Fly

Get Dressed Up: Office Holiday Party

Two weeks ago I spent an early Sunday morning at the Anthropologie store in D.C. shooting the photographs for the Fly Party Video. A few days before, Nicole Martin, a stylist and personal shopper at the store helped pull some fun outfits for the shoot and my homegirls, Glory, Jessica and I brought everything together in a mere three hours for the stop motion. It was a lot of work but it was really fun playing dress up and hanging with the girls.

Here is one of the five holiday outfits featured in the video. The polka-dots and stripes make pants and a blazer fun and festive for an office holiday party. (Love love love this jacket, as you can tell because I'm cheesing really hard in these pics!)

1. Poplin-Stretch Dress Shirt 2. Vintage Gilt brass Art Deco Earrings 3. Nightscape Blazer 4. Indian Inspired Bangles 5. Mona Suede Pumps 6. Mobara Crops

Handpainted Type from India

I have much respect for sign-painters and lettering artists. Their meticulous hand-work always leaves me breathless, which is why I am so intrigued by this collaborative project called HandPaintedType. Read this write up from the HandpaintedType website:

"HandpaintedType is a project that is dedicated to preserving the typographic practice of street painters around India. These painters, with the advent of local DTP (Desktop Publishers) shops, are rapidly going out of business with many of them switching to the quicker, cheaper but uglier vinyls. Many painters have given up their practice altogether. The project involves documenting the typefaces of road side painters across India and digitizing it so that it serves as a resource for present and future generations."

Learn more about the project and check out the typefaces inspired by these painted letterforms here.

And take a look at this great video following several sign-painters in India and their competition with desktop-publishing shops.

Painter Kureshi from hanif kureshi on Vimeo.

Charlotte Taylor Lookbook

A little while ago I posted some looks from Charlotte Taylor's SS12 collection, then over the weekend I stumbled upon their video lookbook for the same collection on DesignEnvy; it's quietly amazing, and simply beautiful.

FGOTW

Who? Ellisa Oluwafemi Oluwabumi Louise Oyewo, 23

Where? My father is from Nigeria and my mother is from the states. I was born in Indianapolis, IN and have bounced from Chicago to Brooklyn back to Chi City!

What? During the day I'm a marketing manager of a boutique and at night I put on the cape of a freelance writer. I am the Co-founder of C.O.R.E Mag which is an online magazine that develops awareness of self- understanding and worth for females ages 12-17 years. CORE Magazine reaches females through different subject matters: finance, relationships, fashion, health/beauty, and current topics. It's an outlet that my sister and I created to give an opportunity to discuss and express daily concerns young females encounter. I am also contributor to other dope and inspirational sites such as In Her Shoes Blog, blog editor of Styleaholics.com and contributor to   Coco and Creme.

What inspires you?
The purity and love that are instilled in our youth. That we only have one life to live and one chance to leave our mark on the world. I am inspired by the simple fact that each one of us has the power to impact and save others lives by speaking positivity to them and giving them the gift of hope for a brighter day.

Why are you fly?
I'm fly because I am relentless. I never stop until I reach the goal I set out to achieve in life. I never take "no" as an answer and have absolutely no limit where I see myself in the future.Even though I run into the detours of life, I go back to the drawing board and plan out an alternative route to get me to my final destination.

Advice:
Do not fear anything that crosses your path. Never dumb yourself down or feel less than just to let others shine around you. Listen to your intuition and trust it. Live by faith and conquer each day like it is your absolute last. Find the balance in your life.Just as much work you put in, it should be twice as much laughter coming out. Let God's light shine through you everyday. Remember you were given your blessings to bless others.

Want to be a Fly Girl of the Week? Click here for more info on how to submit.

Vermillion Reflections Dress

What a great kimono style dress from Twinkle by Wenlan.

Necklace No. Ultra

Fun necklace by lacoli & McAllister.

Fly Five Design Books I Like Right Now

To the many Fly readers who are graphic designers and/or studying to be one, this one's for you:

Being a design educator, with a focus in graphic design, I'm constantly on the look out for great books to share with my students, and to also inspire my work as a design professional. Here are some books that are on my radar, some I've used in the classroom or have in my personal library to inform and inspire my own work.

 1. Graphic Design Thinking (Design Briefs) by Ellen Lupton and Jennifer Cole Phillips
Written in an easy-to-read style, this is a great text for new designers looking for guidance in the graphic design process. There are tons of visual examples and tips for brainstorming, sketching, and implementing design solutions. A must-have for design students.

2. Layout Workbook: A Real-World Guide to Building Pages in Graphic Design by Kristin Cullen
Like Graphic Design Thinking this book also covers a bit about the graphic design process, but with an emphasis on setting type and working out layout concepts. If typography and grid structure is something you need help with then Layout Workbook is a great book to add to your library.

3. Change by Design: How Design Thinking Transforms Organizations and Inspires Innovation by Tim Brown
I enjoyed this book by Tim Brown, the CEO and president of innovation design studio IDEO. In this text he shares insight on the (necessary) re-emergence of human-centered design. He's speaking to design disciplines as a whole (interior, industrial, graphic, environmental, etc.) and how designers should use their skills to innovate and solve some of the world's serious problems. It's written mostly from a leadership or company/organization perspective but the ideas shared in the various case-studies can definitely translate into to all levels of design (self-employed, student, etc.).

4. Saul Bass a Life in Film and Design Jennifer Bass and Pat Kirkham
If you're looking for a great collection of visual culture in design then this extensive volume of text and imagery celebrating the influence of design extraordinaire Saul Bass is a book you must add to your holiday wish list (it's on mine). I've always been a fan of Bass' corporate identity designs, but during my time designing on-air graphics at TV Land I learned to appreciate his films, specifically his design and animations for film titles. This book was just released a few weeks ago and I'm totally excited about getting my hands on a copy.

5. Typography Sketchbooks Steven Heller
When I received this book I was shocked to see how thick it was! This three pound 368 page book is rich with beautiful imagery from dozens of designers' sketchbooks. I always love getting a behind-the-scenes glimpse of a design or project, so it's really cool to see how some of these designers visually brainstorm their ideas with pen/pencil on paper.

A Fly Event at Anthropologie

I am super excited to announce a Fly event I'm throwing for all of my D.C. area readers and friends. With the holidays upon us and the year coming to an end, I thought it would be fun to close out Fly's 5th anniversary year with a celebration at one of my favorite retail spaces...Anthropologie!

Everyone is invited to come out and celebrate five years of Fly. This is an opportunity for me to meet in-person the many Fly readers who have supported the site (and my many creative endeavors over the years) and also a lovely way for us to take a break from the holiday madness.

I am so grateful and honored that the new Anthropologie location in D.C. is co-hosting the event; allowing us to mix and mingle, while we sip and shop in beautifully inspiring space. If you haven't been to the new Anthropologie this is the perfect excuse to make a visit.

So let's get dressed up and ready for a fun evening of Fly!

Click this link to RSVP to the Fly event (you must RSVP).

To promote the event, I, along with the help of some amazingly talented friends, have put together a fun semi stop-motion video showing how I would rock items from Anthro's holiday collection. I will be posting some collages and photos from the shoot in the days leading up to the event, so keep checking back for more!

Click this link to RSVP to the Fly event.

Vivienne Westwood in Kenya

What do you think about Vivienne Westwood's latest ad campaign shot in Kenya for the Ethical Fashion Africa Project? See more photos here.

FGOTW

Who? Beige Ojai, 22

Where? I am from the DMV area (DC/ Maryland/ Virginia). I currently live in Maryland, and work in DC.

What do you do? I am a local model turned photographer. Photography has always been something that I've been interested in doing, I love telling stories through photographs and creating emotions people can feel. I am a lover of all things creative; I do makeup, hair and style my shoots. 

I am also a natural hair vlogger. I have been natural for several months now and I am loving every moment of "reintroducing myself to me." I've been relaxed since the age of 6 so, the natural me is something that I am getting used to by the day. 

What inspires you? I am inspired by creativity and individuality.

Why are you fly? I am myself first, never an imitation.

Advice: The advice that I would like to give other women is to be comfortable in your own skin, live your life to the fullest, take advantage of every opportunity, know your worth, humble yourself and keep the faith. Make goals and stick to them; never give up on your dreams.

Art for Your Home

Lovely explorations of color from artist Zoe Pawlak.

What I Like Right Now

1. Alexa Chung Zine for Madewell. For Madewell, Alexa Chung has been designing mini-collections that reflect her girly downtown style with flirty silhouettes and prints made from her quirky illustrations. Along with flexing her fashion design muscles she also produced a cute little zine for the brand. I'm so into zines right now and really enjoyed Alexa's fun imagery. Makes me want to do one, hmmmmm...

2. The Gentlewoman. My friend, Glory, introduced me to this magazine. I'm diggin' the minimal color, fashion features and musings.

3. Indian bangles for Madewell. I recently picked up a few of these bangles. There were so many variations to choose from! Their inexpensive and make great stocking stuffers. I also want to learn more about the girls who made/designed(?) them; the description online simply says, "Sisters Panna Doshi and Greeta Springer's Indian heritage provides endless inspiration for their graphic interpretations of the quintessential gold bangle." Who is this Panna Doshi and Greeta Springer?? I want to know more!

4. Kate Spade New York Mugs. I recently won the mug (middle) from Girl ABout Town. The illustration and touch of gold makes it a fun mug for drinking tea while catching up on my magazines.

5. Denim/Chambray button up. This shirt would look great with my red corduroy pants.

6. Mini Goals Notepad. Do I really need another goals notepad? No, but this one illustrated by Mary Kate McDevitt is too cute to resist.

7. Trinket Flats with Bow. Bright orange flats adorned with a trinket bow is a must-have.

Mara Hoffman Fall 2011

Great looks in a palette I love from Mara Hoffman.

For Your Weekend

A few things you should do this weekend:

1. Look for inspiration. Go to a bookstore with your sketchbook or notebook and pick up some books or magazines about art, design or fashion. Buy it or plop down in a cozy corner and enjoy while you doodle and jot down ideas. Or go into the city and hangout at a coffeeshop to sketch. Check out an exhibition at a museum and just sit and look, think, and admire what you see.

2. Take a nap. I know I will be taking at least one after a very sleep deprived week.

3. Say hello. As we get older it is a bit more challenging to make new friends, but not impossible. Sometimes it starts with a "hello." Go to an event with a laid-back atmosphere (gallery opening, trunk show, panel discussion) and introduce yourself to someone. You never know what can blossom from meeting someone new.

4. Buy new music. I'm a big Drake fan and I am really enjoying his latest album Take Care. Have a listen and let me know what you think. Or download some songs you haven't heard in a while (I just bought some fun singles from Mya's early days — remember this one??)

5. Save the Date. If you live in or around the D.C. area please save the date for Dec. 8th for a Fly event!

Fly Spotting: Fort Jesus in Kenya

Fly Spot: Fort Jesus, Mombasa, Kenya

Fort Jesus is a Portuguese fortress built in 1593 in Mombasa, which is now Kenya's second largest city and located at its coast. Most guidebooks always focus on the fort and its interior (which is fascinating) but ignore the great atmosphere that has developed around it. It is a great place to hang out, either tasting street food at the food stalls outside (like cassava or banana crisps sprinkled with chili ("pilipili") powder), browsing the nearby crafts market, watching kids playing football at the base of the fort or visiting the narrow streets of Old Town Mombasa. The whole area captures the vibrant and diverse Swahili culture located at the Kenyan coast.

Another wonderful fly spot written and photographed by Debs. See Debs' first post here.

Want to submit a fly spot in your town? Click here to learn how.