Meeting Simone Legno in Singapore

Having been a Tokidoki fan since their first collection for LeSportSac in Spring 2006, I was incredibly excited when its creator Simone Legno announced that he would be doing a signing session at Bugis+ in Singapore on 10 January. Legno was also in town to give a lecture at a school and attend the opening of a cheese steak shop. The signing session at Bugis+ took place at the pop-up store in front of the mall's entrance, where there were also several large statues of iconic Tokidoki characters. These were a natural hotspot for photographs, especially for kids fascinated by the unusual creatures.


Kajiu!



With the signing session scheduled to take place from 1.30pm to 3.30pm, I arrived super early at 10am only to find that the pop-up store was still being set up. Plonked myself down at the nearby Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf for the next couple of hours before activity started up at the store, which was selling Tokidoki T-shirts, caps, bags, figures and stationery. One could receive an autograph pass with any purchase, up to a maximum of three passes per person. I purchased a Robbery print messenger bag which I've been eyeing for some time (it's the same print used for one of the seasonal makeup collections that Tokidoki did for Sephora).

The queue for the signing session started forming only after 1pm, with about 30 people in the queue. I was second after a group of three friends who were clearly seasoned Tokidoki collectors. Legno arrived promptly on the dot and was superbly gracious and patient in acceding to each person's request for an illustration. He also kindly posed for photos with each person.


When it came to my turn, I asked him to draw a Unicorno on my iPad Tokidoki x Hello Kitty case. He did it in a flash in gold metallic ink. He thanked me for supporting the brand and I congratulated him on Tokidoki's 10th anniversary. Getting to meet Legno was truly a dream come true, after years of missing his appearances at Singapore's annual Toy, Games & Comic Convention.


After the signing session, Legno did a live drawing, the final product of which is below.

The Tokidoki pop-up store and installation will be at Bugis+ until the end of January. If you are in the area, you may also want to check out the specially commissioned Tokidoki wall at the St Games Cafe on the third floor of Bugis+.