Sketches / #Girlboss in NYC

I finally blogged! It's been forever, I've been hanging out all summer long in the greatest city in the world, New York City! And it really is the greatest city, there are a million great events to go to everyday, drawing events, comic jams, outdoor movies, yoga in Central Park. And yesterday was Sophia Amoruso's paperback book launch for #GIRLBOSS at Barnes & Noble in Union Square.

I remember first discovering the Nasty Gal website in university when one of my cool girl classmates told me about it, I loved it and always checked back to see what was new. They have such a strong look. You could just tell all the women at the event were huge fans too, everyone had that Nasty Gal 'look', there was lots of black, in mesh, lace and lacey mesh, 'marsala' (which Sophia said was huge for this season), floppy hats, dark lips and platform shoes. So while we waited for the event to start, there was a lot of marshaling to be done seeing as there were 500+ eager gals there, I made some sketches to pass the time.

Sophia had lots of awesome wisdom tid-bits during the talk, some of my faves were:

"Money looks better in your bank than on your feet." Cha-Ching! So true.

On creating your dream job.
"Professionalize what you love doing, that's what I did with vintage clothing."

From a Q+A from an aspiring stylist.
"Take quality photos of all your looks, get a Squarespace. Archive everything."

Well you know I love female role models (Hi Hillary!) and the entrepreneur spirit, so of course I can't wait to finally read the book. Plus! The book has amazing badassy illustrations by Jo Radcliffe.

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Streetstyle and Snapshots From Art Basel 2015

 A cool attendee dressed down in pink sequins with cuffed jeans and spiky sneakers.

Ok! Art Basel is probably the funnest month here in Hong Kong, there are a gazillion events everywhere in the city and hot graffiti artists for you to swipe and meet on Tinder, not to mention the show itself. Here are the streetstyle illustrations and photos spotted from my day there.  

I drew a boy! Even though my Twitter bio says I don't know how to draw boys. The stylish visitor was wearing a Topman peacock tee-shirt against a giant swirling Sterling Ruby canvas at Gagosian - and you know I can't resist a good pattern or two.

Tracey Emin at Lehmann Maupin.

Click through for some [IMG HEAVY] coverage from the show this year.

10 Minute Fashion Figures

A few loose and fast streetstyle fashion figures I painted in gouache, pencil and charcoal. I made these a couple of months ago to use in a promo to advertise my new live fashion illustration service, then I got super busy and never had a chance to share them with you guys on the blog. So, here they are now!

My favourite is the first one inspired by this photo of Arizona Muse, I love mini-dresses, and especially with her mile long legs in those over the knee boots, muah!

The prints are available on my Etsy shop TheMarrow if you're interested, they make a great set framed for a fashion girl's apartment wall art.

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Live Drawing / TST + My First Video!

A few weeks ago in an effort to challenge myself I decided to set myself up in, Tsim Sha Tsui, a super busy part of Hong Kong near the harbour and try doing live portraits on the streets for the first time. It was terrifying but also really rewarding and fun.

Doing street portraits is something I've always wanted to try, but was terrified of. I had discussed the idea quietly to a few of my close friends and even mentioned it to my mom. They all thought it was a great idea and encouraged me to go for it. But I still wasn't sure. Wouldn't it be weird? No one invited me to do it? Can I really just set up on the street? What if I invite everyone to come and then I get kicked out or questioned by the police?
 

I've always been really into this idea of artists that took advantage of whatever small circumstances around them at the time and used it to bring their work out on to the street and use it as a chance to continually work on their craft. For example, I love the story of Jean-Michel Basquiat who as a young man sold painted t-shirts and postcards on the streets of Manhattan in order to make money. 

I wanted to do something like that!

Why not take advantage of Hong Kong's lack of busking regulations, I've seen lots of young people setting up in Mong Kok either doing caricatures or playing music. Why shouldn't I do it? While I'm still young and living in the city.

The older I get the more I realize that opportunity is not something that is given, you have to take it.

"Many people have the perception that you have to be granted power, when in reality, you just have to claim it. Power isn’t limited to the possession or command over others. Power is the currency of making $%!^ happen." -- Denna Varshavskaya

So I mustered up my courage and made a Facebook event to let my friends know and posted to my Instagram to tell my followers what I would be up to. I knew I would feel so much more comfortable if even a handful of my friends were around.

My friend Jessica and three super stylish girls who are studying at SCAD, they had seen my invite on Instagram and came out to support! Thanks so much girls for stopping by, you are all so wonderful.

As the night progressed, the more portraits I did, the more confident I became and it was evident (at least to me) that I was getting better. Throughout the day lots of beautiful stylish friends stopped by, including blogger Sybil Kot, aka The Style Voyager. Can you spot her? Hint: look for the signature hair flip!

Polaroids from street photographer Dicky Lai.

And without further ado, the video! Check it out for all the action that day as filmed by the super talented Josh Tam at Josh Takes Photos. He did a beautiful job of capturing the energy of the day. We started at 3pm and as the sun set and evening came around the pier was buzzing with lots of pedestrians and a handful of young local street musicians. It felt great to be sketching in that environment and to be a part of a group who were bring more art and creativity to the streets and people of Hong Kong, however transient.

 

The video and screenshots were all filmed by Josh Tam of Josh Takes Photos, get in touch with him here.

And some more link karma! Ann from Kremb de la Kremb stopped by to get a livesketch that day and wrote a really sweet post with lots of great photos, go check it out on her blog.

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Streetstyle / Affordable Art Fair - 4 Best Looks Illustrated

Who: Lulu, works in finance.
Loving: For the print obsessed, artist Emma Hack was on site with a live art demonstration. Where she painted a model's body to camouflage her into an elaborate floral backdrop.

This past Friday, at the Arty-licious evening during the Affordable Art Fair, hundreds of chic art lovers convened to gather inspiration, drink a few cocktails and pick up some new pieces for their homes. So I stopped by pen and notebook in hand to illustrate some of the best looks from the evening and to find out what was on everyone's to-buy list for Sassyhongkong.com.

Keep reading to see my four other favourite looks and some photos from the fair.

Sketches / Streetstyle at Hong Kong's Fashion Night Out 2013

Emma in a one of a kind Tangram floor length dress with a blue Hawaiian print paired with geometric patterned flats from Square Street.

 The Bumbys.

Guess what! It's Fashion Night Out in Hong Kong again. How fast a year goes by I still remember it like yesterday making needlework with artist Suzie Stanford and eating thrice my share of salted caramel XTC gelato.

The Bumbys were there this year. They are an anonymous performance art duo who will give you "a fair and honest appraisal of your appearance". I hadn't heard of them until visiting the FNO website but immediately upon reading I was seized with jealous for not coming up with the idea myself and vowed to go early to get a glance and a judge. And early I went, at 6pm Friday night my friend and I got into the IFC Lane Crawford and found them, Theee Bummmmbys, tap tap taping away on their 80's style typewriters and so we got in line. But alas, we had misread the fine print and The Bumbys were a with purchase only activity and we were promptly kicked out of line left wondering if our outfits had been good enough for the red duo.

Matching candy coloured dolly outfits.

Blogger Nick Chan.

JJ Acuna, aka The Wanderlister in front of the entrance.

The Moustache Cocktail Bar.

In prep school girl looks: a sky blue dress with beautiful godet detail paired with a cat photo print clutch and a light wash jean jacket. Her friend in a cable knit sweater, raw silk pleated skirt and brogues, naturally.

It was a fun night, I was really happy for a chance to get out of the house and be social again after being sick for so long. And it was a nice chance to meet new friends and see old ones.

Hope you enjoyed the sketches! They're ball point pen (my new favourite these days, so loose and fuss free) and coloured digitally.

Vintage Hawaiian Print Girl and Prep School prints without watermark are for sale on my print shop if you loved 'em and wanna have them in your homes! 

Check out last year's Fashion Night Out post here.

Fashion Week Streetstyle Sketches Inspired by Vanessa Jackman

Some sketches I've been doodling over the past few days. I got a 30 pack of really affordable watercolour paper at Hong Kong Art Supplies Professional in Mong Kok last week and since then I've have just been painting with abandon.

I've also been listening to Sam Weber's intimate chatty podcast where he interviews an illustrator or designer each episode, it's called My Dreams, Your Nightmares and if you work or want to work in this industry you should really check it out. The Melinda Beck episode is my favourite so far, she is so charismatic and inspiring, and the music selection for the show is always spot on and educational.

All these sketches were inspired by scrolling through streetstyle photographer Vanessa Jackman's beautiful blog, she captures light and women's faces so beautifully. Enjoy!

Streetstyle Sketches from Art | Basel HK on TheWanderlister+

Really excited to announce my collaborative post with TheWanderlister+ on streetstyle at Art | Basel HK 2013! The post is up now so make sure you head over to theWanderlister.com to see my post and the latest art, style and design news in Asia.

Much of the art fair is spent calling friends who you have lost along the way. Why not do it chicer than thou in gold sandals, white jeans and long bouclé jacket and a matching quilted Chanel.

Every year there is a one most magical night in Hong Kong for style watching and that night is called Art Basel Vernissage (formally known as ARTHK).

Every year I go camera in hand to get inspired by the art and also by the stylish people in attendance. That's how I met theWanderlister, JJ.Acuna, two years ago, he was wearing the Cambridge satchel that my friends and I had been coveting that month so I introduced myself for a snap. But pro photographer I am not, I get nervous, the most beautiful people always sneak away and the resulting photos never capturing what I was looking for.

So this year I decided to try something different and to try sketching instead. Here are some of my favourite looks from the preview night in watercolour and pencil, enjoy!

A sleek leopard column dress in front of a neon green abstract at Booth 1B03.

Nervous about taking photos I usually try to sneak shots but Elle of ElleIconLee was kind enough to pose for me wearing an elegant purple jumpsuit. 

A stylish expectant mother in front of the Swire Design Booth wearing a billowing Arts and Crafts kimono and converse sneakers. 

There were red dresses a plenty this year, myself included. Here it's paired with fringed platform booties and an ombre blonde bob.

A gallery assistant with big tortoise shell frames.

So, what do you think of our collaboration? Should we do more? I've got more posts to come from Hong Kong's very first Art | Basel on here very soon.
And finally a huge thank you to JJ, the editor of TheWanderlister+ for having me on his site!

Streetstyle Sketch / Stripes in Shibuya

Stripes in Shibuya, 2013.

Pencil, gouache and Photoshop.

Streetstyle | Haute Hippie

How cute is this little drawing? Done really quickly using my Wacom tablet on Photoshop.

Wearing: H&M chiffon dress, felt hat I bought at Dongdaemun on my trip to Seoul, Korea last last Christmas, beautiful vintage Lancel drawstring bag I bought at a flea market in Paris which is now falling apart so very sadly, bangles from Fa Yuen St. Market and comfy Aerosoles 'snakeskin' cork wedges.

Ok, I is cheated, these aren't actual Polaroids. Created using these amazing Polaroid Generator Photoshop actions.

Hope you guys are having a nice weekend!

Susie Bubble doing the lean.

Sketch of fashion blogger extraordinaire Susie Lau aka Style Bubble. I think the sweater turned out a lot more chav-tastic and a lot less high fashion than I expected. I'm lusting after those little low-heeled lavender Ferragamo pumps though!

From photo by Vanessa Jackman.

Just a quick little sketch in my notebook and then coloured on Photoshop.

Happy Sunday everyone! Hope you're talking it easy today and why not try some self-care this weekend and pamper your inner self?

Sketches: Pastel Creamsicle Girls

Creamsicle girls.

A quick sketch I did yesterday with pencil and gouache. I've been doing a lot of these little drawings on pieces of cardboard I find to de-stress. Art therapy! Sort of.

Updated with better photos! Until I can figure out how to scan things better taking photos is still the best way to capture the details of my illustrations. Maybe I'll make a lot of money one day and buy the Epson Expression 10000XL, which is the scanner illustrator Richard Kilory recommends for pencil work.

Taking a Detour This 2012

Photos:
1. Wearing a vintage dress, a belt I got at a clothing swap, H&M ring and MAC lady danger lipstick.
2. A reaaally cool crocodile design by London/HK illustrator Kristopher Ho.
3. Taking a photo with celebrity guest Joe Ma at the Crocodile x Detour event.
4. Here I am with my nominated design 'A Celebration' on display!

I'm back with a new blogpost and this one concludes my Growing Up in Hong Kong project! Thursday before last, my parents and I headed over to the Oasis Gallery (that should really be in quotation marks because we all know that 'gallery' is really the hallway in front of the Central escalators) to attend the Crocodile x Ambassadors of Design x DETOUR opening ceremony. There were lots of celebs, models and designers in attendance, including Lisa S., Amanda S. and Joe Ma.

An aside: as a thank you gift for the nominated designs Crocodile gave us all gift certificates and I took my dad shopping for new shirts and then I felt really validated as an artist or whatever (I'm being silly and that sounds pretentious but I was just really happy and excited that some art/craft/thing I've made could be turned into something tangible I could give to a loved one, so thank you Crocodile!)

After the ceremony my parents and I had a delicious lunch at Green Waffle on Graham Street. And then I headed over to Wanchai to meet my friend Phoebe for the Detour opening night party happening at the former Police Station.

1st row: Checking out the Instax Love display by photographer Rraay Lai. / Inside the prison of the former Wanchai Police Station, although now a heritage building we heard there were still cops working upstairs.
2nd row: Relaxing on the grass balcony art installation looking out onto Gloucester Rd.
3rd row: A selfie from the Crocodile opening. / Beautiful illustrations of really good looking Hong Kongnese hipsters by the illustrator Little Thunder seen at DETOUR. She also painted the beautiful Virgin Suicide leather jacket I've been lusting after ever since I saw it at Rat's Cave.

Speaking of shoppables, I also recommend you check out Mutt Museum's little stall of vintage fabric cheongsams at the DETOUR Maker's Fair.

Polaroid taken at the Hawkerama stalls at the DETOUR exhibition opening.

To see some cool art and to visit my little crocodile make sure you go check out DETOUR on until Sunday December 16th, at the former Police Station in Wanchai and the Oasis Gallery in Central, the latter being where my crocodile will be displayed.

And, if you've missed any of my previous posts about creating my installation for the Crocodile x DETOUR event you can catch them in the A Celebration in Process blogposts.