specimen from their cactus garden last year-- one of the benefits of living in the desert.

This morning I walked out on my patio to see its first bloom! It had such an intensely vibrant yellow, I was immediately thrilled to have such beauty right on my doorstep. I had a similar rush of joy the first time my aloe plants began spawning, but after a year of over 50 new plants, I have lost some of the enthusiasm. (Let me know if you're interested in possessing your own aloe, I have several to spare!)

Winter Scene

2008-10-16T19:30:00.000-07:00

Here is an animation I created in After Effects. This is only my second project ever using this program, and I am rather impressed with myself. All images were drawn by me in Illustrator, except for the tree which I hand drew and scanned into Illustrator.

Winter Scene from ARothblatt on Vimeo.

Casa Bella Advertising

2008-10-07T16:23:00.000-07:00

Another assignment for Casa Bella Wax was to create an 8x8" Magazine Ad in Color, and a 5x5" Newsprint Ad in B&W. My newsprint ad is currently in color, but I'll print it in B&W, giving the proper gradation to the pink dots.

For some reason I never knew how difficult it was to further italicize letters in Illustrator. Perhaps that's something easily done in InDesign? I remember having the ability to control the slantiness, but that ability hasn't been transitioned to the Illustrator application.

I am thinking that if I had more time & desire I might add a light-opacity graphic of some sort towards the top of the magazine ad.... but I want to avoid making it too cluttered. Does it need anything? Or is it fine as is? Should I be emphasizing "bare" instead of "you?"

Casa Bella Brand Identity

2008-10-01T12:01:00.000-07:00

Here is further development of the Casa Bella Wax Brand Identity, complete with Letterhead, Business Card & Envelope:

(PS~ the cow stamp on the envelope is another creation of mine, built in Illustrator using gradients... the four stamps I created will soon be available on my website).

Logo Development

2008-09-30T19:19:00.000-07:00

Over the summer my neighbor (freelance writer, designer, bikini waxer) asked if I could design a logo for her waxing company. She was a client who had the exact image she wanted in her head, so I merely executed it for her. But I wanted to give myself a challenge to redesign her logo in the way I thought best.

This post shows my thumbnails for the job, which has since become a classroom assignment. I wanted to show off my personal design process, for better or for worse!

This first graphic is what my client had me do:

No company name, no clear indication of what it is she does. It is, in her words, "an Egyptian dandelion."

I decided to make the added challenge to myself to keep the integrity of my client's idea, choosing the dandelion motif and, if possible, keeping the stem of the plant in her design. That's not necessarily how it worked out, however.
Here are other ideas I've had that have made it to Illustrator:

Yeah, I hate them too.
What occurred to me though was the necessity to make the name of the company the focus. Any symbol would just need to accent it.
This is the final thumbnail-set I've come up with.

** sigh ** The Learning Process!
Brutal honesty (even with myself) is the learning tool with the greatest affect.

In the final set I love the contrast of swooping script against modern sans serif. It is an idea I had floating in my head from the onset of this project. Because our teacher wanted us to include color, I added the pink dots under between the Title. The upward motion of the dots matches that of the dandelion, which I have angled at a way to draw attention to the spot where the spores have begun flying away-- they are following a specified wind direction. The dots also provide a motif to use again later for stationary, business cards, and advertisements.

Now, I just need a catch phrase to match the company, and the Brand Identity is complete!

Wicker Lounge

2008-09-30T18:55:00.000-07:00

I've given my patio a lot of thought this summer, and one thing brainstormed earlier on by a friend of mine was to get a bench to sit on, in addition to the chairs I inherited. At the time I pictured a white wrought-iron bench.

Today I thought of a wicker lounge, something similar to this miniature:

There's even a tiny calico cat on that lounge~!

I had finalized the plan to paint all the patio furniture dark brown, and have bought cushion material to accompany it all. Just need to get on it some time soon.

Another minature:

Or this full-size one:

I didn't see anything appropriate for my studio while looking on Apartment Therapy, but I did find these by Nuevo which are just beautiful:

Redleaf Records

2008-09-26T19:23:00.000-07:00

This is for two separate class assignments.

I know of many ways I'm going to change it. I am incredibly new to After Effects, and still getting to know Illustrator. Enjoy!

Untitled from ARothblatt on Vimeo.

Double Happiness: Fashion Meets Technology

2008-09-11T09:57:00.000-07:00

Recently at Fashion Week NY, Hewlett Packard and Vivienne Tam partnered to release the new digital clutch notebook: a sexy combination of fashion and technology that inspired the designer to emblem the enter key with the Chinese symbol for "Double Happiness."

As a fashion-forward graphic designer myself, I am dying for Mac to one-up HP... sure, my Macbook is beautifully designed and doesn't need silky peonies dressing to make it fashionable, but I would so love to be able to carry it in my hand like a clutch purse when I go out at night. If it came w/a small slot for lipstick and my atm card, I wouldn't ever carry a purse!

In related news, Vivienne Tam's website features a virtual catwalk, several dresses to choose from, and the ability to upload a picture of your own face to be worn by the SIM Models.

This kind of technology makes fashion so much more fun. No tiny dressing rooms, no pesky sales people, no glancing at the shocking price tags. Sure, the photo-feature could be even more enhanced with customization to make it look more real, but it works well enough.

One thing's for certain: between this virtual runway and the new digital clutch, Vivienne Tam is on my radar of progressive fashion, and her name will carry w/me for a long time to come. I respect her ideas so much, I may some day save enough money to buy one of these outfits!

Women Against Sarah Palin

2008-09-09T10:35:00.000-07:00

You won't see me post too many politically charged entries on this blog, mostly because I get so passionate about the issues that the stress overwhelms me... that, and I like having friends and readers and I don't believe that discussing politics is a way to keep friends and readers, unless of course, that is the focus of the blog. Many of you who have known me for a while, know that I am the editor of T'wat?! Magazine, a now-defunct press outlet on MySpace that published news articles relating to women's rights in this country and beyond (one day, I will brave the the political realm again and bring back T'wat?!).

However, I was forwarded a request by the women of Women Against Sarah Palin, a new blog by Lyra Kilston & Quinn Latimer who are outraged at the Republican attempt to win former Hilary-voters by placing Palin in the VP seat. Together they are calling on all women to speak publicly on their blog all the reasons why they will not be voting for McCain/ Palin. Please email them at womensaynopalin@gmail.com to publish your opinion on their blog.

Here is the letter that I've sent in:

Sarah Palin is one of those women in office who have been covered by the feminist press since she entered politics and began tearing down women's reproductive freedoms in her own state. She was highlighted during the South Dakota Ban on Abortion and it was at that time that I began my personal disapproval of her policies. At that time there was no way to know that this woman with dangerous views was to become a likely Vice President on the Republican presidential campaign.

Now that she stands with McCain on their fight to the White House, her other political views are at the forefront of every press outlet. The more I learn about her, the more I do NOT want her to represent me as an American. Its not just about party politics: Palin's stance on oil, war, the economy, religion, environmental protection, and the freedom of speech do not match my own.

More so, I am outraged at the Republican party for dirty political tactics: assuming that my vote for Hilary would go towards McCain/Palin because she is a woman; badmouthing Obama who is honestly inspirational for the American people who are interested and passionate about the direction our country is going and our presentation to the world as global leaders; and for using GOD as an reason for putting in place dangerous political decisions and underwriting the current freedoms and rights we as Americans have. GOD & religion should NEVER be used to swing the voters towards a political affiliation, and Sarah Palin, who does not believe in a secular government w/separation of church and state, has time and again used GOD's name in vain to place policy change, and to manipulate conservative, religious voters towards her & McCain.

I would never vote for anyone who uses such shallow, transparent tactics to win my vote. I care about the issues: reproductive rights, health care, alternative energy, the Equal Rights Amendment, environmental protection, diplomacy across nations, and restoring our economy so that I-- as a twice college graduate w/the determination to make a life for myself-- can get a solid job that will allow me to someday buy a house and save for my retirement.

That is why I, a white woman of the working-middle class, am saying NO to Sarah Palin, John McCain, and once again, the Republican Party.

Women Against Sarah Palin