【BASSI】Bloomfield Girls’ Bike & Drawing Ride!

Nice to meet you! I’m Amemiya, and I joined the team in March!

Things have been so hectic that time has flown by, but better late than never—here’s a blog introducing myself and the bike I built soon after joining!

A little while ago, I joined the Strawberry Ride!
(I’m the one second from the right, next to Chan Mai!)

I usually work on our online shop behind the scenes.
You probably won’t see me in the store very often, but we may run into each other at an event once in a while. I hope you’ll say hi if we do…!

And the star of this blog is the green bike you can see in the photo above.

I love drawing, and the first bike I built after joining the team was designed around the concept of a “girls’ bike × drawing ride machine.” It’s a bike packed with all my personal touches—a cute ride that lets me enjoy both commuting and drawing!

I hope this bike will give some ideas to anyone looking to build a cute bike or interested in taking a drawing ride♪

Let me show you around!

A relaxed single-speed from BASSI

The bike I built this time is the BASSI Bloomfield.
It has plenty of eyelets for racks and fenders, fits slightly wider tires, and is a laid-back single-speed bike that lets you ride at your own pace.

Single-speeds are appealing because they have fewer things to go wrong without a derailleur, and their clean, simple look is hard to beat. Climbing can be tough, honestly, but they’re still one of those bikes you can’t help falling for.

And then there’s the Bloomfield’s one-of-a-kind design!

BASSI bikes strike such a perfect balance between classic and pop—it’s irresistible…!

I chose the Bloomfield because I was drawn to its single-speed setup, relaxed frame geometry, and adorable looks!

To learn more about what makes the Bloomfield special, check out this blog post and this bike feature. I hope you’ll give them a read, too!

Standard equipment for a drawing ride

I want to head outdoors to draw with just the essentials, like popping over to a nearby park with a single bag. To make that wish a reality, I picked these items to neatly carry all the things I need for drawing.

I fitted a size L PELAGO Commuter Front Rack. PELAGO is a bike company from Helsinki, a city known for its cycling culture.
This rack has a simple design that looks right on any bike, and it’s thoughtfully designed to fit a wide range of bicycles.

It’s big enough to fit A4 paper, and it carried an F6-size canvas securely, too. (In the photo, I’m carrying an F6 and a P6 canvas.)
You can also attach panniers to the sides, so there’s room for even more art supplies!

I fitted a KING CAGE Mini Thing Cage to the seat tube, and facing it on the down tube, I fitted another KING CAGE: the Stainless Steel Flat Top!

I put my favorite bear bottle filled with brush-cleaning fluid in the Mini Thing Cage, and a brush case in the bottle cage.

Brushes and bottles of solvent can be a real hassle to carry in a bag—the bristles can get crushed, and the liquid can leak. (For some reason, that thin brush-cleaning fluid always seems to leak…) Just having the bike carry these supplies for me makes it so much easier to take them outdoors.

The KING CAGE products I chose have a very extensive range of cages. That variety means not only that you can find the right one for your needs, but also that you can avoid the cluttered look that can come from using cages in different shapes.

When your gear has a cohesive look, it adds an extra touch of style to your bike!

Playing with colors for a girls’ bike

The part I put the most effort into when building this bike was the color scheme.
There aren’t many women on staff at Circles, so I thought, why not have a woman build a bike for women? I picked out the parts and colors to bring together my idea of “cute”!

That lively green seemed like it would pair beautifully with fresh colors, so I chose bright blue for the smaller parts. To match the blue on the rim’s model-name decal and the freewheel, I used the same blue for the spoke nipples and cable end caps.

I added soft springtime colors—pistachio green and beige—and used cute cable clips to bring in a spring-to-early-summer feel. White brake shoes add a fresh touch, too!

Here are the colorful parts I used this time ↓

I also transferred a few parts, like the saddle, from my old bike. I made sure to arrange the silver and black parts so their colors would fit in with the rest of the bike—that was another detail I paid attention to♪

I transferred these PAUL E-Levers from my old bike. I originally ended up with different-colored levers by accident, but they’re so distinctive and cute that I’ve grown to love them. It’s fun to play around with colors like this when a brand like PAUL sells the left and right levers separately!

I think BASSI bikes and PAUL components look great together, so I highly recommend the combination!

I’m planning to take this Bloomfield out for a drawing ride! (Though I’ll have to wait until the heat lets up…)

Once I’ve been on a ride, I’m hoping to write a blog post about how I pack my art supplies and review the items I used. It may be a little while before it’s ready, but I hope you’ll give it a read!

A little about me

And now, better late than never, here’s a little introduction!

I came all the way from Tokyo! Everyone calls me “Ame-chan.” I love picture books and romantic comedy manga. I’m a homebody, but I enjoy going for walks.

I discovered bicycles a few years ago. I had fun taking one apart and building it back up myself, and that’s how I fell in love with bikes and joined Circles. (For this Bloomfield, too, I worked hard on building the wheels with guidance from my senior coworkers! It was fun!)

I’m usually behind the scenes, so I don’t often get to meet customers in person. But as part of the e-commerce and design team, I’ll do my best to make your experience with us even better!

And this is my beloved little one, Ushio. She came all the way from Tokyo with me! She’s a girl!

I’m looking forward to sharing reviews of products I recommend through outings with my beloved rabbit and drawing rides. Ushio and I look forward to seeing you around!