International Women's Day - Venice Style

Yesterday was International Women's Day, and this year it was intended to be "A Day Without Women". Women were supposed to skip work, not spend money unless it was at women-owned businesses, have a social media blackout, and wear red in solidarity with other women. I began the day at the Santa Monica Farmer's Market, and was disappointed to see hardly anyone in red. Myself and one elderly woman were in red, and actually hugged, because we got the memo. Solidarity. After a perfect outdoor lunch with women on a glorious day, I headed over to Abbot Kinney, where my wonderful friend Nana Ghana was hosting a celebration of women at Principessa.

LA Woman Rising is Nana Ghana's documentary film about 50 diverse women waking up in Los Angeles. It was the perfect project to showcase on a day that is all about Women, and the trailer was running on a loop in the back of the O. G. Venice clothing store.

In the front of the store, cocktails were flowing courtesy of Dulce Vida Tequila - and we know how L.A. Women like their margaritas.

The good vibes were flowing the moment you walked in the door, with a crowd as diverse as the women in the film. Rightly so, because many of the women present were IN the film, and in attendance to speak on a panel about the film.

But first. there were cupcakes.

The sun was casting a golden glow over the whole thing, and Nana thought we should show the town what we were all about ... by marching down the turn lane in the center of Abbot Kinney.

Rush hour traffic (which has gotten pretty much ridiculous on Abbot Kinney) was in full effect as our tribe of L.A. Women took to the street to march in a strong show of solidarity with women the world over.

Cars honked and people waved, some stopping to take their own pictures of the incredibly beautiful parade sauntering down the middle of the street. It was one of those wonderful Venice moments that take people by surprise with the sheer fun of it. It was especially special to be sharing it with such iconic and multi-faceted women as the ones walking beside me.

Once back inside Principessa, Nana had everyone take a moment to breathe it all in, saying, "Take a moment to feel Mother Earth, feel our breath as one with all the other women in the world right now." It felt extra meaningful. She spoke about how truly powerful  and limitless we all are, with each others' support. That when one woman wins, we all win. These are real facts.

Nana introduced her friend, the poet Yazmin Monet Watkins, who performed works of such depth and awareness, tears were brought to my eyes - and I wasn't alone. She read words of gratitude and love, saying she was "Grateful for my single mother upbringing". Me too. She read a poem called "Questions For The White Women I Marched Next To", asking "Will you be here tomorrow? Please stay." We will. She read one for her Grandma Lily, asking, "Grandma, how did you deal with the ignorance?" Yes, HOW?! Watkins finished with one that was called "Note To Self", reminding that each woman is brilliant, that Sisterhood lights our path, and that "This life is worth living. ROAR!" Yes. ROAR!!!

The LA Woman Rising panel was moderated by another friend of Nana's, Vic Styles, who asked the ladies assembled what made them an L.A. Woman.  There are so many parts to Los Angeles, just like there are so many parts to women, so it's a good analogy. L.A./Women can be nice, and it can be mean. It/We are all so different, but somehow we get along, and create culture here. It was discussed how L.A. is known for both its diversity and its entertainment industry, but that the two don't often reflect each other. It was asked if they considered themselves Feminists.

I've always had a hard time with special days like "Women's Day" or whatever, because I've never felt less than as a Woman. I think people are all created equal, and should be treated as such. Always have. It's only with the recent and awful new Administration in office that I've felt the need to stand up and speak out more than usual on the behalf of Women everywhere. But really, it's on the behalf of People everywhere, as we're all in this together, and that's just that. One member of the panel cracked everyone up by saying, "Go to a Rave!" The walls come down, and everyone is there just to have a good time! Everyone could learn from that. What a wonderful, inspiring afternoon celebrating and discussing women in today's world together! THANK YOU so much to everyone involved! I walked out of there feeling stronger, wiser, and more united with women than ever.

The unity continued when I found my ladies in red gathered for the evening portion of our Venice Women's Day at my dear friend, Sailene's pad. All of these strong and wonderful women were decked out in red, as we got a preview of things to come with Sailene's Privée Social Club (Stay tuned)!

After all this time, Helen Reddy might still have said it best ....

I am Woman, Hear me ROAR!

Pixie Ink Tattoos - Created In Venice

I always get excited when my friend Ali Jenkins tells me about her new endeavors, because they're always real cool. Like the time she had a vintage store (Wayward Debutante) in a hippie bus on Lincoln Boulevard. Or the time she had her own p.r. company. Or styling gorgeous people gorgeously for photo shoots or special events. Or launching a brand new temporary tattoo company called Pixie Ink, conceived of and created in Venice.

Jenkins and her brother, Joe, were hanging out after he joined her on the West coast last year, brainstorming about ideas for a company together. Both siblings are very creative, and wanted to do something that would pass that creativity along.

Something that would allow people to be their own designers, and express themselves in their own - and fun - way. With flash tattoos flying off the shelves, and their own backgrounds to draw inspiration from, the Jenkins family created Pixie Ink Tattoos.

There are four collections in their debut line, each a tribute to influences and loves of Ali and Joe's lives. There's the "Shooter" collection (named for my old pal Shooter Jennings!), with symbols of the West, a more bohemian, Americana rock group of tattoos, like guns, cacti, and Johnny Cash.

Then there's the "Notorious" group, born out of Joe's (DJ "Dust Juice Joey") love of hip hop and rap, featuring things like chains, boom boxes, gold teardrops, 40's and "Thug Life" knuckle tats.

I said, "Oh, like when Run DMC met Aerosmith!" They were more thinking Gucci Mane when coming up with this batch, and that's just what you get. Plus, as Pixie Ink says, "Temporary Tattoos - Permanent Cool". Word.

The "Vicious" collection contains all things punk or glam rock. Named for Sid, and his Nancy, this pack is all about safety pins, guitars, David Bowie, and general anarchy. My favorite is the chains and padlock that allow you to make a great version of the necklace Chanel hasn't been able to keep in stock. Super extra cute.

"Wonderland" is for the whimsical people of all ages, but this is also the one geared toward kids. Sparkling mushrooms, sprinkled doughnuts, flamingos, and friendship bracelets all give the kids (or you) that cool edge that they can't get for real until they roll past 18. I brought packs of the Pixie Ink to the tweens in my life back in Minnesota, and they are all over it.

But it's not at all just for kids. I wore a steer skull tattoo next to my cleavage for New Year's Eve, and that was pretty much all any of the ladies at the party wanted to talk about, after their resolutions. A big hit.

When coming up with ideas for a company, Ali and Joe wanted it to have to do with high fashion and street style. Both have their own great personal style. They wanted to capitalize on that, and love what they were going to do. Fashion changes so quickly, and often high fashion is prohibitively expensive, so why not make something affordable for the masses, that is temporary (like changing fashion trends), travel-friendly (so you can pack narrow sheets in a bag and not a whole jewelry box when you travel!) and allows people to be creative and expressive? Bam - temporary tattoos!

The Jenkins brother-sister act did years of research, considering their lives have been all about music and fashion, and came up with a great product that celebrates the various scenes they've been involved in. It's a great collaboration between them, but also between them and the scenes. They're in talks to do band merch tattoos, VIP pass tattoos, tattoos included in CDs, tattoos with fashion labels, tattoos for fashion and video shoots ... all that good stuff that goes on in music and fashion.

The packets are $25, and come with four sheets of different tattoos that you can cut out and put together in your own style. They feature black, silver, gold and turquoise metallics, and are so eye-catching, I can't tell you how many times I was stopped and complimented when wearing them. Ok, I can. A lot.

Pixie Ink is named for Ali's Pomeranian, Pixie, who is also the C.E.O. of the company. The tattoos are available on their website - Pixieinktattoos.com -  and at Principessa in Venice, with more retail outlets coming soon. These are hot off the presses, so you'll be among the first to sport this ink, which I can tell you are already out in front of the pack with their much cooler, much more real street fashion collection than any others on the market.

Pixie Ink ... Permanently cool.

*Photos by Alexa Miller Gallo

Instagram: @Pixieinktattoos
                  @Alexaphoto

Principessa - Outfitting Venice Since 2001

I like to tell the stories about people and places that have made Venice interesting and cool ... and Venice. Lots of people have been coming in without really understanding what that means. We're here to help.

Principessa knows what it means to be Venice, and have been helping ladies put together perfect outfits since 2001. Partners Darla Bonnaire and Jennifer Corgan have great personal style, and once inside Principessa, it's pretty hard not to emerge with some of that flair rubbing off on you. They feature local designers (like Show Me Your Mumu, Totem Salvage, Flynn Skye, Jen's Pirate Booty, Luxury Jones, Mikal Wynn, etc...) as well as the big international ones (and great hard to find labels like Spell & The Gypsy Collective) you'd expect to find in such a style emporium.

The whole deal began with Bonnaire opening her store Vamp on Main Street in Santa Monica (after a brief stint near Windward Circle). She wanted to be in Venice though, so when a spot opened up on Abbot Kinney, she brought Principessa (Italian for "Princess", of course) to life. Shortly after Bonnaire's son, Wolf, was born in 2002, so too was the men's clothing store named for him (in the space that is now Kid Firefly). Then came Little, the children's store, until the madness of running four stores at once (with a toddler!) stretched them too thin, and it was all consolidated into the Principessa we now know at 1323 Abbot Kinney.

"The store has evolved with the street," says Bonnaire, meaning as the street has gotten busier and fancier, so have they, while paying close attention to who their customers are, and what their locals like (and can pay for). There's a great mix of things that will really set you back, investment pieces meant to be heirlooms, and fun, trendy stuff that you can pick up with no guilt at all. Carefully curated vintage pieces (and repurposed, one of a kind treasures) hang alongside the very latest fashions. I once played a game with a friend there, guessing how much things were. When the gorgeous blouse I held up ($49) was guessed at $500, I knew I had to get that thing. It's like that. You're pleasantly surprised often.

Modern day flower women will love Princi (as all involved affectionately call it), with its flair for bohemian dressing all set up for you to choose your look from.  "We seek out indie designers on the cutting edge, and we always want our things to be unique to Venice," explained Bonnaire. "To that end, they are also developing the label, Bonnaire-Corgan (named after the friends/partners), where all the lines are named after streets in Venice, e.g. "Electric pants".  Love it. Corgan added, "All the changes on the block don't make us want to leave ... we want to stay here to KEEP the local flavor." And we thank them for that. We NEED them for that.

 As longtime Venice residents all, we talked about what we love about it. "I love how Venice is set up. The whole town is walkable. We all share that desire to be outside, seeing people, being a part of our community. It's like a club of people that we're so happy to be a part of. It's a less exclusive club now, and it's sad that some special people who have been a part of it all for so long are being made to leave," Bonnaire said truly. "We really embrace Venice, imperfections and all ... because that's Venice," she shrugged.

The Venice they love is mostly outside, but when asked what shops they like to frequent, it was the equally legit ones like Firefly, Bazaar, Tortoise, Animal House and the one they say is without question their favorite, that they could not survive without - Elvino. Amen.

Corgan summed up their mission succinctly. "Individual expression is what makes Venice special. It's always been a mecca of variety, diversity, and funky, artistic bohemia ... and acceptance of everyone. That's the real Venice, and we're here to help people look the part." And they do. Beautifully.

Both Bonnaire and Corgan agreed that they've made their closest friends through the store. The girls are like a family, and once you've worked there, you're always a part of it. "Kind of like being a Playboy bunny," joked Bonnaire.

Principessa hosted an extra-fun pre-Valentine's party last weekend, complete with champagne, chocolate and live music. The store was full of things that would make any lady over the moon when gifted the dress, jewelry, lingerie or anything at all from her lover, and all the Princi ladies were happy to help find that certain item that would seal the deal. Like this hot bra I want:

Their parties are always a treat, and there's another one coming up to get everyone ready and looking great for Coachella. Mark your books on Saturday, March 22nd for that one.

Being inside Principessa, you can sense the difference that immediately sets them apart from the newer, polished up chain businesses that have somehow infiltrated our town. There's a true sense of place, there's a true sense of Venice, there's a true sense of uniqueness ... and as Corgan said about places, "I want truth."

The truth is that Principessa is a wonderful place to set yourself up if you're interested in a truly local Venice - and looking like it.

Principessa is located at 1323 Abbot Kinney Blvd.
310.450.6696
Ecommerce: www.Principessavenice.com
Twitter: @PrinciVenice
Facebook: /Principessa-Venice