Winter citrus! These are Mandarinquats, tiny Kishu Mandarins, and a Fremont Mandarin.

Kishu Mandarins are so wee that the segments are about half the size of a quarter.

They’re very sweet, with barely enough tang to feel like you’re actually eating citrus.

Fremont Mandarins tasted similar to the Kishus, but larger, with a brighter peel that would make lovely zest. Also, they have seeds.

I was most excited about the Mandarinquats, which are a Mandarin-Kumquat hybrid. They’re supposed to be similar to kumquats, which have a super sweet peel and tart fruit. Kumquats are about the size of grapes, so you just pop them in your mouth whole, and I love them.

I do not love Mandarinquats. They’re pretty, but the peel is nowhere near as sweet as a kumquat, which means you’re just eating an orange peel. But! If you’re a bartender who wants to make a kumquat drink, these would be less time consuming to juice I guess. Also pretty in floral arrangements?

Meh. Mandarinquat, you are no friend of mine.

This is Erin Loechner of Design for Mankind, prepare to be jealous of her boots.

Hello, Erin. Please mail me your shoes. In exchange, I will be your best friend 4-evah.

Also, the print on her shirt is an elephant, and it has ears! Ears, people. Doesn’t that make you want to hug her?

As you can see, Erin dresses with a great sense of humor. But then there are the boots.

She’s dead serious about the boots.

This is Alma Loveland from Ollibird. Alma is an artist and designer; the fabric on her Jean Chatsky Laptop Bag is her design.

When I introduced myself and asked if I could take her photo, Alma said she already kind of knew me. It turns out that I had met Alma’s gorgeous redheaded baby and her husband a few months ago. They were waiting for her in the hallway while she was teaching an Illustrator class in Jordan’s studio space, and that baby was too happy for me to resist. Turns out the baby gets that from mama.

This is Victoria Smith from sfgirlbybay. I suggested she wear a Tricorne with this fantastic bow shirt, but she demurred.