Cocoon Couture

Cocoon Couture offers a charming collection of accessories for babies and ladies. All items are hand-made with superb craftsmanship, and these well designed items are great gifts for the next generation, teaching them value and taste. The packaging is wonderful as well, fun, yet practical and sustainable.

Enchanted Forest Tree Packaging

Enchanted Forest Tree
Cheeky Squirrel Book Ends
Height Chart Packaging
Jungle Land Height Chart and Wood Land Height Chart
Sleepy Owl and Early Bird Library Bag

Harajuku Lovers Fragrance Targets Two Senses: Smell and Sight

In all honesty, I can't tell you that I remotely care what the new Harajuku Lovers Fragrances by Gwen Stefani smell like, but I recognize the great packaging. Following the ever-growing trend of Japanese illustrations and toys, these cute little bottles are definitely eye-popping to the right audience. I almost want to go out and spend the 30 dollars just to have one to display in my bathroom! (Notice, I said almost, I'm not completely crazy!) Each bottle represents and different scent and personality, there are 5 total: Love, Lil' Angel, Music, Baby, and G. At first glance these small figurines may not appear all that great, but their hair style and fashion statement is well worth a double take.

LOVE – a floral with notes of bergamot, pomelo (citrus, a little like grapefruit), peach, rose, jasmine, orchid and musk
LIL' ANGEL – a fruity floral with notes of various berries, such as raspberry, cranberry, blackberry, as well as pineapple, rose and amber
MUSIC – a floral with notes of clementine, pear, jasmine, sweet pea, honeysuckle, vanilla and musk
BABY – a powder musk with freesia, bergamot, rose, jasmine, musk, heliotrope, vanilla and violet
G – a food lover's fragrance with mandarin, coconut, apple, freesia and sandalwood

If I had to define myself through these adorable little bottles, I would want to be MUSIC, but I'm not going to fool myself, I'm not Asian, so unfortunately I would be closer to G, although the name makes me smile and her barely-there outfit is just scandalous enough to others blush.

Made by Hank is Certainly Something To Keep an Eye On

Made by Hank. Original. Genuine. Handmade. Heart felt. Those are a few words to describe the purses/bags created by Katie Henry (aka "Hank") who is a 27 year old female in Philadelphia that has taken her love of sewing to a level we can all appreciate. She's a Aries with a tremendous eye for detail and quality control that would make the best production artist green with envy. Her products are not only well designed, they're well constructed. She has 2 online shops, one on Etsy and one on PoppyTalk Handmade. I recommend PoppyTalk Handmade as I was able to view a wider variety of products.

When Katie isn't designing and creating new purses, she tends to her blog. Make sure to check it out for updates on her work and inspiration.

Joie, in a bottle

These wonderful bottles designed by Matthew Stiffler of Palatal Collective literally bring joy to my heart. The illustrations combine patterns and silhouettes to create very feminine branding for a brand that could otherwise be a little cheesy. The use of colors and vintage flowers really brings old world and new world together, reaching out to a wider audience. 

Matthew's portfolio is truly great, full of inspiration and well thought out pieces, from packaging to environmental, make sure to check it out. Educated at MCAD, he started his career at Hallmark Loyalty, a relationship marketing subsidiary of Hallmark Cards, but is currently at VSA Partners in Chicago, IL. On his free time (which I'm sure is none), he is formerly the founding co-chair of the AIGA KC Sustainability Committee and the Sustainable Kansas City Competition Committee Designer. His motto? "Design with intelligence — it seems like a no brainer — design is not just about making things look god. It's about thought, experience, innovation, creativity and sustainability — all things captured in the word intelligence." Great words to live by...

Rebecca Minkoff, My New Obsession

I've noticed the Bread and Wine purse before by Rebecca Minkoff, but now I've become obsessed, I must have one! I love the style of all of her purses actually, from the square/rectangular shapes to the use of solid colors, I think they're a bold statement with minimal attraction. The website is very nicely designed as well, direct and to the point, but clean and contemporary.

Bread and Wine in chocolate
Bread and Wine in blue
Duo Combo
RendezVous Clutch
Morning After Mini

Yaelfran's Interesting Illustration Style

Yes, another great find on Etsy... This is Yaelfran, a mother of two who works from home as a graphic designer and does crafts on the side. She enjoys making what she calls "home made jewelry" and what I refer to as beautiful works of art. The line quality is delicate and fragile, while the design is bold and powerful. I believe that her inspiration is her children, as her work is playful and free, but her training as a designer is obvious as she creates positively tactful pieces that balance thin lines and large flat areas of color. Please check out her work and even buy some of her stuff, you won't be disappointed.

Loving Wine That Loves

Keeping in mind that I was born and raised in France, you'd think I know a little something about wine, but of course, I have NO clue. It's a deep dark secret I like to keep to myself, but I figure honesty is the best policy and I might as well announce it to the world. With that said, I found these incredibly wonderfully designed bottled of wine by Wine That Loves that not only makes you look (and feel) like a wine connaisseur – and no, I didn't spell it "connoisseur" because that's not how it's spelled, that you can trust me on – but also emits a great sense of style as you schmooze it up with your guests. Oh, one last thing, it's also very inexpensive, but looks quite pricey, what more could you possibly want from your wine?

Wine That Loves Grilled Steak – high intensity wine to balance out the intensity of the dish. The low acidity of the wine compliments the dark and mellow flavor of the steak, emphasizing the taste of the dish while substantially leaving its own taste impression of dark fruit flavors.

Wine That Loves Pasta with Tomato Sauce – medium intensity wine to play off the medium flavor-intensity dish. This low acidity wine is perfect for a pasta with tomato sauce dish because it doesn't clash with the flavors and leaves a pleasant taste, bright and highly focused on the fruits.

Wine That Loves Pizza – medium intensity wine to complement the medium intensity dish. Cheese brings such a wide range of richness to a dish that a wine with medium intensity cuts right through it while brightening the flavor experience. Pizza crusts can create a dry mouth, however, this wine helps keep a refreshed feeling due to its low tannin and its red-fruit dominance accents the tomato sauce.

Wine That Loves Roasted Chicken – medium intensity wine for a flavor-intensity dish. To prevent the wine from leaving an unpleasant or tart taste, the acidity needs to be neutral to enjoy the interplay of the two flavors. Since the dish has a firm texture and can be slightly dry, the wine has a low tannin and its fruit flavors are in the bright, ripe, red fruit family.

Wine That Loves Grilled Salmon – a medium intensity wine for a medium flavor-intensity dish. Since grilled salmon has a rich, almost creamy flavor, this wine has a medium acidity to subtly cleanse the palate and clear your taste buds for a smooth transition between flavors. This wine has no tannin to keep the flavors of the dish pure, and its roots lie in tropical fruits, stone fruit and minerals to mimic and echo the taste of the salmon.

Benetton, Collection 08

Ah, the colors of Benetton. The 08 collection doesn't strike me as something very colorful, it does however, reinforce JCrew's trend of masculine is feminine. From materials to shapes, everything screams men's fashion while flattering the woman figure and curves. One small detail that is highly annoying? You can't buy anything online, you actually have to go to a store! I know, how dare them making me get out of my house and into the public, actually mingling with other human beings and trying something on before purchasing it?!? What do they expect from me? Does that mean that when I'm paying the cashier I should not be talking very loudly on my cell phone about something that no one around me cares about? Just kidding, it's probably very smart on their part, imagine the reduced number in returns, and what a great impact on the environment, thank you Benetton, thank you.

Something else unexpected from Benetton? The packaging for their perfume line, it's sleek and chic, and quite functional. The simplicity keeps it interesting, but there is something to be said for less is more. I'm not particularly fond of the huge trend of over-usage of ornaments and flourishes (see anything and everything from punk rock T-shirts to Lifetime), although there are a few exceptions where I find it perfectly fitting, but I can always appreciate simple designs that are elegant and direct. I sometimes like to compare flourishes to decoration, it seems like it's a design element that designers slap on to add visual interest and cover up the lack of concept, but hey, don't get offended, it's just my opinion : )

September, September, finally you're here.

I don't know about any of you, but I sure am glad that September is here. I'm ready for a change, a big one, and there's nothing like Autumn to make me feel like something new is on its way. To me the change in the seasons means a new beginning, full of opportunities and hope, leaving behind old work, and starting something anew. For the sake of change (and leaving the past in the past), I've decided to post some work I did earlier this year in my Professional Print and Pattern class at MCAD. I am very proud of what I call "AnthroFloral," and think you'll enjoy it as well. To create the patterns (and later the products, yes, over-achiever as usual), I compiled a trend board for women between the ages of 18 to 45 who have a flair for new floral patterns and Victorian style. To see bigger images or more of my work, please check out my portfolio at Behance, it's easier to see and there's a ton more : ) 

Main Pattern
Coordinates
Home Products 1
Home Products 2
Home Products 3

As of September 11th I'll be starting my Print Seminar class, and hope to have some apparel ready for sale very soon. It'll be the MPLS S'il Vous Plait line, so keep your eyes peeled and I'll post as soon as it's ready.

I'm been completely swamped lately and am still looking through my newest magazine but promise to have the latest trends up within the next couple weeks, for now, enjoy my work and please share yours with me as I would be happy to show the world your talents and mad skills.