One Line Recap - TEDxDetroit

On Wednesday, I attended my first TED event: TEDxDetroit. I've watched dozens, maybe even hundreds of TED videos over the past couple of years, but this was my first live event. From 8AM to 6PM, it was all about expanding knowledge, connecting with like-minded people, and being amazed and getting motivated to go back and make a difference. If you ever have a chance, you need to attend a live event. It is 100-times more effective and powerful than watching the videos online.

I wanted to be sure to take from this event as much back with me as possible, so knew I had to simplify and condense it. I tried to recall from my college days of note-taking, this time in a Moleskin rather than typing away rapidly on a laptop. My goal was to take away at least one key point (or at least a one-line summary) from each speaker.

Christina Keller, Triple Quest
- LISTEN to the NEEDS of your target audience.

Matt Dibble, film maker
- ASK questions, LISTEN to the answers.

Tara Michener, "Who Am I" books for youth
- Giving back is a reward.

Rob Bliss, social event planner (Status Creative)
- It takes an idea and a community (and/or city government) to do cool stuff.

Julie Clark, Baby Einstein Company
- You can beat the odds, just TRY IT.

Randal Charlton, TechTown
- REBUILD Detroit.

Dr. Claude Prunea, Wayne State University
- Although it takes only one person to make a difference, it takes many more to create change.

Bobby Smith, En Garde Detroit
- "We must view young people not as empty bottles to be filled (with information), but as candles to be lit."

Veronika Scott, Empowerment Plan
- Detroit is the Wild West of Creativity; If there isn't a job available, Detroiters make it happen for themself.

Leonard, Detroit Symphony Orchestra
- Music plays a larger part in our lives than we give it credit to. Support music in public schools.

Ted Balowski, Hatch Detroit
- There is no better place to be an entrepreneur than in Detroit. Quit talking about it, just freakin' DO IT.

Haley, Detroit Improv 
- Decide what kind of day you will have: an "oh, shit" day or a "Hot shit!" day each morning you wake up. Go BOLD. Make a bold choice or no choice at all.

Dr. Anthony DeBenedet, author of The Art of Roughhousing
- Play for your future: empower Detroit by empowering the family.

Bob Sutherland, Cherry Republic
- Selling is not about making the logical argument to buy, it's about selling to the heart (which has brain cells and a stronger electrical pulse than the brain).

His other lessons were: express generosity, immerse customers in beauty, start gradual and become in expert the more you expand, be sincere with clients, work from the heart to touch hearts, and don't take yourself or your work too seriously.

Josh Linkner, ePrize founder
- (1) put passion first, (2) take the less conventional path, (3) aim through the window of the future, (4) let go in order to receive greatness, and (5) never cave to the insecurities or doubts of others.

Allie Merrick, serial idea generator (and member of the Authentivity Group)
- Yay, Allie! She had a great presentation about creative relativity. Her lesson plan discussed e=mc(2) where e = engagement with customers, m = the message, c = the communication, and c = to customers. Her overall message was to use common interests and knowledge between the two parties involved ino order to introduce new concepts.

Jeff Jorge, triathlon athlete
- Share your goals with others, become more efficient, the mind gives up before the body, and do not ask for permission to be extraordinary - just do it.

Charlie Cavell, Pay It Forward
- Build relationships and be on the same team in order to create positive change.

David Leider, Gas Station TV
- Find your inspiration and surround yourself with other hungry people to push you. Don't just talk about, DO IT.

They closed out the event in style with a live performance by the DAAS school choir:


To those who also attended TEDxDetroit: what did you get the most out of the day's sessions and speakers? What did you take from it that we can and should apply to our everyday lives?

"Tuxes and Tennies" Event Recap

Friday night was the big fundraiser event for the Humane Society of West Michigan. It took place on the Blue Bridge in Grand Rapids, above the Grand River and underneath over 100 metal monkeys as part of Dale Roger's ArtPrize entry.

(Some photos borrowed from Motley Cat Studio and Grand Rapids Social Diary) Adrienne had the distinct pleasure of wearing a pair of shoes I created 2 or 3 years ago, when I first started in shoes. They were created for a magazine photoshoot for an Atlanta area sneaker magazine, I think. I never really saw much after that from them. Anyways, they've been sitting on a shelf since then and happened to be her size, so... Why not, huh? People loved them! We thought that if she would have worn a cheese hat then she would have looked very similar to Nicki Minaj. They ended up being her magical dancing shoes. True story. She broke it down! You may remember awhile back that I had created 13 pairs of custom Converse All-Stars shoes for the party. Some of them were seen on select people's feet while others were the center pieces of the tables.
With the theme of "Tuxes & Tennies," and the fact that it was a fundraiser, we thought it was fitting to auction off the custom shoe design service.
Little did I know that they would ask me to speak.
They all stood up and chanted, "Speech! Speech! Speech!" Just kidding, they didn't really do that.
All in all, it was a great event and one that I was proud to be a part of. Thanks to all that were involved who helped make it into one we will remember.

One way to celebrate their 30th Anniversary, Merrell collaborated with the French boutiques: colette and Pigalle. A pretty good look for Merrell.

Don't Stare Too Long

This is completely random and unrelated to anything, but it's amazing the "tricks" your eyes can play on your mind.

For the first time, due to popular demand, we decided to produce a limited number of crewneck sweatshirts sporting the "We Run GVSU" and College Shoelace Script designs. They're only available on the T.WAY online store.

(Perfect for a crisp, Fall weather, college football Saturday!)

Rock'in the Rapids with T-Pain, Luda, and Joe Buys (video)

Recording artist, actor, and model, Joe Buys, made a trip home from LA for a special concert with T-Pain and Ludacris. Luckily, a camera was there for the ride on the road, back stage in the trailer, and everywhere else in between. Always DREAM IMPOSSIBLE, because if you do and have the work ethic to back it, you just might find yourself living your dream.

LIVE on the News with a Kitten and Shoes

To help promote next week's "Tuxes, Tennies, and Tails" fundraising event for the Humane Society of West Michigan, which I was fortunate enough to create 13 pairs of Converse high-tops for, we had some LIVE early morning news coverage at the humane society. Thanks to Fox17 and Emily Richett for coming out, and to Nikki and Nicole for putting on such a great and worthwhile event. They have so many awesome cats, dogs, and rabbits there available to adopt -- it was a miracle I didn't take one or two home with me.

If you're interested in attending the event on Friday, September 23rd, you can find more information and purchase tickets online!

  

Let's Go for a Trolley Ride - FNO

Last Thursday was Grand Rapid's version of the NYC Fashion's Night Out. This was the second year of the event but my first time attending. FNO had the whole city buzzing within the art/design/fashion circles. I had an early morning ahead of me, so I wasn't able to make my rounds to all of the participating stores, but I did make sure to visit my top picks. Participants were able to trolley-hop from store to store around the Grand Rapids for free, which created a unique experience in itself for many. Our first stop of the night was at A.K. Rikks, an extremely high-end men's and women's boutique. The second stop was at Lamb on Cherry Street. I've driven and walked by this store dozens of times and it has never been open, even during "normal" business hours. So, I was looking forward to finally being able to see what it is they actually sold. They had a bunch of great art + design books, a few pieces of furniture by Blu Dot, and my favorite: moleskin books! I just barely got in the door and snapped this first picture when I was immediately notified by a store worker that photographs were not permitted. Which, I must honestly say, is a rather stupid policy, especially on FNO when people are going out willing to share their store experience much more than they would on a usual shopping trip.
A beautiful building on Cherry St.
The third stop was to Richard App Gallery, which also happened to be a small pop-up shop for A.K. Rikks. They had it all: art, fashion, and little bites of food. The fourth and final stop was at none other than ACK. Need I say more? All in all, FNO was a great evening for Grand Rapids. It was a good time for the fashion and art people, for local business, and for the continued progression of GR as a whole. As FNO and the fashion industry continues to grow along side of ArtPrize, it may not be long until Grand Rapids really puts itself on the map.

Screenshot of the Day

Today's screenshot displays the finishing touches being made on the Joe Buys mini-documentary scheduled to be released tomorrow evening. I don't have the clearance to disclose any more information than that; You'll just have to come back tomorrow to see what it's about... 

On This Day 09-11-11

Grand Rapids Speaker Series: Fashion Forum

Last night, Rapid Growth Media put on the Fashion Forum as part of the "Not Your Average Speaker Series" at Wealthy Theatre.

The expert panel included (from left to right) stylist Kev Couture, Marianne Bockheim (Intelligent Beauty, LLC), Tiffany Skilling (The ModeLife), Jim Murray (AK Rikks), and Patrick Plank (Leighs).

Master of Ceremonies, Latesha Lipscomb, directed the panel through the topics of:
- current trends and what to expect in the upcoming seasons,
- the local fashion scene and how it compares to that of the big cities like Chicago and NYC,
- the opportunities for Grand Rapids to excel and grow to become a fashionable city,
- what it takes to survive as a fashion-related business venture,
- the important factors in fashion and ways to utilize staple items to repurpose outfit after outfit,
- and much, much more.

Just a few quick highlights taken from the event:
- Black is the new black. Layer it. Add texture, and possibly a splash of color.
- Fashion is freedom. Individualize fashion to fit your style sensitive to trends, but don't carbon copy.
Tonight is "Fashion's Night Out" in Grand Rapids. Make sure to visit the site (fashionsnightoutgr.com) to check out the map of the 58+ participating stores, learn about the evening's special events, and preview the deals during this one-night-only special event. The goal of FNO is to heighten awareness of local stores, boost the industry's economy, and put the fun back in shopping at various stores throughout Grand Rapids. Hope to see you out there tonight exploring the city and supporting local business!
 

NIKE Marty McFly's - COMING SOON?!

Remember the blog post back in August 2010 about the possible rumors of NIKE making the Marty McFly Air Mag? Well, apparently, they were true! Here's what Matt from NiceKicks.com had to say:

"When Nike gives you a call at midnight, you know it’s something good. With just a few hours notice Nike flew me out to LA for “a big announcement.” When they won’t tell you what it is until you get there, you know it’s something bigger than a new colorway of Dunks.

Upon arriving in the room, I found a box waiting for me with an iPod Shuffle with a personal message from Dr. Emmett Brown: “Welcome to Los Angeles. If my calculations are correct, over the next 24 hours you are about to see some SERIOUS SH*T!”

Inside the box was an invite from to “IT’S ABOUT TIME…an unveiling that could change the course of time” as well as metal shield glasses.
The table of goodies that included mid 80′s candy, Throwback Pepsi (forumla from 1985), and a copy of Back To The Future all but confirmed the suspicions.

About a year ago we shared with you these documents of the Marty McFly Nike Air Mag shoes registered with the US Patent Office. It looks like we’re getting closer to 2015 than we thought!"

[FHH] 9/11 Freedom Exhibit

[Fashion Has Heart] teamed up Fifth-Third Bank to hold a small, week-long exhibit honoring the 10th Anniversary of the 9-11-01. The exhibit features a variety of themed apparel and poster designs, the Flag of Honor, which lists the names of all those who were lost in the terrorist attacks, and the traveling [FHH] Freedom Wall.

The exhibit is open this week only during normal business hours and is located in downtown Grand Rapids at: 111 Lyon Street. Even if you're not a Fifth Third Bank customer, I'd recommend walking through the exhibit to experience the images and information presented which commemorate a historical event that has and will continue to shape our country and its history.  
Where were you 10 years ago?