Episode 3: Samantha Gottlich of No Rhyme or Reason – Healing Through Upcycled Fashion
Download MP3Welcome to this week's episode of Local Threads. I'm Molly, your host. And this week, I sat down with Samantha Gottlich, the mother of yellow, the self proclaimed silly goose, and the owner and founder, designer, upcycler of no rhyme or reason. Samantha takes unwanted treasures and turns them into something that can be reused. She takes you back to a place you can no longer go with her nostalgic toy items and overall, just joy for life.
Molly Host:Samantha's whimsical. She's hilarious, and I hope you enjoy this week's episode.
Samantha Guest:Welcome. Thank you for having me.
Molly Host:That's your emotional support, I'm glad that you brought them. They're so cute.
Samantha Guest:Thank
Molly Host:you. I never had a Furby.
Samantha Guest:I don't think I had a full size Furby, but I had the McDonald ones.
Molly Host:Yeah. These were cute.
Samantha Guest:These were both gifts, which I think is hilarious that people see a scary Furby, and they're like, I
Molly Host:know who who I'm giving this to. Well, was always I don't know if you remember this, but there's always, like, people have this lore about Furbies, like, waking up and doing doing things.
Samantha Guest:They're little they're like daytime gremlins. You know?
Molly Host:Yeah. I know. I love it. Did you guys
Samantha Guest:There's actually a gremlin Furby, and that's that's a grail find for me. Is that, like, a million dollars on eBay? It depends if house a box or not and if it still works, But I've seen it as cheap as, like, $40 Oh. And as high as, like, 230. So I just feel dumb if I'm like, you know what I'm gonna buy right now?
Samantha Guest:A gremlin. A gremlin. I And I'm like, it's so freaking cute.
Molly Host:But it's not a gremlin. It's a gizmo. Yeah. A mogwai, if you will.
Samantha Guest:Yeah. Furby mogwai.
Molly Host:Note to self if anybody wants to get Samantha a Christmas present. When's your birthday?
Samantha Guest:Right after Christmas. Oh. I know. It's in February, so it's like a really long time.
Molly Host:It was just the other day, practically.
Samantha Guest:Yeah. True. It's April. Feel like it's June. You
Molly Host:feel like it's June?
Samantha Guest:Or July.
Molly Host:I feel like it's still in January. Yeah. I'm like, where has the time gone? Anyway, we've quickly went off the rails. In case you don't know about no rhyme or reason, you transfer nostalgic treasures into wearable art, whether that is a set of earrings like the ones I'm wearing right now, which are Garfield.
Molly Host:Made them out of cake cake toppers.
Samantha Guest:Yeah. They were picks. Alright.
Molly Host:So we're gonna take it back to when you started No Rhyme or Reason. You started doing art first. Right?
Samantha Guest:Yeah. I was always very artsy. I was in drama club. I wrote poetry. I wrote songs on the guitar, and, I always loved dressing in funky fashion.
Samantha Guest:And when I was in college, I was studying marketing and sustainability. And my first I think it was like year and change was having weird health issues where, like, just like chest pains and like what I thought was issues with my esophagus. Turns out that I had lupus and it was just the beginning stages of having active lupus. And essentially, I got so bad I had to take a year plus off. I kind of got it in my head that I have all this time to really just kind of do what I want.
Samantha Guest:I went from going 110 miles, taking like six or seven classes at a time and internships and like modeling classes. And because I had so much free time, I was like, you know what? I'm gonna start taking modeling seriously. I'm gonna take fashion seriously. I'm gonna start painting about my lupus.
Samantha Guest:And the painting about the lupus turned into hand painting yard sale buttons. So it's like a wearable painting. And then that spun off to me sewing and putting the buttons on the clothes, and then I started painting earrings, and then it just flipped out of control. And then it just became, you know, a little hobby I was doing. And then I so perfectly graduated during 2020, and then it was like like, was doing event marketing.
Samantha Guest:I was doing a bunch of, like, face to face stuff. And then I was like, well, now's the time to really pursue what I was doing for fun, this little hobby, and just lean into it. And then throughout the years, I just kept leaning and leaning and leaning until it became who I am. Yeah. Went from, like, a little fun to Well, it was really
Molly Host:an outlet to, like, make sure you were doing something with your time. Literally. For anybody that's working that much to go to that to, like, not being able to do something, to being able-bodied, to being not is hard, and you basically nailed it. You were like, I'm gonna do something that is physically and mentally good for my body right now because if you completely stop, that's a bad place. Yeah.
Molly Host:I can't imagine how, like, scary that was.
Samantha Guest:Yeah. And I I got to that bad place because at the same time because at first in my head, like, I had it in my ding dong brain that I was gonna graduate a year early, and I was just like, I was ready for career. I knew I wanted to work in marketing. I knew I wanted to find a place in advertising for fashion, and I always had a, like, a drive for body positive advertising and inclusivity that way. And in my head, like, when I took time off of school, I'm like, okay.
Samantha Guest:I'm only gonna be gone a semester. And then it was like, now that we've weaned off the steroid medication for lupus, we're finding that this medication helps with the hair loss and, you know, just like the general sluggish, tired, fragile ness of lupus, like the hair breaking and just crunchy bones. But then the medication didn't cover the heart issues. So then it was like, Oh, back to the drawing board. And then that was like, Well, you can't go back to school if you need to go into Boston, like, all the time to see if you know, I have one kidney, too.
Samantha Guest:So I was like, oh, is this medication affecting the kidney? Like, you know, is this medication working with the heart, or is it filling up with the fluid thing again? So, yeah, for a while, was like, oh, this is going to be, like, five minutes, and then I'm gonna be back to school. And then I was like, fudge. I really gotta figure something out.
Samantha Guest:Because, you know, I was at the same time I was doing modeling and runway shows, but there's only so many of those opportunities. And then you're just stuck at home. And all my friends were in college, like all you know, life continued on, and I felt just, like, so stuck. I was like, I don't even know. What do you do?
Samantha Guest:And you're back at home after being, like, free at college. It's like, man, I feel like I'm regressing. You know, I felt like I really was about to start my life, and now we're way backwards. Yeah. So it just led to even just, like, a new confidence of feeling like, okay, I can make a path for myself, and I don't need to be in college full time and running my butt off.
Samantha Guest:So
Molly Host:Can I ask, what happened to your kidney? Did you get sick?
Samantha Guest:No. I don't know. I think it was just a little piece of kidney, so they just took the rest out. I was an infant. Oh.
Samantha Guest:So Well, fun fact.
Molly Host:I got an extra piece of pancreas. No. Maybe it's part of your kidney.
Samantha Guest:Oh my god. Found it. Found it. Oh my god. Wow.
Molly Host:That's cool. When you said I don't know, I was like, what you mean you don't know where
Samantha Guest:it went? Go for new skone. Oh my god. But yeah. No.
Samantha Guest:Yeah. Was just like a little a little piece, and they removed it when I was a kid. So, I mean, that's
Molly Host:that's good that you never had to, like, deal with that as
Samantha Guest:Yeah. And I guess my other kidney is, like Championship. Guess be For real, it's, like, apparently big, mean, green fighting machine.
Molly Host:Tell the people how old you are if you are comfortable.
Samantha Guest:No one knows how old I am. People think I'm either 50 or 12.
Molly Host:28. And I think that's why I wanted to bring it up because your brand is very much a nostalgia that maybe you didn't even experience when it was happening.
Samantha Guest:Exactly.
Molly Host:I'm an eighties baby, so Garfield eighties Garfield was my jam. And so I just assumed I was like, okay. Rock with Garfield.
Samantha Guest:And Gumby.
Molly Host:Yeah. And Gumby. And so
Samantha Guest:Yeah. My family, I mean, I was raised on like not to sound like cringe. I was raised on Led Zeppelin. But, like, literally, like, my very briefly in my life, we had the Elmo CDs, but then very quickly, it was like, you wanna listen to Aerosmith? And then that led into I was, like, in middle school, and I got into, like, goth fashion and scene fashion and just, like, just there's so many microcultures in that music scene and fashion scene.
Samantha Guest:And my sister is about seven years younger than me. So when it comes to y two k fashion and, like, nostalgia, like, I didn't watch Stanley and, you know, Playhouse Disney when I when, like, other kids were. Yeah. But because I was in the room with my sister, like, I know like, I have memories of it, but I was in a, like, a a nugget at the time. So but, yeah, I'm 28.
Samantha Guest:Oh my god. Graduated high school in 2015.
Molly Host:Yeah. You said you were a scene kid, and low key
Samantha Guest:You can't read. Yeah. Had the hair in everything.
Molly Host:I that's the one, like, I guess, trend or more so not even trend aesthetic. Because the hair,
Samantha Guest:I think late.
Molly Host:Yeah. But I I think I what was when when was that even a thing? '20 02/2010?
Samantha Guest:Yeah. Think that was, like, 02/2008, 09/10, and then it just dropped off. Yeah. But it was when it was hot, it was hot.
Molly Host:I couldn't be a seam kid because I was in military, so I couldn't dye my hair at I
Samantha Guest:started with the knee high Converse. Oh, that's right. And then eventually, I got my mom to let me dye parts of my hair. And then eventually, had like it was short hair, and then it was long. And then eventually, was like, you know what?
Samantha Guest:I'm grown up. I'm not a scene kid anymore. I cut my hair and I went back to brownish blonde, whatever color I have. And, yeah, and then I became, like, just uber colorful. Like, when I was, like, a scene kid, I was still, like, pinks and greens.
Samantha Guest:You never grow out of it. No. You just get old. Yeah. And then maybe I think I'm not gonna get old.
Molly Host:I'm gonna I'm gonna be a vampire.
Samantha Guest:True. Me too.
Molly Host:I just started watching Twilight for the first time. It's so hard to watch
Samantha Guest:right So the problem is the first one's incredible. I'm like Cinematically? Yeah. Iconic.
Molly Host:But
Samantha Guest:But it's so bad and cringe looking back on it. Don't even try reading the books. It's so painful. I tried to reread them, and I was so embarrassed of myself. Yeah.
Samantha Guest:But it was such a thing. Like, oh my god. Like, store was Twilight Yeah. To the max. Like, I got into Twilight, I think it was my my first year of middle school because I went to school that was sixth, seventh, eighth.
Samantha Guest:And it was like, dude, everything was Twilight. Yeah. And then it got New Moon came out, and it was like Team Edward, Team Jacob. And even the Valentine's Day candy that year was boxes of Team Edward and Team Jacob.
Molly Host:That. So iconic. I was old by then. I was, like, 20
Samantha Guest:Yeah. Something. And you probably signed your own, like, this is cringe. And you were right. But it was such a phenomenon.
Samantha Guest:Like, the back I I one night, I did the back to back to back to back movie screening premiere. Yeah. And it was like, I don't think there'll ever be
Molly Host:Something like that again. Right.
Samantha Guest:And like a
Molly Host:long that was how many moves there? Four?
Samantha Guest:So there's four books, and then they split the last book into two. Yeah. It's so cringe, but it was such like, it was a time. It was a time. Just everything was Edward or Jacob and the the stupid shirts that were like, I like boys that sparkle.
Samantha Guest:Like, it was iconic. I remember that. And that
Molly Host:is the main reason why every time I went to watch it, when they got to that scene where they were laying in the grass Look what I do. Yeah. I was like, no. Because True Blood was on too.
Samantha Guest:Oh, yeah. I I never watched that, but I know, like, people loved it.
Molly Host:Oh my god.
Samantha Guest:My two clues are too far.
Molly Host:No. I'm just excited that you've never seen True Blood.
Samantha Guest:Yeah. I
Molly Host:is that Guess who's got the DVDs?
Samantha Guest:I guess who's a DVD player. Exactly.
Molly Host:I think I'm gonna have to bring you my DVD.
Samantha Guest:I would love that. I'll Because
Molly Host:you're gonna get hooked.
Samantha Guest:Yeah. Because I do love it. The thing is it's like once you get a taste of, like, vampire love stories, it never truly leaves you. Yeah. Yeah.
Samantha Guest:It's just so iconic.
Molly Host:Oh, and there is
Molly Host:so much ridiculousness.
Samantha Guest:I love it. I love the campiness. I love, like, oh my god, the dumb, like, how they
Molly Host:Run really fast.
Samantha Guest:And it's just like, brother, you are, like, clearly in a green screen, which is so good. Yeah. So campy. It's iconic.
Molly Host:We should go back to when you switch from buttons to fashion. And you when we talked before, you talked about learning to sew from your grandfather. And I love that.
Samantha Guest:Yeah. My first collection, he helped me design every piece. My grandpa lives in Massachusetts, but he snowbirds to Florida, as you do. And, yeah, during all that lupus craziness, when I was like, well, I got time. I was like, I'm gonna go fly down to Florida and, like, hang out with my grandpa.
Samantha Guest:Like
Molly Host:Yeah.
Samantha Guest:You know, I love flea markets. I love yard sailing. You're telling me the weather's gorgeous. They got Wawa there. I'm going.
Samantha Guest:So I end up staying with him for, like, almost a month, and he was so supportive. I mean, he's always been so supportive, but, you know, he has a artsy, crafty background. All the aunts and uncles do as well. So he and I, like, I came with all my painting supplies and, you know, all the stuff, and I was like, this is what I wanna do. And I networked on.
Samantha Guest:Like, there used to be Facebook jobs. So I networked and I found someone that had, like, a mini art gallery. And they were like, well, if you're going be in the area, like, you can showcase at our event. So, yeah, my grandpa and I, we went around that area and yard sailed, like, you know, old pants and just, like, old denim and dungarees. And, yeah, he and I, like, I drew out the ideas, and we kind of, like, bounced ideas.
Samantha Guest:And he showed me how to sew, and he took on the harder parts. And, we end up whipping up my first collection. And at the same time, I made those buttons. So the buttons and little paintings I brought to that art show. And it was my first time, like, appearing at a pop up because it was, like, a, you know, like a tent at an art market.
Samantha Guest:And then when I flew home, I had a opportunity to showcase at a fashion show. And I had just finished, you know, the the collection, and it just spiraled. It was like, alright. For a while, it was like, oh, my sewing is only for fashion shows. And then as the years progressed, it's like, wait.
Samantha Guest:Like, I can like can upcycle in a different way and make it something funky without being too, too crazy, because my fashion show pieces are a little nutty professor.
Molly Host:But they're not very iconic, though. Who doesn't need a Beanie Baby cape? Exactly.
Samantha Guest:I had a boa. I've the giant Muppet cape. I've done coats. Yeah? So great.
Samantha Guest:So, I mean, so LOL, so I mean. But yeah, no, it's been Yeah, just a lot of the stuff was like, all right, like, I had an idea, and then that idea always stayed kinda at the bottom of the cup. And, you know, as things continued, that idea's branched out. So, yeah, it started just like, sun, sun with my grandpa, like, oh, this is fun. And then like, oh, people actually like this and think this is unique and want me to showcase my stuff at their shows.
Samantha Guest:And then, oh, man, like, people like my buttons. They want me to pop up at an event and sell my buttons, and people are buying them. Cool. And then it was just like, what do I like to make? What's comfortable to make?
Samantha Guest:Because with my lupus too, like, some days it's like, oh, you know, I really can't whip up buttons like that. This hurts. The crunching or the sewing having my arms, like, outstretched hurts. So as I became more interested in new things and new ways to craft And as my body's kind of, like, reacted, I've kinda got to grow and change in different ways. But like I said, that's always in the cup.
Samantha Guest:You know? It's always still there, the bottom of the cup, you know, whatever inspirations I started and just, like, evolved into different things.
Molly Host:Yeah. For those of you that don't know, Samantha and I have, art studios in the same building. And when I first moved in, I would see you cart and stuff to your car every We're good. Every weekend. And, really, if you're at the mill, you're gonna see your car.
Molly Host:Like, I don't know how like, I don't know how you work so much and also deal with lupus. Like, I really don't. Like, even if you feel like you're not doing a lot Yeah. You literally are.
Samantha Guest:Thank you so much. Thank you.
Molly Host:You're doing a lot. And then all the markets, and making things and you wholesale and you yeah. It's a lot.
Samantha Guest:It is.
Molly Host:I would crumble in that Yeah. Scenario, and I just love that you didn't. Thank you. I've
Samantha Guest:no. I've crumbled many a times.
Molly Host:Well, mean, we all have.
Samantha Guest:Yeah. Yeah. I don't know. I feel like I had, like, I had, like, one of those, like, life experiences where literally, if I if I did not drive myself to that hospital and then drive myself to another hospital because they didn't take my insurance.
Molly Host:Shout out to a shitty American health care. Yeah.
Samantha Guest:If I didn't do that, like, essentially my body was breaking down for a few weeks, and I had gone to the doctors and nurses, and because it wasn't apparent, it was ignored. And if I did not drive myself to the hospital that day and advocated for my health, and I left my Internet literacy class. And, yeah, I just, like, drove myself there. And they told me, like, yeah, you're literally about to die. And, like, immediately started performing.
Samantha Guest:Like, it was like, all right, let's suit up. So I feel like that experience has always led me to be, like Fearless a little bit? Yeah. Yeah. And sometimes to my own detriment where I'm like, you know what?
Samantha Guest:We're doing back to back events. I'm gonna be doing fifteen hours today, and all I need is two coffee and a bagel. And then it's like, oh, wait, I still have lupus. And then it's like, oh, man, I'm not invincible. But when you've, like, seen what could have been the end and you were able to like, I was able to go back to college and finish, and then COVID happened.
Samantha Guest:Like, I had to wait to graduate, like, in person. And, like, you know, I've seen so many stop signs that I'm gonna fly through the greens when they're there. I am flying through the greens. And, again, it's sometimes to my own detriment where it's like, you know, maybe last year, I shouldn't have done 14 events during pride month. That might have been excessive.
Samantha Guest:14? I end up pulling out a two because I got stuck in South Carolina doing mascot work of so I end up getting stuck there. So I did pull out a two, but, yeah, I was booked for four I booked myself for 14, and I did 12.
Molly Host:I literally if I do one thing Yeah. A month hard. Three weeks to mentally recover. Like, went from having a store that was open every week Yeah. Yeah.
Molly Host:To, like, I can't that's too much people in
Samantha Guest:Yeah.
Molly Host:To having a podcast, which is much more enjoyable because I get to pick who I talk to.
Samantha Guest:Right. And then you get, like, a special, like, person to person connection.
Molly Host:I get to kidnap people for a few hours and force them to let me interrogate them.
Samantha Guest:Well, yeah. I feel like for me, like, when it comes to pop ups, I have, like, a weird, really great relationship with them Yeah. Where it's like, for me, this has been no rhyme or reason has changed in so many different ways from, again, like, I would do gallery showcases, and I would ship my stuff overseas to be showcased in galleries, and I would Oh, where? Overseas? Oh my god.
Samantha Guest:That's so cool. In The UK. Okay.
Molly Host:In London, baby. What I find interesting is that you went from painting on buttons and I have not seen your images that you painted, and they were basically about your health journey.
Samantha Guest:Yeah. Like, wicked, like, tough to stomach. Not,
Molly Host:like Yeah.
Samantha Guest:Gruesome, but I have one where it's about my hair loss. One of my personal favorites, I had large bazongas. Okay? It was literally painting or No. No.
Samantha Guest:Just in life. In life. As a human human being, I had like I was, like, known for having massive boobs, and it was just so horrible. Yeah. Because it was painful, but and, like, I love vintage fashion, nothing would ever fit.
Samantha Guest:But also, it was like, you met me and it was like boobs. And it really was. Like, I remember trying to find a prom dress and just everything had to be, like, corset back and, like, it was just horrible. And, yeah, like, literally, like, people would just be like, Oh, she's hot because she's got boobs. I'm like, Actually, I'm hot because I'm insane, not because I have boobs.
Samantha Guest:My beautiful mind. My beautiful mind. But yeah, so I got a breast reduction. Woo hoo. And, they don't tell you about that is that you are going to immediately have a dissociation with your body.
Samantha Guest:Yeah. It's just immediately I can imagine because Traumatizing.
Molly Host:Gained 50 pounds. Yeah. During COVID, I quit smoking cigarettes and Damn. Ate every pizza Too real? I could find and then drink so much Coca Cola.
Molly Host:Damn. Like, any soda, give it to me. Like, I was trying to replace whatever. Yeah. Yeah.
Molly Host:So, like, adding or losing that weight or proportion, like, I still pick up things. I'm like, yeah. I can fit that.
Samantha Guest:Right. I I feel that.
Molly Host:Like, oh, no. I can't. No. It's like
Samantha Guest:It's hard. It's hard.
Molly Host:It's weird. It's some don't understand that part of the brain.
Samantha Guest:Right.
Molly Host:It's like I guess it is because you've seen yourself that way for your whole life. So when something changes, your brain just can't Yeah. Can't accept either accept it or, like even though but you wanted to do it, so it would almost seem like it would, I don't
Samantha Guest:know For me snap
Molly Host:through that? I don't know.
Samantha Guest:I loved I love it now. Now I'm like, thank God, best decision. But and everyone says that. Everyone says, oh, best decision, you're going to love it. But the thing that hit me was, like, first time I had to shower, and I still have, like, the stitches.
Samantha Guest:And I was, like, essentially screaming. I was, like, just so, like, like, grossed out. Just, like, ugh. Like, just all of it. Just, like like, again, you go from, like, comically large boobs to, like, small boobs, smaller boobs, but also, like, the scarring is fresh, and it just felt like like, I just felt repulsed.
Samantha Guest:Yeah. And then it turned into, like, a repulsion with my body. So I end up painting a black and white painting of, like, my body and big old bloody scars, and then really accentuated my lupus surgery scar and my one kidney scar. And it's kind of gross. The red I used is very bloody
Molly Host:looking. That is such a juxtaposition to where you are. I know! To show you. You're going to look Yeah, you have to see that because
Samantha Guest:like disgusting. It's, like, very
Molly Host:visceral. I like art that, makes people feel things, whether that's grossed out, angry, sad. Like, I feel that's art. Thank you. That's art.
Samantha Guest:Thank you for saying that.
Molly Host:And so but to know you and to know, like, you're cheery and you're like, quirky girl. Look at my look at everything is yellow, which we'll get to that in a second. But, like, that, I would not expect that.
Samantha Guest:I've got some I used to you know, it's so funny. I used to have my favorite paintings that and I've done a lot. For the most part, they're all lupus or grief or body relationship issues, identity issues. And I used to have them on my website, but it was such a juxtaposition where folks would be like, oh, cool. Like, oh my god.
Samantha Guest:Like, this is so fun. And then, like, you hit the wrong tab and you're like, hello? Where am I? Like, what? So yeah.
Samantha Guest:No. I am yeah. If you scroll just because, again, it was so Yeah. It I think the last painting I made was, like, 2021. That was, like, visceral like that.
Samantha Guest:So it's like, if you scroll, keep scrolling, you'll find them on my Instagram, but that's, like, so much scrolling that you'll probably give up, hopefully. And but, yeah, no. I'm I'm really hoping down the line to do another showcase of those, because I used to, like, for the Lupus Foundation, I would not only paint, like, hand painted buttons, I would paint them and I would sell them and I would donate the funds to the Lupus Foundation. And at one point, would partner with, like, chain restaurants and places to, like, sell buttons and donate the proceeds. Yeah, it was, like, super fun, but then I would paint buttons that were really fun and cutesy and just I didn't wanna go back to Yeah.
Molly Host:That part therapeutic process.
Samantha Guest:Think getting I felt like I encouraged when you Yeah. Yeah. That's cool. I felt like it was like, you know, I did it, and because I was doing that at such a dark place Mhmm. Like, I don't want to go back to that.
Samantha Guest:And I know God, I follow so many incredible artists and painters that just rip their soul out, and they just paint about every horrible experience. And I'm like, I don't wanna go through that again. Like, I've gone. I've painted about it. I've therapy ed about it.
Samantha Guest:Like Yeah. So it's a dark little a little nook in my life. Yeah. And I'm proud I'm proud of the pieces I've made, but I'm like, I'm good now. Yeah.
Samantha Guest:You know? That those stay at the apartment. They'll stay in the office in the apartment, and someday they'll come back for a visit, but It's probably gonna be one of I'm ancient. I look like this Furby. Yeah.
Samantha Guest:I have white hair with little pink tufts too. So
Molly Host:So your transition to loving yellow. Let's talk about how that happened. Yeah.
Samantha Guest:During that time where it was like that in between school, taking time off, lupus, that really difficult discovery journey. And again, like, it's very isolating because when you're diagnosed with a chronic illness, people react differently. So lovingly, some of my family just wanted to protect me and, like, oh, you know, like, oh, I gotta make sure you're okay. And then, like, you know, some of my friends were like, just like didn't know how to approach. And for me, was, I don't care.
Samantha Guest:Like, I'm not dead. Like, I'm still gonna do my fun things. During that time, there was, like, a lot of feelings of isolation or just not being able to relate and feelings, too, of jealousy. Like, I wanted to be in school with my friends. Like, I wanted to go to those, like, dorm parties or those lectures or be in school and have roommates again and, like, just that whole thing.
Samantha Guest:So all these, like, like, really gross feelings I didn't want to experience were happening. And, yeah, during those days where I felt like I just was, like, in a bad place, where I was like, I just don't wanna feel this way, I just started looking for yellow. So, like, if I was on the highway, stuck in traffic, everything's miserable, like, I'm just just stuck physically, I would look around and I would see, like, little dandelions, like, growing out of the cement on the on the highway, like Mhmm. And those little, like, merge yeah. And the medians and the merges.
Samantha Guest:And this is my favorite time of year because as you drive, you're like, daffodils. Yeah. I'm like, oh my god. Just the wildflowers are bright yellow. And then, you know, you just yellow is so loud, and when you see it, it feels like a rarity when you see it, like, in the wild or, like, even, like, in the parking lot.
Samantha Guest:Like, you don't really see yellow often, so it started to become a symbol of hope for me. Hope and just almost like, for me, like an okay from the universe, like, things are going be okay. Here's this little sign of hope. So it just yeah, it became a feeling of, alright. Like, this is is tough, but we're gonna we're gonna make it through.
Samantha Guest:Yeah. That emotion. And then it spiraled into and spiraled in a good way to, like
Molly Host:Your persona.
Samantha Guest:Yeah. And just like The mother of yellow. Right. And it's like, oh, like, if it comes in yellow, like, why not? Like, if it just
Molly Host:I forgot to I had, a pile of yellow clothes I was gonna bring you and I forgot them because I That's have, like, 700 bags I bring to
Samantha Guest:the studio. Too real. Too real.
Molly Host:Too real. TBD. I've got them.
Samantha Guest:Thank you.
Molly Host:When I see you next time. So when you discover that, you know, that hope in yellow, had you already, like, done your branding for No Rhyme or Reason?
Samantha Guest:No. I the first year in change of No Rhyme or Reason, because I was, like, painting and I did do the fashion shows, but it was still kind of like a method to bring paintings into fashion. Like, it was almost like I did fashion so it could be a canvas. So, yeah, I'd say, like, for a year and a half, I didn't have any logo, any branding. If I was doing an event or anything, the picture would just be, like, me.
Samantha Guest:Yeah. Like, it wasn't a brand. It was, like, an artist name. Yeah. When I got to the point, like, it was time, like, alright.
Samantha Guest:Like, things are going well. Like, I want to continue this hobby, air quotes at the time. When I had my logo made, it was I had to incorporate yellow.
Molly Host:Yeah.
Samantha Guest:And just as time has gone on, it's just it's such a happy color. It's become just my ultimate happy happiness, you know, represents so much to me. But also, like, when I'm at an event now and you see me Yeah, we'll find yellow. Right, right, you'll find me. And also, like, there are, like in Boston, there is a few brands that, like, use yellow heavy.
Samantha Guest:But for the most part, you're gonna see, like, white tents, you're gonna see maybe, like, pink or blue, but, like, yellow is so distinct. Yeah. It's like, hey, Tapachico. Hey, no rhyme or reason. Like, it's very, like yeah.
Samantha Guest:So
Molly Host:So no rhyme or reason, the name, how did that come about? So it started with kind of like knowing
Samantha Guest:that the art I was actively making was difficult to explain. So with chronic illnesses, you just really can't vocalize what is going on. Yeah. It is just a different level. And if you're not actively experiencing it, it's really hard to relate to.
Molly Host:Yeah. It's like when somebody says you're or I tell people if I'm anxious, they're like, oh, just breathe.
Samantha Guest:And it's like Right. It's like, you're stressing me out.
Molly Host:I am breathing. Thank you.
Samantha Guest:It's like now I'm thinking of my breathing and I'm panicking. Yeah. Yeah. So I thought the term no rhyme or reason would be a nice kind of, like, gloss over. So it's like, oh, no rhyme or reason to it.
Samantha Guest:Like, it's just a thing. But like, if you actually look into it, there's so much more.
Molly Host:Yeah.
Samantha Guest:And then that became kind of like a way of life where it was like, I'm gonna live with no rhyme or reason. Like, I'm just gonna like, why not make toys into earrings? Yeah. Why not sew plushies into clothes? Why not have a bright yellow car?
Samantha Guest:Yeah. Why not? No, Ryan and Maria said, like, there is no rule book. There is no purpose. Truly, there's no purpose to anything.
Samantha Guest:Yeah. And like, you can think about that nihilistically or you could think about it like whimsically. Yeah. And be like, whatever. I'm just going to have fun.
Samantha Guest:Because like, if there's no guidebook on how life should be, then I'm gonna do it however I want. And that's gonna be fun and whimsical and no rhyme or reason
Molly Host:to What I really loved, what we talked about earlier or before the podcast, was you when people would ask about the subject matter of your art and you didn't feel like explaining it, you would say no rhyme or reason. And the ones who got it Amen. Didn't didn't. And it was a good way to be like, Carry on. Right.
Samantha Guest:If you can relate, you can relate. If you can't, I can't explain it to I can't. That's kind of that feeling has continued with my what I make, what I make and sell. Like, that version of my art now, where, again, like, the folks that get it Yeah. They get it.
Samantha Guest:If you like, if you see it and you don't like it, it's not for you. No, I agree. It's not for you. And if you hate it
Molly Host:Sorry. Not sorry.
Samantha Guest:Right. It wasn't made for you. It was made for my other funky folks that just wanna have fun and be whimsical. Yeah, exactly. The one question I forgot to ask fell out of my brain.
Molly Host:Where'd it go? Oh, I think it's so cool how you I probably say that a lot. It's so cool.
Samantha Guest:But it's cool.
Molly Host:I'm gonna I'm gonna, like, really need to stop saying the same shit over and over again.
Samantha Guest:Same thing. For real. For real. I've said it like 30 times already.
Molly Host:So your journey through being interested in sustainability and fashion and the environment to you were diagnosed with lupus, almost died. Then you purged those feelings through art, developed a brand that has such an iconic name. Thank you. But then it really just shows, like, the progression of healing that you have went through.
Samantha Guest:Thank you so much.
Molly Host:And, like, to do that before you're 30
Samantha Guest:Thank you. I know. I well, I've always been an old soul.
Molly Host:Yeah. I get that.
Samantha Guest:Like, literally, like, hanging out with the old, like, the older, like, aunts and uncles during, like Yeah. The holiday parties, like chatting, being like, I love Cher too.
Molly Host:Like Yeah. Yeah.
Samantha Guest:Like, you're seven. But, yeah, the sustainability aspect, though, that's always been there. Yeah. My entire life, I have had a consistent anxiety regarding the planet. Yeah.
Samantha Guest:Because when I was born and, like, my childhood was very, like, you know, like, I have a book in my studio right now. It's, like, from, like, 'ninety four or 'ninety five, and it's a Sesame Street book about why we should recycle and, like, how we can, like, let's not wash our like, take a shower for too long. Like, let's buy things that you can use many times. And it's, like, literally a children's book. Yeah.
Samantha Guest:And I feel like the media I grew up with was so aware of, like, we need to make good decisions. Yeah. Because so far, it's not going so hot. And my dad, who's an ironworker, he built the first green building in Boston, and they did a whole documentary about it. He ended up being on the cover of it.
Samantha Guest:Oh, god. I love, like, the the movie. And that poster was framed in my childhood home. And I'd always see it, and I'm like, green. You know, I just like that was I'm like, wow, it must be important.
Samantha Guest:And then what I knew as a kid, just like general TV, like
Molly Host:Yeah.
Samantha Guest:Give a hoot, don't pollute. And it just always stuck with me. And then when there was an option to have it as a minor sustainability, I was just so the obvious choice. Yeah. And then as I studied marketing and sustainability, which are oxymorons together.
Samantha Guest:It's just like marketing, and I was actively working in event marketing. So we'd go to an event, and so and so brand sponsored this event, and we're giving out thousands and thousands of stupid things like Merch. Yeah, just like pop but like unnecessary stuff like PopSockets, where if you have a PopSocket, you probably don't want the brand on it.
Molly Host:Yeah.
Samantha Guest:And just like junk, just junk with a brand name on it. And at the same time, I'm in sustainability classes, learning about not only the economics of it, not only the environmental, you know, effects of it, but also the cultural effects, the community effects, even learning about sustainability from, like, environmentalists from, like, the 17 and 1800s. So as I'm learning about marketing, thinking I'm doing something right, I'm studying marketing because I want to influence fashion in a progressive way. And then everything else I'm learning is telling me, you're destroying the planet. Yeah.
Samantha Guest:I was just like, I got it. Like, if I'm going to make art to sell, if I'm going to make things to sell, it's got to be sustainable. Because then it's such an injustice to like, so many people are affected, and it just leads to continued horrible suffering. Yeah. Truly.
Samantha Guest:It does. Truly.
Molly Host:I know that it took me ten years to get each of my degrees because I hated them so much. I did not care. But the first time I ever was exposed to the UN sustainability goals was in my master's program. And I was like, are you serious right now? Yeah.
Molly Host:Why aren't we all just working towards this in a more obvious way? Why do we need to reinvent what our goals are in any anyway? Say it so fast. For real? But honestly,
Samantha Guest:like For real.
Molly Host:It's all mapped out. Let's just all in the world work towards the same thing.
Samantha Guest:I got a little spoiled. My college had not only the sustainability minor, but they also had, like, a sustainability program on campus. And I worked for it. Yeah. So I was actively learning.
Samantha Guest:I was actively learning and doing and seeing the results of, Okay, we're going to go into the dorms and we're going to hang little flyers that say, wash your stuff on cold if you can because that leads to less energy used. And then we started seeing that. And the numbers change. And same with I had a love hate relationship with this event. We would have a day, like, every so often where we would be in the calf and your food waste we would take to compost.
Samantha Guest:Just It's a lot of food waste. There's so much food waste.
Molly Host:Like see it.
Samantha Guest:And it just was so discouraging because I know as college kids, like, have the option of taking as much as we want. But then when you don't actually eat it, and then just the incredible amount of waste, but also, like, all right, we can compost this. This is a solution. But the amount of work that went into that, and there wasn't a system in place where it could be continuous, and you're like, why? We know this system works.
Samantha Guest:We know there are minor things we can do. We can. And for me, at the same time as all of that's going on I'm in college, I had health issues I was doing modeling, And I was doing modeling classes and fashion shows. And I'm finding out all these people I admire are getting horrible fabrics that are terribly sourced Yeah. So unethical, and like a sticker on your laptop, them bragging about how cheap it was.
Samantha Guest:This is not there's a difference between inexpensive because it's thrifted or secondhand or a gift and cheap. Yeah. And you're finding out all these horrible things where it's like, maybe I don't admire you as much as I thought I did.
Molly Host:Yeah.
Samantha Guest:And it's like, maybe I can do something in my own way, and maybe other people will follow through. Yeah. And you just gotta you gotta make the action because if you don't do it, who else is?
Molly Host:Exactly. So you went from this incredibly emotional art to nostalgia, unintentionally. Yeah. But I love the segue because when I was doing research for this episode, I was able to, like, learn more about nostalgia in general because I just I was like, what is even the definition? I know what the feeling is.
Molly Host:We all know what the feeling is, but what does it mean? And it depends on where you look. There's a lot of discourse, didn't know that, about nostalgia and the fact that some you know, Webster defines it as, like, a negative, like, being stuck in the past.
Samantha Guest:And
Molly Host:then the encyclopedias It's reminiscing of a happy time. And honestly, that's how I look at it.
Samantha Guest:Yeah. Yeah.
Molly Host:Because I feel like if you're in a negative loop, then that's not Yeah. That's not that's trauma. Yeah. That's not nostalgia.
Samantha Guest:Yeah. Literally. So in
Molly Host:this context, we're specifically talking about reminiscing about something. Maybe that history isn't perfect.
Samantha Guest:Yeah.
Molly Host:Like, yeah. Maybe there's a show you used to watch and you find out Nickelodeon sucks back in the nineties or 2000 or whatever, and you have merch from that show or you have toys from that show or whatever, doesn't mean you need to throw them away because it's still it's already on the planet. You already have it. Unless it gives you some visceral reaction, continue to use that thing, but also reminisce without wanting to restore. So, like, obviously, if you don't want everything to be bad.
Molly Host:You just want the cool the cool things. You don't know. Like, when the whole Nickelodeon show came out on Netflix, like, I didn't know I didn't even notice I don't think I was I think I was too old. Like, I had aged out of that. Seeing it now, it was it's like, oh my god.
Molly Host:It's so obvious. All of those shows are very sexual. But, like, I asked someone who, like, watched it then, and they just thought it was funny. They didn't
Samantha Guest:understand it. Just wacky.
Molly Host:Yeah. So it's like, I want people to maybe think about that when they're but, like, when you were a little kid sitting in front of the TV, eating your snacks
Samantha Guest:Right. Your cereal.
Molly Host:And, yeah, of course, we need to be taught. But, like, that's not your responsibility as a kid. And even if you see that, like, thing at the thrift or whatever, it's okay to still Right. Associate a positive memory to something.
Samantha Guest:And I think that association Yeah. Is exactly the thing. Like, seeing it transports you back to an emotion, but yet, like, not even the subject of whether it was TV show, movie, whatever. Like, you looking at that toy reminds you of, oh, yeah, like I like my my parent got me McDonald's that day, and it was so special, and I got to eat my little fries and nuggets on a special occasion, and I felt good. I felt like I had the whole summer.
Samantha Guest:Like, summer was endless and everything was warm and cozy and we got special treats and we got to watch TV and, like, not even the actions of those things, but, like, that feeling, that overwhelming, like, wow. Like, that was so Yeah. Like, I was like, I don't want to say its peak, but it was like
Molly Host:Yeah. It was good.
Samantha Guest:So special. And I think a lot of folks do. Like, for me, like, I see certain, like, TV stuff, movie stuff, toys, and it reminds me of, like, before that February Yeah. Before parents divorced, before these things that kind of break you out of that childhood
Molly Host:Yeah.
Samantha Guest:Into the scary real world. That's what those toys represent to me. And like, you know, I of course, like, I love my cartoons. I love my shows. But there's certain things that I carry just because I know that someone might have that feeling illicit.
Samantha Guest:Yeah. The world We need that more than ever. Right. And the world is actively on fire. Everything is not great.
Samantha Guest:And if I can make a key chain out of a toy that was unwanted, discarded on its last trip out before it hits a landfill, If I can just, like, you know, spend the time crafting it, make it into a key chain, and then I'm at an event and maybe someone had a horrible week. They lost their job. Everything's going wrong. But then they see that, and they're like, oh, my god. Like, that brings me back.
Samantha Guest:Like, when they when folks say that brings me back, it means way more than, oh, I remember that show. It's like, oh, wait. That actually physically transported me to a place I can no longer go to anymore.
Molly Host:So you're basically Doctor Who?
Samantha Guest:Actually, yes. But yeah, I don't know, that's kind of how I see it. I know,
Molly Host:I love it.
Samantha Guest:It's very like, again, because of the way I source too. Not only is it good for the environment, it's good for just promoting sustainability, but it's also I'm looking in these yucky places where I'm putting my gloves on and I'm digging through the bins. Yeah. And because I'm doing the way I source, I'm getting them for really cheap, like really inexpensive, not cheap, inexpensive. And because of that, I get to keep my costs low.
Samantha Guest:And because of that, I can keep my prices low. And then it's more accessible to people. So more people can have that feeling of like, Oh my God, shirt has the bedsheets I used to sleep in as a child, and I haven't seen that in twenty years. Yeah. And now I can wear it and take it with me and share the feeling.
Molly Host:I find a new Garfield or I go to your studio and see, like, a new toy, like, I almost cry sometimes. So I'm like,
Samantha Guest:me too, dude. Me too. Let's do
Molly Host:a fun quick fire fashion and nostalgia segment. If you could raid anybody's closet, past, present, who would it be?
Samantha Guest:Fashion wise? Like, designer wise? No. Person. Person.
Samantha Guest:Oh. Oh, Pee wee Herman.
Molly Host:Honestly? Yeah.
Samantha Guest:Yeah. My honey. RIP. Yeah. Truly the greatest.
Samantha Guest:Yeah. Wow. A king. I'm like, what a just icon for so many so many reasons. But, yeah, I like his stuff.
Samantha Guest:Yeah. And probably like a circus performer.
Molly Host:Why aren't there more famous circus performers?
Samantha Guest:Because the circus was
Molly Host:bad. True.
Samantha Guest:True. So, like, at the height of it, I feel like when circuses were popular, they quickly became like freak shows.
Molly Host:Yeah. American Horror Story.
Samantha Guest:Wrong. But I love a circus like a clown look. I love a clown.
Molly Host:What is your favorite thrift of all time?
Samantha Guest:Oh, like store or find? Find. I'm gonna give two answers. A cool one and something I think is cool, but is pretty cringe. If I'm passing a thrift on my way home from a thrift, I might take a peek in.
Samantha Guest:And I stopped at one and for, I think it was like nine point nine nine dollars or like $12, in the box I found the martini lamp. Like the one Yeah. Like, works. Gorgeous. That's cool.
Samantha Guest:And I found that and I was like, man, thrift gods blessed me that day. And then from my nerdy, cringey side, I love infomercials, and I love training videos so much, like Beyond Word. And one of my top five training videos is the old country buffet where the guy is, like, cutting the meat, and he's Did you catch the big game? And it, like, tells you how to small talk people while cutting the meat. And I was at the thrift a few months ago, and I found an employee, like, that had Old Country Buffet on it.
Samantha Guest:So I might upcycle it and put pictures of, like like, I'm looking for, like, like, the soft toy meat, and I wanna do, like, hams on it.
Molly Host:What's the most unexpected thing you've ever upcycled? You got some pretty good ones.
Samantha Guest:Yeah. I guess, like, it's not as, like, unexpected, wacky. But for me, I love advertising. I love commercials. I love print ads.
Samantha Guest:Love advertising. It's an art. Well, it used to be. Now it's not so much. Have throughout my life, like if I see, you the you thrift a VHS and there's like a vintage, like, little promotional flyer in it, or the Happy Meal toys would have, like, the little picture of, like, I don't know, like the Toy Story, like, promotional poster or whatever.
Samantha Guest:I would hold on to those just because I'm like, oh, it's vintage and it's colorful and it's cute and it's vibrant and it is advertising. And recently, with deciding, is there a way to upcycle paper? Can I upcycle paper? Using books is probably the most unexpected thing for me. Do you have any
Molly Host:upcoming projects, collections, collaborations that you want to talk about or promote? Yeah.
Samantha Guest:It's almost party time. It's almost summer, so I am gonna be hitting the road. I'll be doing a bunch of cool outdoor markets soon. I'll be doing pride festivals. I'll be doing like, I'm mostly booked up until October.
Samantha Guest:Oh, god. I know. But, yeah, I'm going to be doing a bunch of events and everywhere as close as, like, Boston and as far as California and Long Island. But, we'll be having a bunch of open studios, open the little museum back up and having folks come and visit. So, yeah, lots of fun on the horizon, lots of things in progress, lots of collections in progress, like a lot to come.
Samantha Guest:So yeah.
Molly Host:I'm I'll put where to find you in the show notes and, full YouTube video also. So if you're listening, you can also watch us be weird.
Molly Host:Thank you so much for joining us this week, and everything about No Rhyme or Reason will be linked in the show notes. Full video episodes are available on YouTube. See you next time.
