Portland Picks quote Coco Channel in their fab review on our felt brooches: "In order to be irreplaceable, one must always be different." "Swooning" over our brooch selection ensued! Swoon away! Thanks Portland Picks!
Fathers Day Sale!
Springtime at DIGS
Arctic Time Lapse
This time-lapse video shot by nature photographer Terje Sørgjerd stunningly captures arctic light. In a world of post-production enhancements, CGI, and photoshop, this video is completely unaltered - colors and light so divine, there is no need. Shot in Lofoten, Norway, this inspiring video serves as a reminder of how gorgeous our planet is, and how grateful we should feel to be surrounded by her beauty. Watch the video here.
GOOD/transparency: Understanding what's behind the label
DIGS in ESSENCE magazine, July 2011
Check out our multicolor felt cuff in ESSENCE magazine's July issue. Vibrant colors are BACK and in a big way! Check it out!
Designer Saara Renvall at ICFF
Based in Helsinki, Finland, Saara Renvall is a designer working with furniture, objects, jewelry, spaces, and interiors. After finishing her 3-year training as a carpenter, Renvall graduated from the University of Art and Design in Helsinki and received her Master of Arts in 2002. She has studied for shorter periods in India, Denmark, Japan, and the UK, gaining expertise in different design cultures.
We asked Saara a few questions about her experience at the International Contemporary Furniture Fair 2011 (ICFF) . Here's what she had to say:
What left best impression on you?
I think the carpets were special across the board, the quality of design and materials were lovely.
We also liked the Vitra showroom especially for the pamphlet, helps navigate New York and the showrooms having special installations for the fair but overall it wasn’t very special this year, perhaps the rainy weather…New York itself though is always so inspiring, the Alexander McQueen show was so inspiring it well made up for the lackluster ICFF.
What are you taking back from ICFF to Helsinki?
Post cards from a Singaporean group, they were really well done.
What did you see too much of?
Too much wood furniture and way too big, not enough sustainable thinking and were the city garden concepts, it was all over Milan this year and the year before.
[caption id="attachment_580" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="Carpet Texture"]
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[caption id="attachment_581" align="alignleft" width="200" caption="More of the beautiful carpets showcased"]
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[caption id="attachment_583" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="Carpet Detail"]
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[caption id="attachment_584" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="Copper Lights by Tom Dixon"]
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[caption id="attachment_587" align="alignleft" width="200" caption="Eskayel booth"]
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[caption id="attachment_586" align="alignleft" width="200" caption="Eskayel baskets"]
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[caption id="attachment_588" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="An inspiring lighting idea"]
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[caption id="attachment_592" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="Layers of fine, overlapped fabric"]
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[caption id="attachment_593" align="alignleft" width="200" caption="paper baskets"]
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Thank you to Saara Renvall for the interview and the pictures! DIGS will soon be a home for her beautiful baskets!
Digs Designer Spotlight: Kinda Hibrawi
Los Angeles, California: Kinda Hibrawi's artwork is a passionate journey of femininity, spirituality, and cultural convergence. Of Syrian descent, she grew up between Saudi Arabia, Syria, Lebanon, and the United States. Through her studies, she began to expand on the ancient tradition of Arabic Calligraphy by giving it a modern twist. As an Arab American, she felt the need for her artwork to reflect the richness of the Middle East coupled with Western diversity. Hibrawi's original work is sought by collectors worldwide and has exhibited in galleries across the US. Her 2007 solo exhibition in Washington, DC was a great success and she was named "an artistic ambassador" by Arab News.
As an artistic ambassador, she lectures on her work nationwide, recently she was invited to speak at the School of Visual Fine Arts in New York City. She was asked by the City of Los Angeles to premiere her work in their 2006 Cultural Calendar and City Guide, and is featured online for the Syrian Culture, Arts and History Center in Montreal, Canada. Her work has been acquired for the permanent collection at the Arab American National Museum in Detroit, Michigan. In 2008 she was selected by the US Art in Embassies Program to showcase her work for the United States Permanent Representative to NATO Ambassador Kurt Volker in Brussels, Belgium. As a result, she was invited by the US State Department to showcase her artwork in a 2010 US Embassy wall calendar, to be distributed to US embassies worldwide. Hibrawi runs a portrait studio MyPopArt.com in California and hopes to continue bridging cultural misunderstandings between Arabs and Americans.
This original Arabic Calligraphy Tee Collection was designed to promote peace and understanding through the positive message that each shirt represents. By wearing them, you join the movement to help change the world one shirt at a time. Cap sleeve, boat neck, and with hand thrown sugar crystals in the front, the english translation of the character is on the back. Proceeds from this collection will support the United Nations Relief and Works Agency's (UNRWA) Adopt a School Program in Gaza. Adopt a School is an ongoing campaign aimed at overcoming the negative effects on children of prolonged conflict and poverty, and increasing the quality of education at UNRWA schools in Gaza.
Special Designer Offer: Receive 20% off Kinda's Calligraphy T-Shirts! Use Code NL0517 at checkout!
DIGS in Brides Magazine!
Brides Magazine suggests our Dahlia Felt brooch as a groomsmen's boutonniere! We love that idea!
This & That: Three's Company
Three Dog Night once sang that ‘One is the loneliest number that you’ll ever do’. Bruce Springsteen sang that ‘Two hearts are better than one.’ But it’s common knowledge that celebrity deaths come in threes. And these past few weeks have provided quite the celebrity death trifecta, eh?
First Poly Styrene, then Phoebe Snow and now Osama Bin Laden finishes the triple shot. Only historians will be able to tell which of them had the greatest cultural impact, but they are eerily similar to each other.
Lead singer in the band X-Ray Spex, Poly Styrene was hailed by no less a musical authority as Billboard as the "archetype for the modern-day feminist punk"; because she wore dental braces, stood against the typical sex object female of 1970s rock and was of mixed race. She was one of the least conventional front-persons in rock history, male or female".
Phoebe Snow gained fame and acclaim with her 1974 debut album ‘Phoebe Snow’ that earned her a Grammy nomination and led to tours with Paul Simon and Jackson Browne.
Osama Bin Laden; we’ll, I think we’re all familiar with his gig.
Styrene had "Oh Bondage Up Yours", Snow had "Poetry Man" and Bin Laden had 9/11 and all three of them pretty much coasted on their one big hit after that. Styrene and Snow chose motherhood and I suppose that this may have been Bin Laden's excuse as well, though he was much more private about his Abbottabad celebrity lifestyle. Then there's the way they died which are also eerily similar. Styrene and Snow both had cancer while Bin Laden had the metaphorical "cancer" of being shot up by United States Navy Seals. When will they find a cure? For Poly, for Phoebe, for Osama. Rest in peace everyone; well, almost everyone.
- Dave Glassman
Milkshake loves DIGS!
Thanks for the love, Milkshake! They had a hard time choosing a favorite selection of DIGS products, but managed to make a fabulous summer selection. Click here to read the article!
Gale Steves loves our Puff Totora!
"I have fallen in love with DIGS’ Puff Totora and now the challenge is where to place it… indoors or outdoors. So I am applying the principles of Right-Sizing from my book to my former living room, which has morphed into a “chat” room because it is where we talk (not live).
My book, Right-Sizing Your Home, helps you examine the actual function of each room and recognize the key to living fully throughout your home. It suggests the reader explore the “Art of ‘RE’” – reinvent, reclaim, redesign, rearrange, repurpose, recycle, even reduce. But not relocate or focus on resale. That was the solution for yesterday. Right-sizing is the solution for today..
I find that most important tool to right-sizing is an attitude re-adjustment. Having an open mind and willingness to rethink and reinvent space will almost certainly bring big rewards as readers discover space they never knew they had. The oversized great room of the 1990s, for example, doesn’t necessarily work for every family. The dining room that gets used three times a year should be repurposed. And one home office may simply not be enough anymore. And I am moving the Puff Totora around to find its most comfortable spot!"
Gale Steves, former editor-in-chief of Home magazine and industry consultant, is the author of RIGHT-SIZING YOUR HOME: How to Make Your House Fit Your Lifestyle (Northwest Arm Press - 2011; $21.95), Available at independent bookstores and www.amazon.com
PMc Magazine: Interview with Rhea Alexander
Jillian Mercado at PMc Magazine interviewed DIGS Founder, Rhea Alexander. Find out who she is, where she came from, and where she's going!
Artsy Surprises in the Park
Jaume Plensa's Echo in Madison Square Park is an ode to everyday people. Made of fiberglass-reinforced plastic, the 44' head demands the attention of fast-paced New Yorkers, yet the tranquil disposition of the young girls face juxtaposes her size and hypnotizes even the toughest city-slickers to revel in her serenity.
50% off Mothers Day Jewelry Sale!
Use Code "Mom2011" and receive 50% off
ALL of Mery Luz Salva Diaz's handmade jewelry.
Each colorful piece is meticulously crafted from reclaimed materials at her studio in Peru.
(While supplies last. Expires May 8, 2011)
Win your Mom a $50 Gift Certificate to DIGS.COM!
... Here's your chance to become the "favorite"!!
Do you have a favorite "Mom" story? About how she's so great? Loving? Nuts? Share it on our facebook wall, get ten or more likes, and you will be in the running towards earning your Mom are $50 Gift Certificate to digs.com! Voting ends at noon on Friday, April 6. The story with the most likes wins, so share with friends and encourage them to vote!
Pretty Little Green Things loves our Lex Mini Stool
Petra at Pretty Little Green Things loves our Lex Stool!
"When I was a little kid, I had a double duty step stool that also flipped up into a chair. I loved that little thing so much that I would carry it around everywhere. This Lex Mini Stool from Digs isn’t quite the same thing, but it’s so cute and colorful I just couldn’t resist...."
Read her entire here. We love the Lex stool, too!
Join DIGS at the Queens Botanical Garden!
Join DIGS at the Queens Botanical Garden Arbor Festival!
Rain or Shine, DIGS will be there showcasing our latest Spring collection!
Join us for: workshops and events, including bird walks, Rose Garden tours, composting demos, Tai Chi, container planting, local and eco-friendly vendors, HSBC Children's Garden open house and activities and live music!
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Celebrate Earth Day 2011 with DIGS!
Celebrate Earth Day 2011 with DIGS!
Join us at the Queens Botanical Garden Arbor Festival
Sunday, May 1 11am - 4:30 pm Rain or Shine!
Activities for the entire family! Shop the wares of local, environmentally friendly artisans and enjoy workshops, and demonstrations.
Complete with live music, crafts, and a parade!
Free with garden admission!
Help save the environment without sacrificing style!
On May 1 only, use code Earth2011 at checkout to receive 20% off ANY item on Digs.com!
Designer Spotlight: Ella Vickers
Wrightsville Beach, North Carolina: Designer and Founder Ella Vickers' voyage to the creation of EVRSC began while serving as first mate on the sailing yacht Columbia, the first 12-meter vessel to win the America's cup. Ella saw untapped potential in the yacht's discarded sails and drew upon her creativity and training to design a handful of unique, attractive and practical recycled sailcloth bags. Ella Vickers, Inc. and the Ella Vickers Recycled Sailcloth Collection was born.
Ella Vickers Inc. has been creating quality marine canvas products since 1989. She started her business with no money - after receiving a business degree at a local NC college - relying on credit cards to fund her small enterprise. Today, the company owns a small factory at their headquarters in Wrightsville Beach, NC, and employs another 20 workers in Brooklyn.
Special Designer Offer: Receive 20% off Ella's Rope Tote! Use Code NL0419 at checkout!