Brand Design: Fitness Apparel

The class assignment was creating a visual identity guide for the fitness apparel brand Verkz. My biggest challenge is, I strongly dislike working out.

I decided to design a brand for people like me. People who enjoy movements as part of daily living. People who love dancing along to beautiful music. People who are attracted to colors and textures. I drew inspiration from traditional Spanish culture and vibrant colors such as flamenco dance, matador outfits, stories of Carmen and Don Quixote, tapas bars, artists such as Salvador Dali and Joan Miro, and architecture by Antoni Gaudi.

I designed the logo, color palette, a promotional image for poster and social media, and a concept of the store. I just had fun with the assignment.  

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Visual Identity Guide

This is a documentation of my journey of creating branding for a local bakery café that desperately needed creative help when COVID-19 hit. I was clueless and had to figure out everything. Many thanks to wonderful professors at Arts Media & Performance at LAMC for their support and encouragement! There is still so much to do. I am not satisfied with what I have done but is thrilled to see some results of my sweat and tear.

https://indd.adobe.com/view/964e8507-1134-4c30-a7f4-06477f639e54

Delicious Architecture

Some examples of delicious architecture in Southern California.

American Riviera Design Conference 2018

After the success of last year’s first American Riviera Design Conference, ASID Los Angeles Chapter once again held the event in beautiful Santa Barbara, California this year.
The weather was perfect. The format followed last year’s event with an improved scheduling and more presentations. It was great to spend time with friends I already knew and made new friends. It was a tremendous effort of the organizers, sponsors, presenters and the attendees to made the two-day conference go smoothly.
Another mission of this year’s conference was to support the local communities that have been severely impacted by fire and flood. ASID LA held a raffle with 75% of the proceeds benefiting the Santa Barbara Bucket Brigate.
Below is the event timeline. I have added links for quick access.
Thursday, June 7th, 2018
11:00 am – 1:00 pm – Kick off Lunch
Riviera Ballroom at The Canary Hotel
11:15 am – Speaker: Ed Paulsen and Lisa Masino, Kravet Fabrics
            “Modern Tailor”
12:15 pm – Speakers: Shannon Ratcliffe and Venessa Kogevinas, LUXE Interiors + Design
            “Mad for Marketing”
My takeaway from the LUXE presentation was sending follow-up emails to new contacts right after the events no matter how tired you are. I always thought it was best to wait until the next business day, and I almost always got so busy and procrastinated until it didn’t make sense to email those people. 
1:30 pm – 3:00 pm Tour Kogevina’s Luxury Properties Landmark Estate, “Robledal”, situated in the most exclusive part of Hope Ranch
3:30 pm – 5:00 pm Tour of Armstrong Associates Arlington Village Santa Barbara, a mixed-use residential and commercial development
Architects: Peikert +RRM Design Group
5:30 pm – 7:30 pm – Luxe Interiors + Design Reception  
Champagne Reception and hors d’oeuvres
Speaker/CEU: Julie Arcelay, Sub-Zero, Wolf, and Cove
        “Luxury Outdoor Kitchens”

Ready for another day of fun!

Friday, June 8th, 2018
9:00am – 10:30am – Breakfast and Presentation 
Presentation: Raina Cox & Eric Runner, Farrow & Ball Inc.
11:00am – 1:00pm – Lunch & CEU’S
Pullman Room at The LARK
11:15am- 12:00pm Speaker/CEU: Barry Cik, Naturepedic
“Flame Retardant in Home Furnishings”
12:00pm-12:45Pm Speaker/CEU: Guy Elston, Morris Tait Associates
“Disguise and Hide- Designing for Technology”
1:30 – 3:30pm – Montecito
William Laman, Furniture Garden Antiques
Elizabeth Ribons- Walking Antique Tour in Montecito
        The list of shops curated by Elizabeth Ribons can be download from http://www.mentormeresource.com/ when you provide your name and email.
4:00pm – 7:30pm – Tour of SBIFF The Riviera Theatre, and Movie
4:30 Speaker/: Shelby Fowler, Sherwin Williams
4:45 Speaker/: Leslie Delli-Venneri, Victoria + Albert
5:00 pm -7:30 Movie: RBG, Ruth Bader Ginsberg

The ‘Flat Stanley’ Project

In spring of 2017, I agreed to help my niece in Northern California with her ‘Flat Stanley’ project. For two weeks, I was to take Stanley to visit various places in Southern California. It was an interesting experience. Below is a list of places we visited. Yes, I took the assignment seriously.
Thursday, 4/6/17
Arrival (Chatsworth)
Saturday, 4/8/17
9301 Tampa Avenue, Northridge, CA 91324
Sunday, 4/9/17
300 E. Martilija Street, Ojai, CA 93023
KNEAD Baking Company
469 E. Ojai Avenue, Ojai, CA 93023
Bart’s Bookstore (Ojai)
302 W. Martilija Street, Ojai, CA 93023

Waypoint Cafe at Camarillo Airport (Camarillo) http://www.thewaypointcafe.com/

740 Ventura Boulevard, Camarillo, CA
Gardens of the World (Thousand Oaks) http://www.gardensoftheworld.info/
2001 Thousand Oaks Boulevard, Thousand Oaks, CA 91362

Thursday, 4/13/17
Belwood Bakery Cafe (Northridge) http://www.belwoodbakerycafe.com/
8735 Tampa Avenue, Northridge, CA 91324

Saturday, 4/15/17
Downtown Los Angeles (Los Angeles)
Little Tokyo
Union Station
El Pueblo
Olvera Street
Millennium Biltmore Hotel
Jewelry District

Sunday, 4/16/17
California State University, Northridge (Northridge) https://www.csun.edu/

Thursday, 4/20/17