

Posts Tagged ‘Trend Alert’
Out with the Old, in with the Navajo
Why is it that so many trends in fashion can be traced back to starting in home interiors? We’ve seen it in the nautical/maritime trend: anchor andirons, blown glass buoys woven in rope, and porthole window mirrors all leading the way for pea coats and French sailor shirts.
Stores like Urban Outfitters and Topshop have taken the taxidermy trend of stag’s heads and horns and turned them into screen prints on t-shirts and button-fronts. Sheepskin rugs, first thrown over chair backs and on hardwood floors, have been transformed into puffy sheepskin vests and bolero jackets.
Given this tendency, it shouldn’t take a crystal ball or visit to the local psychic to have forecasted today’s Navajo textiles trend. This interiors trend was first revealed to me last year during my visit to HD Buttercup in LA’s Culver City region. These European, handcrafted trunks, upholstered in a woolen Navajo pattern, definitely stood out from the classic leather trunks and cases. (So much so that I was compelled to invest. The large trunk now resides in my living room as both coffee table and storage space!)

One year later, Navajo blanket ponchos and jackets are popping up all over the contemporary fashion market. Whether in the home or in your closet, one things is for certain: Navajo textiles and designs are a great way to add a little color and texture to your aesthetic!
Trend Alert: Chalkboards
With fall approaching and the start of the new school year, we’re finding that many are treating a certain classroom staple as unconventional home decor. It seems chalkboards aren’t reserved just for schools anymore. Blame it on the inner kid in us, but we love these chalkboard walls, doors, furniture and even lamps! We think you’ll find yourself wanting a corner or whole wall for doodling too.
An entryway is a perfect place for a chalkboard wall. Notes, appointments, and shopping lists can be checked on the way out the door.

(Pictured above: Country Living via PoppyTalk. Photo credit: Keith Scott Morton)
Instead of writing grocery and ingredient lists, you could keep the menu for dinner or a wine list on your kitchen chalkboard.

(Pictured above: Melanie Acevedo via DesiretoInspire.net)

(Pictured above: Alan Higgs Architects via DesiretoInspire.net)
Or consider a giant chalkboard as a work of modern art in the making (remade every time your friends come over for a visit).

(Pictured above: Bruno Helbling via DesiretoInspire.net)
For a different look in your home office space, try painting or bordering a wall with chalkboard paint. You can write important notes, scheduled meetings, and motivational quotes right on the wall in front of you.

(Pictured above: Wish via DesiretoInspire.net)

(Pictured above: Bo Bedre via DesiretoInspire.net)
For a less permanent and space consuming way to get the look, you can turn any wall into an instant chalkboard for jotting down ideas with Chalkboard Wall Schtickers, which are easy to clean, removable and reusable. For the kitchen, this could also be a brilliant way to keep a kid entertained while you’re cooking!

(Pictured above: Schtickers via Decor8blog.com)
You can also find adhesive chalkboard vinyl wall decals made by Modern Dose. Such an adorable idea for a kid’s room!

(Pictured above: “Hootie” by Modern Dose)

(Pictured above: “Invasion” by Modern Dose)
UK store No. Eight is featuring this blackboard cabinet in its collection, but you could easily transform the idea onto cabinets or other furniture in your own home, such as this endearing piece in a kid’s room.

(Pictured above: 123 Cabinet by No Eight)

(Pictured above: Living Etc. via DesiretoInspire.net)
Handmade by St. Louis artist and designer John Beck, these lighting fixtures are the perfect canvas for any youngster’s musings, and they’re made of 95% recycled steel. Since they come in three different sizes, you can choose exactly the right one for your child’s room, kitchen or living room. We can’t think of a better place to write or draw something glowingly lighthearted and have it really shine.

(Pictured above: John Beck Writeable Chalkboard Pendant Lamp via Inhabitat)
Country Living has suggestions for making your own blackboards out of items you already have handy around the house. Check out their fun project ideas. Or Make Magazine will show you how to create this blackboard globe. For those of us who can’t make a big commitment to the blackboard trend, Canadian House and Home suggests creating these DIY placecards.
Rocky Bella has even turned an old mirror into an inspirational chalkboard shelf.

(Pictured above: Rocky Bella)
Posted by Nicole Bruce
The Best of NYIGF
At this year’s second New York International Gift Fair, it was all about functional design. In the “Accent on Design” section, the part applicable to us the most, we were overwhelmed by the innovative designs exhibited. Here is a round-up of our favorite, top three participants:
#1 – Moleskine

Just when you think this forward-thinking journal company has reached their creative limits, they present ingenuous product design. Some stand-out new products include a tear away desk calendar (pictured above), the 2010 “Color A Month” Daily Planner box set, extra large folio journals, and the 2010 Pocket Softcover Project Planner that features 54 accordion pages.




This steady favorite of ours specializes in providing a context for designers of all fields to create, develop and produce various high-quality home and lifestyle items. This “publishing house” for designers has resulted in unique accessories that mix form and function, many of which have playful overtones. Our favorite new designs they were showing include a white table that swivels, a candleholder meant for dripping wax, and a foursome of Swedish stick-back chairs.



#3 – DESU DESIGN
According to their mission, DESU DESIGN “strive to make innovative products that blur the boundary between art and design” using modern manufacturing technology to mass produce their products. Every single furnishing and accessory that they sell has a specified function. Their small products for the home feel especially custom. Our favorites: the spice rack series.


Trend Alert: Denim
Denim may be one of the world’s oldest fabrics, but it has remained eternally youthful at the hands of designers and denim devotees worldwide. And, with the spring/summer season upon us, it seems that varying shades of blue denim are flooding the pages of fashion magazines and boutique racks everywhere. But this trend is definitely not limited to your closet. Adding denim touches to your home can enhance a room with just the right amount of ruggedness and bohemian flare to an otherwise polished space.
According to Elle magazine’s Denim Guide, bleached and tie-dyed denim went from fad to high fashion this season. From big brands like DKNY and BEBE, to smaller ones like Erin Wasson X RVCA and KSUBI, the bleached look is trickling down from the runways to wardrobes, so why not to your home too?


Purchasing vintage denim curtains from the thrift store, cutting them to size, and then tie dying them with bleach yielded these denim cushions. The bleached effect gives a more relaxed, hippie vibe to the room and they provide just enough padding for a comfortable fireside chat.



These CB2 napkins might not be denim, but the certainly give off the same effect! The napkins are actually tied, then dyed in blue and brown on 100% white cotton. Pair with jute place mats and crisp white plates for a summer tabletop sure to pleasantly surprise any dinner guest.

Sherwin Williams has certainly taken the blue jeans trend and run with it! As seen in the latest issue of Lucky Magazine, the paint brand showcases their catalog of paint colors sure to match your favorite pair of jeans. Whether they are “’70s blue”, “retro blue”, or “acid blue”, they have just the shade to make your home into “your own blue heaven”.

























