A Tour of Kravet's Studios

I interrupt regular Friday Crushing to bring you some pictures from the tour we took of the Kravet, Lee Jofa, and Brunschwig & Fils studios during Blogfest. This was absolutely my favorite part of the three day event. My jaw was literally on the floor from the moment I walked in until the moment I left...it was a fabric WONDERLAND. I was in a frenzy taking pictures on my phone, so these aren't great and they are out of order, but hopefully you'll understand the kind of gorgeous I was exposed to.

(Below) A hand block print with the actual blocks...can you imagine the process to create this fabric by hand??

(Below) That's Beth Greene on the left, Kravet's VP of Marketing. Blogfest is her team's creation and she was a lovely host.

(Below) The Brunschwig studio...you have no idea how gorgeous it was in there!

(Below) Showing us hand-coloring at Lee Jofa...

 (Below) These are outdoor fabrics! They were beautiful in person.

We got to meet many of the teams that work on these beautiful products and they each explained to us how they do it - it was FASCINATING. We learned how they design their showroom displays, how they design their fabrics, how they work with hand-drawings as well as computer software to achieve their looks, how they work with mills, how they work with their licensed designers...the list goes on. I was in a fabric fantasyland.

Have a fantastic Memorial Day weekend...see you Monday (or possibly Tuesday)!

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Blogfest Was Awesome

Y'all, Blogfest was awesome. I had the best time meeting bloggers, listening to industry insiders and DROOLING over Kravet/Lee Jofa/Brunschwig & Fils fabrics as we toured their studios. Not to mention this was all against the backdrop of New York City. And had I been smart and only worn flats all three days, the experience would have been even better.

I love this picture that was taken on the last day right before I left - I'm surrounded by some fabulous ladies and some new friends. First row left to right is Danika of Gorgeous Shiny Things and O'verlays, me, Barbara Franceski, and Kathy of My Interior Life. Second row left to right is Lisa of Lisa Mende Design, Kirsten of Kirsten Nease Designs, Cheryle of O'verlays, and Laura of Bright Bold & Beautiful. We had a great time chatting for three days straight.

An enormous thank you to the Kravet family - both the brand family and the actual blood-related family. Did you know Kravet is a family-owned business that goes back generations? We met many of the Kravet siblings as they were ever-present throughout the week and getting to know them strengthened their brand in my eyes. Really nice people creating beautiful products - always a great combination. Not to mention Kravet is at the top of their game using social media, apps and bloggers to reach their customer base...smart marketing department.

I took lots of (not-so-great) pictures on my phone of all the pretty things I saw, so I will be sure to share those with you soon!

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Fabric Joy

My, my, my, have I found a wonderful fabric to share. Have you seen Kravet's Teablossom print? Feast your eyes:

The coral version is just delightful. I see this fabric on a gorgeous upholstered bench and some chairs in a breakfast nook...or as curtains in a colorful, feminine, Chinoiserie bedroom. All of my favorite colors are represented - green, turquoise, orange, coral. I love using this kind of print to bring lots of colors together in one room.

Kravet is obvi to the trade, but I did see it online here for ordering. And if you do buy some, tell me what you did with it! Would love to see this fabric in action.

Sassari Ikat and My Two Cents

As you might recall, I chose Lee Jofa's Sassari Ikat fabric to make my living room pillows. And I love them:

After I posted the pictures of my pillows, I got a little love from the folks over at Lee Jofa/Kravet, which I was very happy about :)

Recently, I got an email from Jennifer who works on Kravet's blog asking me to share some tidbits about why I like ikats...and so I did. Check out my two cents on ikats on Kravet's blog. Thanks for including me Jennifer!

The post has some great info on ikat (ee-kaht) prints...do you like ikats? Have you used them in your own home?

I actually chose an ikat print for my pillows because I was looking for something modern. I think the abstract quality of ikats gives them the feel of a modern painting on your couch. But I know they are also popular for providing that "exotic" quality to a room.

I had a hard time picking my hue of SI to use...there are lots to choose from and the colors are so rich and pretty. I decided on the green to go with my paint color.

 

 

 

 

 

 

I think many ikat prints, including SI, are reversible depending on how they are woven, which is a bonus. The flip side of the fabric reverses out the colors and they can be used either way. Check out this sofa that used the same fabric that I used on my pillows, just opposite:

I backed my pillows with a solid fabric, but thought about doing one side one way and the other side with the other way...might have looked neat.

Are there particular ikat prints that you love? I know I have a couple...do share!