We had the good fortune of connecting with Brandi Allen and we’ve shared our conversation below.
Hi Brandi, why did you decide to pursue a creative path?
It’s strange because I’ve never really seen myself as being creative. As a retired educator, I’ve usually had a job that required a lot of structure, so perhaps it kept my creativity in a box. However, after I retired from my 20 years of educational experience; my creative juices begin to flow like never before. I suppose the time to think, relax, and reflect opened my mind to all the possibilities and I actually had the time to pursue them and learn new things. Especially when the pandemic hit! Quarantine was like the gift and the curse that made time stand still and thankfully promoted innovative thinking.
Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
Daisies and Pancakes is the ultimate experience representing the intersectionality of sneaker hype and skate life. Daisies & Pancakes designs are uniquely a skater and sneaker lovers’ dream. We’ve combined the high-end sneaker with a roller skate set up. Daisies & Pancakes skates are unique, one of a kind creations designed in collaboration with the client to maximize style, comfort and fit.
Daisies & Pancakes (D&P) provides better access & customer service to purchasing roller-skates w/ a faster turnaround time than big brand roller-skate companies. We customize skates using customers’ favorite sneaker of their choice based on comfort, fit, & style. We use high quality parts made in the USA, alleviating the hassle of sold out skates, shipping delays, & product returns due to wrong size, product flaws, or overall customer dissatisfaction. Our customers are anyone of any age who enjoys roller skating.
Daisies & Pancakes also offers skate lessons, free roller skate meet ups, events, and skate we believe in building the skate community because the more people that own skates, the more skates classes & skate events they’ll feel invested in attending; the more support small skate businesses can receive, ultimately showing just how vital new innovative custom-built skates, rental skates, & skate pop-up events in unique settings & venues is for the skate community.
D&P showed how much the skate world thrived behind the closed doors of the skating rink by bringing the skate world to the people through outdoor meetups, events, & markets. Pop-up events were everywhere there was an empty lot, tennis court, basketball court or even parking garage; skaters were out there showing off their moves & helping others learn at their new makeshift rinks. D&P is committed to growing community through roller-skating.
You can find Daises & Pancakes at our next event roller skating event on January 22, 2022. Details can be found at DaisiesandPancakes.com or Facebook, Instagram, & TikTok @daisiesandpancakes.
Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I would definitely take them to skate, shop vintage, and to eat great vegan food!
Roller Skating:
– Wednesday Adult Skate Night w/DJ Techtrix @ FunCitySka8
– Thursday Adult Skate Night w/ DJ Wild Child @ Dairy Ashford Skating Rink
– Saturdays! Roller Skate & Dance Jam Battle w/ Daisies & Pancakes @ The Space HTX
– Sunday Adult Skate Night w/ DJ RCole @ SkateWorld
Vintage Shopping:
– Curators of Dopeness pop ups
– Hip Hop Vintage Flea Market
– Monstrose Market
– All kinds of Thrift Stores!
Vegan Food:
– Lindiana’s
– Mo Better Brews
– Vegan Vibez
– Earthly Goodness Ice Cream
The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I’d like to dedicate this to my better half, Nique Roots of Curators of Dopeness, the entire Houston Skate Community, Snoop of Lone Star Legends, Cha of Ellov8kre8tions, DJ Techtrix, BabyGirl of BGirl City, Tausha Quran of HerGrails, David & Dara Landry of Class Bookstore, Tribeca HTX, Vegan Vibez, & everyone who has supported us since day 1.
Website: DaisiesandPancakes.com
Instagram: @DaisiesandPancakes
Facebook: @DaisiesandPancakes
Youtube: @DaisiesandPancakes
Image Credits
All photos are property of Daisies & Pancakes