fall at Crate & Barrel

This fall I am happy to have a new version of the suzani flower as a doormat at Crate & Barrel.  This was done for summer 2010 in brights and now it is printed on coco fiber in warm autumnal colors.  You might recognize the pattern, it is one of my best-selling ribbons as well!

spoonflower contests

I do have fun entering Spoonflower's themed fabric design contests.  Recently I have entered 3 contests, and you can look for my designs -- and vote for them! -- here.  And if you are so inclined, you may look at a number of designs I have made available for public view and purchase by searching Spoonflower for lfntextiles.
Here is my entry for Surrealist Fruit, closing tomorrow.  An earlier incarnation of this design was used a couple of years ago on an apron & mitt set from Crate & Barrel.

 Upcoming contests I have entered:

Windows & Doors (next week)

Tractors

Kindly remember that all content, images and text, on this blog is copyright Laura Foster Nicholson.

Marigolds

I have always loved Marigolds, with their odd tomato like smell.  In our vegetable garden we have tomatoes interplanted with marigolds and nasturtiums to add color and deter pests.  (Tonight I will spend processing MORE tomatoes, they are burgeoning right now! 

I worked long & hard on this design of marigolds, starting with a black and white, linocut type image and them working it into color (the opposite of my usual way of working color first).  We tried several different constructions for the ribbon before settling on this beautiful, somewhat hefty but supple woven edge ribbon,  I received my spools last week and have posted it online now for sale, and it comes in 3 color grounds. 

Santa Fe International Folk Art Market

I am writing this from Santa Fe, where I have come to see the International Folk Art Market.  I was invited by Docey Lewis, on behalf of Hand/Eye Magazine (now THAT'S a fab read!) and Hand/Eye Fund, to design the logo for their fund-raising booth, A Million Hearts for Haiti, at the market.  Docey has worked with Haitian artisans for years, helping them develop product for American markets under the auspices of Aid to Artisans.  Most of these people lost their workshops in the earthquake, so the goal right now is to raise a million dollars from the sale of Haitian hearts to replace their ateliers.  (see Hand/Eye Fund to make a contribution).  Hearts sold briskly during opening night and yesterday; I was gratified that all the souvenir button pins (see above, sponsored by Tesoros Trading company) I designed already sold out , as well as all of the t-shirts with the logo.  They should be available through Tesoros shortly.

I had the opportunity to walk around the market, agog at the depth of skilled artisanry on every available surface by people of many lands.  The entire market place was decorated with fabulously festive flowers, garlands, color everywhere.  I was too busy looking at the beautiful crafts to take many pictures, but here are a few.

There was a large proportion of artisans from Uzbekistan in particular, suzanis abounding.  Persuaded by a charming Uzbek man to try on a peacock green ikat chapan robe -- which, alas, has no place in my simple wardrobe -- I gave him a length of my Suzani ribbon, which pleased him very much.

I also stopped in at Patina Gallery -- my representatives in Santa Fe -- to drop off a tapestry and say hello to Ivan & Alison Barnett.  The gallery looked gorgeous as always and my most recent work, the Beehives and Goldenrod, as well as Shed with Bales, were hanging. 

crocheting ribbon

My love affair with the image of crochet is continuing. Having designed the rather prim Doily ribbon, we now are introducing a fairly rambunctious design based on Granny Square afghans. Over the winter I was determined to learn to crochet, inspired by Sophie Digard's incredible crochet scarves (I own two). These are hand crocheted of extremely fine wool or linen threads, sometimes bundled together in heathery combos. One of my scarves is in shades of coral an the other in shades of verdigris: between them they go with nearly everything I own and I wear them all winter.

So I slaved away in front of the fire every night during the winter, working on more blanket-scaled grannies, trying to make the color sing like in my Digard scarves -- and, well, I should stick to weaving. It WAS fun. Then I took the inspiration and went back to the computer and have designed a series of things based on crochet. The new Granny Squares ribbons are a part of all of that work. Hopefully other designs will make their way on to the market too. I have had lots of fun, and I think it shows here.

Wonderdog NY

Oh, more is coming! I have sold a lot of ribbon over the years to dog leash and collar makers but look how particularly pretty this one is (using the Suzani Flower 22 mm in ivory)

Sea Parrot Kaleidoscopes

People are always asking me what to do with my ribbons. Well, I had never thought of making kaleidoscopes with them! To be exact, Sea Parrot Kaleidoscopes uses LFN and other ribbons, encased in glass, to form the side boxes for their exquisite kaleidoscopes.

"Kaleidoscope designer, Bob Rioux has been working with glass since 1976. Using creativity and fine craftsmanship he designs and produces beautiful works of art. Bob’s wife and business partner, Elissa comes to The Sea Parrot with 20 years of experience from her business, Elissa Glassworks. A love of glass and textiles has inspired her to design several new kaleidoscopes in the collection."
(this from their artist statement)

It is a pity that I don't have the technical know how to reproduce the fabulous spinning kaleidoscopic images of what one actually sees through this ribbon box -- for that please visit the website, www.seaparrotkaleidoscopes.com. Stunning and imaginative! Thank you, Bob & Elissa, for these glorious things!