Be merry this holiday season and join SJ FAM and Satori Tea Company for a delightful afternoon filled with fashion, art, music, charity and culture. Relax over a cup of tea and live music or peruse through a mini Moroccan bazaar where guests may participate in henna tattoo art, A Beauty Bar and some shopping!

This event will benefit CAREER CLOSET, an organization dedicated to empowering women to re-enter the… workplace equipped with everything they need to make a great first impression, land the job they want, and improve their lives. We encourage guests to dig into their closets and donate any unused work clothing, which can be used for another woman’s brighter future. Women’s professional clothing that is new or nearly new, clean, and on hangers, gently worn shoes and handbags are acceptable. Receive an additional raffle ticket for every garment you bring in!

So put on your Sunday’s best ensemble and join us for a lovely afternoon of good friends, good tea and a good cause!

$20 admission includes tea tasting, tea bites, henna art, beauty bar and live music by DJ Cutso.

Satori Tea Company
37 N San Pedro St, San Jose, CA 95110
*Complimentary parking available in San Pedro garage until 6pm.*

Reservations required. Please call (408) 493-0554 or email rsvp@sjfam.com

Visit our Merry Moroccan Holiday Facebook event page here
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Vendors:
A Beauty Bar
Ayoma LifeSpa
Henna World
Ruthie Gems

There were a few stops to peruse through before entering the main ballroom. Donated wine, jewelry, makeup and even my favorite water, Smart Water, were present to show you their new products or to give you a make over (thank you Christal Clear Cosmetics!). Why not right, you’re at a fashion show?!

On to the highlight of the night, the fashion show. I must say, this particular part of the evening, was beautifully crafted. There were four segments featured: Elegance of Yesteryear (Roaring 20’s, elegant 40’s and 50’s), the Little Black Dress, Eco Street Wear and Eco Evening Wear. The clothes featured were made from recycled garments transformed into ready to wear glamour. I was amazingly pleased by the “couture-like” feel that each piece brought down the runway. Museum quality fashions were borrowed from Goodwill’s collection that included elegant lace skirts and tops, custom fit shawls and hats by Melissa Bolin of Kitty Andres Millinery.  I was intoxicated by the intricate details these “yesteryear” pieces exuded, the silhouettes and feminine details that brought out the best of a woman’s features. Think of all the detailed garments from the Victorian and 1920’s flapper era, the custom made jackets and long skirts, the soft pink hues and silks, chiffon and organza, yes ladies, it was beautiful. I can tell from the looks of other women around me, these fashion pieces which were no longer used and donated to GoodWill, all looked like treasure in our eyes.

Now you’re probably wondering, how is this type of fashion green? Not only were pieces from the show made from recycled garments, it also featured pieces made from fashion designers who are green. My new favorite eco chic company, Amour Vert adorned us with beautiful ready to wear dresses that made you want to buy right then there, well for me at least. Not only does this company design beautiful garments, they thoroughly examine the process of natural and organic fabrics to keep chemicals off of your skin and out of the soil. By manufacturing entirely in the USA, Amour Vert strengthens and supports local communities, and at the same time lowers the carbon footprint of their products.

The night ended with three trophies given to local designers for Best Little Black Dress, Best Eco-Street Design and Best Eco-Evening wear.  Proceeds from the event will help Goodwill of Silicon Valley to retrain and repurpose people with barriers to employment for a sustainable workforce in our community. Leaving the event, I was thankful to attend, and most importantly, thankful for organizations like these for putting on events to bring people together for the sake of good will.

Enjoy the fashion pics!

Syncopated beats, samples and sounds from outer space—the Bangerz produce music that resonate with every ear they infiltrate.

These six guys from East Side San Jose were just a crew that started DJing during lunch at Silver Creek High School. They began playing the club scene, winning battles and major turntable competitions, and released their debut album in 2003. That album, a collection of experimental electronic music made its way into the hands of the Jabbawockeez, a dance crew that has their own show in Vegas—MUS.I.C. [muse-eye-see]—now in its third run.

And now, these six East Side boys are back, this time dropping their first single off the Jabbawockeez album—“The Robot Remains”—on iTunes today.

“The single is the flag over the new movement with the Jabbawockeez,” says DJ Cutso. “It’s the Jabbawockeez produced by the Bangerz. It sounds like death.”

The new song to the much anticipated follow-up to the 2003 VI.R.US album is described by Cutso as a strong song—heavy but not without pop sensibility. It’s catchy and unconventional, with minimal vocals.

“We all do our side projects and as a crew; we were silent for some time,” says DJ G-Wrex. “This is us saying to our fans out there, ‘We’re still here.’ Hopefully, people will feel that shit.”

It’s been a long, colorful road for the Bangerz. For those that have been following them since their beginnings 12 years ago, the group will always be the Fingerbangerz Crew, but regardless of name changes, things are just getting better.

“Hopefully, this will be a seed planter,” says DJ Squareweezy. “This is what Voltron can do.”

The group considers itself lucky to have met the guys from the Jabbawockeez when they did. Both groups were starting out and when the Jabbawockeez dance crew heard a few choice tracks off of VI.R.US, the future was laid out.

“It was a shot in the dark,” Cutso says of the debut album. “It was a complete turn-tablist album. No one was on that at the time. We really weren’t sure if people would get it but the Jabbawockeez got it and provided a visual.”

The dance sensation on MTV’s “America’s Best Dance Crew” kept audience glued to the screen and the Bangerz provided the soundtrack.

“They were huge,” Cutso says of the Jabbawockeez. “It’s been a fun experience and we had no idea where this alliance would take us.”

The Bangerz provided exclusive beats for the dance crew, and the two became one.

“The Jabbawockeez gave us a mainstream audience,” Custo says.

Not that the Bangerz didn’t already have a cult following. Each of the six members has put out solo albums, remixes and have toured all around the country—some around the globe.

But the moment when the guys realized people were paying attention was at a gig in Fremont.

“Hundreds of people were there,” Cutso says. “It was a showcase for church talent. Some of us used to be part of youth groups. There were six turntables and the screams from the crowd were deafening. It was definitely a landmark gig.”

The idea of six talented turn-tablists working together may be hard to understand—with side projects and adequate space always being an issue—but the guys are down to earth, most still living in San Jose and working in the Bay Area.

“Before being a DJ production crew, we are a family,” says DJ Nick Ngo. “We’ve been with each other for 12 years. We might like different things but it’s six of us coming up with a style. All of us know what good music sounds like. This album is made up of just that—various sounds.”

The process goes something like this—someone starts with a beat. This sets the tone for the finished product. It gets mixed up, put on a disc and then sent along to the next guy and so on.

“At the end of the day, this is our passion,” says DJ Replay. “It’s what means the most to us.”

And the guys want to be very clear about one thing.

“Our sound is a product of our environment,” Custo says.

“We were never held back because of our location,” Squareweezy says. “You make a lot of noise, it doesn’t matter where you’re at. People will pay attention.”

San Jose doesn’t always come up at the top of the conversation when it comes to hotbeds for music and art and culture, but the guys assure us that it’s here. It always has been.

“A lot of outsiders don’t think of San Jose as a music center, but the Bay Area is the epicenter,” says DJ Goldenchyld. “And if anyone wants to battle, step up.”

For more information, visit www.thebangerz.com or look them up on Facebook under the Fingerbangerz Crew.

Story by m. flores

Take their debut album, Thickets and Stitches, and you can go from funk to lazy folk all within a couple of tracks. Singer and guitarist Will Sprott’s voice floats above the music, his drawl hanging from word to word. If you haven’t already heard their music, it’s a must. The group’s second album, Don’t Throw Me Away offers even more variety with horns and harmonicas echoing through tracks, equal parts blues, folk and 1950s pop sounds. The group plays tonight, its first show at San Francisco’s Fillmore, opening up for Morcheeba.

You cannot talk with artists or musicians alike in San Jose and not mention the Mumlers. In fact, they usually make the mention first and share stories about high school, or parties or strange encounters. The Mumlers grew up in San Jose and chose to stay in their hometown, even after being signed to Galaxia Records. Fresh off a six-week tour and a collaboration effort with San Jose’s Left Coast Live, Will Sprott shares some interesting happenings (and people) from their journey to date.

SJ FAM: Of all the locations you were able to play at, what stands out most?

Will: My favorite venue was in Birmingham, Alabama—the Bottle Tree. When you’re on tour, you’re hungry and don’t get to take showers as often as you want to. Here, they had a huge box of socks waiting for us. You don’t understand, socks are like gold. It was the greatest thing, free socks, a great meal and silver airstreams out back so that you don’t have to stay in a hotel.

SJFAM: What has been your strangest show?

Will: One time, we got asked to play a boat festival in San Francisco. It was yacht day or something. Anyway, they offered us a lot of money and it was only four days in advanced and they needed a musical act. We’re not sure how they found us but we said sure. They told us they were expecting half a million people at the festival and we get there and it’s set up for a huge crowd, huge metal barriers to create a buffer 15 feet between the stage and it’s on the pier. There’s a really elaborate sound system and it was just a monster stage. We’re used to playing stages that are cramped but here we were all spread out. We played for two hours for a crowd of about three people. We had a lot of fun playing for nobody. It was really bizarre.

SJ FAM: Your artwork, both on fliers and on your album covers are distinct. Who does the work?

Will: The majority of show fliers I do myself but we do have a few people that send us artwork. If anyone asked me, I say sure. I love to draw. That was my sort of passion growing up. I don’t mind drawing flyers but I don’t have much time to do it. There’s a girl, Maxine from San Jose, that has done a few. That’s been really neat. The cover for our last album was done by Mitsy Avila Ovalles. She’s from San Jose and is friends with a couple of our band members. I’m a big admirer of her artwork. She’s my favorite artist from San Jose. The first album cover was done by Lori Damiano. I really liked her drawing. She’s an animator, not out of San Jose.

SJFAM: Who would be your “dream” show with?

Will: If we could play with someone like Otis Redding, the best performer of all time. It would have been really amazing to share a stage with him. At Left Coast Live last year, we got to play with Booker T and that was amazing too. Definitely Buddy Holly, Cam Calloway, Howlin’ Wolf, and Beatles.

SJFAM: What’s the one thing you always make sure to pack?

Will: My guitar.

The Mumlers open for Morcheeba at the Fillmore tonight, 8 p.m.

Story By m. flores, Photos courtesy Josh Marcotte of Lost San Jose

San Jose Fashion, Art, and Music (SJ FAM) will be hosting the second annual Art & Sole, a charity shoe auction and concert. Art & Sole will take place at the Courtyard, located at the beautiful Hotel Valencia on Wednesday, September 1, 2010 from 6-8pm.

The premise is to showcase the talent and creativity of local artists using shoes as their canvas. SJ FAM inspires to create two visions from Art & Sole; to establish a network of fundraising events for charities, and to bring awareness to local artists. The affluent young and hip audience SJ FAM hopes to attract will also realize, through Art & Sole, that the city renowned for being the capital of Silicon Valley is also a growing haven for art and culture.

Art & Sole has selected San Jose Downtown Association’s (SJDA) Downtown Doors as this year’s beneficiary. Downtown Doors is a youth art competition and exhibit that brings together talented high school artists and property owners, resulting in public art displays that enhance downtown San Jose’s urban landscape. Art & Sole will also broker direct donations to SJDA’s Downtown Doors for those individuals that cannot make the event. Admission to Art & Sole grants access to an array of entertainment, including a silent shoe auction, live art by featured local artists, live performance by local singer Amy Serrata, music by DJ Sig-O, and give a-ways. In addition, raffle tickets will be given to each person that makes a donation. Proceeds for charity will come from the silent auction, donations, and the $10 admission charge.

Featured artists for this year’s Art & Sole are:

Orly Locquiao

Colin Baker

Erikka Hugger

Mike Aveno

Jorynn Villar

We invite all to join us on this special night of art and music. This is a great way to support your local artists and enjoy a beautiful evening, while giving back to a worthwhile cause. To learn more about Art & Sole or for media and sponsorship opportunities contact SJ FAM at (408) 493-0554 or info@sjfam.com.

RSVP here on Art & Sole’s Facebook Event Page.

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About San Jose Downtown Association’s Downtown Doors

Downtown Doors is a youth art competition and exhibit that brings together talented high school artists and property owners, resulting in public art displays that enhance downtown San Jose’s urban landscape. There are 37 doors that display students’ artwork. Each year funding for more and more high school art programs diminish leaving a crucial gap in student education. Supplemental programs, such as Downtown Doors, assist art teachers in narrowing this gap and help encourage youth to get involved in art programs, which in turn provides youth with a constructive, positive outlet and improves self-esteem. Downtown Doors, helps students improve their budding artistic skills while positively impacting and enhancing the aesthetics of downtown San Jose.

About San Jose Fashion, Art, and Music

San Jose Fashion, Art, and Music (SJ FAM) is an upcoming organization embracing the growing fashion, music, and art community in the city renowned for being the capital of Silicon Valley.

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Thank you to all our amazing sponsors!

“I see these colors and just don’t know what to do with it all,” she says with excitement in her voice. Her eyes get large and her movements a bit faster as she points out the newly blooming fuchsia flowers around her home in East San Jose.

Her home has various examples of this hanging from her walls—seascapes in every hue of blue imaginable.

“Big and bright and loud,” Sanjuro says of the colors that inspire her. “I believe in reincarnation and I must have done this in a past life because it came so naturally.”

Of course, she is talking about her art. She isn’t classically trained as an artist. In fact, she studied journalism at Cal Poly and worked in the marketing and advertising industry before she fell into her  current place as a small business owner.

She started Munio-Ink in 2006 as a T-shirt company, printing her images onto eco-friendly, fashion forward tees. When she started designing the marketing material for the business, paint on skin made sense. She began painting beautiful seascapes onto her good friend’s skin and the result was very well received.

Before the business, art was something she’s always done.

“I’ve been doing art since I was big enough to hold a pencil,” Sanjuro says with a bright smile.

As a little girl, she colored everything. She’d take her mother’s lipstick and paint her whole face, the brighter the colors, the better.

“I love coloring, blending colors, contrasting them,” she says. “I’m obsessed with it. Drawing is just a means to an end.”

She has also been inspired by all things in nature.

“The flowers, the ocean the color of fish and the patterns and textures, they all inspire me,” she says. “But there’s something specifically about the ocean. It’s peaceful but there’s a fiery intensity about it all.”

Sanjuro’s excitement over color, art and the natural world is infectious and she plans to spread that at Seaskin the exhibit at Kaleid tonight, from 6 to 9 p.m. It’s her first official show, in her hometown no less and she hopes people will be excited. The proceeds of the show will all be going to Oceana, an organization that focuses on ocean conservation. And although she won’t have any of her human subjects on hand, she will have some equally impressive stand-ins.

“This is my coming out as an artist,” Sanjuro says. “I’m as excited as I am nervous. There’s a theme and a cause. Art and music and charity can all go together real easily.”
She was first interested in raising money for Oceana when she learned more about the epidemic of shark fining.

“They are such an essential part of an ecosystem,” Sanjuro says.” Because the ocean inspires me so much I wanted to help these powerful creatures have a voice. If my paint can help them have a voice, I feel like I’m doing something positive.”

Seaskin happens tonight, 6 to 9 p.m. at Kaleid Gallery, 88 So. 4th Street. $10 donation at the door goes to Oceana. For more information, visit www.munio-ink.com.

Story and photos by. m. p. flores

The quiet man, with his black-rimmed glasses and driving cap draws quietly on an oversized dry erase board. Two large pieces of found wood hang side by side, both with images of women.

He speaks softly about his art and where he gets his inspiration (from his fiancé Angela Marquez, by the way) and what it’s like to have his work on display.

“Part of the reason I decided to put myself out there was that everyone is warm and very supportive here in San Jose,” Dion “dna” Bello says. “If I thought that people would be negative, then what would be the point?”

His style of artwork is a free-flowing one, with no themes, no parameters, no rules.

“It’s easier creatively,” he says. “It doesn’t have to have a narrative. It lets other people figure it out. It can be abstract.”

His choice of medium consists of various found pieces with interesting textures.

“Canvas is expensive, for one, and wood allows texture in the background,” Bello says. “Canvas looks too traditional. You expect something on canvas. This way, things are more loose, and I have creative freedom.”

Freedom is something that resonates with Bello and the key philosophy he held onto when owner of South First Billiards, Ben, approached him after the Heart of Chaos UpRoar 2009 show to put together a show for March.

“I didn’t want to put a theme to the show,” Bello says. “I don’t want to stifle people like that. I wanted them to create something from their own minds. Themes limit you.”

With the help of fellow artists and friends Dee Jae Pa’este and Anabella Piñon dna created the first Illuskrate show.

“The response has been good,” he says with a grin. “I’m pretty stoked. People are buying my stuff and really, I just paint to sell my work to afford to keep painting.”

Bello studied graphic design at the Academy of Art and has his own personal studio in his home in Evergreen. He grew up in Virginia but at the age of 11 moved to San Jose and has been a transplanted native ever since.

Dna just tied up his show at the Usuals clothing boutique on the Alameda and is now gearing up for his fifth show, Illuskrate 2 at South First Billiards. Prior to that, he made his debut at UpRoar 2009, an annual show that Heart of Chaos puts on. Since then, he contributed a zine to the Art of Zines show at Anno Domini and put on the first installment of Illuskrate.

Dion “dna” Bello’s next show is Illuskrate 2, July 2 at South First Billiards, 420 So. 1st Street, San Jose. For more information, visit www.illuskrate.blogspot.com.

–By m. p. flores

At least that’s what Jae Locquiao says. He’s been taking care of the blogs, the updates and distribution and acting as the business and operations manager for the line during its relatively short existence. Launched in November 2008, Cukui Clothing combines street ware with tattoo art, Polynesian and Chicano cultures and all things San Jose.

Literally speaking, Cukui in Hawaiian means “candlenut,” and the tree from which it grows. The candlenut is a symbol of enlightenment, protection and peace.

In Spanish, it depicts a boogieman of sorts within Mexican-American lore.

“Everything that’s around us inspires us,” Jae says.

The company is made up of three guys, giants really, within the local scene—Orly Locquiao of Humble Beginnings Tattoos, Sam Rodriguez of Shorty Fatz and Jae Locquiao.

Jae is Orly’s younger brother. He went to Independence High School and moved on to Devry to go into Computer Science, but his love of shoes and T-shirts never died down. “I loved to collect Jordans and you had to have a matching shirt to go with it,” he says. At one point, he admits to having a closet full of the coveted sneakers. And he’s not alone.

The popularity of the brand brings Cukui into its fourth season of clothing, after a strong start three seasons ago using photos that Orly had taken and hand-drawing over them. The guys get their inspirations from their travels, from their family and friends but Jae says that their home plays an equally important role.

“A lot of the inspiration behind the thought process is from here,” Jae says. “With fashion, you could think of SF, LA … but San Jose is also a melting pot of lifestyles. We could leave for growth but want to make our own identity. We want to make a name for San Jose.”

Images of black and white photography of moody profile shots, intricate tattoo scripts and throwback-inspired advertising all are small parts of a whole lot of T-shirt design. This is what the company primarily sells as well as hats, but Cukui is also branching out to outer ware, sweaters and women’s clothing, possibly even accessories.

“The possibilities are endless,” Jae says. “We want the brand to grow into itself but T-shirts will always be our staple.”

The clothing company’s products are sold in 10 shops within the United States as well as in Japan and now in the UK. And the trio are well on their way to putting San Jose on the fashion map, ramping things up with the success of the line and now opening up their first location in San Jose in August, in historic Japantown no less.

“Orly has a huge following as well as Sam.” Jae says. “Between them, it builds this whole brand.”

For more information, visit www.cukui.com.

–By m. p. flores

On Saturday, July 17, 2010, Munio-Ink, San Jose Fashion Art Music (SJ FAM), and Kaleid Gallery present SeaSkin. Featured artist, Sandy Munio-Sanjurjo will showcase unique, contemporary artwork inspired by the beauty of the Sea. From mixed media pieces to portraits of body painted subjects, Sandy expresses her oceanic passion with a sexy new twist.

Sandy has chosen Oceana as the beneficiary of this exciting art showcase. Oceana’s vision “seeks to make our oceans as rich, healthy and abundant as they once were.” Proceeds for the charity will come from the auction, donations, and the $10 admission fee.

We invite all to join us on this special night of art and music. This is a great way to support local artists and enjoy a beautiful evening, while giving back to a worthwhile cause.

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About Oceana:
Oceana, founded in 2001, is the largest international organization focused solely on ocean conservation. With offices in North America, Central America, South America and Europe, Oceana builds strategic and directed campaigns that will help return our oceans to former levels of abundance. They believe in the importance of science in identifying problems and solutions. Their scientists work closely with their teams of economists, lawyers and advocates to achieve tangible results for the oceans.

About Sandy:
“I’m not a “tree-hugger”. I’m not a radical environmentalist. I’m just a person who paints. My art is inspired by a world that is desperately in need of our guardianship. I am compelled, I am determined and I am inspired.”

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To donate securely online, please visit:

http://sites.google.com/site/munioinkseaskin/home

May 01, 2010

On Saturday May 1^st at 12 p.m. and 3 p.m. Santana Row’s most popular summer event, A Poolside Soiree, returns to showcase the coolest looks for a hot summer in the most summer-y of spots—poolside at Santana Heights, Santana Row’s resort-style residential complex.

Two runway fashion shows will feature the newest styles from Santana Row retailers including legendary bridal retailer Priscilla of Boston.

Tickets are $40 and include poolside

For more information, please visit: www.santanarow.com/events/