Inspiration

Grand Central Station plays host to Target’s Threshold Dollhouse

To celebrate the official launch of it’s Threshold collection, Target built a life-size, two-story Dollhouse in Grand Central Terminal. I attended the event, exploring each room and checking out the furnishings and accessories. The new line is completely refreshing and on trend with it’s color choices, use of pattern, and overall handmade and painterly quality to the accessories.

I first entered the kitchen and was drawn to these colorful storage jars with a chalkboard face. I love the DIY feel of them and you get to customize them to say whatever the contents are.

The space also incorporated some industrial style counter stools and cage pendant lighting which was so well balanced with the clean modern kitchen. I loved the overall feel of mixing new and (what looks) old.

As a stencil designer and pattern lover ( http://www.stencil1.com/dev/topic/stencils/patterns-stencils) , I was immediately drawn to the dining room and living room set-ups. They featured beautiful textiles, gorgeous patterns on rugs, placemats, baskets, napkins, and pillows. They took the trends and took them to the next level. Think Ikat and Chevron but exploded!

The pillows were my favorite as they layered a hand-painted feel with embroidery layered over top, again, a real hand-made quality.

Finally, I strolled over the outdoor garden area where they brought the inside outside with colorful outdoor rugs and more floral painterly pillows, amidst their cozy and tasteful outdoor furnishings.

Overall, the line has a lot to offer. Natural looking accessories, handmade feel, quality woven throws, whimsical floral textiles and all at Target prices. You can see the entire line at http://www.target.com//threshold

Spring awakens the desire for renewal and growth, a craving for color and brightness. Here are some repeat stencil patterns to help your home pop with fresh bold design!

See all our pattern stencils here and to see how to do it all, watch our how-to video on creating a repeat pattern on your wall using one stencil here.

A few months ago I paid tribute to Mommie Dearest by creating a stencil of her at her most insane rant in the film, screaming ” NO WIRE HANGERS EVER!” Well, how else to spread the fun times than to also have a sticker made of this icon. StickerApp.com is the hero in this story. Their site makes it incredibly easy for you to upload and have a die cut sticker created and sent to you in a quickie!

They also have a library of designs you can choose from, seen here. And they offer custom printed skins and cases for your phone with a visual app to see how it would look, my leopard banana image shown here! Truly no one else would have the same case if I order this!

Well, I got to sticking my stickers and the first one I applied was to a Moleskine black journal. I carry these everywhere and like to customize the to distinguish it from others. I love, love, love Moleskine journals, a blank canvas to make your own. Some stickers then appeared outside, not sure how 🙂 Check out StickerApp.com and show us what you made!

For several years I have seen these happy faced hearts wheat-pasted all over my neighborhood in Brooklyn. Popping out of graffiti covered doors or on decayed walls, they add fun to the urban landscape and often a smile to my face.

Well, I never knew who created them until last week I walked by a graphic novel bookstore on Metropolitan Avenue in Williamsburg called Desert Island. Talk about DIY, they always have the best window displays. This is what I saw in the window:

I went in and the gal behind the counter gave me the artists info. CHRIS UPHUES. I emailed Chris to see if these hearts I have admired for years were for sale. He said yes and the display was scheduled to come down this week. I made my way over that weekend and had the nerve-racking choice to make of which hearts to choose within my budget (I collect affordable street art). I found myself feeling sorry for the hearts I couldn’t adopt, I mean, purchase that evening.. oh the power of art and those cute-sy damn heart faces! If you too want to make these hard choices, Chris creates art and products based on his artwork, all for view and sale on his website http://chrisuphues.com/

Well, I carried home my art that night:

I was looking to replace this piece on my wall. It’s sweet but it’s a print of an Eels cover that someone had made. That someone being an x-lover so what better thing to do that replace it with some hearts!

So I wired the back of my hearts:

and hung them in my bedroom. As you climb my stairs, you get the surprise of them!

If Andy Warhol was to make a wallpaper company, Flavor Paper would be his new factory. Flavor Paper offers the most unique designs in wall paper and I just had to get a closer look at the place. I contacted Jon Sherman, the humble owner and designer and he was super generous with his time. The Cobble Hill business is in a modernized 4 story building that was once a parking garage. We met in the showroom on the second floor where you can view very large samples on a hanging system similar to how large rugs hang in some stores. Jon told me that years ago a wallpaper company was going under and the owner was literally burning all his machinery and stock. Jon stepped in and bought the business, learned the wallpaper silk screening process and continued the legacy. We flipped through all the designs and I flipped out over so many of them! Repeat bananas on metallic foil?! Realistic wall murals of graffiti tagged concrete walls! But by far my favorite are the clever takes on traditional toile. So rather than seeing a repeat of oh I don’t know a couple in powdered wigs and a pile of fruits on a platter, instead in their Wythe Toile you see Brooklyn imagery of water towers, street signs, and a Williamsburg iconic church (Wythe is a street name in Williamsburg). I saw this beautiful paper applied in the rooms at the Wythe Hotel for which Dan Funderburgh created it for. There’s another Brooklyn Toile, commisioned by Mike Diamond of the Beastie Boys, with images of Biggie, the Cyclone at Coney Island, and the Brooklyn Bridge (design by Revolver New York. I want!

So we headed downstairs to the main floor where they hand silk-screen the wallpaper. Three guys were printing and they have the process down to a science. The long table sucks the paper down with air while the screen gets placed over the paper and then two guys hand squeegy the ink, move to the next spot and so on. You can choose any color for your paper as they work from the screens, just endless possibilities.

Well, as a stencil designer I often achieve wallpaper effects with repeat pattern stencils but this place opened my eyes to some amazing designs unachievable by stenciling. Makes me wanna design wallpaper. Hmmm? Stay tuned on that one!

Visit the Flavor Paper site to see all the designs and enjoy my somewhat blurry pics below!