Peruvian Inspired Tableware

I am finishing up some studio work that has been hanging over my head for a while. I am in the process of designing tableware inspired by the cuisine and culture of Peru. I visited Lima, Peru last March during my spring break with a group of students from Pratt and volunteered in Villa El Salvador through a program called Cross Cultural Solutions.

The napkin ring below is inspired by a tapestry that I saw in the Museum of Natural history. It consisted of a repeat of intricate birds, I took the pattern and simplified it to come up with the shape below. The colors are inspired by the colorful tapestries that Peru is known for.



Both the coaster and napkin ring are made out of recycled leather. I did not design the placemat, although I did pick up a set of four when I was visiting Lima and I think that they compliment them very nicely! I am currently working on the designs for a glass for the Pisco Sour, a plate, and a fork. I will be silk screening a design onto the napkin this weekend also. So stay tuned!

Koi Suwannagate again!

I know I just did a post on Koi Suwannagate summer collection a few days ago, but I just stumbled upon photos from her fall collection that was debuted at NY Fashion week and I am on a KS kick

Published!

Last Monday I when I went to Miss Saturn's Birthday at Galapago's I had my camera in hand and snapped away all night long. I had posted my set on Flickr and Aimee took a couple and put them in a press packet for her and Jenny's show. She gave me a call yesterday to inform me that one of my photos (photo above) is going to be published in a NY newspaper! I've never had a photo published before, or well anything really so this is quite exciting for me! Click here to see the rest of the set.

Carolina Herrera Ready to Wear @ Fashion Week

I should be sleeping, but instead I have been perusing through the pages of Style.com to see what hit the runways today. I'm really loving Carolina Herrara's Ready to Wear collection. Nice pops of color, feathers, vests over dresses, and this collection is even making me lust over ochre velvet jeans, what?! Did I say that? Here are a few of my personal favorite picks from the collection.

Screech Owl Design

I was really excited to come home today after class and find an email in my inbox fromScreech Owl Design. I had met Jacqueline and George Schmidt at the Bust Craftacular right before Christmas and had purchased their boxed postcard set and am absolutely smitten with them! I had tried to link to their website earlier but it was still in the beginning stages. Today they unveiled the site where you can see some of their products. I have the above and below postcards hanging on my wall along with the rest of the set. I am looking forward to when they put up their living products.

Back! + Bahamas + Koi Suwannagate

My computer is finally happy since it has Leopard and CS3, my wallet is not, thank god for student discounts!

A pleasant surprise in the last week or so has been that I will be going on a four day cruise in May with my dad, sister and his girlfriend to the Bahamas! I've never been to the Bahamas or a cruise (ok I went on a "cruise" when I went to Finland for one night but that doesn't count) and I'm excited. It is right after I graduate so I will get a nice little break before going crazy looking for a full time design job.

I am loving Koi Suwannagate's Summer 2008 collection which has a tropical vibe going on and is filled with intricate textures. I am imagining myself wearing these right after I've spent the day at the beach. A girl can dream!

Monday Night!

Tomorrow night you can find me at Galapagosin Williamsburg. It is my friend Jenny aka Miss Saturn's birthday and everyone is welcome to come join in on a night of comedy, circus, and burlesque! A few of my friends in the "Animal Crackers" dance troupe will be debuting a dance, and I can not wait to finally see it in person. It starts at 9:30 and is $5

Sick...

Last weekend Pacha was sick and this weekend it is me. Can someone come make me soup please and stir the bubbles out of my ginger ale? Thanks. I wrote about three posts during the course of the week but then realized that I didn't have photoshop. I bought CS3 on Wednesday only to find out that I need to upgrade my OS too. :( :( Why does this all have to be so difficult and costly?

New Couch!

Creating a space that feels like home to me is something that is on the top of my priority list. My roommates often laugh at me when I am at it decorating again, but I would go mad living in a white box. Our living room still feels unresolved. It is such an off space and we really don't have any money to spend on decorating. I was fortunate enough to receive a free ligne and roset couch thanks to the wonders of Brooklyn Freecycle right at the start of the new year! Here are some photos



Above is the view of the living room from the bathroom. Here is the new couch (free) with thrifted pillows ($2.50/each) along with my stoop sale rug ($15). Something defininetly needs to happen on the dead space above the couch, I've hung a shawl that I have had since I was a child to add a dash of color. I was thinking floating shelf (that I just so happened to thrift the other day $7) with various knick knacks and maybe two framed pieces of vintage wallpaper that I bought back in NH over thanksgiving. Still thinking about this.



View of living room from my room. Something needs to happen in that wall space between Rachel's room and the kitchen, but not sure what yet. Please ignore the crooked frame! Here is a sneak peak into the kitchen, but I will save that for another day when our dishes are actually done!



View from front door. I got the oversized chair on craigslist for $50 when we first moved in because I could not deal with the empty space.

In the next week or so I am going to be playing around with a few different things and will post the results later!

Class Schedule for my last semester

Monday
2:00 - 4:50- Portfolio w/ Judy
5:00 - 7:50 - Studio w/ Langhorn

Tuesday
9:30 - 12:20 - Creative Writing
5:00 - 7:50 - Advanced Solidworks (bleh)

Thursday
9:30 - 12:20 - Textures (?) Not signed up for this yet but might try to get in
5:00 - 7:50 - Studio w/ Langhorn

Filling the remainder of my time up with teaching at various schools around Brooklyn. I am also in the middle of helping a friend reorganize/decorate her apartment in the financial district and may have another interior design job in the east village!

Last First day of school!

Today is my last first day of school so in celebration I made Rachel take some photos of me and vice versa on our lovely banister.




My favorite tank top- Anthropologie via ebay
Sweater- My local salvation army
Orange skirt - American Apparel via Beacon's Closet in Williamsburg
tights- TJ Maxx in NH
Boots - Old Navy sale in LI my mom bought them for me for $6!
Earrings (can't see them!) - Early Designs via Bust Craftacular
Necklace - bought at market in Lima Peru
Silver Ring & Cuff Bracelet - gifts from my mother
green coconut ring - bought in Lima Peru

Sick Computer

My poor Powerbooks hard drive bit the dust last week so I am getting a new one. I won't have a computer until Wednesday but after that expect updates galore! I have lots to share and one of my new years resolutions is to blog as much as possible!

Meet Pacha

I adopted Pacha from BARC in Williamsburg on Saturday. She is a 2 year old tortoiseshell persian cat who was abandoned at the shelter with her "sister" a siamese cat who has already been adopted. When she was found she was very matted and flea infested. The nice people over at BARC took very good care of her. Unfortunately her fur was so bad that she had to be shaved but it will grow back soon enough! Pacha is a very petite shy girl that is slowly getting used to her new surroundings. So far she loves perching on the window sills, playing with her carrot and loves to snuggle with me when I go to sleep!



About BARC Brooklyn Animal Resource Coalition's (BARC Shelter's) mission is to provide safe haven for homeless animals and find permanent, loving homes for them.

The animals in BARC's care receive quality food, shelter, and medical attention. BARC meets the needs of the animals through the assistance of dedicated volunteers, revenues generated from the success of our onsite SHOP, BQE Pet Supply, and from private donations.

Established in 1987, BARC is a 501(c)3 not-for-profit, no-kill, privately funded animal shelter, located in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.For more information about BARC, visit their website The people and animals over at BARC are both equally wonderful!



Pacha and I wish you a wonderful 2008! Happy New Year!

Massimo Giacon + Alessi Nativity + Brooklyn

I am back in Brooklyn!

Ok I know it is no longer christmas anymore but can we please appreciate the above nativity set it can be found here

How to Knit Portuguese style

Until probably a month and a half ago I thought there were only two ways to knit, continental and english style (which is how I knit) and then I stumbled upon a very peculiar you tube video on someone's blog which showed a woman knitting with two crochet hooks, using a knitting pin, and putting the yarn around her shoulders and she referred to it as the Portuguese style. I searched the internet but couldn't find out much about this variation of knitting. I had to know and wasn't going to take "I haven no idea what you are talking about" for an answer, since I knew my grandmother who passed away when I was 8 would have known the answer, I HAD to find out. So I went to my personal knitting know-it- alls, my other grandmother, Grandma Honey and her friend Marie who lives next door. My grandmother had no idea what I was talking about and Marie accused me of making it up! Marie is quite the character, to sum her up she is the wonderful hilarious italian woman who lives next door to my grandmother (they have a path between their houses, isn't that cute?!) she shows up whenever she wants with her portable phone and is not afraid to grab knitting out of your hands and rip out hours and hours of sweat and tears if she sees a single mistake, even if you just learned three hours ago! That Marie is fierce more on that later before I go off on a tangent. Next I went to my dad, now I knew that my dad probably knew nothing about knitting but I thought I would at least give him a chance considering that Portuguese was in fact his first and only language until he was 5 and grew up in Stoughton/Canton MA which has one of the largest portuguese populations in the US and my grandmother was always making me pray novenas to the lady of fatima every time I visited, while knitting or crocheting up a storm AND blessing me with holy water at the same time! That is talent. Whew this is another tangent I could go off on, refer to two posts back about crazy catholic upbringing, but back to knitting. Nothing. To make my story short, I asked a lot of people and got lots of dead ends. To my surprise on Christmas morning, I opened a dvd shaped present from under our teeny tiny christmas tree and was surprised to find "Learn How to Knit Portuguese style". I immediately called my grandmother (pictured above) and spread the news. Sadly the woman in the DVD knits with regular knitting needles and not crochet hooks oh well. I've watched most of it sans knitting needles in my hands but when I get back to Brooklyn am going to break out my yarn stash and prized wooden needles. Stay tuned.

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays! I am in NH for a few more days but will be leaving either Friday or Sat and be back in Brooklyn soon enough.

One Year

My mother died a year ago today. It is still a bit surreal.





The nuns at PMA where my mother was the librarian and I went to school for 9 years had a mass in remembrance of her today at 6:30 am and I felt my life flash by me through my eyes there. I don't consider myself religious but 13 years of catholic school leaves a lasting impression on you. I thought of myself when I was 5 sitting restlessly at mass staring at the ornate alter especially the angel paintings and wondering why there are stars on one side of the alter and flowers on the other side, my mom sitting in the pews watching me read the first reading (something from ephesians I remember, this is a big deal getting chosen for 1st reading when you are 7) at mass when I was in second grade, my mom watching me receive my first communion in my white dress with the champagne colored flowers that I picked out in my hair, my mom attending mass as a teacher when she taught there, my mom watching me receive my diploma when I was in 8th grade in the shrug that she made, my moms funeral last December 27th with her casket in the middle of the aisle and me bawling my eyes out in the front pew that I cleaned every friday afternoon with sister lucy when I was 10, me sitting at the one year mass admiring the angels on the altar feeling like I am 5 and still wondering what that that phrase in latin painted around the chapel really means when I should be listening to the homily but I have no recollection of it at all. It made me laugh, my mom would have laughed too.



Rest in peace mom, I love you.

Pod + desk chair

Here is my newly reupholstered desk chair in action with Pod, my diaper bag. Plans for the rest of the night include finishing my product book for critique tomorrow and getting a good nights rest. Tomorrow is going to be ever crazier than today!

Teaser!

I have been working extremely hard all morning shooting photos, getting together my portfolio, and working on my product book for Pod the diaper bag I have designed. Here is a sneak peak of what to expect!

I thought that I would share my purchases yesterday from the Craftacular, although I can't share everything because some of the purchases were gifts!


I couldn't resist purchasing this porcelein pendent from Alyssa Ettinger. I have been in love with her work since I first laid eyes on it. You can purchase this pendent along with many other beautiful objects at her etsy store here



I wanted every single pair of wooden earrings by Kylie Earlene Grater of Early Jewelry. Kylie came out all the way from Kansas and was extremely friendly! You can buy these earrings along with a whole array of beautifully handmade jewelry here

Of course there were a ton more talented crafts women and men but I haven't even had time to sit down and sort through all of the business cards that I gathered!

Expect photos tomorrow of my kitchen! I finally put up my new curtains and reupholstered my found chair. I plan on taking photos tomorrow in the nice morning light!

Today was one of those perfect days. You know what I'm talking about. I started my day off my sleeping in until 10 and then heading off to the Fort Greene farmers market to meet Aimee. She was late, but I got all of my shopping done and even got time to indulge in a hot apple cider and raspberry apple pie muffin. mmmm... delish. After Aimee arrived we had a brisk walk with Bixby her dog around the park and hit up my first craft fair of the day down the street at a church on South Oxford. I ended up buying 5 ornaments for a whoppingn $10 (2 for me and 3 for my family yankee swap!) We then headed over to Schellie's and I had my first brunch at Outpost on Fulton which was wonderful, and had such a nice ambience inside! I would recommend it! I ended my day with a trip to the Bust Craftacular fair in Manhattan and indulged myself in some goodies from Alyssa Ettinger, Early Jewelry, Repro Depot and Screech Owl Design. I will post photos along with my Craftacular wishlist. I saw some many talented ladies (and men!) that I couldn't help but want to run home and start working on the line of products that I have floating in my head and sketchbook at the moment. Before sat down I snapped some photos of my next apartment project at hand...



The chair on the right is part of the six piece bedroom set that I own, I found the chair on the left right around the corner from my house on Friday night! I think that this photo conveys how excited I was at my find.



I glued the loose parts together tonight and am waiting for them to dry, tomorrow I am going to reupholster both of the seats, and it looks like a paint job may be next in line for my newest chair. Here is some fabric that I purchased from the Repro Depot booth today that will be reupholstered tomorrow after a trip to my local hardware store for more staples! Sorry it is a bit wrinkled I was far more excited to blog about it than pull out my iron right away!

A Very NH/Ma Thanksgiving

Last weekend was spent in New Hampshire and Massachusetts with the family.



My sister Kristen, dad and myself at my grandmothers for Thanksgiving



It is not a holiday without artichokes, it is a Merola family tradition. I ate two!



Grandma teaching me how to crochet


It was crochet/knit and movies night at the Mustone's


Kelly and Kristen knitting


Sisters sisters! I have known Heather (far left) and Kelly (far right) for 17 years! Crazy!



Fiber fun with Kristen, after going through moms craft closet.




Can't forget the dogs, Me and Eijah, (Mikey not pictured!)