Photo by Amanda Lopez
It’s been over a year in the making but I’m finally releasing Mi Vida Loca, my winter ‘08 collection. Inspired by the icon of west coast Americana style, the chola, Mi Vida Loca takes us from the Zoot Suit Riots of the 1940’s, to the low rider culture of today. For those of you who have been following the Mama brand, you know that this is actually a theme I explored in one of my first Mama collections. I revisited it again, first, because it’s a look that I love and am constantly drawn to. Second, my production capabilities were much better today and I wanted to make all the pieces that I wasn’t able to the first time around.
As with all Mama productions, I would not have been able to bring the project to fruition without the help and support of many friends.
Amanda
Photo by OHW2007
Amanda Lopez is the special woman behind the camera that brings my ideas to life. Not only are her photos beautiful, but it’s wonderful to watch her at work. She has a great eye, and has the ability to direct people to get exactly what she wants in the gentlest manner. I’ve enjoyed watching her career grow and as I look back at the year that we’ve worked together, her photos are among my favorite Mama images.
Liz
Photo by OHW2007
Liz Baca has been styling Mama photo shoots since my first “chola” collection in 2005 and she’s been with me since. She always has a very clear understanding of what I’m going for and executes beyond perfection. And, she always manages to have the perfect vintage pieces to complement whatever Mama collection I throw her way. It’s been a pleasure working on shoot after shoot with Liz, and I look forward to many more.
Kimberly Mejia
This was my first shoot working with Kim Mejia, from Wak Shack Salon in San Francisco, and I regret that I never met her sooner. She executed hairstyles from time periods ranging from the 1940s to the 1970s to perfection. Kim is a woman that understands that when it comes to hair, more is more and the bigger the better!
Jenni Tay
Photo by OHW2007
This was also my first shoot working with Jenni Tay, who did makeup. She created exactly what I envisioned, while also adding her personal touches. Her tireless efforts, on makeup, touch-ups (and later as a light holder) were very appreciated.
Toofly
I’ve known Toofly for over 5 years and she’s always been so sweet, easy to work with and always willing and able to execute exactly what I envision. Toofly designed one of the graphics this season, a “Toofly” girl with some Pachuca mixed in, and it’s one of my favorite designs.
Reynaldo & Spider
In my research for this collection one of the books I referenced was Cholo Style by Reynaldo Berrios. His history and knowledge of the lifestyle, culture and style was an immense help in focusing my vision. His book also introduced me to the work of Spider, an illustrator and tattoo artist whose fine line drawings are beautiful and reveal so much of what’s inside the artist himself. Spider illustrated four graphics for this collection: Virgen de Guadalupe, Bomba, Revolucionaria and Laugh Now, Cry Later.
Velez
Photo by OHW2007
Amanda introduced me to Velez (Last Originals Car Club) on the day of the shoot. She knew I wanted to photograph the girls with an old school car and she set it all up. He was extremely hospitable and let us photograph in his garage and his car. His set-up lent us an authenticity that went beyond my expectations.
Lexx
Though no longer an intern, Lexx was with me when I was designing this collection. She designed about half of the graphics that we printed on the tees and played a big role in researching and developing the theme. She was the best intern I ever had, and though she couldn’t make it to the shoot, she was missed.
Dree
Another stellar intern, turned sales woman extraordinaire. Dree started with me in 2006 and went on to become a Mama model, and later, Mama sales rep. We missed her during the shoot!
Ali (OHW2007)
Words can not express how much love I have for Ali. He’s my best friend and biggest supporter. He never backs away from any request, and always pushes me to do better. Ali is the person who introduced me to the whole west coast look (as I’m a NYer) and this season, and Mama, would not have been possible without his tireless wisdom and support. In addition to all of that, Ali took behind the scenes photos that you can view here and did all of the hand style in the look book.
Mama Locas
Reina
Photo by Amanda Lopez
Reina was with me on the first chola shoot, and it was after seeing how natural she was in front of the camera and easy to shoot, that I decided that she should be the “official Mama spokesmodel” and I’ve been working with her since. She never fails to embody and personify exactly the look I want and she always gets the shot in just a few tries.
Mayra
Photo by OHW2007
Mayra was born to do this photo shoot. She’s got the look down to a tee and has “Mousie” on her bag. Mayra was a Mama intern when I was designing this collection and she couldn’t wait to do this shoot, and I couldn’t wait for her to be in it. Many thanks to Mayra for a great job, and for the introduction to Kim.
Candee
Photo by Amanda Lopez
Candee is the baby and little sister of the group. She always manages to bring a smile and a laugh to everyone’s face with her combination of innocence, sarcasm and sass. She started out as an intern, then started as a Mama model and hasn’t stopped since.
Ashley
Photo by Amanda Lopez
Ashley joined the family by responding to a Mama model casting call on myspace a year ago for the Operation Saigon Sunset photo shoot. It was a large group shoot, but her great personality and smile convinced us that we needed her as part of the Mama family.
Vanessa
Photo by Amanda Lopez
Vanessa was a very, early supporter of Mama as a buyer for a store in Sacramento. She was one of my first accounts, and I later learned that she was Amanda’s sister. With such a strong theme of friendship, sisterhood and family as a part of Mi Vida Loca we thought it was only natural to have her be a part of the shoot.
You can see the Mi Vida Loca look book here and the behind the scenes shots here.
Photo by Amanda Lopez
