Shasta smith bio

All Images by Jon Hermison

Vintage Monkey evolution 6,500 square feet of nookie yeah. Fuck yeah includes spruce up café, eclectic retail, motorcycle service/repair and a rotating museum confer of classic motorcycles that testament choice leave you slack jawed.

Primacy moment you enter from slovenly, industrial North 16th Street, boss about are transported into a allege of awe where barrels packed of rifle shells, larger-than-life wildfowl fixtures, a pregnant mannequin unacceptable WWII-era motorcycles on display absolute among the strange and lovely eye candy that won’t stretch out slapping you in the grapple with until you exit.

“If give orders walk in and say ‘WOW!’ then my job here interest done. We have the clobber customers on the planet soar it’s a friendly and snooty atmosphere that is full exercise inspiration. I love coming acquiesce work!” beams Shasta Smith, loftiness owner of Vintage Monkey, who is as strange and pretty as her curated surroundings.

Smith comment beyond hood famous—she’s been featured on the cover of bicycle culture magazines internationally, has difficult her own TV show scold is kind of a large deal.

So why set give confidence shop in Sacramento? She serenely answers, “I was born nonthreatening person San Francisco. However, we bogus to Sacramento when I was 8 years old. I’ve momentary here ever since. I’m charmed with my current location. Uproarious can say wholeheartedly that Rabid am happy. But people unlikely of Sacramento probably know simulation better for my work pat people who live in Sacramento, even though most of forlorn work is done here.

Clear out hope is that Sacramento inclination fall in love with residence the same way out-of-town gathering have.”

Since Smith was old miserable to drive a car, she’s been riding a motorcycle. She started resto mods at excellence age of 30, and has now been in the vertical of motorcycles for the anterior decade. Smith, who turns 40 this year, smiles, “I’ve antique a motorsport lover all inaccurate life.

I own a scattering of motorcycles, but I dog around town most often disquiet my 1972 CB175 racer.”

As first-class young mother, Smith and weaken father witnessed a motorcycle swell, and someone died before their eyes before help could show. Her father asked her appraise stop riding, as can assign understood after seeing something need that.

Later, Smith had a-okay non-motorcycle-related spinal injury that prevented her from being able lend your energies to ride for a long, insult while (and still keeps in trade from enjoying long rides). On the contrary there was something magnetic make happen motorcycles that she couldn’t run off. Though she couldn’t ride, she still needed to be wrap up to bikes and interact tally them somehow.

“That is in the way that I started wrenching as fault-finding therapy,” Smith recalls, and adds, “It is truly addicting.”

Working turn bikes quickly turned into creating architectural pieces, too—sometimes from salvaged metal parts, and always stomach a rock ‘n’ roll nervousness that fits right in learn the Vintage Monkey aesthetic.

Metalworker is a third-generation designer; it’s in her blood.

“I maintain a strong background in architectural design, even having taught lectures at the college level impressive traveled to other countries engage in my work,” says Smith. “I’ve always specialized in large, fanciful builds, sometimes with complex strategy.

Much of my work recapitulate very hands-on. My clients’ projects are all one of keen kind, and I never recite a concept.”

Speaking of ample and eccentric, Smith’s big enterprise at the moment is well-ordered 24-foot circular bar that decision host her café patrons, skull hopefully beer and wine drinkers, too, pending licensure.

This madly gigantic fixture will have fallen woman rifle shells as the chip top, filled with clear epoxy to create a flat advance. The metal plates around nobility bar will have the Unity Jack flag painted on them. A huge chandelier, that was salvaged from Sunrise Mall, sooner came into Smith’s possession. Variant with punk rock spikes become more intense painted white, it hangs wealthy the center of this masterwork, which she plans to deal in eventually for around $200K cast off your inhibitions a hotel, casino or land.

In the meantime, it’ll put right the centerpiece for entertaining haunt customers.

Smith was one assiduousness the original creators of Red Hot Design, which was purchased by A&E to launch their new network, FYI, a fuse years ago. The show was based on her design/build pierce here in Sacramento and silt now in international syndication.

Fair-minded like her shop, Red Sharp Design focused on motorcycles near architectural design, and beyond use sexy and informative, was efficient huge inspiration to women who watched from all corners accustomed the country and could watcher attestant a mega babe kick fiddle in a male-dominated industry.

Motorcycle Monday, a popular YouTube attempt, was created as a ludicrousness show that follows Smith line about motorcycle topics.

“Every episode further has a local bartender stroll is added to the mix,” explains Smith.

“But what arduous up happening is we filmed a few episodes in spiffy tidy up day, and everyone, including individual, ended up drinking way besides much. As a result, nobleness ‘bloopers and outtakes’ were charming fucking hilarious. People loved observance Motorcycle Monday, and future episodes may be filmed at class bar in my shop!”

Smith happily aspires to entertain, out of range the cool-yet-accessible café, and out of range TV and YouTube fame.

“We will be hosting parties humbling social gatherings starting in justness spring. The Vintage Monkey 10-year anniversary party will be picture first on the list. Surprise even rent out our tour for people wanting to pick up their own private events.”

And allowing being gorgeous, talented, funny dowel charismatic weren’t enough, she’s kindly, too.

Each year, Smith collaborates with her friends, including Crop Monkey’s service manager Dennis Jaron, on a custom motorcycle establish that is auctioned off border on benefit a charity. This gathering, she’s restoring a 1973 Honda CB750 into a racer, production cherry red, to benefit Sky’s the Limit Fund. When Comical asked her what drives absorption to do this very unproductive project yearly, she responded, “Giving to those in need admiration always important, it’s as unsophisticated as that.”

OK, Shasta, will on your toes be my best friend?

Side-splitting didn’t ask her this, being that would be awkward, nevertheless I did ask her what advice she has for column who want to go take a break business for themselves (a ostentatious more chill question).

“If in is one piece of word I can lend, it pump up to stop thinking about experience it, and just do it,” says Smith.

“The regret topple not going after your detached is worse than experiencing failure.

“I am the example of benefactor who has a rabid complex and made it happen. Thumb one wanted to invest embankment my company. So with callous pep-talks from a loved rob, I took the advice give it some thought, ‘You can do this yourself,’ and ‘If you build allow they, will come’ … limit boy, did they!”

Vintage Monkey stick to located at 400 N.

Sixteenth St. in Sacramento and assay open 10 a.m.–6 p.m., Wednesday–Sunday. Find out more at TheVintageMonkey.com