Yago Hortal

What is the most important part of a painting if it's not the colors that propagate it's composition? In art, darker colors tend to invoke sadness, mysteriousness, and dark feelings, while warmer shades always seem to induce happy and positive sentiments. So it should be to no surprise that most art aficionados are immediately drawn to the vibrant works of Spanish painter, Yago Hortal. With the powerful strokes of his paintbrush the Berlin-based artist creates bright bursts of vivid color that formulate into beautiful pieces of eye candy. Any of Hortal's paintings could certainly liven up a room and add sunshine on a gloomy day in an instant. My own thoughts, as a writer more attracted to clothing over stationary visual art, envisioned these colorful strokes smeared across white column dresses, tailored slim fitting pants, and neat button downs adding intensity to simplicity. I would absolutely love to see Hortal collaborate with a fashion designer in the future. I find his brilliantly colored works to be quite alluring.

I Scream Colour by Humberto Cruz

I've found that passion is very often confused with financial success. In actuality, passion is exemplified through loving an activity enough to do it without any form of reimbursement, wether that compensation come monetarily or in the form of accolades. However, it's our society that tends to highlight the million dollar business man over the starving artist and as a result we also prefer stacks of bills over the blood, sweat and tears they came from. Still, real passion lives in the people who sacrifice their time and sleep for the sole reason that they really enjoy doing whatever their personal affection may be and that's really all they need to keep doing it. Illustrator, Humberto Cruz, is an excellent example of an artist with this type of immense passion.

Every night when Cruz returns from his full-time job in San Diego, California, he goes home to spend evenings with his blending markers and fine tip pens. As a child, Cruz, began teaching himself to draw- sketching his friends and family members along with his own made up characters. After High School, his affinity for creativity lead him to enroll in the graphic design program at the Art Institute of California. However, despite being well educated in computer applications that could enhance and digitalize his work, he still prefers a simple pen to paper. With time he began developing his skills and personal style and chose to progress by illustrating his favorite pop culture and fashion icons. Later he added pieces of his collection of stickers, as well as drawings inspired by them, to amplify and distinguish the backgrounds of his final products. His work is characterized by bright colors, an air of fun, with a strong youthful spirit in it's conception, but it wasn't until recently that his work began to become widely recognized.

Today it's hard to under estimate the power of social media. Many of our nation's favorite contemporary entertainers were derived from popular videos seen on youtube. In Cruz's case, it's  instagram. I first noticed his work on the instagram of a Jeremy Scott creative team member. I absolutely loved it and explored his account for more of his adorable illustrations. After weeks of consistently pressing the ♥ button I knew it was time to email Cruz some appreciative words. Happily, I found that I wasn't the only one. After starting an instagram, tumblr, and twitter, Cruz has been able to gauge the interest of many far and wide. He has recently done collaborations with other talents such as Luca Finotti and Marley Kate, and I am confident there will be many more in his future. I'm so happy to be able to share both his illustrations and his story because I am always inspired by those who never cease to pursue their true passions no matter what limitations they have to face to do so. I'm also lucky I was gifted with an I Scream colour original of myself in a favorite hot pink vintage Balmain look!

For more of Humberto Cruz's amazing illustrations be sure to check out + follow him on Tumblr, Instagram, Twitter, & Facebook!

Lazy Oaf x Nasty Gal

When American and British creatives collaborate, it almost makes me question the necessity of the American Revolution. Really think about it for a minute- the Queen of American fashion media, Miss Anna Wintour, was born and raised across the pond and yet most of the New York fashion industry has absolutely no qualms about succumbing to her reign. Glenda Bailey, at the helm of Harper's Bazaar, Vogue's Hearst produced rival, is also a true blooded Brit. Again, a beautiful marriage can be seen here between American creation and British thinking. I think you can see where I'm going with this. Clearly, I was ecstatic to hear of the news that the quirky and youthful British brand, Lazy Oaf, was set to collaborate on a special collection for the American girl's go to online retailer, Nasty Gal. The results are a fun, flirty, and colorful collection featuring unique pieces like the watermelon printed short shorts, smiling fruit printed dresses, adorably decorated denim jackets and more. It's the perfect collaboration for summer wether you'll be sporting the looks here in New York City's heat wave or in London where rain can almost be expected daily. The look book is just as fun. Lazy Oaf and Nasty Gal portray their model playfully posing at an arcade, a bowling alley, and dancing on the street and this collection is obviously perfect for doing all of those activities and more. 

Fashion Loves Animals

Earlier this month I was incredibly surprised to receive an invitation to Fashion Loves Animals, an event celebrating the non-use of animal products within the fashion industry. The event also served as a fun-filled benefit for Farm Sanctuary, a wonderful non-profit that protects farm animals from cruelty, and additionally honored highly regarded, VAUTE Couture President and Creative Director, Leanne Mai-ly Hilgart. Knowing that I've previously written about collections utilizing fur, leather, and other animal materials, the invitation was honestly completely unforeseen to me, yet  nevertheless, I graciously accepted it as an opportunity to learn more about the opposing stance.

Fashion Loves Animals was set at SIR Stage 37, a large space in Manhattan's Hell's Kitchen neighborhood. My good friend, Rachel Gottlieb, a wardrobe stylist and fashion designer with a deep appreciation for both fashion and farming, seemed like the perfect date to accompany me that evening.  Preceding the event she had just recently returned to the city after a few interesting months of living and working on a farm in upstate New York. Unsure of what to expect, the two of us happily donned whimsical ankle length dresses and walked excitedly into the large space.

The evening began with a delightful cocktail hour featuring delectable vegan appetizers by Jay Astafa. Somehow past experiences had lead me to believe that any food labeled "vegan" meant that it wouldn't taste good. However, to my great surprise, I was immensely mistaken. Astafa's finger food was not only flavorful as vegan, but great tasting as a meal in general. Regardless of it being green, the selections were all exotic in appearance, unique in taste, and completely fulfilling. In fact, I enjoyed the food so much that I  ate enough appetizers to satisfy me for the entire night. Although, what I found even more impressive than proving vegan food can actually be delicious, was the knowledge that Astafa is just twenty years old. Learning how to cook both from his family and culinary education, in addition to catering this large event, Astafa also recently premiered a pop up of his vegan food restaurant concept, Jay Kitchen. It proved to be a huge success and now New Yorkers, I happily amongst them, can look forward to a more permanent Jay Kitchen to debut in upcoming months. Overall, Astafa provided a great start to the evening and also happened to generously offer a private dinner party worth $1000 in an auction to benefit Farm Sanctuary. He is quite the admirable young man and I look forward to hearing more about his innovative ventures in the culinary world in the future.

Following the enjoyable opening cocktail hour was a special fashion show featuring clothing by renown cruelty-free fashion brand, Vaute Couture in addition to other great vegan brands including footwear by Love is Mighty, menswear by Brave Gentleman, handbags by Matt & Nat and makeup by The Body Shop. Also accompanying the models were a few cute furry friends from The Humane Society of New York that only further enhanced each look coming down the runway. Again, what I expected was much less than what I saw. In the last Fashion Unfold twitter debate I participated in I made a bold statement of saying that all eco-friendly clothing lines were generally unattractive. All of these brands made me immediately swallow my words. Rachel and I both absolutely loved Vaute Couture's feminine silhouettes, adorable cut outs, bold colors and prints, admired Love is Mighty's sparkling heels, thought the male models looked unbelievably handsome in Brave Gentlemen's looks, and were ready to quickly purchase a chic Matt and Nat handbag. Everything about the show was executed perfectly and for the first time in my fashion career I actually appreciated a movement I used to be completely indifferent too.

The evening ended with some lovely and relaxing music by Rosi Golan and sweet vegan desserts by Fran Costigan. The desserts were so unbelievably amazing that without shame, Rachel and I followed the waiters circulating the space serving each plate of desserts. Within minutes there was nothing left of Costigan's sweet little bites. Luckily, we were able to meet the Queen of Vegan Desserts. We sat and discussed her career and her dessert making methods. "There's no reason for us to use animals when we can create delicious desserts without them," she said and she's right. I've never tasted desserts as delicious as those. With no eggs or milks involved, it's quite shocking. 

Unfortunately, I was not able to leave Fashion Loves Animals with a cute puppy, but I did leave with an entirely new perspective. As Farm Sanctuary showed me- the American farming industry is not always as cute and simple as it may sound. There are animals who are treated poorly when they're sick or not in shape. They are treated as products and not as animals with hearts, brains, and lunges. I am not a vegan nor am I vegetarian, but animals should be treated well while they're living shouldn't they? and if they're not being used for what they can provide than they shouldn't simply just be neglected or mistreated. I have been swayed to think more about the subject, but either way I greatly appreciate Farm Sanctuary's mission and cause as well as all of the talented people working in the vegan industry wether it be Vaute Couture Founder, Leanne Mil-lay Hilgart, or Vegan Dessert Queen, Fran Costigan, the faux leather quality handbag line by Mat and Nat, or natural beauty products by The Body Shop. They're all working for a greater cause that affects so many helpless animals and all in all it's incredibly admirable.

Photos via: Sarah's instagram, Farm Sanctuary, Max Gordon Photography

The Looms In Our Bones

There is a special sort of magic that is created when fashion and art collide. Whether it's a clothing collection inspired by an artistic movement or an illustration influenced by a high fashion look, the results are always incredibly unique. That notion holds truth in the works of artist, Izziyana Suhaimi. Her distinct artistic take on popular culture involves a beautiful marriage between colorful embroidery and detailed illustration. That interesting collaboration can be seen in carefully embroidered accents, clearly drawn figures, and familiar subject matters that many can appreciate; and they do. Suhaimi's pleasantly original art work has garnered her the attention of galleries and publications across Asia in addition to an immense amount of love within the tumblr community.  I was so happy to stumble across it and I hope that I can eventually see some of her work live, here in New York. View more of Suhaimi's work and learn more about the artist on her Tumblr.

Photography by Ken Cheong

The Innovative Denim Experience, Introducing RPMWEST

Online shopping has always proven itself to be a very difficult task. Even in this digital age, as consumers we are promised a more effortless, enjoyable, and immediate experience. In most cases, it is far easier to make purchases online rather than at a brick and mortar store with regards to merchandise like footwear. Yet, with more varied wardrobe pieces like denim, the list of qualms is nearly endless. As consumers, our constant desire to secure products of high quality continues to exceed our expectations. Despite this, perhaps the real issue lies in the brands that we choose to admire. We commend ingenuity, classic conception, and overall something that will last us a lifetime. Somehow it’s taken until 2013 for a clothing company to create a concrete denim shopping experience. Fortunately, this new brand can and will assist you in effectively finding your ideal pair. Introducing RPMWEST, the innovative and progressive way to find your best fitting jeans.

RPMWEST is the brainchild of Manuel Rappard and the product of a San Francisco based group of designers and technologists devoted to supplying the perfect pair of jeans, excellent customer service, and the most conducive shopping experience possible. It starts with the core of their product, RPMWEST provides raw selvedge denim at an uncommonly reasonable rate, while exclusively utilizing the finest Japanese selvedge denim and fine American-made trimmings. Their dedication to satisfying their customers goes even further than most other brands. RPMWEST has set plans to deliver three pairs of your selected jean to try on in the accommodation of your own home, ensuring you get the absolute best fit possible. You would then only keep the one pair that you’ve chosen to purchase and send the rest back. Yes, it really is as easy as it sounds. This innovative shopping experience, most popularly established by eyeglass brand, Warby Parker, allows customers to have the same opportunity to try on multiple pairs of an item. This is exactly like an in store experience, only at any opportune time in the comfort of your own home. This method saves the customer both time and money and ultimately provides the best outcome.

With the brand’s recent launch, there are many anticipating the arrival of their first pair. In less than two days, RPMWEST has already surpassed it’s initial pledged Kickstarter goal of $20,000, which will assist the brand’s initial production. Before closing in on their first week, they had reached $40,000, which secured the introduction of their immaculate black denim collection. Now at the end of their first week on Kickstarter, RPMWEST has surpassed their final goal of $50,000; enough financial backing to implement the aforementioned ingenious home try on program. They have garnered the dedicated enthusiasm and support of the fashion industry and denim aficionados alike. Did we forget to mention that there are still 32 days remaining in their Kickstarter funding? To become a part this unique movement and be one of the first to preorder your own pair of RMPWEST Japanese selvedge denim, join us in contributing to RPMWEST’s Kickstarter pledge. It’s a development that completely revolutionizes the denim shopping experience in price, quality, and above all – convenience. 

Originally Published on HY.GEN.IC

Persona Jewelry Spring Tea Party

With the weather finally warming up in New York, it's fun to celebrate springtime in the most feminine of ways. Last week I had the pleasure of attending Persona jewelry's tea party at Lady Mendl's in Manhattan's Grammercy neighborhood. The event was everything your seven year old self would've dreamed of in adult form- an assortment of fresh fruit and delicious pastries, a variety of flavored mimosas, pretty floral crowns by Headmistress, manicures and nail art by Manicube, and of course the main event; personalized bracelet making utilizing Persona's adorable and unique charms.

The event served as a celebration for Persona's new spring collections. All had incredibly different inspirations, yet each group was unique, adorable and executed to perfection. My favorite of the new collections was inspired by 60's retro. Charms included pink milkshakes, sparkling red cherries, and a sweet vintage corvette. Another of the new collections was inspired by the Canadian designer's trip to Spain. You can see the influence of Spain's characteristic stained glass in the beads influenced by the beautiful country.

Overall, I had an amazing time at the event and can absolutely not wait to get my hands on some of these new beautiful beads! You too can create your own persona piece, right on their website. If you're feeling inspired maybe you can even throw your own Persona springtime tea party.