Trendspotting

A New Twist on the Paper Lantern

This past May I visited the 2010 International Contemporary Furniture Show at the Javits Center in NYC.  I love going to this show every year to scope out the hottest finds in furniture - but what I also love are the people I see!  One such friend is Rachel O'Neill, a Northern Irish artist and designer whose work I thought was absolutely amazing!  You probably have noticed - but lanterns and hanging lighting fixtures are in abundance.  You have the shabby chic light with crystals, the paper lantern with intricate weaving or the rigid lucite material that has been so popular in the last year.  What I love about Rachel is that she is always keeping things fresh - not only with the styles and shapes she produces - but with the materials she works with as well!  I was so taken by her hanging lanterns at the ICFF show that I just had to share it here.  What you may not notice from the picture above is that her lanterns are made from materials like industrial grade VELCRO(R), goose feathers and aluminum!  The freshness of the design and material is to die for.  You better believe I'll be keeping in touch with Rachel and following her work!  You should definitely visit her website - but her flickr page is just as great with beautiful pictures.

Baking With Heart

As you know I am always attracted to a company with a social mission, especially one so sweet and delicious as this! I recently heard about Greyston Bakery, a bakery located in Yonkers, that helps to improve the lives of those living in its surrounding community.  The bakery does this by hiring people from the community, regardless of their work history, providing training and paying them fair/living wages.  The Greyston bakery started as a small scale bakery providing high quality baked goods for renowned NYC restaurants but expanded into the “mix-ins” category.  I was so happy to hear that their "Do-Goodie" brownies are the exclusive supplier of the brownies used in all Ben & Jerry’s ice cream!!  Looks like I’ll be running out to get some of Ben & Jerry’s Chocolate Fudge Brownie a bit more often now!  I love the concept of a company that exists solely to help the world.  It is so refreshing to see.  Proceeds from the bakery also support the community initiatives of The Greyston Foundation.

The Mannequin Is Alive and Thriving

©2010 Karyn R. Millet / karynmillet.com

I have always loved mannequins.  For me, they are an iconic image that is always set in a period of time.  Each mannequin has its own story - has its own author that dressed it that certain way.  I have been thinking about mannequins lately and how they could be emerging as a design trend.  As I've been thinking this - I remembered meeting Karyn Millet , award winning photographer, at the Surtex show at the Jacob Javits Center last May.  In her booth stood a mannequin that had been beautifully decorated in an "Audrey Hepburn Style" dress - but the dress was made completely out of stock images that Millet had photographed.  I thought it was absolutely stunning - and poignant to me that they used a mannequin for displaying this work.  If you don't know Millet's work - I would definitely take a look - she has a way of capturing life and beauty in its most natural state - nothing contrived, just real life beauty.  As for me, though, I know I will continue to find mannequins and be intrigued by the way they are used.