Cozy up with guest blogger Jenny Leary – magnetic materials designer for Puff&Flock and founder of Ferrofabric – while she warms you up for winter:
Image credit: Jenny Leary
Los Angeles is a great place to be a designer. The warm weather and abundance of open space give your ideas a relaxed environment to percolate in, and then when it comes to putting the ideas to work, you can find suppliers of any type. In my two months here, I’ve discovered brilliant sources for what I need: steel powder, exquisite bookbinding, liquid latex, lasercutting – the raw materials for my textiles. When it comes to finished products, there are even more treasures to be found.
ReForm School, located in the Silverlake neighborhood, is a true gem if you’re looking for beautiful product to bring home. I visited again on Thursday and fell in love with some very cozy-looking blankets. For most of us in this country, January and February are freezing! Even in sunny LA, the winter nights can make you yearn for a hand-knit wool item or two. The holiday festivities have passed, taking their warmth along with them.
Image credit: Jenny Leary
These are a few of my favorite winter warmers that you can find on the shelves of ReForm School. Above is a quirky knit house-shaped pillow by British designer Donna Wilson. Below that is a textured woven blanket made by Japanese studio Fog Linen. The blanket is 100% cotton, but thanks to the weave structure it will warm you up by retaining heat in small pockets.
I’ve taken inspiration from their style and included some items available here in the mydeco.com boutique (the best place to shop online whether you’re in Los Angeles or Louisiana!):
Image credit: Ferm Living and Design Public
The op-art inspired pattern on the Squares blanket from Ferm remind me of how a bold graphic element can really bring personality to a space. On the right is a soft, comfortable pile of brushed cotton Oliver blankets designed by Area. Area’s natural color range and simple designs echo the Fog Linen philosophy.
If you are, however, lucky enough to be in LA, be assured that Reform School is worth a visit. Whether shopping for a gift for a friend, a child, for yourself or your home, their selection of creatively designed products is truly unique.
Image credit: Jenny Leary
There are pillows made in Chiapas by designer Tanya Aguiniga, shaped like chickens and decorated with rainbow pompoms; there is a Tipi; there are books on craft and even handmade pencils. As a textile designer, I was especially inspired by the handwoven wall hanging from Chol Chol. Above is a scarf from Fog Linen. Like the blanket, it already feels like your favorite piece before you’ve even worn it.
Below are more whimsical pillows from Donna Wilson, paired with magical owl shadow puppets.
Image credit: Jenny Leary
If you’ve been inspired by what you’ve seen, add mydeco’s image clipper tool to your bookmarks and clip any image you see – be it on the blog or even another website. Image clipper will save the pictures you want to copy into a folder where you can also add products and moodboards to plan for whatever project you’re working on.
It’s so easy and versatile – why not give it go? And tell mydeco what you’ve come up with – we’ll feature the best image clipper folder in the blog!
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