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When I showed my Mexican mom my pictures and told her about the purpose for my blog, she hesitantly approved by saying, “Esta bien, pero no vayas ha ensenar las chichis ni la panocha.” I Laughed!   I love hearing that word “Panocha” I also love the variations of that word in our Spanish! El Pan!  Pan caliente, pan dulce, la Pepa, La Pulpa, Uuuuuuuyyyy!  At the market, I read  “Large Panocha 89 cents a lb”. How sexy that they chose to use Panocha instead of Piloncio?!  That produce guy is a Chicano Dirtybag, de seguro!.   

“Okay madre!” I agreed, “No voy ha ensenar chichis ni panocha”, but in my mind I was thinking, she didn’t say anything about NALGAS! LOL! I know, what a dirtbag I am, but it’s nothing dirty at all! Everyone I know loves NALGAS!  So I'm going to fill my house with Nalgas and share my Nalgas with you!   Porque ha quien no le gusta una buena NALGA!

and hey! Know your power, "PANOCHA POWER"!

Please subscribe and read more about NALGAS soon! Tapatio Man part two, coming next!

 …and don’t be a Dirtbag, it’s Art!

Support Mujer Owned Small Business

Photography by Crystal Lopez @eyesonuphotography

Creative Direction: Diana Diaz

TAPATIO MAN

“Where’s the Tapatio?” I get asked this at home all the time!    Like many I know here in East LA, and the greater LA, I put Tapatio brand hot sauce on everything.  Especially on quesadillas, fruits, salads, soups, sandwiches, Doritos and all.  This might be a total Chicano thing, because I almost never find Tapatio when I’m in Mexico. I only found Tapatio in some states I visited in the U.S.  Here in LA however it’s at every restaurant where I eat, and at every home I visit.  Family and people I know who are from Mexico, oddly always prefer other bottled salsas that are thicker and grainier like Valentina, Cholula or Huitchol. These are also good but not as flavorful and cool as Tapatio. Another major reason I think I love Tapatio is because there is a portrait of a fucking hot ass looking Bigoton in a Charro suit and he is right smack in the middle of the label.  He is beautiful and has always fascinated me (I think this is great marketing BTW!)  Growing up, I always wondered if that guy was real and to be honest many times I wished he was because I had a little crush on him. I’m only a little embarrassed to admit it and I’m positive that I am not the only one who crushed on the Tapatio man! When I confessed to a couple of my amigas about my crush, they laughed at me.  Am I crazy?  I also felt like this about the Bounty lumberjack but not as hard as I feel it for my Tapatio man.  As I’m growing older, my pansa tells me that I overdo it with hot sauce so I try to cut back,  but Tapatio, “I can’t quit you!"  There are constant reminders of him everywhere.  He’s on little ketchup packages in my every ceviche order.  He’s stepped on, splattered on the sidewalk, on walls, and on my clothes.   My hot man is everywhere and I have surrendered to loving his sauce.   Tapatio man is so very easy for me to love.  I am pretty sure it’s because we have more in common then with the other hot sauces! But seriously, is he real?!  If your family is from Jalisco, then this dude looks like many of our fathers or uncles. They might have looked like him when they were young too. My dad is from Jalisco and he kind of looks like he could have been related to Tapatio Man, but more like a wannabe Chente! Seriously, when my son was old enough to recognize my dad, he would point at the Tapatio bottle and yell out “Tata”! If Tapatio man is real, he is Chicano for sure! He’s a hard worker and his community appreciates that! He probably lives here in Los Angeles or somewhere near me. We might even be the same age?! 

* Tapatio started as a small business- please continue to support small and local businesses.

Photography: Crystal Lopez @eyesonupphotography 

Creative Direction: Diana Diaz

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I have very fond memories of the bolsita Mexicana my grandma would gift me every time she visited me from Mexico.  I had a small collection of them because I have always loved purses and these were the nice. They were leather and they were very affordable because we would purchase them with Pesos.   The cost was equivalent to a dollar so my dad would always buy a purse for me and one for my sister during our short trips across the border.  My purse line is a very colorful modern makeover of the traditional tooled leather bolsita from Mexico.   

Every single one of our products are hand-tooled, not embossed!  Meaning that our leather is actually carved out versus stamped.  The tooling is a labor intensive craft taught to many generations.  This type of artwork, beautifies leather hide and is part of our beautiful  and ingenious traditional cultural creative customs.

 El Sereno is a community that has loved, educated, and supported me. It is where I went to school, where I worked, and where I currently live.  El Sereno is a beautiful valley with rolling hills where many Chicanos that I know stay.  There are many community celebrations where we celebrate culture with displays of street art, homegrown music, street tacos, sports, and activism.  El Sereno is full of spirit, faith, love, beauty, y mas!  Many of my home based customers and supporters have roots or still currently live in El Sereno. Many of my friends grew up in El Sereno.  Many of the stories I will be sharing on my blog have to do with the people of El Sereno.  I am so glad I choose El Sereno as my home!