fashion in Wynwood.

i went to El Mini Market last Sunday at Wood Tavern in Wynwood (held every month, every last Sunday from 2pm-sundown) and there were so many cool peeps around, my fashion gauge was going crazy. i got a lot of images and i had to edit this down so i didn't overwhelm. these are the final picks, best dressed, if you will.. on a really hot day in Miami.

love the purple color. perfect worn-in loafers. perfect medallion.

medallions are hot. almost as hot as her.

this guy.

okay. i watched these people walk around the market for about 20 minutes before i finally got the courage.. to ask my friend Valerie.. to get a photo of them. that red pill box is just killing me. dear people, start wearing hats.

and the Chanel leather fannypack with it all.. no puedo.

it was at least 90 degrees on this day. what a gentlemen.

head to toe.

sweet guy from the "O".

pretty sure this happened to be the h.b.i.c. with a dapper-looking fellow.

art is my weapon. i love it.

photos by me and valerie petralia. edited by me.

ate like a vegan last night.

drawing by me. Q&A with the author, Kim Barnouin

SPICY VEGETABLE CURRY
- heat oil, ginger, garlic and saute for 30 sec.
- add coconut milk, water, red curry past, miso, and curry powder, and stir until well combined. reduce heat to low and simmer 20 min.
- in another saucepan, heat oil, mushrooms, zucchini, eggplant, and okra and saute 3 min.(ish)
- add salt and pepper to taste.
- add veggies to sauce and cook 10 min.(ish)
- garnish with lime and red pepper flakes. serve with jasmine rice.

this was so delicious it inspired me to sit up late and sketch it out. i made a few changes to the recipe. *I couldn't find white miso paste so I had to use tomato paste instead.. it was the only paste i had. i was just going to skip over it but it's a big portion of the ingredients, it gives the sauce substance. i was having a skype dinner date with my friend, Monica, and she encouraged me to just throw it in and it helped make the entire thing! i'm sure the miso stuff is great and will be great when i track it down (probably at a local asian foods store) but my version wasn't too shabby. i went super light on the ginger too. i don't know how someone could eat so much ginger as they sell at once. not really a fan. the only other changes were that i didn't have red pepper to garnish.. i thought i did, but i didn't. i sprinkled a TOUCH of cayenne pepper in the sauce before i dropped the veggies in though and who knows, maybe it made a difference. and i used just plain ol white rice. i had some in the cupboard and it went perfectly. if you make this, let me know how it turns out.. i thought it was absolutely yummy.

Chadwick Boseman

first sketch kind of getting used to the ipad, not really. tried to stay up for the Jackie Robinson movie "42" last night, but only made it in time for this and then had to hit the hay. happy tuesday!

looking down on a made up town.

american apparel bodysuit, forever 21 skirt, steve madden sandals.

Milton Glaser draws and lectures.

i saw these wonderful videos of Milton Glaser recently and thought it'd be great to share. if you don't already know, Milton Glaser is a famous graphic designer, widely known for being the designer of the I <3 NY logo, but he has also done an immense amount of other work that is really fascinating. Born in 1929, an original gangster, if you will. if you do just a little research on him, you'll see that he does a lot of hand drawn, hand painted pieces and as wonderful as digitally illustrated things are, there's nothing like the real, raw interpretation of form. 

i really enjoy drawing and sketching, as a child i spent several summers at horse-back riding camps and when we would have some downtime at the farmhouse (yeah, i'm pretty country), we would go out on nature walks and sketch (as i remember, a lot of covered bridges) and i was actually pretty good! then growing up in junior high and high school - you know how it is, even though i was a fairly active member in my high school's art program i just didn't do it as much as i would've liked but then again, who knows what i was thinking back then. i got back into it during college and even excelled in drawing nude models using charcoal and kneaded erasers, i loved it. i'll have to dig them up. now, idk how many professional nude models i can get these days but even if it's not in your private studio, in the medium of your choice and you sketch for only 10 minutes a day, it's probably just as good for your health as that trusty apple.

"When children are prevented from drawing, their brains don't develop fully." - Frank Wilson

now if you have some time you should watch this incredible video of his lecture at the School of Visual Arts Theatre. it's worth it (around 3/4 of the way through, it starts Q&A)

he introduces the phrase, "the act of making things that move minds" which is magic because i feel that is the most valuable purpose of creating art. especially when it is in a way to bring opposition together.

his studies of light and dark inspire me, about what can be seen within lines and pattern being repeated when only the color is changed. through his pieces, he demonstrates how things can be "seen" that are not really there. "it only exists in your mind, it has no physical reality"... way to flip it on anyone who believes "whatever you can't see, isn't real". 

i also loved the part about taking two different types of art and putting them together, he combines a study of shakespeare with the idea of pattern making and i know that my fellow creatives will appreciate the idea of combining different types of art forms with one another. we love to collaborate, it's one of the best things about the industry we work in.

there's also a brilliantly insightful video here on miltonglaser.com

"There's nothing more exciting than to see somebody change from sort of a condition of...inertness or inattentiveness into a mind that begins to inquire about meaning. I think if you don't do something to project into the future that way, the possibility for total self-absorbsion and narcism becomes very much greater." 

what do you think? do think drawing could have a great impact on our perception of life?

24th st.

street artists at work.

the medium.

not sure where my arm is..

dvf sweater. steve madden sandals. and old express jeans from high school, i'm short so it's hard to find ones that fit decently and last. or maybe i just never go jean shopping.

raw.

monochromatic.

the real reason Jacob and I were there. a fresh cherry Caipirinha - Gramps had leftover cachaca they didn't know what to do with - Valerie knew exactly what to do. and a really refreshing IPA, which starts with the letter E.... hm.. story of my life.

photos by me and Jacob Petralia.

think outside the clock.

valerie.

when i lived right off calle ocho, a Steampunk jewelry artist, Rachael Victoria Adams, lived above me who made (and still makes) beautiful one-of-a-kind jewelry from upcycled components and relics of Natural History. Valerie came over one night to chill and i introduced them of course.. and Val and i fell in love with her stuff. we chatted over a couple beers and probably a few swigs of maker's mark while looking at her really intricate designs of honest-to-God skulls and beetles designed into antique pocket watches and other clockwork pieces. (she also collects vintage photographs of circus performers and all types of really interesting, mesmerizing stuff.) we talked shit for a while, drank a good bit - super fun night.
ok, fast forward several months. Val's bf, Simon, asks me for Rachael's contact so he could surprise her with a one-of-a-kind necklace from this amazingly unique collection. and bam, there it was. a perfect gift and it's the only one. it's nice to show your love and appreciation with equally special, one and only gifts. good job, Simon.

Rachael Victoria Adams created Nouveau Motley in 2004, go check it out. facebook page link. so many people like it already, you will too.

teenage mutant ninja turtles, obviously.

mira! last weekend, as val, her equally cool bf, our good friend Marcos and i walked from our favorite bar in wynwood - Gramps, we stumbled over this really cool street art. i HAD to instagram it. then the really cool thing about the internet happened, the artist somehow saw and liked my photo! and he creates graffiti art all over wynwood. check it out. lof instagram | lof facebook

lof

lof

sunday sundress.

in a Miami parking lot. love the ease and comfiness. always a casual, hot day go to.

easy with the hair whip willow smith.

zara denim rules by trf dress. vintage boots.

big ass tree by my apt.

hope you enjoyed your day off

we don't get very many. mine was relaxing, spent with good friends, good beer and lots of other good stuff. i'm getting spoiled now that my best friend is living in the same neighborhood (almost). meeting for a drink (or 4) is great when everything is basically in walking distance. i managed to snap some photos around here and there.. it twas fun. :D

someone was thinkin. and that lemony looking drink down there is gin, blanc vermouth, celery bitters and yellow chartreuse. savory as fuck.

forever 21 clutch (gold shoulder chain tucked inside) and a whiskey and coke.

fireworks pt. 2 from the Double Tree Grand Hotel on Biscayne Bay.

pretty, eh?

Fourth of July hot spot.

happy fourth!

pretty fourth of July lolli made locally by Owner and Candy Artist, Andrea Caroline Jones at Sweet Caroline Confections. you can like her fb page right here. she does great stuff for wedding and party favors too!

back at it.

i'm terrible at communication. i got a new job. i've been working furiously with my head down for 3 months and i'm very grateful for the opportunities i've been given. they didn't come without obstacles but it's all been worth it and it's undoubtedly shaping me for my future career, whatever that may be - still figuring it out but i'm not in a huge rush. it'll come. que sera, sera. 

i'm learning so much at my new job, i'm a junior graphic designer for multiple fashion brands in an agency-type setting. it gets a little gray with what i do, but that's what i love about it - it's fast-paced so it keeps me on my feet. i'm usually doing a variety of different projects at once, because doing the same thing every day is not cool. i get to be fairly independent which i fully appreciate but i have the support of a creative team at all times. i work with well-known brands as well as younger brands which is where i get to use more of my own creativity - very rewarding. i know i've been given a lot of responsibility early in my time there and i have a group of high-level print and web designers around me who's knowledge i'm soaking up like a sponge. as much as i can at once anyway. i've pushed myself, gained a lot of confidence as a designer but i've seen how much there is to learn, how far there is to go and i'm happy to say that i love what i do. 

photos of some highlight moments while i've been gone.

my second desk, in my second month. my first one wasn't as private, as spacious or as full of potential, it's all about location. this one is actually in the creative dept., where they keep the lights off so the designers can see the colors easier. puts me right in the zone.

driving barefoot, trying to preserve my two-tone color/material pumps from Zara.

sometimes i work with ginormous files for print.

weekend job, every once in a while. cartoon voiceovers in boca.

a best friend went through a mission to get me the most perfect birthday card, sent twice in an envelope complete with hand-lettering because we're typography g's.

i love my desk! a work in progress. 

it's not always glamorous but it's fun when it is. model boards for a photoshoot

my current desktop wallpapers because i'm a nerd like that.

oh and i saw this wicked thing while having lunch at Shucker's. remember that deck that collapsed during the Heat game? it was there.

this was it.