BLODEGA BY THE PERALTA PROJECT

It seems as if it is the 90’s again and the brand to see and be seen in is Gucci!  In addition to “House of Gucci” being one of 2021’s most anticipated movies starring Lady Gaga, the luxury brand took over Hollywood for their first in person show since 2020, “Gucci’s Love Parade”. On November 3rd one block on Hollywood Boulevard showcased not only stars like Jared Leto or Salma Hayek but an array of styles to satisfy whatever your imagination desired. From old Hollywood glam, to cowboy boots, to shorts in the infamous Gucci logo - designer Alessandro Michele did away with the rules of fashion and hit the mark of the current trend of self expression. 

Corsets may be a thing of the past but Netherlands costume designer and makeup artist Joyce Spakman may be able to single handedly bring them back in style. These intricate one of a kind pieces are so strikingly beautiful that without question can be set along side Marie Antoinette’s gowns in a historical museum. These masterpieces came to life during the pandemic when Joyce had the time to create a lightweight version of porcelain and stained glass material. “Porcelain 2.0” as she refers to it, gave her the ability to bring her visions of these glamorous corsets to life and to be wearable. We can already picture our modern day royalty Beyoncé or Lady Gaga adorned in one of her pieces. 

As inclusivity is taking over the fashion industry more and more campaigns, runway shows, and magazine covers are being filled with women with REAL bodies. A London based model from Saint Lucia who is using this and her heavenly looks to her advantage is Skye Lukowski-Standley who was recently featured in “The Muses - A Celebration of Black Women”. This series of portraits by Linda Blacker showcase how black culture, black women, and black femmes have influenced music, art, and fashion but are often not given credit for it. An advocate for self expression, Skye also took part in a Refinery29 article on formulating ones own identity. Look out for this beauty as she is here to make waves. 

Fit of the week goes out to someone who definitely hit it out of the ballpark with our Amazing Corduroy Hat, Alex Cohen, owner of the NY Mets! Thank you for your support Alex! 

There is a chill in the air, the leaves are turning, and the streets are being filled with skulls and pumpkins. That’s right mi gente, Halloween is finally here! After summer, this is my favorite time of the year. Aside from our feeds being filled with apple picking and pumpkin spiced lattes, the masses start digging in their creative bags and the world turns into a landscape of the odd and strange! This year there a few events happening like the always highly anticipated  New York’s 48th Annual Village Halloween Parade which is back from last years hiatus. If you are looking to celebrate a little early, The Museum of the City of New York is hosting a Costumes and Cocktail Halloween Masquerade where there will be a drag show, giant puppets, and spooky cocktails. Sketch, drink, and be scary! 

When the legendary RZA brought together the greatest rap group of all time back in Staten Island, we wonder if he envisioned making the New York Times as WU TANG CLAN’s one of a kind album, “Once Upon A Time in Shaolin”, sold for $4 million. Always moving to the beat of his own mix, RZA along with Dutch rapper Cilvaringz, created this 31 track album seven years ago to protest the depreciation of music in the age of streaming. The catch to the exclusive album is that the buyers, NFT collectors PleasrDAO, cannot share it with anyone until the year 2103. Until then, we will have to suffice with Hulu’s Wu-Tang: An American Saga series. If you have not seen it yet, wait until you get to episode 6 of season 2 - an artistic and musical masterpiece! Here’s to the love of hip hop and remember WU TANG IS FOREVER! 

In October we wear pink - in support of Breast Cancer Awareness month. A frightening but very real fact is that in the United States, 1 in 8 women will develop breast cancer in her lifetime. Even though breast cancer is most often found in women, 1 in 100 men will be diagnosed with the disease as well. With this being so, we want to share some preventative measures that can be taken for early detection in addition to ways to help reduce your risk:

• Self-check every month (standing up and lying down).
• Exercise for at least 150 minutes per week.
• Limit alcohol intake. 
• Get that sleep. 

If you want to learn more or support the cause visit the National Breast Cancer Foundation, Inc. for more information and remember health is wealth! 

We all are remember our first scary movie. That heart racing, chills going down our back, nail biting feeling we felt for the first time and couldn’t seem to shake off when we were left in the dark and alone in our beds. You either avoided horror films after that or went seeking that exact feeling the rest of your life. For Gigi Saul Guerrero, a.k.a. La Muñeca del Terror, it was the latter. After stealing a copy of “Child’s Play 2” as a kid, Gigi was immediately hooked on horror which led her to her destined career path as a horror filmmaker. After directing horror web shows, episodes of the “Purge”, and the series “Into the Dark”, Canadian-Mexican Gigi will be making her directorial feature film debut with “Bingo Hell” now streaming on Amazon Prime. Starring legendary actress Adriana Barraza, we find out what happens when a group of elderly friends are fed up with the gentrification taking place in their community. Fingers crossed on her making a sequel but based on the gentrification happening in New York! Grab that popcorn, make yourself cozy under a blanket, and get those lungs ready for some screams! 

“Reach the world but touch the hood first”. Oakland documentarian and photographer Brittani Sensabaugh lives and creates by this motto. Using her gift of photography she deconstructs the false narratives deemed by mass media as areas of “struggle” and the people who reside there. Her breathtaking photographs capture moments such as the joy radiating from the children posing for her camera, the protectiveness & love of a father hugging his daughter, and the untold stories that lie in the sparkling eyes of the elderly man sitting on his front porch. Shot by shot she is sending the message that these neglected and forgotten communities by the mainstream are not defined by the conditions that have been created to destroy them but instead flourishing despite them.  

I remember when I first heard El General blasting from a car one summer when I visited Venezuela. Or the first time my abuela yelled at my cousins for listening to DJ Playero and Plan B. Like bachata when it first came out in D.R. or hip hop when it hit the streets of BX, in the beginning many looked down on the genre that is reggaeton. Now reggaeton artists like Bad Bunny, J.Balvin, and Daddy Yankee are household names and revered as pop stars. Here to tell us the true origin and history of this music that has captivated the world is one of the pioneers herself, “La Caballota”  - Ivy Queen,  via the new podcast LOUD: The History of Reggaeton. Dale play y que viva el perreo! 

We all know the love story between a true New Yorker and their local bodega. They were the unsung heroes of many communities during the pandemic when major department stores were closed or had lines around the block to get in. Doesn’t matter if it’s 6 A.M. or 12 A.M., when there is nothing else open, those bodega sandwiches hit all the right spots. One sandwich that has gone viral and nationwide thanks to the popularity of “New York culture” is the Chopped Cheese. Thanks to former sneaker head and owner of the Bodega Truck, Jeremy Batista, you can now get six variations of this mouthwatering N.Y. staple. You also can catch the Bodega Truck all over the city and on the upcoming docu-series “Hungry for More” by First We Feast premiering 10/27.

If you open a Caribbean household’s kitchen cupboard without a doubt you will find espresso coffee and Maria cookies. These two are a match made in Hispanic heaven. When we came across Sade Serrano’s Cafecito-Inspired Icebox Cake we instantly became nostalgic of those cafecito moments and had to share it with you all! To Sade, also known as the Kitchen Bruja, this recipe she created represents “the wholesome moments shared around the dinner table or living room”. Not only does this cake recipe contain coffee infused cookies but it is layered with another classic, dulce de leche. Jesu’! Try this at home with your loved ones or for the upcoming holiday parties. We are sure that this will be the perfect kick of azúcar everyone needs. 

If there is something we love to do is give flowers to people who, via their own lane, are making history. As the first African American female to serve as the chef for the Atlanta Braves, Catrisa Turner deserves her flowers. Even though it is slightly saddening that in 2021 we are celebrating any “firsts” of Black & Brown people in prestigious positions, it is still an incredible accomplishment for this trail blazing chef. With over 15 years in the culinary game and having studied in kitchens all over the world it is no wonder Cat is in the position that she is in. These culinary skills are in her blood as she is a third-generation chef in her family. Her ongoing goal is to continue to open doors of opportunities for those who come after her, specifically for women and people of color. Hats off to you chef! 

Many celebrities call themselves multi-hyphenates but if there is one artist that can truly make that statement and has the track record to back it up, it is Lido Pimienta. Based in Canada, this Afro-Colombian musician, artist, song writer, and curator is the jack of all trades and master of all. Lido’s visuals, her distinct sense of style, and her stand out electro-cumbia pop songs make her one of one. Starting off as an independent artist, her career took off after winning the highly acclaimed Polaris Music Prize in 2017. The variety of her inspirations stemming from rappers like MIA & Cardi B. along with her cultural influences have taken her sound through various phases but each one were distinctly her own. In her latest album “Miss Colombia”, she narrates her Canadian/Colombian identity and mixed Afro-Latino & indigenous family roots. In her own words, this album is “a representation of where I am now and where I’m ready to go next.”  We are more than willing to go on this musical journey with her. 

One evening, during that year we were all stuck at home, I was deep in the YouTube wormhole of NPR’s Tiny Desk videos. As I reminisced on all the live concerts I used to attend, I came across Lous and the Yakuza. My mind could not comprehend a single lyric that I was hearing but when I tell you, my soul understood every tune and note. Her French flow so smooth like butter set to sultry trap like beats had me enamored with the entire performance. The Congolese-Belgian singer, songwriter, model, and rapper, who’s real name is Marie-Pierra Kakoma, has explained that she chose to call herself Lous (meaning soul) and the Yakuza (meaning a person outside the norm) as it is a testimony of her resilience. Her music is her way of expressing the traumas she’s endured while still remaining hopeful. A self proclaimed disrupter, she is here is to make some noise as the voice of her generation and I for one will be supporting her all the way through. 

At the ripe age of 13, Angolan-Portuguese Afro/R&B artist Carla Prata was a star in her family’s home country of Angola but her ultimate goal was to become a global superstar. Returning to the UK where she was born and raised, she instantly captured fans by the age of 15 with her ability to crossover from English to Portuguese while honing in on her musical influences of artists like Frank Ocean and the Weekend. Now at 22 years old she has shown that she in not letting up and right on track of her goal of global musical domination with her recent performance on Colors. With tracks like “Owner” and her upcoming new single “Run Me Down” dropping on October 29th we have no doubt that we’ll be hearing Carla all over the world.