Now, the secret to surviving the cold is to layer. The Fair Isle Poncho is the perfect cover-all for your fall outfit. Put up the hood and tighten the pom pom tassels for extra protection.

Thicker scarves are another great option. We found this super soft pom pom scarf that’s like a cloud around your neck. It red hue also helps keep us in the mood for the coming holidays.

For those with perennial cold hands (like me!) the pocket scarf is a great way to keep warm. No gloves needed. What I love about this too, you can share with your other half… if you want.

Check out our new fall wear on poketo.com.

Joe went to school at California College of Arts and Crafts in Oakland. He began as a painting major, but found his way to illustration as well. Joe’s work is amazing, super detailed and often very humorous, whimsical (just like this Poketo shirt!).

We asked Joe what inspired such a fun design and here’s what we got:

When did you first learn to bike? What was the experience like?
I think it was probably around when I was in junior high. My parents bought home a semi-rusted heavy red Huffy from the salvation army. I fell a lot but I loved it.

How did you get hooked on cycling?
My folks got me a mountain bike when I went off to college. That was how I got around for a couple of years.

What’s the best part of riding?
Riding with friends. Coasting down a long hill after a long climb.

Could you share one of your favorite memories of biking?
A thanksgiving ride maybe close to 10 years ago, I rode with my brother and his friend up and around Mt. Tam. It was a struggle to get up the mountain. I don’t get to spend as much time as I’d like with my brother, so this was a really great ride.

What’s the strangest type of bike you’ve been on?
When I got on a tandem bike with Rob Sato, an artist friend of mine. That was a great day. I don’t think I’ve laughed that hard in a while.

If you could see anyone (person, animal, object) on a bike, who (or what) would you want to see?
I love the visual of animals on bikes, especially bears but I’m not so sure if the animals would appreciate it so much.

I also love the look of Victorian era bikes (at least I think they’re Victorian). The image of folks in fancy dress bikes with a mixture of large and small wheels makes me laugh.

Check out Joe’s shirt on poketo.com. Unisex and womens styles.

You can also get this shirt on the CicLAvia route this Sunday October 9th!

Find more of Joe To on doodlebang.com.

When we asked her for a great bicycle-themed graphic for our shirt, she whipped up an awesome vintage-inspired typography that we just can’t take our eyes off of. We love the bicycle silhouette embedded onto to the word “Coolin’”–not to mention the slightly upturned, happy angle of it. Seeing this just puts us in a good mood.

Such a great design probably has a great story, so we asked Nathalie to share a bit of her bicycling history with us.

Hi, Nathalie. When did you first learn to bike?
First learned to ride a bike in the yard of Fairburn elementary school alone by trial and error. I just kept trying until I finally got it.

How did you get hooked on cycling?
I got hooked riding down a big hill in Santa Cruz on a starry summer night. That refreshing breeze on my face was irresistible.

What’s the best part of riding for you?
Freedom to go where I please at my own speed.

Could you share one of your favorite memories of biking?
Riding around the monuments at night on a visit to DC wth my friend Chris. The weather was mild, so many bike paths, no one around, we had all the statues and fountains to ourselves.

If you could take your bike anywhere in the universe, where would it be?
I would like to ride on the astral plane.

Check out Nathalie’s shirt on poketo.com. Or, if you are going to be cycling this Sunday in LA for CicLAvia, you can get this on the route!
Find more of Nathalie at headphonerecord.com

Hi, Liz, so what’s Stories Books & Cafe all about?
Stories Books & Cafe, we hope, is about good books, coffee, a comfortable community space. We sell new and used books, gift items, cards, coffee, baked goods, sandwiches, and have readings and music out on the patio. Hopefully, we’re a place that people want to be.

What inspired you start this shop?
Both Claudia and I have experience working in book stores. She had the idea to do a store and through a mutual friend we were introduced. I had always wanted to do a cafe and a store of some kind. Claudia had more of the plan and I sort of pushed myself on her to be part of it.

Antique Keys eco-pullover.

Why did you choose Echo Park?
I book the Echo and Echoplex clubs and could see the change in the neighborhood; and selfishly, it was easier for me because it’s close to the club. But both Claudia and I have lived in the Silver Lake, Atwater, Echo Park areas and knew we wanted to be over here.

Echo Park has wonderful neighborhood charm and history and it just felt right. We originally were going to be in Silver Lake and then when that space fell through we just kept looking at everything along Sunset Blvd. going towards downtown.

What your favorite thing about the neighborhood?
Personally, I love walking around the hilly residential areas and looking at the different houses; love the old commercial buildings, it has a lot of character but is very subtle; really excellent people watching and how everyone interacts with each other.

What is the most satisfying thing about being part of the Echo Park Community?
The neighborhood has been very supportive to us; l like that we get a mix of everyone that is part of Echo Park – residents who have lived here for years, the Latino families, the hipster kids, college students — it’s a really good mix. People have embraced the store and that means a lot; they seem very happy that we are here and it’s just a good sense of feeling like you’re contributing .. even it’s just creating a place where people can meet for coffee. That can be a real purpose.

Hang out at Stories Books & Cafe (free WiFi too!). Check them out at storiesla.com.

Part of what makes each of the eight 826 National chapters across the country so memorable is the quirky themed storefront attached to the writing/tutoring center. For example, Brooklyn’s storefront is the “Superhero Supply Co.”, San Francisco has “The Pirate Store”, Michigan has the “Robot Supply & Repair Shop”, and Los Angeles is “The Time Travel Mart”. 826LA’s Time Travel Mart is a quirky store that sells Evil Robot Memory Erasers, mustache disguises, and Viking Deodorant among many other fun time-inappropriate things. You can only imagine what the other storefronts carry.

For our latest Fall Collection, we shot at 826LA and caught up with program manager, Marisa Urrutia Gedney. Read below, to find out all about 826LA!

What’s 826LA in a nutshell?
826LA is a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting students ages 6 to 18 with their creative and expository writing skills, and to helping teachers inspire their students to write. We believe that great leaps in learning can happen with one-on-one attention, and that strong writing skills are fundamental to future success.

Our programs are challenging and enjoyable, and ultimately strengthen each student’s power to express ideas effectively, creatively, confidently, and in his or her individual voice.

Photo by Meiko Takechi Arquillos.

What’s the most fulfilling part of an 826LA day?
Seeing our students beaming with a sense of accomplishment–whether its because they finished their homework, were just published, or made some breakthrough in their learning–is always a joy and serves as constant validation for the work that we do.

Photo by Meiko Takechi Arquillos.

Why did you choose Echo Park?
826LA was established in Venice in 2005 where it still operates and provides our free services. Due to a demand from supporters on the east side of town, we opened our doors in Echo Park in January 2008.

Echo Park was an easy choice since the 90026 area code is home to over 20,000 students. There are about six schools within walking distance and the demand for our free programs continues to grow. For the 826 model to work, there needs to be a strong volunteer base nearby, and Echo Park has a community with all the elements required to help grow our programs.

What your favorite thing about the neighborhood?
826LA! 826LA is able to bring together all ages of kids, families, college students, retired folks, and the range of everyone else who lives in Echo Park to do great things. Behind the robot and the caveman, a student can be writing her first poem with the help of a volunteer. We might be hosting a parent advisory board meeting with a Red Cross representative sharing first aid preparation to our parents. A group of students could be performing in their first ever rock opera, while volunteers serve as the musical background.

What is the most satisfying thing about being part of the Echo Park Community?
The most satisfying thing about being a part of the Echo Park Community is just that; being a part of the community.

Many first time visitors to the Echo Park Time Travel Mart do not know about 826LA, most of them came in because they thought they were walking into a convenience store. After a customer has browsed around long enough to look entertained and thoroughly confused we let them in on the joke and tell them that the store is a front for a non-profit organization called 826LA.

At the 826LA storefront wearing a Bears on Bike Eco-fleece.

We give the back story and let them peek into the writing lab. We always show them samples of student publications (which almost everyone who comes here buys), but the look on their face when they see what we are doing here always reaffirms our mission. A good portion of our volunteers come to us in just this way.

Find out more about 826LA or become a volunteer! More at 826la.org.

We loved shooting around our home in Echo Park last week for our new fall collection. The neighborhood means a lot to us. We love randomly running into neighbors and friends on weekends, grabbing a coffee, a show, a quick drink, everyone doing their thing, having a good time… it’s that kind of community. So, in honor of all great neighborhoods, we’d love to introduce you to a slice of ours.

First up, Origami Vinyl.

Just two years old, Origami Vinyl is an integral part of the community. It’s here you can buy vinyl only releases of bands you’ve heard and have yet to hear, as well as catch free in-store music shows with both touring and local acts. Origami Vinyl has quickly become the place for music not only in Echo Park, but, in my opinion, Los Angeles.

Owner Neil Schield gives us the quick backstory:

What’s Origami Vinyl all about?
Origami Vinyl has a multitude of meanings to me. First off, it’s a childhood dream come to fruition.

It’s also about community. We really try and make this a place that brings Echo Park together through events at the shop, to working with local non-profits, and being heavily involved in shop hops, art walks, and festivals.

Live shows at Origami Vinyl.

And of course, it’s all about the music. Local music to be exact. We really pride ourselves on being a store that supports our city’s music. We think Los Angeles has the best talent in the world and we hope to showcase that by offering our loft to bands that have released their music on vinyl, promoting their tunes via our social media, having a section in our shop devoted to local bands, and by having a record label solely devoted to our local music scene. It’s always about local in our opinion.

What inspired you start this shop?
Owning a record store was a childhood dream of mine. However, over the years that dream became more of a fantasy. For the 10 years prior to opening the shop I had been working in the digital side of the music biz.

During that time it seemed the record store was going by the wayside. They were closing left and right and kids didn’t really have much interest in tangible goods when it came to music.

In 2008, I was laid off and I was feeling pretty down about looking for another job that would have me working at another large company and started to think of ways I could do something on my own.

I had my label (which was digital only at the time) and I was helping bands out as a sort of pseudo manager, but neither was gonna pay the bills. In an attempt to earn a little spending cash I decided to hawk some records I had inherited from my parents at a yard sale. I quickly learned that people were hungry for it! I sold over 40 records in a few hours and this was the stuff I didn’t want.

Scoping out good music wearing a Cassette V-neck.

My mind started racing and I thought, “What If I sold records that I liked?”. From there I started talking to people, stars were aligning and 8 months later Origami Vinyl opened up. It was all pretty serendipitous to be quite honest. It happened much easier than I had anticipated and that is when I knew I had made a great life decision.

Why Origami Vinyl in Echo Park?
I didn’t choose Echo Park. It’s where I live. There was no other place I wanted it to be. To be quite honest the location just fell in my hands. I didn’t even look into it. I had the space before I even had much of a business plan ready to go.

What your favorite thing about the neighborhood?
There are so many things! The people, the walkability, the architecture, the hills, Elysian park, the food, the small town atmosphere, the ability to hop on any freeway and get out of the city easily. I can’t really narrow it down.

Dreamcatching with a Dreamcatcher Eco-Pullover.

What is the most satisfying thing about being part of the Echo Park Community?
The most satisfying thing about being part of the Echo Park Community is the constant support people give to each other here. It seems everyone’s down to help each other out and look out for one another. I think that’s a rare trait in big cities and we are extremely lucky to live in a neighborhood like this.

Very lucky, indeed. Thanks for making Echo Park home, Neil! Our turntable thanks you too.

Find out what’s happening at origamiorigami.com.

As most of you all know, Echo Park, a vibrant, ever-changing neighborhood in Los Angeles is home to us. Both Angie and I live here. When we first moved to Los Angeles, this is where we settled and ran Poketo out of our house for the first couple of years. We made the living room an office, our garage the warehouse, we’d work day and night, with occasional taco truck breaks and a stroll around the park. We love this neighborhood and it’s diverse mix of ethnic and cultural communities, the nightlife, the colors, the food and business’ that grow and thrive here.

Upon launching our new tees, hoodies, and pullovers for Fall, we were brainstorming ways to highlight our new collection. You’ll see some new things you haven’t seen before…. we are introducing women’s, roomy boyfriend tees, v-necks, men’s super soft tees, organic fleece sweatshirt, and our ever popular organic, relaxed pullovers. We wanted to evoke the feeling of chilling out, a casual weekend of listening to records, hanging out with nothing much to do, but anything possible. As long as the possible was not straying too far out and feeling at home.

So, we decided, lets shoot in Echo Park… lets shoot in our living room (yes, that is our living room), lets share what we would do on a normal weekend around the neighborhood. What you’ll find here is a fun, simple, graphic collection set in our favorite locales in the neighborhood, in some of our favorite stores in the community. When you are here, we are taking you to get a coffee and browse books at Stories Books and Cafe, expanding your imagination at creative writing workshop 826LA, getting your music fix at Origami Vinyl, enjoying a sweet, cold treat at Pazzo Gelato, and strolling through Elysian Park. Over the next week, we’ll be posting more pics and even some short profiles from the owners of these awesome places. Check out the collection, enjoy!

Help us by voting for your favorite!

Smooth Sailing Halter Dress
If dress names predicted weekend outcomes, this would be the perfect outfit for the weekend. The soft A-line compliments any woman’s figure while the garterized back and halter straps fit as is custom-made. The double-row of brass buttons add that commander-in-chief feel without being too overwhelming, don’t you think?

Color Block Dress
It’s not Mondrian, but I still can’t help but think of the artist whenever I see this dress. Coral and cobalt blue combine for a powerful summer statement. Adjustable straps for a perfect fit.

Flutterby Dress
It’s amazing how much a sheer collar fluttering in the wind can be so captivating. This polka-dot dress was made for days of gentle breezes. The button-down front and fitted waist also add their own magic by emphasizing a great silhouette.

A Different Stripe Dress
I’m tired of the straight and narrow. This dress’s unusual pattern inspires me to go a little off-script.

So, what do you think would be perfect way to style the summer? Vote and let us know!