Milan image

The image that started the process.

Final thoughts from Cradle to Cradle

I have at last finished reading Cradle to Cradle and would like to share these quotes :

"Design is based on the attempt to fulfill human needs in an evolving technical and cultural context . We begin by applying the active positive list to existing things , then to things that are only beginning to be imagined , or have not yet been conceived. When we optimize we open our imaginations to radically new possibilities . We ask : What is the customers need , how is the culture evolving and how can these purposes be met by appealing and different kinds of products or services. "(p180/181)
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"Ask :How can we support and perpetuate the rights of all living things to share in a world of abundance ? How can we love the children of all species -not just our own- for all time? Imagine what a world of prosperity and health in the future will look like , and begin designing for it right now . What would it mean to become ,once again , native to this place , the Earth- the home of all our relations ? This is going to take us all , and it is going to take for ever . But then thta's the point . "
(p186)
(Donoghue W., Braungart M., Cradle to Cradle ,2002 New York , North Point Press .

Visual Research for Spring

Spring has arrived and with it the sunshine and dry days to walk and draw and visit gardens otherwise unexplored (by me ) . One of the most beautiful recent find is Caerhays near Mevagissey which has 450 different species of magnolia and many magnolia and rhododendrons.Described as a horticultural treasure trove it is the garden to visit in the spring . Because it is only open for a short time (February to June ) and is so well established the atmosphere there is very powerful and special . I became fascinated by the structure of the branches and having not taken my camera deliberately had to try to capture this in a drawing .I will definitely go back and draw again . The day I went was a wild and windy sunday but I still managed to get some good drawing in .
I have also recently been to Burncoose Gardens and Nursery which is linked to Caerhays when I did take my camera and this time made both photographs and drawings .This is a compilation of the two places both of which deserve a revisit soon before the beauty fades and changes ,

Ethical Fashion Forum"Sustainable Fabrics Master Class"

At RICH MIX Bethnal Green Road on 17th March
I found this very useful and have full notes in my journal on the ins and outs of different fabrics and the various sourcing possibilities and had a talk from Kirsten Samuel of MUMO a company who are working with various cooperatives in Brazil who are at the forefront of sustainable fibers and fabrics for fashion and interiors .

You can get colour ground cotton from Maggie's Organics and Fox fibers.
LOOP fabrics UK do a range of hemp and cotton blends
Also found that Smarts do a hemp/ramie blend coated for digital print that is probably suitable for furnishing/ interiors and am going to sample that . A good group to keep in touch with and some useful connections for the future .

London- design museum

A visit to the Design Museum to see the Hussein Chayalan exhibition and the Design Award nominees for 2009 .
Loved this piece by Duckie Brown and this dress by Husein Chayalan .Also saw the original dress that had been buried with iron filings that started Husseins career

Interiors

I have started to look at how I can use my products in an interior setting for the final show .Started by looking at the way other designers/shop use this to convey products in an effective way and how elements of designs can be utilized and then building up different scenarios and scales of designs in photoshop . I have also looked at the new Designers Guild Collection to see how they convey their products .

Mid Century Modern

On the look out for a 1950s chair I have realised that I am hooking into a new trend without realising it . I just wanted a chair to show off my fabric and to tie in with my designs and being a 1950s child ..... Perhaps I have been subliminally influenced or maybe Lucy's interest in Ercol or my attraction to her work( Lucy Turner of Higher Market Street Studio Penryn with whom I have an ongoing work experience and have recently had a day sourcing furniture at the St Day auction and various second hand shops in the area .)
I find it fascinating how trends arise . Is it the whole economic make do and mend culture reemerging as from the post war years ?
This one was on EBAY since then I visited a new shop in Falmouth on Killigrew Street ,Elephant and Monkey , run by Rowena (namesake) who is selling Mid Century Modern furniture and bits (mags, ceramics , cards ) 1950s . It is an amazing shop well worth a visit and who should be in there browsing but Lucy Turner !
Rowena said that the design I am looking at would be difficult to reupholster and that if I want to resell it the fabric and filling would have to be fireproofed but that one way out of this was to sell it as a collectors piece not suitable for domestic use and then the emphasis is on the consumer and you are covered . Very useful information and I also found out there is a second hand sale on the last Saturday of each month at the WI in Falmouth which may have useful things , fabrics etc .

Mid-Century modern is an architectural, interior and product design form that generally describes mid-20th century developments in modern design, architecture, and urban development from roughly 1933 to 1965. The term was coined in 1983 by Cara Greenberg for the title of her ground-breaking book, _Mid-Century Modern: Furniture of the 1950s_ (Random House), celebrating the style which is now recognized by scholars and museums worldwide as a significant design movement. Mid-century architecture was a further development of Frank Lloyd Wright's principles of organic architecture combined with many elements reflected in the International and Bauhaus movements. Mid-century modernism, however, was much more organic in form and less formal than the International Style. Scandinavian designers and architects were very influential at this time, with a style characterized by simplicity, democratic design and natural shapes. Like many of Wright's designs, Mid-Century architecture was frequently employed in residential structures with the goal of bringing modernism into America's post-war suburbs. This style emphasized creating structures with ample windows and open floor-plans with the intention of opening up interior spaces and bringing the outdoors in. Many Mid-century homes utilized then groundbreaking post and beam architectural design that eliminated bulky support walls in favor of walls seemingly made of glass. Function was as important as form in Mid-Century designs with an emphasis placed specifically on targeting the needs of the average American family. Examples of residential Mid-Century modern architecture are frequently referred to as the California Modern style.

Pioneering builder and real estate developer Joseph Eichler was instrumental in bringing Mid-Century Modern architecture to subdivisions in California and select housing developments on the east coast. George Fred Keck, Henry P. Glass and Ludwig Mies van der Rohe created Mid-Century Modern residences in the Chicago area. Mies van der Rohe's Farnsworth House is extremely difficult to heat or cool, while Keck and Glass were pioneers in the incorporation of passive solar features in their houses to compensate for their large glass windows.