Tuesday, April 8, 2014

Spring is Here... Summer Looms Ahead

With each spring, we welcome the warm weather and embrace the chance to shed a few layers and soak up the sunshine. For me, spring heralds the calm before the storm: summer. This is the time of year when my "real job" workload increases and blog posts decrease. Very soon my boss and I will be off to Los Angeles for the first buying trip of the season, and if all goes well, we'll do it again in July.

In summers past, blog posts have been few & far between because to be honest, I just didn't have the time or inclination to work on home projects. By the same token, my job becomes my creative outlet and this year I'm hoping to share more of my work here. It's hard to describe what I do for a living, because it's so multifaceted. I work in the clothing industry for a small business, and I do whatever is needed. My duties include selling to both retail & wholesale clients, preparing invoices, accepting incoming merchandise, packing outgoing shipments, tagging & pricing new goods, organizing the warehouse and keeping the office clean. And that's just the tip of the iceberg! My favourite "duties" include buying trips, store merchandising and visual display, where I can be more creative. We buy from many sources, and throughout the process I'm thinking about how the clothes & accessories will look together in the store.

2012...


 
2013...




Last year I started bringing items from home to use as props. Did you notice the champagne bucket holding quilted purses and the faux bois tray full of bracelets? This past weekend I hit up a few local thrift stores to pick up some interesting store props. I hope that this summer I'll have the opportunity to share some of my fun display ideas with you.

Tuesday, April 1, 2014

Pink & Gold Dreams at The Grand Budapest Hotel

It is very possible that Wes Anderson, director & producer of The Grand Budapest Hotel, has dreams in shades of pink laced with accents of metallic gold. If true, the hotel's decor is the very manifestation of those dreams. I could spend the rest of my days at The Grand Budapest, if only it were a real place...


The movie was just released in North America last week, and I cashed in some Air Miles to see it. Like most West Anderson films, it's kinda strange & kinda quirky, but an absolute visual feast for the eyes. The funicular! The lobby! The baths! And you must see the red lacquered elevator! Highly recommended!!

 


Photos above via The Grand Budapest Hotel Facebook page.

Find out more about how The Grand Budapest Hotel came to life: