If you happen to be creative, keeping the flow and keeping the cash coming in is a constant worry. Most artists and performers wait tables, tend bars, or take on part-time office jobs only to find it inhibits their creativity. Lee Lucas does a bit of everything from being an artist, singer/songwriter, waitress, and designer who recently created her own bracelet line called The Looksy.
Lucas performs all over LA with her band NeonWest and says her music career inspired her to create The Looksy.
“It came out of necessity,” Lucas said. “One night, at a gig, I was rushing to get up on stage, when I realized I hadn’t checked my lipstick. Looking around, I realized there was no mirror to be found and no time to go find one. That’s when The Looksy was born. I thought, wouldn’t it be great to have a mirror that you wear, a trendy bracelet that also doubled as a touch-up mirror?”
The Looksy is a leather bracelet/wristband with a mirror on it, perfect for a quick makeup check with a flip of the wrist. It currently comes in two styles, “Rockstar” and “Popstar” and four colors – black, white, dark brown, and purple.
Lucas recalled how it all began with the early days of the Looksy.
“I started with ribbon, glue, and mirrors from craft stores,” she said. “I have kept a lot my prototypes. It’s hilarious and inspiring when I look back on what they were when I first started creating The Looksy. They’ve really progressed, and now I am truly proud of The Looksy line.”
Tonight, Jan 6, her band NeonWest will play at Bar Pico in Santa Monica, located at 2819 Pico Blvd., at 8 p.m. Her bracelet line will also be on display.
On Thursday Jan. 19, Lucas will participate in the January Venice Art Crawl. Both her original cartoon entitled Pat Peeve, as well as her bracelet line, The Looksy, will be on display at Hotel Erwin, located at 1697 Pacific Ave., from 6 p.m. until 10 p.m.
Lucas is looking forward to once again participate in the Venice Art Crawl, a monthly art walk, which happens on the third Thursday of every month.
“I am also very excited to show my cartoon at the Venice Art Crawl,” she said. “The cartoon’s main character, Pat Peeve, is a waitress. I think her name speaks for itself.
Dealing with the public and co-workers can be a challenging experience, which lots of people can relate to. It’s also a breeding ground for comedy.”
At the Art Crawl, Lucas will also sell individual postcard size prints of the strip, which she said made for great inexpensive gifts.
“Pat’s been around for a few years,” she said. “She came about as a creative way to vent while working in the restaurant business.”
She said she was working on getting Pat Peeve published.
“Since I still work in the restaurant business, I have new material every day,” she said. “It’s a great artistic outlet for me.”
Meanwhile, her bracelet line, The Looksy is featured at Bohemian Exchange Boutique
(1358 Abbot Kinney) and Rosenthal Estates Winery in Malibu, and other locations. Celebrities can be seen wearing The Looksy, such as singer Vicci Martinez (from NBC’s hit show, “The Voice”) and actress/model, Sarah Hester.
For more information or to purchase the Looksy online, visit www.thelooksy.com as well as her band, NeonWest at www.neonwest.com, and Pat Peeve at www.patpeeve.com.
