One of my favorite things in this world- and a huge part of my job is to search out design inspiration, which I like to call my treasures. I don't like to give out a lot of my secret spots like most designers because I think we feel like the whole world will know where all of our fabulous ideas come from and other designers will go to these spots and find our secret treasures.
The good thing is- when you go to a vintage show like the one I went to last weekend: Papermania, you notice that all of your fears aren't true--not everyone is on the stake out for exactly what you're looking for.. and there's SO MUCH that there's room for everyone. So I decided maybe I will loan out a few inspirational spots here and there once in a while.
Check out some of my goodies below.
A 1949 catalog from Montgomery Ward filled with 1,156 pages of everything you could possibly own including clothing, accessories, home goods, furniture, specialty food, shotguns, tires, wall paint, toliets, door knobs, electric arc welders for your farm, baby chicks, chain saws and the list goes on.. it was an incredible find.
American Fabrics from 1961-62 and The Designer and The Woman's Magazine from 1926
Johnny
and I scoping out the scene when we first came in. This was at the
FIRST booth. We couldn't leave for like 20 minutes.. and there were so
much more to go. Jeff had to help us from one booth to the next!
Check out the beautiful Papermania video Stebs of Quarter Productions made while we all had our noses in paper all day long! I don't think I saw Stebs all day! When we arrived we all were sidetracked with the amazing treasures and he just started shooting. He's so focused and dedicated with every video he makes. And read Jeff's feature on Selectism showing the anatomy of a Red Wing work boot that he found at a booth. So neat!
Overall I think it was an amazing, inspiring and productive day for us all!.. especially Rein's Deli... mmmMmmm yum Can't wait to go back!
Thanks Weekly Dig for the write up on the Fringe Movement opening! "Let's be a family and promote each other!" That's what Fringe is all about! info@thefringemovement.com
Fringe Movement opened up our doors to the public last Saturday to present the current work of all the designers in the studio. The night was amazing.. full of all sorts of interesting people from family, friends, to locals in the area. But the vibe was clear--everyone loved the space.
So instead of showing you what went on that night.. We decided to make the night extra special to keep in our memories by only taking photos of the aftermath. (Flickr photos by Autumn Ahn)
Check out one of my favorite artists Matt Moore of MWM graphics and his take on a fashion inspired art piece using my hands! Can't wait to put this piece up in my studio! Thanks Matt :)
Bespoken hands by MWM
Thanks for Stuff Magazine for including me in their latest Style issue. In the interview I touched upon the gruesome task of interning at a high fashion company during my college years which I'm sure many of you can relate to. That was the worst and best experience of my life. It left me hopeless, lost, and confused. And then soon after figured out exactly who I was and what I wanted to do.
The best experiences in life may not be the most fun and rewarding at the time, but in the long run, take that experience and use it to grow as a person and get what you want from life. I did and I realized.. fashion ain't that serious!
Don't forget to check out my good friend and amazing hair dresser also featured in
the issue Lana Sousson and tell her I sent you when you book her at the fabulous James Joseph Salon. You won't miss her.. she's blue and beautiful!
MWM..
I met Matt Moore at a slew of Vegas apparel tradeshows about 4 or so years ago. He was soft spoken, shy, and very focused on his work. I related to him well, as I had similar characteristics. What I took from that first impression was that Matt was soft spoken (besides him talking about his obession with Rhianna every other sentence. this was before she was mega popular), slighty nervous, and very focused on his work. When everyone in the room was trying to impress everyone else, I noticed Matt in the corner hand drawing with his sharpie black and white sketches next to a stack of his Bangers books. I was immediately intrigued.
Years later i've gotten to know Matt and his first impression stays the same.. A talented, focused, hard working guy who isn't afraid to share his world with you. Matt grew up in a small town close to mine in MA and like some kids bored in small towns, got caught in a wild lifestyle for some time and doesn't hesitate to share his stories of who he is. Matt is completely grounded- knows his place in life and where he wants to head towards. And because of that he's able to grafitti in his home of Portland, show paintings in galleries all around the world, design Ad campaigns for some of the largest corporate companies, and create fashion for his line Glyph Cue. For this, I admire Matt as an artist, designer, businessperson, and person in general. You have to be true to yourself and know what you want in life to accomplish all the things Matt is accomplishing for himself. Most people want to, but can't be honest with themseleves or others around them about what they want and often get stuck in their tracks. Matt's grounded and honest personality will be the backbone of pushing his talent to the forefront of his career. Congrats Matt.. this is only the beginning.
Be sure to check out Matt's collaboration with Traitor x Open
showing at Chorus Gallery at 285 Washington St in Somerville MA this
Sat August 16th in back of my new studio!. Matt will be showcasing his handpainted bike frames as
well as selected art pieces, prints, tshirts and hats. We have lots of
love for the Open guys as they are family and neighbors, and have done
one hell of a job opening an original bike/art gallery concept shop..
so let's show them lots of support this weekend. I know I will be the
first to pick up an MWM bike, and rumors are the gear is selling out fast so get their early! We now have this beautiful mural to
walk by every morning thanks to Matt. I'm sure it will inspire other
artists in the community!
I grew up in central MA in a town called Fitchburg.. "the burg." Some of you know of it from going to parties/concerts as kids or where you went to school at Fitchburg State College. I am even friends with some of you.. I won't name names.. that have broken into one of my family's properties when they were in college. And also share studio space now with some of you that had mutual friends growing up, but our lives never crossed.. and those I went to school with. Oh dear boston.. we have so many ties that I thought I wanted to run away from and never come back. I never thought I would ever live anywhere else but NYC, where my job of fashion lives. But when I started to explore Boston as an adult I immediately noticed a difference in people.
Right away, I met people that I instantly connected with.. people whom shared similar upbringings that I felt like I've known forever and some who were walking down the same road as myself. Is it because we're "New England" kids at heart? We grew up amusing ourselves the same ways.. renting beach cottages by the ocean in Maine for the summer, boogie boarding, BBQ-ing, biking, sailing, hiking, trying to spook your little sister at night by telling ghost stories and shouting REDRUM.. or heading to the White Mountains in the winter to go skiing and tubing, fighting over who gets to sleep on the top bunk bed, passing "dutch-ovens," visiting Story Land..
These are some of my experiences growing up and how I fell back in love with Boston after moving back from NYC because I could relate to everyone there. There's something so truthful about Boston. My friends here aren't afraid to be silly, laugh and have fun. Let's embrace who we are, and not be afraid to let the world know. Don't try to be someone you aren't. I'm sorry New York.. but stop pretending you don't know!!
That being said....
Oh Boston-- you are so talented in so many ways. I invite everyone I know and everyone I don't to show the world how amazing we really are.. as artists, designers, crafters, innovators, thinkers, entrepreneurs, collaborators.. All of you who run to NY to become "cool" New Yorkers lose yourself in the hype. Why don't we represent a piece of Boston and where we come from rather than trying to be someone else that only appears to be cool? Why don't we come together and ask ourselves how can we do this together?
I've been lucky to be inspired by a group of people who wanted to do just that (especially a person or two that helped convince me and inspire it all. THANK YOU.).. who wanted to come together and work off of each other's energy and passions for art & design. And many many more that have contributed.. and it's not too late for you to be apart of it.
Fringe Movement. Union Square. Somerville MA.
Grand Opening. FALL 2009. More info TBA.
xoxo jenna
(sorry to pick on you NY.. ps i love you)
After taking a break from NYC a couple years ago, I started hanging out in Boston where my parents live. I would go back and forth from NY to Boston while I still had my apt in Brooklyn NY (williamsburg). The views were amazing:
(photo by Beau Colburn)
After feeling like I didn't have one home, I decided to leave the comfortable life I had in NY behind me. I always gravitate towards positive energy, and Boston was calling for me. So I found a 4,400 sq ft commercial space just over the river in Somerville MA. What sold me on the place, was how much I felt at home and like I was back in the streets of Brooklyn. There's something about feeling a little dirty, scared, unrefined and uncomfortable that makes me feel the most artistic and have the most drive. Then the best part is the little hole in the wall amazing eateries. Some of the best food in Boston. Everywhere you go, you meet designers and artists just like yourself. Then you realize this is where they all hide out.. just like Brooklyn.
Well, I've found my home now, and we're under construction but should be up and running in a couple weeks. We have lots of exciting new chapters. I have a new consulting studio opening, as well as launching a new collection, and continuing to work with and consult a multitude of brands. Now I will have a home with lots of helpers so I can focus on designing. =)
The KDU officially launched their consulting website including a portfolio of work of designers/artsits/photographers around the world contributing to it including but not limited to: MWM Graphics, Nontype, Si Scott, Faceless, Nopattern, Karborn, Justin Maller, Valp, Lynette Astaire, and myself (Jenna) whom was former designer and partner of SVSV & KDU. As you may or may not know, I left my former business 2 years ago and slowly made my permanent move to Boston MA after discovering the undiscovered talent here that deserves more regognition. (more news to come)
KDU/SVSV pres David Gensler was my mentor for about 4 years when I was an eager young designer just starting out in New York ready to take on the world of fashion. Meeting through mutual friends during fashion week, we instantly connected through this concept of high end street inspired fashion that was exclusive and only available to those who knew about it. We felt that the retail system was too flawed and mass consumption would eventually swallow itself whole, as we have seen it doing recently with shops closing left and right. Thus SVSV was born and ltd edition pieces were made for the exclusive fashion crowd. After a short, but successful journey, we decided that we both were looking to accomplish different things in life and decided to split.
His vision is years ahead most and the whole industry follows his every word and move. Every project we worked on together over 5 years ago, I see every designer copying the style and design theories now from large corporate companies to college kids. As much as we loved to hate eachother, DG taught me the ropes. Maybe in a different lifetime things would have worked out differently, but we're taking life as it comes and persuing our own dreams for now. Check out the beautiful work below and portfolio here:
Johnny Cupcakes has began expanding his brand of limited edition t-shirts into a full collection of apparel and accessories. The cut and sew collection or what we like to refer to as products "baked from scratch" combines all the elements of living the fun, jokester lifestyle that defines the Johnny Cupcakes brand.
When first beginning our project, I had to put on my bakery hat and do what any top chef does; researched our customers and then devised a recipe. For our market research, we challenged each other to video game tournaments, watched old movies at the drive ins, cooked on the BBQ grill at the warehouse, dove into the 40 degrees freezing ocean water, and screamed our lungs off on the zipper at the carnival.
We combined some of our favorite and top quality ingredients and even custom made our own ingredients including: glow in the dark buttons, red contrast stitching, cupcakes crossbones logos, rolling pins, fun pop colors, all slowly mixed in a blender, carefully placed in an oven, and baked to perfection.
The Johnny Cupcakes brand is growing with excitement and we invite you to be apart of our fun filled journeys. From cruises, to movies nights.. we aren't stopping here! Riddles, games and prizes.. win a trip with Johnny Cupcakes himself on a fun filled exploration to places you never knew existed!
Check out some of the summer products we designed and developed this season:
