WE'RE MOVING!!!

we're moving to BIGGER and BIGGER and BIGGER things...visit us at BIGBIGBIGTHINGS.COM!

thanks for reading!!!!!

BIG THINGS shop preview + trunk show!!!

i'd like to cordially invite all of you to the BIG THINGS shop preview and trunk show this coming thursday, october 7th at the silverman gallery in san francisco. the ladies of serial cultura, stars & ravens and micaela greg will be showing their most recent collections and i will be previewing some select pieces from my new online shop!

BIG THINGS is a collection of extraordinary objects to wear, admire, and use in your extraordinary life. gathered from around the world, the pieces speak to an audience appreciative of color, tradition, design, humor, and nature.

new mexican pueblo jewelry, turkish hand-woven textiles, greeting cards by gold teeth brooklyn, nutfang soft sculptures, kith & kind totes, tracy's friendship bracelets, vintage discoveries....and more more more!

hope to see you guys there! i've been working really hard and am sooooo excitedddddd!!!!

mathematical genius!

who would have thought that googling "pencils" would lead me to the incredible geometric work of george hart?! professor, engineer, writer, sculptor, puzzlemaker, and all-around awesome dude, george hart has credentials under his belt to knock any rocket scientist into space. but what's even more impressive is his love and enthusiasm for math, shapes, form, sculpture, and the sharing of that with people all over the world.

his website features his sculptural work, as well as puzzles, papers he's written, and documentation of lectures and programs he's participated in. there's mathcamp, puzzle conventions, university lectures; workshops in rome, taiwan, atlanta, michigan, kyoto; central park sculpture building and a bagel-slicing workshop at the whitney biennial in new york; and even a portable, $10 sculpture that he brought to burning man!!!

his online encyclopedia of polyhedra, which allows you to virtually create any polyhedron form, is also quite amusing even for those completely unaware of what the icosidodecadodecahedron, the rhombicosidodecahedron, or the small dodekic icosidodecahedron really are.

be sure not to miss the itty bit link in his bio, which says: "and if you like cookies, click here" for his recipe for trilobite-shaped cookies. could george hart be any cooler?!? i don't think so!!! he is my new hero!!!

hot and heavy

steamy sex scenes, bashing out brains, firey flames, cigarette smoking, wizard of oz references, lipstick-ed faces, 90s lace and red suede pumps, a snakeskin jacket, gwar, new orleans, boobs, tons of car crashes, murder, jealousy, hitmen....we obviously watched david lynch's wild at heart. i really haven't seen any his movies (lost highway freaked me out as a teenager and i never came back!) so this was definitely a wild ride into his land of bizarre-o characters. nicolas cage, fresh out of jail, and his peanut, laura dern, are a sexy duo on the lam from her wacko drunk mommy and her army of weirdos. watch the trailer and you'll totally be hooked.









thanks for the images, brandon & joey!

BIG THINGS AHEAD: SOMMER

sommer and i worked together at metier when i first moved to the city two years ago and i was immediately won over by her wit, wacky jokes, and awesome come-backs. since those fateful days she's been in and out of the fashion world, the fancy bakery world, and the san francisco world, but now she's gone her own way (so fleetwood mac of her!) and is opening her own vintage boutique. full of handpicked clothing, jewelry, accessories and art (this time around by stephanie adams), ramona lou promises to bring a little bit of sommer's style to her hometown of auburn, ca-- a little mixy-matchy, a dash of polka dots, and just the right amount of crazy. we can't wait to see what sommer has "in store" for us!!!! (yes, pun totally intended.)

stop by the grand opening of ramona lou this thursday, september 23rd at 923 lincoln way in auburn.
Name: Sommer Naffz

Age: 30 (at press time)

Hometown: Auburn

Where are you right now? In the loft at my new shop sitting at an antique desk which belonged to my mom (she's still alive, by the way, the desk is just in my possession now). She was planning on refinishing it but never got to it so now I'm working at/on it with all of it's chips, nicks and glory!

What do you do? Good question. I try to translate my thoughts into something comprehensive to others. Right now I'm doing this through opening up a vintage/ random-things-of-my-choice shop. My goal is to make a living doing something I enjoy. I do have a back up plan of stand-up comedy though. Really, I'm going to make people piss themselves laughing if this clothing boutique explodes into one ginormous lint fireball.




Where are you going? Currently I'm going a little nuts but really liking the high of it all. I almost think I'll be able to keep my Windex sniffing habit at bay now!

What will you be doing when you get there? When I get to nutsville? Well, I hear they have a great tour of the city on a hot pink double-decker bus. I may grab a flask of Horonitos and go for a spin. I hope business owners aren't super serious :)

How did you decide to go in this direction? Honestly, I just sort of decided that collecting old things and cleaning off the stink was something I enjoyed and, maybe, just maybe I could do it for a living and be able to shoot-the-shit with folk in a creative space, play music I like and hope that some of my vibes (or whatever) spill onto one person having a crappy day and then they fall in love with a troll later that day.



Do you have any expectations? Expectations... great ones. :) In my heart I really just want to be able to do this and enjoy it!

Are you excited? Nervous? Terrified? Thrilled? Totes! Nervous? Like a 16-year-old boy pinning a dyed-carnation on a bosom. Terrified? Nah. Thrilled? I don't know if I thrill that easily but I sure hope others find the shop thrilling!

What are you looking forward to? I'm looking forward to getting up in the morning and being happy to go to work! I'm also looking forward to meeting and gaining a new clientele. I've been away from Auburn for over ten years now so I'm stoked my shop will be an outlet for me to meet some wonderful new people who dig on the old threads as much as I do.

What are you scared of? These really are deep questions. There's all sorts of risk involved with starting one's own business and of course you have those moments of, "I hope someone's going to actually going to shop here!" But for me the scariest part, making the decision to do it, is over.



What happens if it doesn’t work out? If it doesn't work out at least I can say I tried it. Life changes with every second and you have to be able to roll with the punches. I'm going to roll with it.

What is the worst thing that could happen? The worst thing that could happen... Yikes? I'm thinking someone breaks my front window and puts a dead cat in the store with a note attached saying, "I like your style."

What is the best thing that could happen? The best thing... I wake up tomorrow and own a furnished apartment in San Francisco, New York and Paris and unlimited miles so I can travel and gather amazing pieces for the shop and not have to worry about the major expenses involved! I could also let my family and friends enjoy the apartments too!

Did you ever think you’d be where you are now? No way. I never thought I 'd be back in Auburn. It must be something they put in the Taco Tree. (Taco Tree is an Auburn institution more sacred perhaps than the historic Courthouse or Gold Rush history. In particular, Placer High School Alumni need it to survive and most tend to have life-threatening withdrawals once moved away from Auburn.)



What are you leaving behind? I'm leaving (or have left behind) the luxury of being able to see my SF friends at the drop of a hat. (Insert tear) It's a little tougher now but we aren't too far apart.

What will you miss? I will miss having a weekday off to watch Ellen and raid my parent's pantry.

What did your friends say when you told them? My friends said: "Go for it you sexy bitch!" ;) Well, they encouraged me!

ARE YOU READY? Am I ready??????? Ask me in 10 years.

thanks to sewthrifty and sommer for the photos!

the little people

gifs gifs gifs! i love these process gifs from brandi over at paperwhistle. tiny cut-out paper people!

get real

melissa, lev, nico and i went to the EAT REAL street food festival in oakland a few weekends ago. it was awesome to see the whole street food movement in one place- tricked out food trucks (and buses!), the wacky food fusions, the massive numbers of people showing up to eat locally produced meals. we started at le truc, where melissa's brother, myles, was serving pork buns and from a converted school bus!! next was gerard's paella from ginormous pans; korean tacos and pancakes from namu; nopales fries from 51st state, and a veggie bahn mi from ebbett's. we had some good bites but somehow i left feeling a little overwhelmed by the crowds and underwhelmed by the food. best of show definitely goes to these weird korean pancakes from namu! and um...the huge bowl of ben and jerry's we devoured (what!? the local ice cream and gelato lines were unapproachable!)

metal head

wow, look at these rad anodized aluminum cups i'm fawning over! being the nerd i am, i did a little research into the process of anodizing. according to wikipedia, anodization "changes the microscopic texture of the surface and changes the crystal structure of the metal near the surface." it pretty much thickens the aluminum and prevents it from wear and corrosion. the resulting layer is quite porous and accepts dyes easily, hence the fabulous rainbow of colors! it was was first used to prevent seaplanes from corroding but since then has been used on everything from buildings to cups to carabeeners and ipod covers. can't wait to make a pitcher of iced tea and serve them in these babies...

cups from kup and saucer in philly

double birthday

a few weeks ago we went to gabe's birthday bbq at his parent's house in berkeley. they've dug this deep pit bbq in the backyard and slowcook meats in there overnight....this time it was brisket, buffalo, pork, and ribs. we brought veggie burgers and some corn on the cob- whateverrrrr!!! gabe's mom always makes the best desserts and she busted out this incredible chocolate cake, which was essentially chocolate pie crust dough baked in thin layers, stacked up, and frosted. delicious!!! it was great to sit around the pit and stare into it, mesmerized by the possibilities of what you cook 5 ft under the ground. next pit victims- TURKEYS AND DUCKS! happy birthday gabe!!!





back in the city, we headed to melissa's bday blowout at booty bassment at the knockout. god i love to dance, so glad the girls do too! we definitely grooved to some jams with melissa and the gang. shout outs to lev, eyon, kevin, noah, phoebe and everyone else who came out. happy birthday melissa!!!