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We love the Sperber
sisters! These crafty ladiez make the coolest totes around
under the label 31 Corn Lane.
They always have the funniest stories to tell, too,
in a language that’s all their own. When we met up with the talented
Teeter and
twins Heather and Amy they had loads to say about family, fashion and food.
Don’t forget to check out their band The Boxes! Click
here to listen to the Boxes!
It's awesome that you girlz
are sisters and have this company together. It's so Ma and Pa!
What's it like having a family business?
It's super rad on the whole, but you better believe that there is tons
of gnar gnar
yelling and finger pointing that goes on daily! We're constantly in near
fisticuffs over
who works harder on what and who hasn't been pulling her weight or who
is being
too bossy about a design issue. Sometimes we don't talk fer days!!!!! But,
at the end
of the process, we usually sort stuff out and just keep charging. We've
noticed that
if we try to ignore each other fer more than 3-5 days over a company-related
issue
MOM will dial in with the concerned fix-it call and then we're forced to
reconcile cause
DAD gets rill aggro when MOM has to call! Even though we are always stepping
into
the battledome over every last 31CL issue, the three of us can't even begin
to
imagine working with anyone else. We're a sister-run company till the death!
Interlopers keep out!
How did you start your company
and how did you come up with the name?
We started our company, very loosely, in 1998. At that time, we were surrounded
by so many ludicrously creative people who were doing great things with
their craft,
whether that be music, art, or performing. It motivated us to want to be
joiners, so
we started by hand-sewing a few bags and selling them at this awesome punk
rock
record store in Red Bank, NJ, called Black Cat Records. In addition, and
on the total
faker tip, we super wanted to get into this artist subsidized-housing community
in
NY's West Village - but we had to prove that our "art" could
make money, so that
was another motivating factor. We're crafty con artists! The name 31 Corn
Lane
comes from our childhood address in Shrewsbury, NJ, enchanted land of front-yard
dance offs and cul-de-sac roller races.
How do you think your Mom and
Dad influence your style?
Our Mom and Dad, Terry and Paul Sperber, are the most kindest, most normalest,
hardest-working, most funniest, most generous-est parents any kids could
ever ask
for! They were totally hands-off style when we each went through our gross
teen
phases, like when Amy was an aggro scary goth-monstress and Heather and
Teeter
were filthy hippies. They've always taught us to incorporate as many people
into our
circle as we can. "Always Make Yr Circle Bigger!" they would
say. What our Mom and
Dad have instilled in us over the years, the notion of loving people +
letting people
in, has become the very basis of our crazy little company.
Who or what inspires you?
The following incessantly inspires us: 80's teen movies, all walks of music,
other rad
zapping girls who put themselves out there and do or make cool things,
paint-by-
number ponies, secret snax, veganism, a messy, well pulled-together fashion
look,
pot bellys, when yr underpants hang out of yr jeans just a lil' bit, Mom-n-Dad,
our
97 yr old Grandma and backyard badminton tournaments.
Now, we know you girlz are rockers
in your band, The Boxes. Who's in it and how did you get that started?
The twins Amy and Heather are in The Boxes. Amy plays drums and Heather
plays
the bass. Our two great girlpals, Kate and Julie, sing and play guitar,
respectively. It
started off four years ago for fun and, once we actually learned how to
play our darn
instruments, we recorded a jammin' EP and toured all over Europe, a tour
that we
booked ourselves. We're in pre-production now to record another EP. It
should
totally slay. Our band is non-stop good times!
Tell our readers a fun lil' story
about The Boxes recent European tour.
Oh! Here's a good one that you'll totally like! At the Czech/Germany border,
they thoroughly searched our van and wanted to know why there were four
American women and one Dutch man (who was our way rad driver Heish) in
a van full of musical equipment. Heish told them we were an American Heavy
Metal band. We heard him repeatedly saying "Das Femme Heavy Metal!
Das Femme Heavy Metal!" to the border police. We we're laughing but
we were also scared cause, dude, they had rilly huge gunz on them!!! After
the police understood our backstory, they made us give them autographed
CD's and pose for glamour-pictures!
What are your favorite places
to chill in NYC?
Kate's Joint fer sure, on Avenue B and 4th Street, where we have been known
to
wrecklessly powerstuff as many Disco Fries as we can get into our mouths
at once.
Anyplace that has food, really, and lots of it, we'll go to, at least once.
We see lots
of rock shows at Bowery Ballroom and CB's and The Mercury Lounge. The Daily
Chow, a restaurant right by CB's has the super tastiest Mongolian Bar bee-cue
going
on, and boy oh boy, their Sweet Mango-n-Sticky Rice dessert nearly kilt
us right off
into heaven it was so delish. Most things we do involve eating. Fer straight
chillin’,
it's Graham Avenue in Brooklyn that we call home. At least once a week,
we sisters
eat a ginormo-dome family-style 4-course dinner at a place called Cono's.
We're
such regulars that we don't even require menus! We only get them when we
bring
friends with us.
Some fave shopping spots?
Mad heffer amountz of shoppers love goes out to: Mini-Mini Market, The
Landing,
The Nines, Judi Rosen's The Good, The Bad and The Ugly on 9th Street, and
Built By
Wendy. Please note that all of the above shops x-ist cause of rad ladies
who weren't
afraid to put themselves out there, and that's why we support and love
them so bad!
Go Lady Mustangs!!
What advise would you give our
readers who want to start their own companies or bands?
A giant pearl of wisdom that we have learned from starting our own company
is: IF
YOU MAKE IT, SOMEONE WILL BUY IT! And maybe even send you a nice e-mail
about how much they like it and how they went to your grade school, even
though
they never once talked to you then! So don't be afraid or lazy fer another
hot second
cause time moves too fast and you've got goals to attain and choice items
to sell,
girl! It doesn't take much. Just start small, think in total baby steps
and know in your
giant heart that if you keep jamming it out you won't have to have a hovering
boss
over you each and every day!! You could work in your cowgirl print jams
and terry
cloth bunny slippers in your own storefront. That's what keepz us jammin'
on each
and every day! Additionally, we each put only 300 dollars into starting
this company
4 years ago. It just keeps turning itself over. You can do it, Sally! You
can do it,
Marni! You can do it too, Ginnie! Who cares if yr only 14! IF YOU MAKE
IT, SOMEONE
WILL BUY IT! Meet your new mantra, girls. Also, the twins didn't even know
how to
play their instruments when they started The Boxes, but with a lil' money
for some
equipment to jam with and some commitment to practice time, you will see,
you too
can wreck it! Playing live is not so scary, it is just the raddest of the
rad, and people
with positive feedback for you make it all worthwhile. Not as many people
are out to
judge you as you think! If you dive head first into a musical endeavor,
you'll be
stoked to see how many people want to see you succeed! Start wreckin' it,
girl!
07/2003 |
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