We talked with lawyer Mina Junh about delivering babka to Claes Oldenburg and Kiki Smith, deciding to go to law school, filling her home with art from friends, and more.
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Greenpoint
Meet Josephine Hack
in Engineer
One of mechanical engineer Josephine Hack‘s most prominent character traits is curiosity — along with a high degree of self-reflection that applies as much to her career at Brooklyn startup Terra Kaffe as to her philosophy on beauty and fashion. She talks to us about the effects of nature on her mental health, working in a male-dominated industry, and why she likes to wear dresses on hikes.
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Meet Beverly Nguyen
in Stylist
Beverly Nguyen is a stylist based in Brooklyn and originally from California, where her passion for clothes and style began.
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Meet Sybil Domond
in Entrepreneur
Sybil is the founder of People of 2morrow, an online lifestyle and concept shop offering a carefully curated selection of goods from local artists, as well as artists she sources during her travels internationally. She is also a stylist, interior designer, and mom.
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Meet Marjon Carlos
in Writer
Marjon is a freelance journalist living in Greenpoint. Formerly the Senior Fashion Writer at Vogue.com and the founding Arts and Culture Editor at Saint Heron, her work explores the intersection of style and culture. Marjon’s writing has appeared on The Fader, Jezebel, Elle, Refinery29, and elsewhere.
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Meet Zan Goodman
Zan Goodman is the design director of Chandelier Creative and a native New Yorker. She has worked on a wide range of fashion, beauty and lifestyle brands, including Adidas, Bottega Veneta, Moda Operandi, Moët Hennessy, and Target, and has designed books for Rizzoli and Penguin. She lives in Greenpoint.
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Meet Sara Radin
Based in Brooklyn, NY, Sara Radin is a writer and curator. Full time, she is the Youth Culture Editor for WGSN, where she consults global brands on consumer trends for Millennials and Generation Z. Outside of work, Sara does memoir writing and curates pop-up art events and workshops. She is the co-founder of It's Not Personal, a collaborative project, growing anthology and collective inspired by the female dating experience. Previously, her personal writing has been published by Bust Magazine, Huffington Post and Thought Catalog. She also teaches the pre-college program at the Fashion Institute of Technology and is currently a mentor for Girls Write Now.
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Meet Verena Michelitsch
Verena is a freelance graphic designer, illustrator, and art director originally from Austria. Splitting her time working for clients in both New York and San Francisco, she is also the founder of Sand and Such, a blog about sleep.
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Meet Zahra Bennani
in Entrepreneur
Meet NYC passerby, Zahra bennani. After 11 years in Paris, she recently moved to Rabat to launch JNOUN - a creative studio and clothing line in collaboration with her sister Meriem Bennani.
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Meet Nicole Steriovski
in Art Director
Nicole is a creative director, producer, filmmaker, copywriter and co-founder of Local Creative, a collaborative lifestyle collective and studio.
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Meet Donna Baxter
Meet NYC passerby, Donna Baxter. After dropping out of F.I.T, she went and started her first clothing company, Caroline Hedaya (sold at Shopbop, Intermix, Saks Fifth Avenue etc.) Now she’s the owner of the boutique Darling in the heart of the West Village.
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Meet Holly Falcone
in Manicurist
Meet NYC passerby, Holly Falcone, a freelance manicurist based in Greenpoint.
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Meet Sarah Vinciguerra
in Nurse
Sarah was born in a beach town in Florida. Seeking more energy than the small towns she was accustomed to, she moved to Brooklyn with her husband two years ago to pursue a degree in Nursing as well as be closer to her friends.
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Meet Lisa Przystup
“Born in Falls Church, VA Lisa is a Brooklyn-based writer who has written for Garance Dore, New York Magazine, The WILD Magazine, J. Crew, La Garconne and more. She’s also a florist who has done flowers for the likes of Ulla Johnson, Rachel Comey and Stone Fox Bride and her work has appeared in Vogue, New York Magazine and Elle.com.”
on her morning routine
I wake up and resent the alarm with every bone in my body, shuffle out to the kitchen to a cup of coffee because my husband is awake before I am 99.9% of the time, procrastinate getting ready and out the door until I have no choice but to madly rush through my “beauty” routine: wash my face with a Clarisonic I got last Christmas (can’t tell if it’s really made a difference but now I’m too paranoid to stop using it), then some sort of eye treatment from my multitude of Kiehl’s Eye Treatment samples, smear overpriced but damn good Yves Saint Laurent Touche Eclat under my eyes, Diorshow Black Out Mascara, Hourglass Brow stuff for my anemic asian eyebrows, MAC matte bronzer and then this Bobbi Brown stuff in a pot that makes it look like my cheeks are living in a perpetual summer. Then out the door with toast in hand.
how she started out
I moved to NYC because I had my tunnel vision focused on making it as a fashion writer (or really any sort of writer for that matter). What no one really tells you is how difficult/impossible that is. I pursued it pretty tirelessly, checking everything off the list—Master’s degree in journalism, internships, networking, establishing hard-fought relationships editors only to have them leave the publication, following up (always following up) etc. and just really hit a wall after many, many years with little to no results/income/progress and needed to step away from it all for a moment, which is when I started doing flowers. Copywriting was always in the back of my mind as an option that I really didn’t want to embrace but I’ve learned that 1. you can actually make a living doing it and 2. you can actually get pretty creative and still have a voice and still be challenged coming up with smart ways to reach people.
“So these books aren’t necessarily my favorite books of all time but rather a snapshot of what I’m reading right now/recently read and liked. I’ve been endeavoring to read East of Eden and started it on our honeymoon—the language is heartbreakingly beautiful in its practicality and sparse matter-of-fact-ed-ness and it reminds me of why I ever wanted to be a writer. It’s too beautiful for ugly subway rides—I almost want to go on a retreat somewhere befitting of its beauty and finish reading it there.”
on her interest in flowers
After hitting a wall with writing I needed to just step away from things for a moment and separate myself from the tireless pursuit of it all. I had recently done a story on Brooklyn florists for New York Magazine’s The Cut and thought I’d trying playing around with flowers. I have such a Type-A, perfectionist personality that it felt really good to try something that didn’t have all my hopes and dreams wrapped up in it. My husband and I head upstate quite frequently so I sort of used that as a testing ground and practiced form and all those good things with the wildflowers and blooms that are rampant (and free) up there. Then I started reaching out to contacts I had from pitching fashion stories to pitch flowers instead.
on selecting an arrangement
The actual process is sort of different every time. Sometimes I’ll see an arrangement that really inspires me and will work off that, other times I have a specific color scheme I’m dreaming of working with or that a client specifically wants, and other times I go the less thinking route and just go for it. My favorite part is making the arrangements. I’m pretty not great at everything else, which is a bit of a problem since it turns out that arranging feels like it’s actually just 10-15% of the package. You have to be business savvy and be willing to take a pretty big financial risk—getting a studio and a team—in order to grow and I’ve just never been ready for that, which means my business has always had a pretty low overhead. It works for me but it is tough when you see other people pulling off larger, more glamorous installs and projects but then I have to remind myself and my ego that I chose this level of engagement and that it’s what works best for me for now.
on her beauty routine
I’ve been using Bumble and Bumble Thickening Shampoo and Conditioner for as long as I can remember and I just recently discovered Oribe products—all amazing—but the Surfcomber Mousse is exceptionally so. I just put it my hair after I take a shower at night, go to sleep with my hair wet and in the morning my hair has just the right amount of gritty texture and wave (although my real dream is to get a perm, this’ll do for now). Love the idea of body oil as a moisturizer and I have this great one that smells like roses and earth and makes me feel like I should be at the beach but I like the ease of lotion and I’ve been feeling Kiehl's Creme de Corps for a couple of years now. I also recommend Kiehl's Rare Earth Deep Pore Cleansing Masque.
on her shopping habits
Lately I’ve been doing a lot of online shopping, mostly stalking Etsy for vintage goods. Stella Dallas in Williamsburg is great too but it can be a real undertaking since there’s so much stuff in there. I usually go with a specific mission in mind. I also feel pretty lucky to know a handful of friends who are amazingly talented designers: Ilana Kohn, Aurora James of Brother Vellies, Marissa Maximo of Anaak…I love wearing their pieces. Rounding all that out, there are the usual big chain suspects: Zara, Madewell, J.Crew. And then there are the designers I covet but can never pull the financial trigger on: Rachel Comey, Apiece Apart, Maryam Nassir Zadeh, Caron Callahan etc. I’ve also been working my way up to a pair of Jesse Kamm pants—resolving to do that here really really soon. Oh! And Ace and Jig for textile amazingness.
on her favorite records
That Bon Iver album makes time stop. AA Bondy (paired with Timber Timber) is great for driving around Joshua Tree at night as the full moon rises over the mountains. Melaena Cadiz has a voice like a train. The Iron and Wine album is perfect for playing Gin Rummy in bed with a mezcal gimlet in hand—actually, it’s the perfect soundtrack for peaceful contentment.
Top, Vintage Dior ; Jeans, Vintage Levi's
“My man and I just went on our honeymoon in February—we sort of drove all over the desert-y areas of the west coast and hit other little spots along the way too. Joshua Tree and Ojai were great but we really fell in love with Tucson—it’s a real gem of a town that for some reason a very specific demographic (ahem, people who live in Phoenix) tend to hate on but don’t listen to a word they say. I like to think that the people who end up drawn to it and loving it are the exact people Tucson wants in its arms anyway.”
JUMPSUIT, MADEWELL ; BAG, VINTAGE ; SUNGLASSES, RAY-BANS ; SHOES, MARAIS
lisa's recommended books
The Lover by Marguerite Duras, Blue Nights by Joan Didion, Sweetbitter by Stephanie Danler, You'll Grow Out of It by Jessi Klein, East of Eden by John Steinbeck
lisa's favorite movies
Cinema Paradiso, Finding Nemo, Amelie, Ain't Them Bodies Saints
lisa's favorite records
American Hearts by A. A. Bondy, Around the Well by Iron and Wine, Deep Below Heaven by Melaena Cadiz, For Emma, Forever Ago by Bon Iver
lisa's favorite places in nyc
Achilles Heel for stupidly good small plates and cocktails (and the occasional chicken/lamb/goat roast)
Alameda for the best unpretentious burger
Troost for the best backyard hang—go on a Monday for their bratwurst and sauerkraut night
Acapulco diner for huevos rancheros
Porter James = furniture eye candy
Meet Dana Bodourov
in Jeweler
Making jewelry started as a hobby but with much approval from friends and strangers alike she decided to pursue it and now has her own hand-crafted jewelry line called RILA, inspired by elements found in nature and artifacts rooted in history.
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Meet Olivia Fleming
Olivia is a writer and editor, working for online publications like Vogue.com and Elle.com, as well as a jewelry designer. (Shop her newly launched mood rings here.) Born in New Zealand, Olivia moved to New York for the first time in 2008, but then relocated to Sydney in 2009. She eventually moved back to NYC in 2011 and has been there since.
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Meet Katie Garcia
in A&R, Entrepreneur
Meet NYC passerby, Katie Garcia , a co-founder & Manager of Bayonet Records/A&R for Secretly Label Group.
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Meet Peisin Yang Lazo
in Producer
Meet NYC passerby, Peisin Yang Lazo. Half Ecuadorian, half Taiwanese, Peisin grew up in Ecuador as well as Nicaragua, before moving to the States by herself to go to Boston University and study Film/TV. Now she’s a producer at ad agency Johannes Leonardo.
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Meet Andrea Toscano
in Artist
Meet NYC passerby, Andrea Toscano, a designer based in Greenpoint.
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Meet Ellis Jones
“Born in Texas, Ellis moved to NYC in 2008 after majoring in Journalism at Georgia State. Her career started through an internship at VICE, where she eventually made her way up to managing editor. In 2014 she left VICE to be the US Chief of Staff at Daily Mail but that only lasted about nine months. Ellis is now the editor in chief of VICE Magazine, and is the first female editor-in-chief in Vice’s 20-year history.”
Top, Community by Aritzia ; Skirt, H&M ; Shoes, Birkenstock
ON HER MORNING ROUTINE
I’m not a morning person, so I usually give myself an hour so I don’t feel rushed. I wake up and check my email and instagram in bed then put on music and wash my face. I put on moisturizer, mascara, color in my eyebrows a little bit, and put on a little lipstick.
On being an editor-in-chief
It's scary, stressful and fun. I like working on a print schedule because it’s not as fast-paced as digital. So, you have more time to work on stories and put something together slowly. It’s really rewarding to work on something from start to finish, to see how it changes as the weeks go by, and then to get to hold the physical copy in your hands and flip through it.
on how she got to her career
In college I couldn’t decide what to major in but I always did well in english classes and figured journalism was a career that would always be around and I liked the idea of being paid to travel and write. I grew up reading teen mags like YM and Seventeen so when I discovered VICE in college I guess I just gravitated towards it because it was so different than the mags I was used to reading.
Top, Urban Outfitters ; Pants, & Other Stories
“I shop at Topshop, J. Crew, Reformation. I also really like Everlane for basics. I’m more of a casual, low key dresser. I usually just wear a plain black dress with black Birkenstocks or Nike’s or jean shorts and an old t-shirt.”
The Sixth Extinction by Elizabeth Kolbert, The Year of Magical Thinking by Joan Didion, Just Kids by Patti Smith and The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test by Tom Wolfe
On what she's reading
I’m in the middle of reading The Sixth Extinction by Elizabeth Kolbert. It’s a really interesting book. She talks about all of the mass extinctions that’s occurred over the years but dives in to how we, humans, have altered life on this planet in a way no species has before. It’s informative and a little scary, but she talks about complicated things in a way that’s easy to understand.
ON music
I find music too distracting at work, but I always have music playing when I’m at home. My boyfriend sends me great old songs or playlists he’s found. I love soul records so much, like Otis Redding and James Brown. Every song they made is just so good!
On her beauty routine
I don’t like wearing very much makeup. I try and use a mask (Kiehl's Rare Earth Pore Cleansing Masque) or exfoliator every once in a while for my face. Besides that, I’m trying to get better at flossing. I like Burt's Bees Beeswax Lip Balm with Vitamin E & Peppermint, Mario Badescu Aloe, Herbs & Rosewater Facial Spray, Kiehl's Since 1851 Ultra Facial Cleanser, Benefit Gimme Brow Volumizing Fiber Gel, Kiehl's Rosa Arctica Lightweight Cream, Benefit's Instant Brow Pencil Medium, Oscar Blandi Pronto Dry Shampoo Spray and Nars' Black Audacious Mascara.
Top, Urban Outfitters ; Pants, & Other Stories ; Glasses, Ray Bans
Burt's Bees Beeswax Lip Balm with Vitamin E & Peppermint, Mario Badescu Aloe, Herbs & Rosewater Facial Spray, Kiehl's Since 1851 Ultra Facial Cleanser, Benefit Gimme Brow Volumizing Fiber Gel, Kiehl's Rosa Arctica Lightweight Cream, Benefit's Instant Brow Pencil Medium, Oscar Blandi Pronto Dry Shampoo Spray and Nars' Black Audacious Mascara.
Top, Community by Aritzia ; Skirt, H&M
Ellis' Favorite Books
The Sixth Extinction by Elizabeth Kolbert, The Year of Magical Thinking by Joan Didion, Just Kids by Patti Smith and The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test by Tom Wolfe
ellis' Favorite Records
The Legendary Patsy Cline: Her Greatest Hits and Finest Performances by Patsy Cline, Rumors by Fleetwood Mac, Please, Please, Please by James Brown and History of Otis Redding by Otis Redding
Ellis' favorite places
When I'm willing to wait, I like eating dinner at Five Leaves. Their mussels are SO good. Also the homemade ricotta. Paulie Gee's pizza is the best.
For drinks, I like going to Enid's on a Saturday afternoon.
I get my haircut/colored by Liz Leary at Whiteroom.
Dress, Lacoste ; Bag, Vintage ; Shoes, Birkenstock ; Sunglasses, Ray-Bans