What’s In Your Pockets?

Even though it was a simple silhouette, the design details spoke for themselves. It had multiple options for pockets, a pop of color from the lining, a combination of different fabric textures, and I used the jacket’s ribbing as the waistband and used the separating zipper as the shorts closure. This design was so me, but at the time, I only viewed it as just another design for social media.

I’ve always heard people talk about the moment their life hit a turning point–and 2025 was that year for me. At the beginning of the year, I craved change, and that feeling would not go away. It ate me up constantly, even to the point where I felt guilty for scrolling on social media because I could be making better use of my time. I knew I needed to make my biggest goal of creating my own brand a reality and to stop waiting until I reach a certain point in my life before taking action. My bank account and everything I’ve saved up for were yelling at me to start making moves now, or else time would pass me by. I was getting fed up with consistently putting my work out there without the intention of scaling it further, so I took my first steps into changing my life. I had to figure out what I wanted to make.

For my 27th birthday that year, I wanted to combine all my realizations into one design. Prior to this, I was already practicing the basics of making a simple pair of pants—everything down to the patterning, fit, and incorporating typical pants details. My goal was to take inspiration from these shorts and turn them into a wearable, year-round design, so I first sketched the baggy pants, then the jacket to complement. It took me about a month from sketch to completion to finish this set, but the results were worth the time.

I posted the set on social media, feeling a bit nervous because it was my first time posting my actual, non-upcycled designs in a while. The feedback was more than I expected. I received hundreds of comments, everything from compliments, questions on when I would be dropping this, to helpful constructive criticism on how to make the jacket fit better. It was overwhelming, but in a good way–I had to get to work right away.

In summer 2025, I started the production process. It was scary at first because I was throwing myself into new territory, especially since I decided to do everything overseas. I’ve tried manufacturing multiple times in the last 6 years, but ended up feeling lost in the process. This time around, I had much more guidance and grew as a designer thanks to Daisy taking a chance on me.

To merge both ideas of “What’s In My Pockets” and “The Artesia Denim”, I thought the best place to have a photoshoot was in Artesia itself. I love supporting the local community and the businesses around us. I scouted multiple areas of my city and had a list of businesses to reach out to, but US Donuts was the first place I wanted to reach out to first–and they agreed instantly. Justin and I have made it a routine to visit the shop whenever we can throughout the month, especially before our swap meet trips; they’ve gotten to know us and our orders. They’ve never had a request for a photoshoot, but were so kind and open to the idea. I am so thankful to Rsmy and his team for their hospitality and for opening their doors to us for this.

For the last part of the photoshoot, I wanted to take street style photos near the Artesia sign. When people think of city shoots, they immediately think of LA or NY high rises and concrete walls. For me, doing a shoot on this specific street perfectly encapsulated what it’s like growing up in suburban Southern California. The background was set with the beautiful sun peeping out from the cloudy skies, palm trees, commuters on foot, cars, bikes, and corner strip malls. That day was perfect–it was shot early afternoon, the weather was great despite the forecast having rain, and no outside factors were getting in the way of anything.

Two days later, in that same week, I had my video shoot to finish off the “What’s In My Pockets” concept. Mikael, Justin, and I called it the “Ysabel Hilado Cinematic Universe,” where each video’s scenario would connect and foreshadow what happens next. I brought in all of my closest friends to be a part of this because I wanted everyone’s connection to be genuine for the videos–and honestly, a lot of them weren’t even acting. This is really how they are, and I love them for that.

This entire campaign was everything I wanted to achieve. I’ve always viewed social media as a free-for-all; you can create any world you want. With my years of content creation, it was important to put storytelling at the forefront of my brand so that people can envision themselves in the set.