Pastels that Pop

Pastel colors are a hot trend in fashion this year but why not make a place for them in your home? Traditionally associated with Easter, these desaturated colors will add a fun and feminine touch to your space. Whether used in a kitchen or bedroom pastels can pop up a clean white space while still keeping it sophisticated. Don’t be afraid to let the colors you love inform the space you live in.

Source your colors from the beautiful everyday objects you love and be inspired to add them in your next interior design project!


Wings + Horns

 

This online retailer is a great find.  Wings + Horns presents refreshingly simple menswear.  Their website’s about section sums up their approach nicely:

Originating between Vancouver and Tokyo, Wings+Horns was founded in 2004.  Inspired to combine Canadian elements with Japanese quality, Wings+Horns has established itself as a lifestyle brand that integrates its classic fits with a utilitarian style.

The clean, well-crafted aesthetic is even represented in their Fall 2012/Winter 2013 Lookbook.

These looks are great, and their entire website is full of on-trend (yet versatile) items.  Be sure to take a look around their site, and enjoy a few more sneak peeks below.

Frances Russell

Frances Russell is a talented and extremely versatile artist, who is also a dear friend of mine. Like all writers for Florence and Millie, Frances attends the Savannah College of Art and Design. She is currently a junior, majoring in fibers and recently added a minor in printmaking. Her pieces are highly conceptualized, exploring and translating unconventional ideas. Frances’ abstracted works are not only distinctively stimulating and thought-provoking, but are also a visual pleasure.

Frances pays much attention to her mark making and meticulous line work. She is continually producing abundant amounts of work and showing more artistic growth with every piece. Make certain you take note of Frances, because she will surely become a staple in the art world. Visit her website to see additional work  and  follow her blog to read more in depth about her art and process.

 

Lois Albinson

Lois Albinson is an emerging knitwear designer from Manchester, and a former student at the Manchester School of Art, with a BA in Textiles. Albinson’s work is unprecedented, and a phenomenal addition to the fashion industry. Her ability to manipulate yarn to create organic, rippled structures in her knits is beyond mind blowing. Through the variety of yarns and knitting techniques, Albinson fabricates delicate, yet rigid, highly textured fashions. Although Albinson heavily employs contrasting elements in her work, she has perfected the balance, resulting in appealing and harmonious designs. Support her extraordinary work by liking her facebook page, and check out her blog to stay up-to-date on her developments!

Alison Worman

We’ve been infatuated with Alison Worman’s work for a while now and today we are finally going to share our secret treasure. Alison Worman is a fibers and book artist that recently graduated from Maryland Institute College of Art. Worman’s pieces communicate ideas of  ”human relationships, longing and nurturing” in a youthful and enchanting approach. Her highly stylized work consistently conveys these messages in a pleasantly simplified way. Worman flourishes in creating dynamic energy and interaction between viewers, improving the lack of human relationships through her artwork. Below are some of our absolute favorites, we truly admire her concepts and portrayal of them through her personal aesthetic. Make sure you check out her website to see more of her inspiring work.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hats

Hats are a classic, debonair way for a man to protect himself from the sun.  A smart-dressed man reaches for a hat on the way out the door as the simple, functional way to complete a look.  Many men say, “I’m not a ‘hat person’.”  This is false.  ’Hat people’ are merely the people brave enough to wear them.   The key to looking your best in a hat (as with most clothing) is to focus on fit.  Tight-fitting hats shrink the head and can add the illusion of weight; loose-fitting hats can lend the wearer an unfortunate, Oliver Twist appearance.  Also remember that light colors are the only way to go in these warm summer months.  Browse some simple, straw fedoras from Banana Republic, and take cues from the following photos to inspire your own look.

Sean Connery: keeping it classy.

Summer formal

Nick Wooster, owning the straw fedora and the blazer/shorts combo we highlighted 2 weeks ago here.

Straw hat staying on trend with the season’s bright colors. Dapper and Daring.

Another formal look for summer.

Your author, taking a casual approach to the straw fedora at the beach.

 

Anna Duthie

Anna Duthie is a recent graduate from Glasgow School of Art, with a specialty in fashion embroidery. Although this textile designer is just beginning in the fashion world, we can already tell that she will take fashion textiles to exciting new levels. Duthie’s perspective treasures the art of patterns, with the focus on contrasting textures and colors. In short, muted colors fused with embroidered geometric shapes and blocked lines are definitive of her aesthetic. Duthie’s striking designs are effortlessly cool. The fervent simplicity of her work is admirable and also desirable for clothing. Check out more of her designs on her website and view her senior work below!

DIY: Print Your Own Fabric

Inspired by a post from the blog Poppytalk, here is our own extremely simple way to customize your fabric. We chose to do small kitchen towel sized swatches but there is no limit to this project. Feel free to make anything from table napkins to window curtains!

Materials:

Fabric – cotton muslin, linen, ect., washed, dried and pressed.

Dye or Fabric ink

Painters tape

Scissors

Application Instruments – Paint brushes, sponges, ect.

Small Containers

Water

1. Prepare your surface. To protect your table or countertop from the dye cover it with plastic like a trash bag or line it with foam and cover it with unwanted fabric.

 

2. Mix your dye’s to get the appropriate colors for what you want to create. We used Rit Dye, so we placed the powdered dye into a plastic container then added various amounts of water to create lighter and darker colors.

 

3. Lay out your fabric and create various designs using your painters tape. Be creative! Cut the tape to make thinner lines, create shapes, or go without the tape and free hand a water color painting.

 

4. Apply your dye using sponges, paintbrushes, stamps, or whatever else you find!

 

5. Lay flat to dry and remove the tape. Allow your fabric to completely dry before rinsing.

For the first few times, make sure to wash your dyed fabric separately to ensure that all the excess dye has been removed and will not stain your other fabrics.

 

Kinfolk Magazine

Kinfolk, a guide for small gatherings, is a lovely treatise to a simpler way of life. It envelopes you in a world where people still bake cookies from scratch and use paper maps. This printed magazine is filled with beautiful photography and insightful articles focused on the topic of gathering together with both friends and strangers alike. It includes interviews with noted artists, reviews of small shops, recipes for delicious food, and thoughts on getting back to our roots. It also includes the work of two photographers that we have featured on Florence & Millie, Leo Patrone and Tec Petaja! You can watch a beautiful video on their philosophy here. Though it may occasionally get a bit hipster, we absolutely love this magazine.

Julie Massy

We are really digging illustrations by Julie Massy today. Being an illustrator, Massy creates sharp and intricate line work within her pieces. Her faintly colored illustrations have similar qualities to photogravures, with the extra grain, tainted backgrounds, and washy shades of black. Massy’s work is focused on portraits that  carry graceful, audacious, and whimsy moods. Below are some of our favorite compositions done by Massy. Make sure you check out her website to see more of her work.

  • Etsy Shop of the Week

  • Like Florence & Millie on Facebook!

  • Categories

  • Archives

  • Enter your email address to follow this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

    Join 3,075 other followers

Follow

Get every new post delivered to your Inbox.

Join 3,075 other followers