Amy Butler

Here's one BRILLIANT fabric designer! Amy Butler. I should try getting some of her fabrics one of these days. :) I would love to make some girls' clothings out of these fabrics for my girls. I think most crafters know about Amy Butler's fabrics. I've seen some people using it to make bags, clothings, and toys. For those who've just started out doing crafts, try your hands on these fabrics. They've just introduced a new line of fabrics for home decor purposes called Sunbloom. To visit their webstie, click here.

Hello Tamara!

I'd like to dedicate today's entry for my newborn girl, Tamara. She was born last Thursday, BIG and healthy. :) Not an easy labor as the first one, but she's just as adorable. Pretty much looking like her sister, except the eyes, ears, nose and hair. I don't think her hair would be curly like her sister's, but hey, I could be wrong. I guess I'll know in few months time. Finally, I can say I'm a mother of two. :) Cheers.

THOMAS PINK

It's true when they say that Britain is well known for its shirtmakers. I'd never heard of this brand before until I went to UK last year, and... boy, I adore THOMAS PINK shirts and ties! Although I don't feature the mens shirts here, but they make shirts for both gender. Their bright colored stripe shirts are hard to resist! So who needs dull and boring colors for work when you can have this. Go and brighten up your day in the office, THIS is what I called dressed for success! THOMAS PINK shirts are available in UK, Europe, US, and China.

Pine Cone Hill

Here's one brand that has many gorgeous pajamas around, Pine Cone Hill. With pajamas like these, I'd have sweet dreams every night. 100% cotton and beautiful designs, Pine Cone Hill collections are sure to put you in a comfort rest. They have whole range of beddings, home furnishings, and furniture. I specially LOOOOOOVE... this piece of Wing Chair with Black Walnut finish and bright color fabric. You can visit them on their trade shows around the United States. See the details here.

ELSEWARES, Independent Art & Design

Disposable placemats, hm...., who would've thought of that? You could find a lot of interesting items at ELSEWARES, a New York based online shop featuring quirky creations of U.S. designers. They have all sort of things, from t-shirts to home accessories. Browsing their site is like attending a design exhibition. Another good thing is... they ship worldwide! Check out their details here.

More on einzelwerk

AHA! Jan from einzelwerk has just told me that Nahino is taken from the first 2 letters of the designer's name, Nadine Hildegard Nordhoff. And Nahino is also a the name of her company: NAHINO Manufactur. Surprisingly, einzelwerk brand is just about one year old, yet they've done so much. Impressive! BTW, I need to clarify the custom made thingy that I mentioned on my earlier posting. Well, what I meant was actually TRAUMTASCHEN, which is a facility on einzelwerk website where you can choose the model, colors, motif from the available selections, and it displays how the bag would look like. So, you don't actually have to squeeze your brain to come out with your own design. :) Sorry for the mistake. Thanks again for the clarifications, Jan.

ALPANA BAWA

Alpana Bawa is an Indian designer based in New York. Her work is very much Indian inspired, using bright colors and embroidery. And they are just brilliantly gorgeous! You can see her past and current collections at alpana's site. To grab her gorgeous items, visit her store locations details here. Weird enough though, it doesn't seem that she has a store in India.

einzelwerk

einzelwerk is a German brand created by Nahino. I'm not too sure if Nahino is the name of designer or a company, because their entire website is in German and I have no knowledge of German. Anybody who knows German, feel free to add in more info. Anyway, this brand is worth mentioning. I love its designs, they are simple, cool and hip. Einzelwerk adopts the 70's style on all its messenger bags and shopper totes. Each individual item is hand made, making each item is a unique piece of art. That explains why the items are priced between SGD 99.00 to SGD 140.00 Einzelwerk accepts custom made orders, and its items are available on Ebay, too. Only the custom made orders are available for international shipping though, so you have to be creative to get an Einzelwerk bag.

Rosanna, Inc.

Rosanna, Inc. is a U.S. company who's been designing and producing creative designs on tableware since 1982. Rosanna Bowles, the owner of Rosanna, Inc, has been creating tabletop line for Pottery Barn/Williams Sonoma, Crate & Barrel, Target, and Saks, Inc. and other specialty shops. I love her Chandeliers and Around the World Collections. They are sure not like any other ordinary tablewares. So, if you'd like to add a little style to your dishes, you can find Rosanna, Inc items widely available on WWW. If you can't find the designs you like on WWW, you can always visit Rosanna, Inc. site and make your inquiries there.

REGINA REGIS RAIN

Regina Regis Rain sure knows how to brighten a rainy day. With colorful and floral patterns, raingear would never be the same again. Regina Regis Rain is an Italian brand, and with all its products made in Italy, they sure don't come cheap. You can't find Regina Regis Rain catalog on their own site, but you can visit a japanese site called BLAU here to see some of Regina Regis Rain boots.

Geraldine Gonzalez

Geraldine Gonzalez, Paris based designer, was designing footwear before turning to sculpture. Her creations include lamps, candleholders, and home decor items. Currently available in France, London, and New York. I found her items featured in one of New York based sites. I love her lamps and candleholders, they are so magical. Her site is in French though, and only her biography is available in English version. You can visit her site here.

GAIA & GINO

I was browsing magazines in Kinokuniya Bookstore the other day, and I spotted this Turkish brand featuring its decorative candlebras. I was intrigued by its dual purpose design as candle holder and bud vase. GAIA & GINO's Happy People Glassware are reversible to serve different kinds of drinks. Both Candlebras and Happy People Glassware were designed by Karim Rashid in 2002. GAIA & GINO, which is a trademark of DECORUM Inc., produces contemporary tabletop, glassware and decorative items commissioned by international designers. It is available in Australia, Japan, Korea, USA and European countries. For details, please visit their distribution page here.

New York International Gift Fair

Believe it or not, this is one of the events that you MUST ATTEND if you're looking for new products, and latest trends in the Gift industry, especially if you are in a Gift Business like myself. Too bad, with one toddler and heavily pregnant, time is not on my side on this one. New York International Gift Fair is a twice-a-year event, the next one will be on August 13 - 18, 2005, at Jacob K. Javits Convention Center. For complete details, you can visit their fact sheet here. I believe they have it every January and August, but it'll have better weather in August. January in New York is just too freezing....

Kuboaa Wallpaper

Kuboaa by Andrew Hardiman offers unique and distinct designs on their wallpaper collections. It's a great alternative for people who prefers something different for their homes. It's modern, simple, and it's using unusual colors. Their Bespoke papers are hand silk-screen printed by skilled craftsmen, and the Kuboaa with Siecle wallpapers are produced to compliment Siecle Colours Paint. Both Kubooa and Siecle are UK based companies. Kuboaa has stockists in Hong Kong, Beijing and Taiwan, please see their stockists' details here.

Dransfield & Ross

I have Dransfield & Ross, a New York based home furnishings company, listed on my bookmarks for quite some time now. Their designs always keep me amazed. I like their Valencia and Greek Revival pillows, and their beddings are super gorgeous, too, such as Circus girl, Petra, Barcelona, and Greek Revival - Copper. Their tabletop items are great for outdoor party. I've never seen so much ribbons on tabletop before, but it will definitely make your party merrier.