Wondering what I should share about our Brazil sourcing trip and all I can think of? Clowns. Yes, clowns. Half bald, curly red hair, big red nose. Seems like everyone I know in the States is scared of clowns. The very mention of Poltergeist makes people shudder in fear. But not in Brazil.
Clowns be the shit in Brazil. One night I’m hangin’ with a gal I just met in São Paulo. Not sure, but I think I posses some magic skillz that make people I’ve just met open up and tell me their life story. Jarina is no exception. She explains that she’s crushin’ hard on a boy that she’s known since they were 5 years old.
She says that he’s a clown. And then it goes down… I think I’ve misheard Jarina. I mean c’mon… how many professional clowns do you know? I ask Jarina to repeat what she said. Clown. I give her a look of total confusion. She follows up with… you know, like in the circus. I belt out – OHHHHH… a clown. Yes, yes! A clown! I musta still looked confused because she ran out of the room and returned with a photo of the boy when he was 5 years old, rockin’ a clown costume. Childhood dreams do come true.
And then I discovered another superpower. I could spot a clown anywhere. We went to a flea market. What did I end up snapping pictures of? Pens AND clowns. Clowns!! We’d walk down a street and I’d spot mimes ushering people across busy intersections. Yes, mimes. They count as clowns, right? Turns out São Paulo was experiencing a high number of pedestrians getting run over by cars. Their solution? Man the busiest intersections throughout the city with mimes.
Spotting clowns turned out to be my addiction during our entire trip. The hunt for lo-fi goods was consumed by clowns. Would a clown wear this color? Do clowns wear pinstriped outfits? I couldn’t stop thinking about the clown I grew up with – JP Patches. The baggy pants, the outfits decked out in rainbow colors, the bright colors!
Looking at the super rad goods from Brazil, am I surprised? No. Tell me, could you resist a gang of pencils in rainbow colors stamped with “happy times” in gold? Or pinstriped pencils named “Pijamas”?? I didn’t think so! The notebooks rep Brazil with bright colors and make the kit complete. Everything about this kit screams CLOWNS!
On the plane ride back, I’d bust out laughing every time a clown popped up in one of my photos. So when you break open your Brazil Kit, remember that clowns need love, too.
oxxo, Hen
