knockoffs

This is my black cat print, est. Oct 2010.

I came up with the black cat print when I was a sophomore at Parsons, so it really should have died with all the other terrible work I was doing then. It also isn't very representative of what my style has become. But, it was the first thing I put online that caught the attention of bloggers, which lead to customers and then real clients. Looking back at my "career" (er, the year and a half I've been out of school) I credit all my success with this image. I still sell products printed with it, and so much of my work, cat-related and otherwise, is derived from it. It was the first pattern I ever made! And so, I feel really protective over it, and it was a big blow as many individuals and companies began to copy it. Many were very poor imitations on Etsy, or DIYs on fashion blogs, but a handful, like the examples below, were larger manufacturers.

Top row, Pepaloves Spring 2013; bottom row, H&M Summer 2013, dress for sale here

Some of these make me more upset than others. The H&M cat print is the most different from mine, and is likely more inspired by the trend than my exact work. I'm mostly bothered that I may have contributed to the manufacturing of thousands and thousands of cheap polyester items. It also makes me sad that the BeckSöndergaard and Joyfolie lines below are carried at Anthropologie, a client I really respect and love working with, and who first released a big run of black cat dresses in Summer 2012.

Top row, BeckSöndergaard Fall 2013, tote here and scarf here; bottom row, Joyfolie Spring 2013

I learned a very sad, very expensive lesson from all of this: anyone can steal your work and there isn't really anything you can do. I had a licensing lawyer send a couple cease-and-desists, but they don't do anything. The companies know you're too small to actually sue them, and they'll just put you off until you give up. Public shaming seems to be the best action.

In the end I try not to think about it. My work is a very small dot in the world, and images, trends, and products cycle at such a fast pace. I'm just going to keep making new work, and at least I can tax deduct all the lawyer's fees.

Update: Here is a brand new one by Dear Creatures, Holiday 2013. The shape is a little different and it's knit, but let's be real.

gina's quilts

My good friend and best Bushwick neighbor, Gina Rockenwagner, has recently released a new series of quilts and pillows. You may remember this quilt we designed together a while back (almost a year ago! wow), and many of these new products are made with my fabrics too. We photographed them in my purple room last week with the help of Moses the cat model, and you can now buy them in her shop.

new stuff!

Here's a peek at some new products and patterns that are coming to the shop next month. It was so much fun taking these photos with some great girls recently. And really could Gillian and Gaby be more beautiful?! Ugh.

Everything shown above (and a zillion other things) will be with me at Renegade Craft Fair this month (details a few posts down or here if you missed it).

Models: Gillian Herring + Gaby Cetrulo // Makeup: Allison Perlstein // Photographer: Amber Byrne Mahoney

Renegade Prep

My pal Kaye Blegvad (of Datter Industries jewelry fame) emailed me a couple months ago to ask if I'd like to take an epic California trip in July, make a ton of money, and tax deduct the whole thing. I immediately said yes, of course, and now I'm sort of regretting it (but feeling a lot of anxious excitement too). So, I'll be at Renegade Craft Fair in Los Angeles on July 20-21 and San Francisco on July 27-28. Kaye and I are sharing a booth, so stop by and say hi (and maybe buy something because I've gone completely broke preparing for this)!

I'm spending a lot of time gazing up at my Napkin pom banner for inspiration. I've never make this much product before, everything in my shop is made to order or in very small runs, and my anxiety (and workload) is insane right now. Have any of you done Renegade before? Have any advice? I need it!

New Products + Kate Edwards

Here's the first wave of some new photos and new products, all thanks to the amazing Kate Edwards. You might recognize her work, and our gorgeous friend & model Gabby, from Young Frankk jewelry -- Kate shot the latest lookbook, and Gabby's modeled for it all. I only have these handful of things up now because I'm about to close my shop while I'm in California for 3 weeks, but much more will be up in early January, including lots of new dresses.

Leah, Rachael & Julia

Have you guys been following my #ladiesdrawingnight posts on instagram? Well, after getting together with Rachael Cole and Julia Rothman to draw once a week for the past few months, we made some things with our drawings and launched Leah, Rachael & Julia. The things are these scarves, and I love them. They're made from my favorite gauzy & sheer silk chiffon, but unlike any of my other scarves they are huge -- each scarf above is 36" x 89". Take a look at (and buy!) all 6 scarves here, and keep an eye out for new Leah, Rachael & Julia products soon.

Gina & Leah Quilt

I posted these patterns a while ago in anticipation of this project I did with my neighbor/friend Gina. At the time I said we weren't going to make a quilt, but then when it came down to it that's what we ended up making. She did most of the making, really, because in real life I'm a reluctant seamstress and she's the expert quilter here. I did the patterns though!

Dylan took these beautiful photos and I'm so happy with how everything came out. We're planning on making some patchwork pillows together, likely this summer, so stay tuned if you're looking for something that's not quite as big an investment. The quilt's for sale in my Etsy here, along with some extra photos.

Rag Dolls

I always, always want to make dolls, and since I hadn't done so in a few years I spent the past couple months making these. They have really long skinny arms and legs and the usual sad girl pout, so I've been calling them bored model dolls, sulking around my studio in a pack. All 5 are for sale in my shop here.

Quilting

Really excited to be working with my neighbor Gina on some quilting-related projects. Gina makes amazing quilts, is an expert seamstress, and the best knitter I know (sorry Mom). Right now she's working as a knitwear designer for Anthropologie and has yarn and needles in her hands every time I see her: at the beach, watching the Olympics, etc. I put together a bunch of different patterns in similar colorways for us to work with. We're not actually making quilts, but you'll see...

My collection for Anthropologie came out last week and this Griegii Mini Dress has quickly become my favorite. The samples I was sent are a size 6 and most of them pretty much swallow me alive, but this shift dress (also in the bears print) looks great oversized and cuffed. I'm so happy with how everything turned out, and also impressed with the quality. Reading "polyester lining" always makes me wrinkle my nose, but the lining on these is actually very soft and slinky, and super nice for a synthetic. So, take a look at my pieces and the rest of the Made in Kind lines here!

internet girls

I don't think I ever got around to posting photos from Internet Girls at Habitat House last summer. Here is one!

Chiffon

These two scarves are now restocked in the shop, this time in beautiful, semi-sheer chiffon. Pretty much my favorite fabric of the moment, even the polyester version they have at American Apparel. I picked up this full length skirt, black with tiny creme polka dots, in Miami last week and I've been wearing it ever since.

a painting, a scarf

This is my favorite scarf because it was made from an exact painting. Square-shaped, in color, and all I did was scan it. A lot of the other scarves came from paintings that I assembled or colored digitally, but I love this one the most because it feels so real.

instagram

I love instagram. Ever since summer ended and my life got boring, I've just been posting photos of work. These are some of them.

(Bows prints are new in the shop)