Hey guys! So I got a chance to interview the creator of Squid Kids Ink, and I wanted it to show you guys the quick Q&A of what this is all about. This is what went down...
Me: What is your name? Nate: Nate Mitchell Owner/Operator of Squid Kids Ink Me: What is Squid Kids Ink all about? Nate: My company motto is "For Geeks By Geeks", and that pretty much says it all. I'm into comics, video games, movies, toys, and a lot of pop culture in general. I make stuff that I like and want to own, hopefully other people like it enough to buy it. Me: How did you start the company? Nate: I started SKI while I was working at Playmates Toys around 2006. It was mostly a creative outlet, because corporate jobs can be stifling. In the beginning, I was mainly sculpting my versions of popular characters. It wasn't until 2008 that I really started developing my own brands like Squibs and So Analog. I quit my day job at Spinmaster Toys in January of 2012 to do SKI full-time. Me: What inspired you to start this? Nate: It was mostly about creative freedom. I was tired of translating someone else's movie or cartoon designs into toys. I wanted to create stuff of my own from scratch. Making the product is the easy part for me. The real challenge is developing the characters and the worlds they live in. Me: How would you describe your style of art? Nate: I'm not really sure how to describe what I do. A lot of "art" has some kind of message behind it. I hate being preached to or being preachy. So, I would consider myself more of a designer than an artist. I like to create new things, but with So Analog I've been creating new things from old things. Me: Were you always about art? Nate: I can remember being slightly better at creating things as early as 3rd grade, if not earlier. I think I've had a least 2 major artistic milestones when I was younger. In 5th grade I shifted from collecting Baseball cards to Comics and Comicbook cards. That's when my drawings became more than stick figures. I was mostly emulating the comics I loved like Spawn, Predator, Ghost Rider, and Silver Surfer. In my small town in Wyoming, I was know as one of the few kids that could draw really well. The second milestone was when I was 19 and started sculpting some of my favorite movie and comic book characters. At age 22, I went to Otis and graduated in 2004. While I was there, I was known as one of the few people that could sculpt really well.
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[Don't mind the photos.]
Wacko. Just the name is enough to give you an idea of what they have here. They really do have a bunch of random stuff, but everything there is so cool. It has a bunch of different toys, niknaks, etc. all over. Other than that, they do have an art gallery with a bunch of different artists and once in a while, they change the gallery up too. If you are feeling something random and spontaneous to do, I would definitely come here. I can easily just kill an hour looking around the store and definitely leaving with something. I bought a toy there, which will probably be posted up soon. If you are a toy enthusiast, this is a must check in LA. They also have some of their products online, but that won't show everything. So might as well, GO! :) If interested, here's the info: Wacko Soap Plant 4633 Hollywood Blvd Los Angeles, CA 90027 soapplant.com SURU is one of those cool, hip stores out on Melrose Ave. in Los Angeles, CA that sells a bunch of different things, ranging from clothes to toys. They have a pretty dope selection of urban street wear, that you can easily end up picking something up. As for me, I prefer buying the toys and the art. They have some art prints hung on the left side of the store and a glass wall full of toys on shelves and shirts hung on on the ceiling that travel from one side of the store to the other. Pretty cool. If you don't know what I mean, look at the pictures below. Personally, I think their price range is kind of pricey, but it could just be me being cheap. Haha. Other than the price, I think this store is pretty cool because it gives off a chill vibe. |
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