Tuesday, July 5, 2011

Impressions of India

To kick off my new-found global freedom, I want to share one of my favourite things: Indian block print textiles. If you remember, a short while ago I made a headboard covered in a block print fabric (you can check it out here) and it's kind of being a catalyst to bring in more of that beautiful art form into my house.

Have you seen John Robshaw's textiles? Just glorious, glorious stuff but a wee bit out of my price range.









Also so, so inspiring is Emersonmade... not only are her clothes classic and chic, but I think she's really funny! Not to mention a gal (she's definitely a "gal", I think) who's hard-working and making things happen for herself. Anyway, I digress. Here's what caught my eye (from her hilarious blog)





I love the colours, the textures... the henna! I know she is making caftans (which are not really my bag) but also tunics, which are just gorgeous.



Those tunics are also a wee bit out of my price range, but I'm not sure if you've noticed if you are repeatedly attracted to (and sometimes buy) the same things over and over so, luckily, I had already bought a beautiful tunic from my favourite Indian import store, Adivasi, in Brattleboro, Vermont a while back. If you are ever in Brattleboro, I strongly suggest you pop in for textiles, clothing, those awesome lunch pails, jewellery and old Bollywood posters.



The other place I've come across for block print textiles is Rikshaw Design. The only bummer is that they doesn't have any king-size textiles... but they do have lots for babies, children and (woohoo!) lovely women's clothing.







My final stop on my Indian tour is West Elm (believe it or not!). Somewhere along the line I saw this video, and as a graphic designer and lover of all things fabric and block printed, I was mesmerized. The confidence! The lack of hesitation! I am in awe.



So I took a look at their quilts... and found it. I did a little shopping on Saturday and this gorgeous yellow quilt came home with me. Really, really light and soft, its perfect for summer.



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