Tag Archives: branding

Give Me Tomatoes or Give Me Nail Polish: How American Apparel Missed a Handmade Opportunity

A couple of weeks ago, I bought a bottle of nail polish at American Apparel. I’d noticed how shiny and red my friend Sarah’s nails were while we were out to brunch that morning. She’d just bought that color along with a one of the grey hues from American Apparel. Given that we’re both design/branding nerds, we wound up talking about the controversial brand for a little bit.

Sarah told me the line of nail polish had just come out. It sounded unique because the colors were textile-based or had some other industrial influence, so people would see some shades in the line not typically found in other polish lines like OPI or Essie.

There happened to be an American Apparel in the neighborhood we were in, so after walking Sarah to her car, I headed over to check out the nail polish.

I picked up a color called Factory Grey. (I love the color grey.) It’s the second bottle from the right in the top row in the photo below. I snapped the shot with my phone and posted it to my microblog.

American Apparel Nail Polish In-Store Display, Jan. 18

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What’s in Yo’ Bag?

I have been simply mesmerized by this growing photo group on Flickr called What’s In Your Bag? I am especially taken by the photos from men, travelers and technophiles. The content of most men’s bags seem so streamlined. How do they get away with so little “stuff?”

Click the photo to see notes on my “stuff.”

What's In Yo Bag?

My bag’s contents vary on a weekly basis. Continue reading

Love via Fuzzy Bathrobe

Have you ever been rewarded by a company (brand, entertainer, etc.) for being a fan of their product or service? That happened to me today.

A hotel I love sent me an oversized, comfy zebra print bathrobe – the kind you always want to steal but even better – just because I follow them on Twitter and engaged with them.

Note says "Thanks for following us on Twitter. Congratulations!"

In June 2009, I traveled to California for the first time. After a weekend in San Diego, I headed to San Francisco a day early for my business trip just to hang out and explore the city. Continue reading