Fallen Leaf

Living in Los Angeles, it’s difficult to see the signs of autumn unless you drive north out of LA.  This photo was taken on a drive from San Jose, Cali’s Bay area.



California Autumn
by Jemma



Although I do appreciate the warm winters here and the fact that I do not have to shovel snow, I cannot help but miss the changing of the seasons and the Holiday spirit only felt in the Northeast. This Halloween week and to get myself in the mood, I’ve decided to watch one scary movie per night which began last Sunday. Our first movie pick was the classic “The Exorcist” and it included “the version you never seen before.” Ok, here’s some advice: if you plan on watching a scary movie marathon, DO NOT start with the scariest movie you have ever seen or at least, a movie with a scene of a girl walking down a staircase like a spider. And I blame myself because it was actually D’s first time watching the movie in its entirety, so he had no clue how scary it was.

I have been traumatized by that move ever since I watched it when I was much younger. I even dreaded turning 13 years old because that’s the age Reagan was when she got possessed. I’ve watched that movie numerous times and each time I’ve watched it, it never failed to give me nightmares for the next couple of days after.  This time, I figured that I’m older so there’s no way it can scare me like before. And since D and I have been dissecting the cinematography of almost every movie we see lately, I figured this was a perfect 1970’s flick to study.  Big joke on me, I sat there like I was nine years old again looking away from the screen as to not embed the picture of Reagan’s possessed face in my head. And it didn’t help that D would stop and rewind the scary parts in the film to watch it again.  That night I had a nightmare which woke me up in the middle of the night and gave me that” bothered” feeling the next day. Monday night’s horror movie was Halloween. Only I was sitting in the bedroom watching the Real Housewives of Atlanta because I still had that “bothered” feeling.  This movie marathon idea is not looking too good. But when I am ready, I ‘m going to take D’s advice and watch the Exorcist again with the director’s commentary for what D told me, it sounds pretty fascinating and makes it less frightening.

Tonight, we have not picked a movie, although I made sure to download all three Twilight films and occasionally mention how awesome these movies are to D. He’s been watching the first Twilight movie throughout the day and I’m hoping we’ll watch the Eclipse tonight…uh oh, wait a minute, he just told me that he got a copy of the new Paranormal Activity. How fabulous.

Ok, so on to some design thoughts of the day. Getting into sewing has really opened my eyes to textures and the ways things are put together. I learned about textures during first year in architect school but during that time my attention was more focused on what sorority I was planning to pledge. I noticed that lately I have been studying the textures of everything around me, my eyesight has become like the zoom-in lens on a camera. It’s pretty inspiring, actually, to really look at things which unfortunately many people do not. I’m guessing this is probably one of the reasons why the majority of people cannot see spirits. I’ve been thinking about some things I can make in the spirit of the holidays coming up, and since planning for Halloween seems a bit too late, my next move is Thanksgiving. A few weeks ago, my neighbor ordered some chef aprons for a cooking class she enrolled in. It was my first time I made those types of aprons but I couldn’t believe how easy it was to put them together. My plan is to design some chef aprons for the family cook planning to make Thanksgiving dinner with some design. I purchased a book about printing and screen printing by hand so I’m looking forward to seeing what designs I can come up with to paint on that cotton canvas fabric. I will be posting about these pretty soon.

My finishing words for today’s blog is for you, dear reader, to start “looking” and really “seeing” the things and objects around you. Like this leaf we just happen to see on the ground. This leaf may look ordinary, right?



Fallen Leaf
by Jemma



But when you pick it up, you’ll be amazed at what you will notice that you probably never noticed before. Because as a wise man once said “Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in awhile, you can miss it.” …ok, ok, so what if the wise man was Ferris Bueller…



Leaf Skin and Veins
by Jemma



Enjoy your Tuesday :)

The G-Rated version of the day dhd was conceived…

(Foreword: It seems I start blogging when someone leaves my life. Back in winter 2003-04, I started my Xanga blog when my first cat Amber passed away and my sister JD had trouble burying her in our backyard because the ground was frozen solid. The start of this blog comes weeks after two dear friends of mine died tragically in a car accident back in NY. Not sure if it’s a coincidence but once again I had a reminder that life is too short. To write down the most memorable moments, the lessons learned, the lessons taught, and the thoughts of your life story is a precious imprint. So here’s to J & F, may they rest in peace with God. I’d like to imagine that J is telling me from up above to get off my laid back LA behind and take action like a real East Coast go-getter used too…)

Back in August, while on a visit back home on the East coast, my close friend MR invited me to an architect happy hour event in my beloved NYC. It was a beautiful summer night in the city and I haven’t schmoozed with fellow architects in a very long time. The invitation was well met and the event was a fabulous occasion to see some old friends, but I couldn’t help feeling a bit out of place. My usual social self would be on the social prowl, babbling about projects I worked on that I truly did not care about. And then I would stand there listening to the other architect critic a building. I didn’t know why that night I was just not in the mood…

Then my close friend AC asked me a question. It was one of those questions that really open your eyes to your present status in life. AC asked me this question as we stood on the corner of Broome and W. Broadway in the SOHO district over a cigarette break taken in between my usual drinks of captain and diet cokes. On the subject of life, “what do you really want to do, J?”

Taken by surprise, I immediately answered him with “I want to be an architect.” Just as immediately AC replied “No. If you really wanted to be an architect, you would be registered by now and working in an architect firm.” It was hard to swallow. I didn’t want to admit he was right. I also didn’t want to admit that when I said that answer, I felt a pang of doubt because in reality, I wanted to break away from the corporate architect industry and drafting someone else’s designs. I knew I wanted to go into the film industry and above all, own a design business where I will be hands-on designing. And I mean designing and actually making finished projects as in residential design to interior layout designs, from home goods to handbags, and much, much more. Ever since I was a kid, I absolutely loved being artistic and would spend hours in the art supply store, creating things in my mind that I can make and would eventually sell to people. Ultimately, to be my own boss, that’s my dream. I would rather be working from home and designing a small kitchen renovation than working in some corporate architect office, my creative juices draining out of me while I’m drawing office cubicle layouts on AutoCAD all day for a boss who’s living off the revenue I slaved for. A big pay cut, heck yeah. But if it meant that I am doing what I love, I will not mind living on cereal for as long as need be.

And this is how I got here. For the past year and a half since I stopped working in the corporate world, I have been traveling, experimenting, browsing, designing, decorating, reading, piano playing, teaching, photographing, hearing, smelling and seeing. Unbeknown to many of my family and friends reading this, I have actually been venturing in the sewing world, creating things and selling them with customer order requests coming in for my products! More importantly, I am making an attempt to begin writing again because if I don’t write it here, there’s a 99% chance I will forget all I had experienced. As I mentioned before, I am not at all new to the blogging world. I have been blogging since 2004. So this is a continuation and diversion from my Xanga blog in which I constantly complained about working in awful architect firms, spilled the juicy beans on working in the NYC nightlife, and made my big move to Los Angeles. In case I slip I apologize in advance for my occasional dirty mouth (what can I say, I grew up in an area where we tell it like it is) but compared to my Xanga blog, this will be like reading the Bible. In any event, die happy design was conceived.

This blog will focus more on design, ideas, projects, architecture, photography, history, and generally living happy. Don’t you ever experience those unexpected life moments when, after it happens, you wished you can tell the world about it? Well, that has happened to me hundreds of times. So this blog will also highlight those die happy moments that I, as well as others in my life, have experienced. And if for some reason I do not write an entry for a few months, it will probably be caused by the fact that I ran out of cereal and was forced to get a corporate architect job with an 8am-7pm schedule, although I would not get home until 9pm because LA traffic blows. And then I would be way too bitter to even want to write in this blog. So until then, I hope to write as often as I can and enjoy the world of blogging with you fine folks.

Sorry this blog post is long but after two years, you can believe I sure have a lot to say. So I will leave you today, dear reader, with a photo I took of one of those die-happy moments which planted the dhd blog idea in my head. It was during a drive from Las Vegas to Los Angeles, just before the sun was setting and when I was silently talking to God (Him and I have a looong history which should be saved for another blog). In return, He let me know He was listening. Enjoy your Saturday.




The Dove
by Jemma



Second Party: “Your name is what?” Me: “Forget it, just call me J.”

Welcome to the blogging site of die happy design! Die happy design or dhd has been on my "To do List" for many years and finally today, I can scratch it off that list. But before I begin with what dhd is all about, you're probably (or probably not) wondering who the heck is yours truly?

Well, first off my name. Everyone pronounces it wrong which is the reason for the pronunciation key. Introductions were always complicated for me because people will struggle to get my name right and I would say “blame it on my parents”. Now that I’m a bit older and hopefully wiser, I actually appreciate having a unique name. So here’s my bio, it's longer than I intended and I couldn’t fit into the small “About Me” box.

I heart anything creative, unique, innovative, and rebelling. I think too much, have too many ideas, and drink too much coffee. I’m a Jersey girl, who grew up right out of NYC, being exposed to creativity all my life in the form of art, theater, DJs, dancing, and break dancing. I have an Architecture Degree and worked in NYC architecture/interior design firms for over nine years. I now live in Los Angeles, but consider myself bi-coastal and forever an East Coast girl. I love every color on the color wheel so my favorite color changes as fast as time (at the moment its pumpkin orange.) I don’t sugar coat anything and tell it like it is which can be both very good and very bad.

I was raised by a single mom who will forever be my hero. I’m the youngest of three sisters, always looked up to the two elders, and now that I’m the tallest I’m the one looking down. My mom remarried and our family became larger with a funny stepdad and two talented stepbros. When I think of my nephews and nieces I can’t help but smile. I adore my friends for we shared many crazy moments together. I’ve witnessed and experienced some unbelievable moments in my life that should be made into a book or movie. My all time favorite city is NYC and when I see that skyline I get a teary nostalgic. I’ve also worked in the NYC nightlife for over six years, working the doors and bottle hosting. I used to blog scandalously about those moments in addition to many others back in 2004, took a break in 2008, and now back with a lighter heart in 2010.

I heart photography because it captures inspirational and memorable moments. I love films, museums, gardening, cooking, the paranormal, popcorn, I Love Lucy episodes, and my latest crave…sewing. I love traveling and have been trekking globally since I was a young girl. My mom has always encouraged us to expose ourselves to the world as much we can. I have dreams of moving to the countryside landscapes of France or Spain with a journal, a pen, a camera, and a yummy cup of coffee. I live with my partner in crime, my D, who has seen my best and worst moments. I am currently an MBA student concentrating in small business management because it’s time to jumpstart these ideas into actions the smart way. Being a piano player since the age of five, I have found a love of teaching this talent to children. Meanwhile, I’m still searching for the answer of why God led me here to LA...and my favorite color is now cadmium blue.

So that's me in a very big nutshell. Thanks for reading. Please come back again for my next post of what dhd is and how it came about...ciao for now.