Starting Out

It was late last year when I had been beefing up my resume and fishing thru potential internship job listings as a Fashion assignment. It was at this time that my boyfriend, Justin, had suggested interning with Guerrilla Republik. I shied away at first, as the political aspect intimidated me some. I'll admit, I do have an angry rise against side when it comes to matters of animal rights, but as far as human rights go, I would have no knowledge of these matters to back up what I'm fighting for. I understood the gyst of the Guerrilla Republik mission statement. Honestly, I read it, I didn't get it. I got the words and the sequence with which it was written, but I guess I didn't feel it and want to rally behind it so much. I understand that with political views come views of much strength. For this, I feel I am not strongly opinionated enough nor have the intellectual heft to back myself in an arguement.

I decided, however, to start off slow. I would help around Justin's shop, cleaning and prepping screens for printing. Justin spotted my Xgirl bag that I had diy-ed from an old favorite shirt that had become discolored in the wash, and proposed that I make him a sample bag that he could print and then present to Rabb. I gladly complied. I had purchased several colors of canvas material. I had appreciated the aesthetic of Guerrilla Republik. I was ecstatic that I was allowed to leave raw edges on everthing. This was something I could get very used to. It was my style, and it was something I could effectively sew in a production-type setting. The first prototype I made was from a brown canvas that I made a mini messenger from. It included a flap and a braided strap. And a natural bead closure. I then printed a tan gas mask on the front and even though I thought I had cut the bag too small, it ended up being a bit of a happy accident when I decided to print the "Guerrilla Republik" on the flap. I fell in love with this bag and, to this day, refuse to sell it. I had made variations of this bag, but this was the first bag I ever made for Guerrilla Republik, so I will always think of it as special.