I recently saw images from the Valentino Spring/Summer 2017 fashion show and was intrigued by the unusual designs of palm trees and cacti. Turns out these prints and embroideries were created by Zandra Rhodes for Valentino. Valentino’s designer Pierpaolo Piccioli commissioned Rhodes to design prints based on Hieronymus Bosch’s “The Garden of Earthly Delights.” […]
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I scored this vintage Gucci scarf a couple of months ago – love it! I think it is from the 1970’s. Featuring a grid layout of different butterflies, it is a riot of colors and patterns. It got me to thinking about other great patterns of butterflies on fabrics, wallpapers and in fashion. […]
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Vera (Neumann) had a prolific career as an artist and designer. Her hand painted designs have appeared on everything from scarves to dinnerware, bedding, fashion, and towels. Her first foray into licensing her name and artwork was with the fabric house F. Schumacher in 1947. It was a pairing of two textile powerhouses. The first […]
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“Hera” is one of the most iconic fabric designs of all time but also in the history of Liberty of London. The pattern was designed in 1887 by Arthur Silver. The name “Hera” is derived from the Greek goddess whose favorite animal was the peacock. Liberty acquired the design from Arthur Silver’s studio and has […]
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This Marimekko scarf features a section of the “Ruusupuu” design created in 1957 by Maija Isola. The name translates to “Rosetree” and it is one of the fabric company’s most iconic designs. The legendary Maija Isola was the first full time designer hired by Marimekko in 1949. Isola was first and foremost […]
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Although I am a serious fan of modernism and geometric patterns, I’ve always been drawn to big, retro-looking florals. Some may call them “chintz” but that’s actually a bit of a misnomer as chintz is defined as a glazed cotton fabric. However the word chintz does vividly conjure up the image of ripe bouquets of […]
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I first learned of the wallpaper and fabric company Robert Crowder many years ago when I was working at Kelly Wearstler in Los Angeles. Kelly used Crowder’s wallpapers in many of her projects and I was instantly taken with their lustrous textures and exotic murals. The designs always felt rooted in a glamorous oeuvre – […]
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The Cooper Hewitt Smithsonian Design Museum is an amazing museum dedicated to design and decorative art, and its current exhibitions are inspiring and exciting. Recently reopened after a lengthy renovation, the museum is housed in a landmark mansion by Andrew Carnegie in New York City. Visiting this museum was always a great experience but the […]
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