On The Line With... Advisory Board Crystals

If there was a textbook for running a clothing brand, Advisory Board Crystals is here to rewrite it.  They focus on limited micro drops for retailers and partnerships, fair pricing for consumers, and produce items (sometimes unique) rooted with deeper meaning. By going against the grain they’ve cultivated a passionate community with their unique messaging and purpose. We caught up with co-founders and creative directors Heather Haber and Remington Guest about how the stay at home life hasn’t changed much of their day-to-day, and what they’re most optimistic about. Read Up.

Describe what you do for a living and how you are adjusting to social distancing.

This is Heather Haber and Remington Guest, we are the co-founder’s/co-everything’s of Advisory Board Crystals. 

We haven’t had to adjust too much to be honest, aside from the very obvious, it isn’t too drastically different from our everyday life at certain points in time. We aren’t strangers to “isolation” in many ways, as it is inherently a part of our creative process. We are always together working from our studio at home. 

How do you typically start your day? What daily rituals are you practicing?

We’ve been on an alternate schedule since the “quarantine.” Going to sleep around 3 a.m. or so, and waking up around 11 or 12. It has also started spilling into a 5 AM to 2 PM situation. Something about it has worked for us. Daily rituals are our morning supplements. Health routine is key. Then coffee and we jump into work. We exercise at home through pilates for Heather and resistance band strength training for Remington. We play with our dogs Shiso and Shimmer throughout the day. They’re incredibly distracting at all times but we love them for it. 

How are you staying productive while at home? Any useful tips?

It is part of our nature. Create or die. Even when we aren’t feeling creative we do something creative. Anything. Draw something, open a blank file on the computer, putting on the right song. It’s also ok to give up sometimes and do nothing. Though, we aren’t the best at the giving up thing. Usually an hour or so into giving up we have an idea we get excited about and want to work on. Something that helps us push through is the realization of how much joy Abc. brings to our community. They look forward to our work and want to see new things. New ideas. It’s rewarding to know that doing what we love gives people some inspiration, at least. Our push for productivity during this time also goes hand in hand with our will and ability to want to help other people as much as we can by doing what we do. We are honored to be able to partner with so many incredible organizations like Feeding America, so we can make a real impact during these times.

What is keeping you grounded/balanced at the moment?

Each other, our pups, and the Abc. community. 

During this time of social distancing, people are leaning on things such as streaming services, puzzles, painting, at-home workouts, to name a few, what activities are you using to take your mind off of things?

The creation and curation of those very things takes our mind off of everything else. We launched something called “Abc. Xyz.” It’s a platform we had laid out back when we started in 2015. We created a series of free music mixes, alongside film and book recommendations, plus an ongoing stream of inspiration of all kinds. So that takes time. We’re also working on a puzzle, a D.I.Y. sweatshirt, a D.I.Y. bracelet kit, and a variety of other ideas that we are hoping to put out for people during this time. 

How have you stayed connected to friends and family during this time?

FaceTime!

What advice would you give to someone who’s struggling in isolation right now?

Know that this too shall pass. Maybe a cliche quote but it actually rings true. Everything comes and goes. Reach out to friends, reach out to us. Shoot Abc. a dm. But, also take comfort in knowing that everyone is in this together. That is a unique situation. Take advantage of this time in whatever way you can. There’s a quote we love, “do it when you’re depressed” – this is the time to catch up on something you’ve been putting off, start a new creative project or a not creative project. Sometimes the word “creative” is used too aggressively or abstractly, but at the same time it is much more wide open and subjective than you may think. Anyone from a scientist to a plumber can be creative. There’s a wide spectrum. It’s all in the intention. Just do what feels good.  

What accomplishment or new project are you most proud of while social distancing?

We’re really proud of some of the not for profit work we’ve been able to work on. We worked with one of our favorite restaurants in NYC called “Bohemian.” It’s sort of a members only hidden Japanese living room. The t-shirt also doubles as a membership. We also worked on something for “#payuphollywood,” plus we have something coming up with Feeding America, and a few others. 

What are you most looking forward to once this is over?

Getting back home to L.A. 

Advisory Board Crystals | advisoryboardcrystals.com