END OF XMAS
well its the last day of 2007 and we have just one last chance to look at christmas imagery before a new broom sweeps clean and we all pack up the decorations & cards. kicking off with cute imagery from chocoa.
>
www.flickr.com
|


well its the last day of 2007 and we have just one last chance to look at christmas imagery before a new broom sweeps clean and we all pack up the decorations & cards. kicking off with cute imagery from chocoa.




all pages from : petit pattern book - leaves and flowers ISBN-86100-385-7. published by bnn, available from kinokuniya bookstores.
also from the same petit pattern series is dots & stripes, ISBN-86100-384-9 published by bnn, available from kinokuniya bookstores. priced at $39.20 (£20)

in the two books mentioned above 'dots & stripes' and 'flowers and leaves' there are these great lifestyle shots that show the ways in which you can use the patterns for home projects, such as CD covers, badges and sweet wrappers.
all images from petit pattern series published by bnn from kinokuniya.

a pencil case seen in kinokuniya san francisco led me to research japanese brand midori. but with few products pictured on their website i landed here at paper creation where i found all these lovely designs and most midori products listed.














theres a real red & green theme to christmas this year, and a great place to see this scheme in action is at doodlebug. here you'll find card making, stickers, paper, ribbon and embelishments, all with fab graphic motifs on.




here is some unusual wrapping paper from last years 'habitat' christmas range. the only festive wrapping paper i have ever seen that features cows.
for the pattern designer that has everything how about these new mobile phones from cath kidston for nokia. 


this christmas paperchase has gone baroque, with these ornate patterns appearing on everything from photo albums to ipod covers .








from las vegas i ended my US vacation in san francisco, where my favourite shop was without doubt kinokuniya in cisco's japan town. all the photographs below were taken in the large kinokuniya bookstore or in the kinokuniya card and gift shop opposite. here you'll find thousands of japanese books and magazines ,and in j-town itself plenty more shops selling everything japanese such as housewares, kimono's, ceramics, and food.










here is the final round up of san francisco photos, miscellaneous patterns that caught my eye around the city. at the top is a street holiday banner, and above the cool logo of cisco buses. then featuring from top to bottom : embossed tiles from waterworks, tree gift tags by snow & graham, bombs repeat pattern from miss sixty, street wall mural, bird cushions seen in the window of a store on market st, bags/umbrella from (left) gap (right) virgin, black & white graphics all from H&M.







lovely new christmas cards (top) from orla kiely £6.50 for 6, also new in homewares is wallpaper (above) £60 a roll and cushions (below) at £60 each.
after new york i moved on to las vegas, and at first i found very few examples of print & pattern. hence i took these pictures of the baroque wallpaper in the MGM grand casino and the decorative paintwork on the outside of a hotel, before being reduced to checking out packaging in the luxor & the venetian. then all was saved as i found a lovely big urban outfitters in the mandalay hotel. see the next post for shots. in conclusion las vegas is not what i would call a destination for trend research trips, but it is one of the most amazing places ive ever been. seeing streisand in concert, the phantom of the opera spectacular, the fabulous strip & grand canyon were all as they say in nevada 'awesome'.


this is me (left) in urban outfitters las vegas trying on some of their great patterned t-shirts. i really love this store in whichever city, but the vegas one was bright and spacious and the hot weather means they can still carry summer clothes in november ! at the bottom of the post are the great window graphics which particularly impressed me, and in the next post website goodies.








all the latest trends in motifs are covered here at dixie on cute little votives; there are birds, stags, trees, baroque, and lace. this selection are my faves.

lovely strong graphic prints meet super smart wrapping at shop heidi. the delicious pine cone paper below is a fresh alternative to traditional christmas designs.


above, andy warhol themed windows in barney's, and below fashion plates in fishes eddy.
above, patterns seen at ABC home, below woodland graphics from crabtree & evelyn.
below the window display of jonathan adler.

visiting stores at this time of year you find that they are dominated by christmas goods, so its not the ideal time for trend research, but even whilst on holiday i cannot switch off from patterns, so as i was shopping i was also occasionaly snapping the things i saw. these pictures are from crate & barrel at 650 madison ave, new york. crate & barrel's christmas is delivered courtesy of marimekko who seemed to provide most of their range of gift wrap & cards.




patterns from the crate & barrel website, including above this striking carnaby range, christmas items below with graphic trees (big this year) and snowmen. plus beautiful marimekko wrapping papers and cards.

next up it was kate's paperie on west 57th street. this was great shop for cards and wrap, but it has a lot of staff so it proved quite hard to take many pictures. if you're visiting new york for shopping or research this store is a must see.








one of my favourite stores in san francisco was 'the container store'. obviously at this time of year all the shops were dedicated to christmas and thanksgiving, but i thought this one particularly had a great holiday range of gift wrap and boxes, (many of which were designed by the excellent rock scissor paper). these are some snaps i took in the store, and when i got home i checked their website, see the images in the next post.









my instore snaps and purchases inspired me to see more, so here are some of the designs in full from the container store. the cool yule collection was my favourite, but i also loved celebrate in style. also these gift boxes (above) were great value (at just $3.95 for small) with a cool pattern and everything you need to wrap included.






dont just think of the container store for christmas, they also have designs for everyday wrap and occasions.


well here i am back from my holiday, and suffering from jetlag ! . ive taken quite a few snaps of patterns seen in vegas,nyc, and cisco and will post them up just as soon as i can. in the meantime to ease me gently back into blogging i thought id show you a few of my purchases. at the top is a leaf print from a plastic folder from kinokuniya, followed by three gift tags from kate's paperie by rock,scissor,paper. above is a xmas tree gift card from crate & barrel. next up a gift box from the container store, complete with tissue, ribbon and label included, and below that one of their decorations - a metal star with spots on. then i found these striking napkins in crate & barrel from their carnaby range. finally a schedule book from kinokuniya and an address book by amy ruppel from kate's paperie. lots more to come on all the stores i visited, just need to sort the photos, and i'll add links as well where i can. plus i bought some great books which i hope to photograph and share with you.


