LIFE AFTER: Setbacks
10/27/20 12:46 AM (random journal entry)
“I understand now more than ever, that even if you see the path of success in front of you, you still have to take the steps to get you on your way. For years now, I’ve seen the right moves. I made the right calls in my head, but I was stuck in the sidelines, satisfied with just seeing someone else win. But now I am confident enough to understand that I could win too. I don't have to sit and watch as the days go by; I owe it to myself to play the game and take my L or dub gracefully.”
How it made you feel.
There was a time where I thought I could drop SPiFF gear with no lengthy explanation about the process behind what I do paired with a thorough description of the energy that goes into each piece to justify why you should care about my art and why I had to price things the way I did. I can’t deny that it doesn't feel fair that I see other brands getting the full support of the masses for no other reason besides hype built off the cosign of today’s favorite artists and celebrities.
The younger me used to think that was all I needed for everyone to love what I was creating. In my head, it was deceptively simple.
People made cool shit, so people bought cool shit.
Given that genius logic, I figured that if I made cool shit, people would buy it too.
Right? Wrong.
That’s how it works at first when you got what we know as beginner’s luck. But when you’re 2-3 years in and your friends have supported you all they could, the game is completely different. Making some “cool shit” is no longer enough.
I’ve seen designs I poured my heart into initially fail because I didn’t put in enough effort into convincing y’all that once again what I was showcasing wasn't just another piece of SPiFF merch. I had to learn how to make collages, blog posts, videos, and even Tik Toks just to get y’all to understand that what you’re copping is literally the most up-to-date physical embodiment of the years I spent learning how to bring my art to life.
What you’re supporting is the brand that I've bet my life on. I’m not exactly sure what moment it became clear that this is all I wanted to do, but I know now that this task has taken more dedication and effort than nearly anything I’ve done.
When I show you a SPiFF product, you often just see the final draft. You don’t see the process and time it took for me to create something that I was willing to showcase. A lot of what I do goes unnoticed, but when you support SPiFF and my art, everything I’ve been through up to this point feels worth it.
It all starts to feel worth it.
All I’ve worked for and sacrificed begins to make sense the moment one of you looks at what I’ve created and decides it’s worth showing love to because you understand my message. It’s those moments when you put on the gear and instantly know that what you’re rocking represents a community of overachieving underachievers who do whatever it takes to make their dreams a reality. Those moments when both you and I understand that all this was never about how cool SPiFF made you look--
it was always about how SPiFF made you feel.
PROLOGUE
This year my girlfriend inspired me to truly get organized when it comes to SPiFF, so I invested in my ideas and laid out a plan for each season. When I finally buckled down and got serious, of course all hell breaks loose. lol This new drop was born from having plans that were made months ahead destroyed in the blink of an eye.
I can’t really complain though.
Because of all the setbacks, I literally learned how to use my first ever sewing machine to crop hoodies with a more professional finish and add SPIFF Tags myself like I always wanted. As you can see from the images I’ve added throughout this blog, each cropped hoodie is repurposed from pieces from a past drop. They’re super limited and each contain that personal touch from your boy aka me. This was something I was actually mad nervous to take on, but now that I have these new skills under my belt, you’ll def be seeing more 1/1 SPiFF customs that I’ll release for y‘all to enjoy.
The sudden switch of plans also showed me that preparing ahead really does have its benefits. We used to only have one collection ready at a time, so if something went wrong, it was game over for a cool minute. But getting organized allowed me to move things around and still give y’all some new SPiFF to rock while dealing with the chaos known as delays. In a weird way, it kind of feels like the Shinobi Vest were actually destined to be next; I can’t really explain it, but I have a good feeling about how things played out.
A wise individual on some Twitter account that only posts lowkey cheesy, but true quotes once said, “Everything works out in the end. If things aren’t working out, then it's not the end.”
That person knew what they were talking about. lmao
