Positive Pin yourself: Native San Antonian Inspires National Message

Jonathan de la Garza, a real estate broker based in San Antonio, Texas is the creator of the Positive Pin™, a lapel pin meant for everyday wear to remind ourselves and others about the power of positive thinking.

While fashion is as much about making a statement as it is about looking good, who would’ve thought it’s as much about science too? Featured on the Positive Pin™ website is an article from The New York Times concluding that depression and negative thinking can lead to a weak immune system, increasing the risk for heart disease, the cold, the flu and more. It was exactly that feeling of depression that inspired de la Garza to create the pin to begin with. “One morning, when I was having slumping sales and feeling down, I wanted to create something that would remind me to think positive all day,” de la Garza says, “something that other people in a professional environment could also wear.”

Only a year ago de la Garza sat down with a paper and pencil to sketch out thought bubbles and positive signs, however today the demands for his pin has inspired the hat, t-shirt and coffee mugs, “I placed a small order for friends, and then a small business I knew,” de la Garza recalls, “first 100 Positive Pins flew off the shelf, then it was 500, then 1,000, then I placed two more orders of 1,000 and now I’ve just placed an order for 3,000 Positive Pins.” But that’s not all. In May 2010, the Positive Pin was featured nationally in Realtor Magazine, as one of the “Cool Tools,” and eventually companies began to get excited about the product and ordered the Positive Pin in their company colors. Typically a classic white, the lapel pin was created in teal for ExitRealty, and de la Garza created the “Positively Pink” pin for cancer awareness, a message recently swapped with the Komen Foundation. “In February we participated in the 2011 Fight for Air 5k run/walk, which benefits lung cancer research and we’ll showcase the arrival of the organization’s new red positive pin next week,” de la Garza explains. The Positive Pin was also featured on Great Day SA, as its following in San Antonio is strong. The Positive Pin, which began in Houston, where de la Garza lived for several years, can only be purchased on its website and at the Houston Association of Realtors.

However, it’s showing up on collars across the nation. Last week, Berney Dohrmann, founder of CEOSpace International Inc., flew in from San Francisco to address the new San Antonio CEOSpace chapter. Dohrmann was wearing de la Garza’s Positive Pin and was excited about its message. In addition, de la Garza received a hand-signed congratulatory letter from Zig Ziglar, the famous motivational speaker, praising him for the idea. But, while de la Garza is excited about all the hype around the Positive Pin, at the end of the day, it’s the fact that his message of thinking positive is paying off in people’s lives. A portion of the pin’s proceeds go to various charities, including the World Wildlife Fund, Ronald McDonald House, Scouts Honor Rescue, Breast Cancer Research and Habitat for Humanity. And his success stories are inspiring. “I received a story from a lady whose sister passed away from cancer. And while her sister was dying, she wore the pin and stressed upon her family to be positive because her sister’s blood type was BPositive!”




You can read more of the Positive Pin’s testimonials on the website, and order your own as well. The Positive Pin hats, t-shirts, and coffee mugs are also available now and the first five to order a t-shirt and mention this SA Current “Fashionation” story in the comments section of Paypal will get a free Positive Pin as well, in your choice of Keepin’ it Teal, Red E for the World, Positively Pink, or When in White.

Fat Tuesday is Fashion Tuesday Too!

Get out those Masks and Dresses! It began in Italy to celebrate the season of Lent, however today it is celebrated around the world. Whether it’s called Carnevale, Mardi Gras, or Fat Tuesday, it’s a great day to get dressed up, eat too much and have a blast. This weekend, my best friend living in Rome, Araceli, jumped on a train to Venice, where the Carnevale festivities began, and took some pictures for Fashionation readers to ooh and awe, get inspired and—as in my case—get a little jealous.

According to Araceli, the legendary sight included thousands of tourists artistically dressed and embracing overindulgence. It was about class and fashion, creative elegance and—my favorite—people roaming the canals half-naked. Check out the fashion below! Unfortunately we can only post photos featuring individuals in actual clothes. However, we agree that nakedness is a fashion statement too, which probably says, ‘You’ve had too much to drink, it’s time to go home.’

For more of Araceli’s endeavors, you can check out and 'Like' her RomeToday page on facebook.

Gilbert Zarate Jr. Printing ‘Sweet gzas’ Collection On American Apparel Tees

Its popularity rose in the United States during the 19th century when soldiers were given the garments during the Spanish-American war. T-shirts eventually caught on with skilled laborers and basically anybody challenging the heat. But hippies and tie-dyed t-shirts taught us that the garments are as much about comfort as they are about displaying important messages, political statements, and art. While some tees feature a favorite band or quirky slogans such as, “I Write about Fashion, Bitches!” the best t-shirts remain those that are not only comfortable and convey a message, but are real works of art. Sweet gzas (pronounced Sweet Jesus), the art alias and digital signature for an up-and-coming clothing line, is founded by Gilbert Zarate Jr., an award-winning graphic artist and illustrator from Brownsville, Texas.

A graphic artist for over 12 years, Zarate previously worked at the Brownsville Herald, the Express-News, and in advertising. He holds two Associated Press Sports Editors awards (APSE) and an Associated Press Managing Editor (APME) award for his visual journalistic work. Today, Zarate is the senior graphic designer at one of the top multicultural advertising firms in the nation, Interlex, headquartered in San Antonio. The source for Gilbert’s success, however, is his passion for art, which he’s pursued since childhood. “Since I was in junior high, I drew digital mazes, at home, in the classroom, everywhere, and then I began to see M.C. Escher, one of the first artists I was inspired by,” Zarate says. “His pencil drawings of varying shades and textures are incredible. He did a lot of mathematical patterns that were well drawn and penciled in—shaded but it’s almost like his drawings were computer generated before the computer was generated because he had fluid transitions and very intricate designs.”

Zarate is also a fan of Juxtapoz and Empty, two international magazines that taught him about the world for modern artists as the digital age has changed. Today, artists rely more on getting published than the more traditional gallery exposure at exhibits. “It got me thinking,” Zarate says, “my goal is to publish a book of my art work, sort of like how a writer looks to publish a novel.” Zarate is well on his way to achieving that goal. Based in Sydney, Australia, Semi-Permanent is a world-leading design conference (kind of like SXSW) that publishes a book each year featuring the best creative artwork in the industry, and in 2009 Zarate submitted his artwork for publication. He did not get selected.

However, in 2010, he got a call from Semi-Permanent and now his design, Monkeyboy, is published in Semi-Permanent’s 2010 1st Edition Art Book, which is a design you can buy in print and will soon be available on his t-shirts. “It was my proudest moment and makes me believe that I can publish and continue creating artwork,” Zarate says. It is his passion to share his art with the world that inspired Sweet gzas to produce their designs on comfortable American Apparel, 100% combed cotton tees. “My most popular designs are the ‘Jayberd’ and the ‘Elephant’, so I began by printing those on the t-shirts,” Zarate says.

The “Jayberd” and “Elephant” are also a little bit more “mainstream” fashion, a little less urban than some of Zarate’s other designs. A mom and/or the boy and girl next-door can wear them as well. If you’re more of an artist, check out his famous “Monkeyboy” design or one of his intricate, fully-functioning mazes by logging on to sweetgzas.com and make sure you check out the t-shirts — yours truly got to be a model for a day :) . Additionally, check out the designs that are going toward Zarate’s artbook at Behance Network.

Academy Awards Fashion Includes Nods to Starship Enterprise and Easter Bunny

Well, the results are in and the competition was tough. So tough it’s a three-way tie. The theme of the 83rd Annual Academy Awards Red Carpet Show was Aliens, The Easter Bunny and Table Cloth. On February 27, 2011, Gwyneth Paltrow landed in Los Angeles, California from outer space, in a long silver space suit designed by Calvin Klein. When the hosts at E! News asked Paltrow who designed her dress, I was just glad she didn’t respond with, “Aliens,” because we all know how hard it is to get those celebrity red-carpet knock-offs for our own night-out-on-the-town. Dear God, Italy is far enough to go for a good imitation Versace gown. It’s good to know that while Calvin Klein may work for NASA he also works on planet earth.

Nicole Kidman claims to have arrived from Australia; however her strapless, form-fitting white evening gown was encrusted with moon dust and a V-neck. While designed by Christian Dior and for the red carpet, it was clearly a nod to the very first Star Trek. But the number one Starship Enterprise fact every Trekker and Vulcan should know is that V-necks are not for the waist or the red carpet, but rather, the neck, as its title clearly implies.

Cate Blanchett, while she did not arrive on the same space ship as Gwyneth Paltrow or Nicole Kidman, was still transported to the red carpet from the future—Easter. Probably inspired by the giant egg Lady Gaga wore at the Grammy’s earlier this year, Blanchett’s Givenchy Couture was a tribute to Peter Rabbit as it included a violet purple rabbit hole on her chest, punctuated by yellow M&Ms across her back, so that kids everywhere—from outer space as well as the planet earth—could find her while on an Easter Egg hunt. To respect the Easter Spring theme, Hillary Swank showed up as Big Bird in the color gray. Her Gucci Premiere Couture gown was donned with feathers around her legs, ankles, and nowhere else. Perhaps Big Bird sheds during this time of year instead, I don’t know. You’d need to get with Gucci for further details.

There were a couple of stars who did not hail from outer space or the future this evening, but rather the present as they were spotted rummaging through my dining room earlier today. Scarlett Johansson’s lacy, flowered see-through Dolce & Gabbana gown is a memoriam to my great-grandmother’s nineteenth-century table cloth—before it was dipped in the color fuchsia. I couldn’t have picked a more beautiful girl than Johansson to carry on my great-grandmother’s memory, except for Natalie Portman, who was wearing purple tassels from the holiday curtains that go with the table cloth. Portman swears that the earrings are from Tiffany & Co, but since diamonds remain to be seen on her ears I’m going to have to call bull-shit on that one. Sorry Natalie.

Those were the highlights of this year’s 83rd Annual Academy Awards Red Carpet Show. Looking forward to next year!

The above photo attributed to Roobee’s Photostream. Check out more of the above mentioned red carpet fashion at Flickr.