Display inspiration: Welcome back color

We're on the cusp of February and with only one snowfall so far in New York, you'd almost forget it's winter. But in spite of the unseasonably warm weather, there are early sunsets, leafless trees, and muted landscapes to remind us that winter is still here. For the past few months stores have been filled with drab grays and blacks, save for the occasional sparkly New Year's outfit, now on clearance. While I normally cringe at how early stores set up for the next season (you know, like back to school in July), I welcome the winter to spring transition if for no other reason than this: color comes back.  

And while I'm still waiting for the color of the landscape to catch up to the retail industry, the bright and whimsical window displays of Free People SoHo stood out against the gray backdrop.

The coldness of the geometric wire shapes contrasts with the softness of fake flower petals and puff balls but together have an organic feel. The shapes hang above like a canopy and cover the walls like vines reminding us that life spring up again soon.  

While some of these might be hard to recreate (I noticed some welded corners), you can certainly draw inspiration for wall displays or hanging mobiles! I especially like the idea of wrapping your exposed cords in colorful cloth and string.  

More from pics the SoHo store, plus other locations are available on FP's blog.

Chunky Infinity Scarf

I came across this crochet pattern on People Webs just before the holidays and immediately fell in love.  I've made three of them so far (and finally didn't have any mistakes on the third) and given two away as gifts.  This latest was a birthday present for my boyfriend's mom.  They are so warm and cozy, perfect for when you're too cheap to turn the heat up! And because it's so chunky it goes pretty quick; this one took one and a half football games.

The original pattern is here and there are many other pretty things on the site and at the Etsy shop, so check them out while you're there.  For my version, I used Patons Classic Wool in burgundy and a US M hook.

The pattern is much simpler than it looks,
even for this beginner.

Monet vs Monet

Since watching Midnight in Paris last week, I've been pretty into all things French.  So just for fun I did this sketch of Claude Monet, based on his wikipedia photo.  In the end, I wound up with 2 sketches after spending too much time on a warmup sketch (left).

Double the beard!

It's been almost a year since I was in Paris and despite being pick-pocketed by thieving Gypsy children, I would love to go back for an extended stay!

S is for Squirrels

It's also for Stella, which is the middle name of baby Paige (of P is for Peacock fame) and this illustration was her Christmas present.  This one was much easier to do, since I already had a style based on the first version there wasn't quite as much experimenting necessary.

Like the peacock illustration, this was done using watercolor (with minimal water) on watercolor paper.  The S was hand drawn in Adobe Illustrator.  More pics below...