AUGUST 2025

Times Flies…

Is it just me or is this year speeding by? I keep thinking, “How is it July already?” And now it’s August and we’re all looking forward to Fall. We’ve been lucky here in SoCal. The heat waves have avoided us for the most part. Lots of highs in the 70s, and I’m grateful for that. My studio doesn’t have air conditioning, so during the peak summer heat, I usually move into my spare bedroom in the house and work with the air conditioner on, keeping things comfortable. But my preemptive move this year was a little too early and I probably could have just stayed in the studio another month or two. I love my studio…it’s full of colorful artwork, old neon signs, my design books, curtains from ABC’s Wide World of Sports, a ‘70s striped avocado green couch that could use new springs, old pennants, and so much more. I feel at home in my studio and with this background (see photo below), I always get questions in Zoom calls. I am incredibly fortunate to work from my studio and have a space that promotes creativity and makes me feel at home every time I walk in. So, even though time keeps flying by, I’m sure looking forward to my move back into my studio this fall.

“Where there’s fun, there’s Airwalk!”

That was the first slogan at Airwalk Shoes back in the beginning. I did not come up with that. Over the years I went through a period of time where I didn’t bring up my formative years at Airwalk. It was my first graphic design job and you simply could not have had a better opportunity. I didn’t get rich, but I made a few people a lot of money while I was there. And it turned out that my designs became very influential for a lot of people. I was just having fun doing what I always wanted to do for a living. Two reasons why I stopped talking about Airwalk for awhile: 1. The brand was incredibly popular for the first ten years of its existence. We grew the company from a start-up to a $250 million footwear brand in just a few short years. But when I left the company, things were changing…a lot. And while those changes looked like a big surge in business to outsiders, it was the beginning of the downfall. The brand abandoned their core customers and they never recovered. There’s more to it than that, but that’s the short version.

Eventually the brand was sold and then sold again. And then it became a Payless Shoes budget brand. And a new generation of people only knew the brand as a crappy knockoff, cheap pair of shoes. And I didn’t want to be associated with that. Time has passed, Payless went bankrupt, and the brand has been sold a few more times. But there seems to be a bit of nostalgia about Airwalk, and people speak of it lovingly. And now it’s time to celebrate some of the iconic designs that I created back in those days that put Airwalk on the map and on the feet of so many thousands (millions?) of kids. So, here is a compilation of just some of the iconic Airwalk Shoes logos that I designed from 1987-1993. There are many more I’m sure, but this is a good start. I always want to give credit to Cynthia Cebula who hired me for my first design job there, and who designed the original versions of the Airwalk logo and the Ollie character. The Ollie and Airwalk logo versions I have shown below are the ones I designed not long after I joined Airwalk and was tasked with creating new, cleaner versions, which we used from that time on. Many of these designs are still being resurrected for reissues and collabs with people like Forever 21 and JC Penny.

Oh, and what was #2? 2. For awhile I was concerned that telling people my first design job was in 1987 made me sound old. Now I don’t worry about such things.

Update…

A few newsletters ago, I told you about a new project I’ve been working on with Mary Beth Babcock in Tulsa, Oklahoma. For a refresher, there was an old brick building across from her other store that I worked on with her, Meadow Gold Mack’s. The brick building had been empty for years, and it needed new life. Mary Beth worked with the property owner, and together, we have created a new group of retail shops called the 66 Collective. The building has been getting a massive makeover, turning what was once a thriving printing company into five retail shops, right on Route 66 in an area known as the Meadow Gold District. I got to design a couple of neon signs for the building, and the last time I mentioned it in the newsletter, the building had just been painted to match my design, and the 66 Collective sign had been installed. Well, a couple of weeks ago, the new Buck’s Vintage neon sign was completed and installed and is now lighting up the Mother Road (Route 66). The neon horse’s ear twitches back and forth…it’s so cool. Buck’s Vintage has just completed their relocation, which looks amazing by the way, and had a massively successful Grand Re-Opening this past Friday.

And then, completely separate from that, I have been working with Tulsa’s Meadow Gold District to start giving the area a visual identity. We’re starting off with these pole banners, and more changes are in the works. I think I’ll be managing their website soon as well…exciting times in what has become the most vibrant section of Route 66 in the country.

Truckin’…

I always have a nice array of Vibrosonic Design Studio tees, hats, and other fun stuff in my store. I like to change up the designs from time to time, so if you haven’t checked things out lately, today would be a good day to look at the goods. Here are some fun new Vibrosonic trucker hats I just added. Comfy. Light. Ready for your next adventure.

All paintings STILL (STILL!) 50% off!

I’m just going to keep this rolling… We sold even more paintings again after last month’s big 50% off sale, so stock is dwindling. Just enter the code FEZ50 at checkout and you’ll get 50% off any of my paintings in my online store. That means the little ones are only $25! Let’s clear those suckers out. Head to the store (link above) and start picking out your favorite friend!