Hiroko Takahashi

I am very excited about Hiroko Takahashi's work. I've read so many articles lamenting the disappearance of traditional Japanese culture and here is superb example of how to keep cultural history alive while maintaining relevance to the present day.

Takahashi has taken the classic kimono and using the katazome dyeing technique, dating from the Meiji period, has updated the garment with bold colors and patterns. The versatile furoshiki is also available and can be used as a bag, for gift wrap, wall hanging, scarf, tablecloth... Make sure to check out her sleeve bags too.

Check out the article from the JC Report. All items are available online at Hirocoledge.

Nomenus Quarterly: Catharine Stuart + Dries Van Noten

As promised, here is another post from Nomenus Quarterly. These wonderfully delicate but vibrant watercolors of Dries Van Noten's 2008 collection were painted by Catharine Stuart.

Sruli Recht Exclusive: Ísbjörn/ Icebear

I am so pleased and honored to bring you an exclusive post about a new product from Sruli Recht's studio.

Sruli Recht and Birkiland present Ísbjörn/ Icebear. This is a limited edition project of 10 rugs. Made from 15 Icelandic sheepskin, they have been cut up and sewn to mimic the diagrammatic posters that old butchers used to inform customers of what part of the animal they were buying to consume. This is a project that makes use of waste materials since the sheepskin used for these rugs are a by-product of the meat industry in Iceland.

"[W]hen you look inside a fur jacket and between the lining, the first thing you notice is this luxurious, high priced garment is made up of hundreds of tiny scraps of skin sewn together. Though it looks like one pelt on the outside, a fur garment is made of scrap and waste." A wonderful play on and commentary about the luxury fur industry "this product plays with this exact idea of waste products sold as luxury products."

As always, I'm so excited to talk about anything coming out of this studio. Inventive, witty, gorgeously designed, conceptually rich - needless to say I'm a huge fan.

Packed and ready to ship, look for Ísbjörn/ Icebear coming soon to Birkiland.

Dear friends

I apologize for my time away from this blog. It's been a whirlwind month! I promise many more wonderful posts soon! Thanks again for reading.

xo

Sruli Recht + FormFast: Cutting Table No.1

Absolute ingenuity. Clever as always and subtly subversive, Sruli Recht has collaborated with FormFast to produce Cutting Table No. 1. A lightweight, economical, efficiently collapsible, storage friendly table with replaceable parts. Calling all students and designers on a budget: this is a dream come true.

Read more here and here. Buy it here.