Bobo Choses is a children’s line located in Spain just outside of Barcelona. Co-founded by Adriana Esperalba, the brand aims to create durable and artful pieces every season. We’re particularly keen on the patterns and silhouettes, as they’re bold, unique and comfortable(!) The Bobo goal is a beautiful one, to capture the magical, passionate look and language of children. While the pieces are upscale, they make for beautiful gifts and the occasional splurge. We’re big fans.
Pattern Pulp’s been a hint quieter these last few weeks. Between a renovation, a move to Brooklyn, some family related medical stuff, wrapping the galleys for my Pattern Studio Chronicle book (!) and my own pending labor, things have been, well, busy. I haven’t talked about being pregnant all that much here – and have tried to keep the baby stuff to a minimum, but in my hunt for decorative and necessary items in these last few weeks of my third trimester, I figured I’d share a few favorite finds with all of you. The theme here is black and white – and as usual, I’ve veered away from cutesy…if you’re into this direction, I’d love to know, as I’m happy to post more on the topic.
Here’s my latest round up:
We always put a little patterned guide together come holiday season and today’s post features our most recent edit. Happy shopping!
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Camouflage is a seasonal staple – especially in men’s fashion. Whether colors, textures or materials are being swapped, it’s an adaptable pattern that’s assimilated with pop culture trends (far beyond military aggression).
Here are a few outerwear items from Valentino and Coach. The campaigns are similar in vibe and feel, from the model choice, pose and faux outdoor scenery. For better or worse, it seems like Juergen Teller and Terry Richardson still have a grasp on the photographic direction in play…as we’re still seeing head-on flash photography in a rough-around-the-edges kind of way. It is refreshing though, to see pops of color softening the set and scenery – the tulips in the Valentino spread add a lot of oomph to the storytelling.
I recently came across the packaging and graphic design work of Mary Rabun. Her aesthetic is bold, bright and feminine – and a playful departure from the minimalist illustration styles we’ve been seeing for a bit. In exploring her portfolio, I was struck by her full-time design work for Birchbox – it’s all very vivid, maximalist and distinct.
While these boxes were released in March, they have a timeless appeal and reveal how a brand can successfully apply print and pattern. Using bold brush strokes and a harmonious color palette, Rabun excels in keeping Birch Box at the forefront of unique and cool packaging.
In addition to the boxes, the accompanying insert cards play to the same creative mood and get interactive with a Q&A contest. If you have time, dive into Rabun’s past work, it’s beautiful, engaging and a great fusion of commercial pattern design.
I’ve been sitting on the post for a while, but wanted to finally get it out into the world. While traveling through Marrakesh earlier this Spring, my good friend Lisa and I made a stop to an incredible non-profit for women with disabilities, called Al Kawtar. Al Kawtar was founded in 2006 and has evolved into a full-service center that includes meals, transportation, physical rehab, technical training and medical support. The women are taught how to sew and embroider and are given an opportunity to be independent and earn a salary in a safe and dignified environment.
The visit was incredible – in that the women were extremely kind, supportive of each other and skilled at their craft. The head woman in charge walked us through the center and showed us how everything worked and what the products looked like from concept through production. She also ran us through the itemized pricing and how she managed the work flow and international orders.
It was obvious there was a lot of pride in the pieces that were being made. It’s also worth noting that everything was very unique and extremely commercial. I remember seeing a stack of handbags on one of the tables – where the body of the bag was a converted Moroccan pillow case with florescent embroidered clasps and embellishments. I wanted to buy one, but was told they were part of a big order for a boutique in Paris.
I discovered on the last leg of my trip through France that this specific collection went to Bensimon’s home shop. The mark up was expectedly significant, though in all honesty, the prices seemed fair and reasonable along the production food chain. It almost seemed expensive for wholesale pricing – which was refreshing to see the collective getting a fair rate for their handmade goods.
I ended up designing two bags on the fly, which surprisingly only took 24hrs to assemble. I was able to pick them up the next day before heading out and was elated with how they came out. In addition to these incredible clutches, there were embroidered friendship bracelets, pot holders, baby clothing, robes, tunics, blankets and napkins. Everything had a hint of French flair with beautifully embroidered accents. Here’s a video that shares a window into their world. If you can support Al Kawtar by visiting when you’re in Marrakesh or placing a custom order for your shop, definitely do it, you won’t be disappointed.