december 2009 {tota press}

Inspiration

Happy Holidays everyone~ It's that time of year where we wonder where time has gone and we are going in all directions to end the year right. 'Tis the season and NYC lights up to embrace the holidays and so this month's cards are delivered with some gold and silver shimmer in a subtle style.

I recently walked through Midtown and perused the holiday windows of Bergdorf Goodman - as they are always my favorite. This year's theme is called "Compendium of Curiosities" which I think is a loose interpretation of the Alice in Wonderland stories - there were windows that featured the red and black of playing cards, the rabbit coming out from underground, strange illogical adventures and more. I have to say that compared to other years, the windows {BG and others} are a little bit more "modest" {in a high-end luxury kid of way} but I think that might be an overall trend for the holidays this year...I still enjoyed seeing the glowing streets all lit up.

Also, just recently, I returned from a trip to Japan - and I am ALWAYS influenced by the beautiful aesthetic in the everyday, the understanding of simplicity, the care that goes into the tiny details and the respect for tradition while embracing innovation. Some highlights included a trip to Nikko where I stayed in a hot spring ryokan, the food {both the taste AND presentation}, visiting some 100+ year letterpress and paper shops, a vintage kimono shop and traditional paper fan store...the list goes on. Some trip photos »

I tried to capture that sense of simple beauty in this month's cards while keeping it festive {it is that time of the year!} with shimmer paper and metallic ink. Cheers to a warm, safe, fun, relaxing holiday season to you...



Many much more photos on our Facebook page - December 2009 album »


We are accepting orders now...sign up by December 23rd to receive TOTA Press's January 2010 card~ Holiday gift subscriptions are welcome!
Go to www.totapress.com and click on "Yes, sign me up".

Please help me *spread the word* and share this posting or website address www.totapress.com with friends, family, colleagues and anyone who you think would appreciate this idea. And! Become a fan on Facebook to get the latest news + updates and to share with your multitude of friends~

sogetsu-ryu ikebana

I am staying in a ryokan {a traditional style Japanese inn} in the Nikko area called Fu-ga. It is beautifully located on a hilltop overlooking Lake Chuzenji. Ryokans maintain the beauties of Japan's past and for this particular one, they get over 100 ikebana flower arrangements of the Sogetsu method created to be distributed throughout the grounds. Whether at the grand entrance of the main lobby {top photo below} or the main focus of the hotel room {photo above} or at any corner where the eye may wander, I was so surprised by the beauty + variety of the traditional but modern displays. Please enjoy the photos I took of some of my favorites~

paper*related finds in tokyo

Paper is an art here in Japan. Making it, using it, and presenting it/giving it. I had a wonderful opportunity to visit the showroom for Takeo Paper, a leading paper distributor in Japan. I thumbed through their collection of 1000s of paper types and was so impressed by their good taste, color selection {again, good taste} and variety. The 2nd floor of the showroom has an exhibit called "Self Money Design". 9 design teams were asked to design their idea/concept of money - and Takeo Paper produced prototypes to made them come to life. There was 1 design team who made coins square and bills with rounded corners - that when stacked created a nice pattern - as they did not feel it was important to have coins be round and bills be rectangular anymore. There was another design team that created currency of flower petals: 1 petal = 1 "dollar". And when you combined 10 petals, it would be a 10 "dollar" flower form. Hard to explain but beautiful to see {unfortunately, photos were not permitted on site!} Above photos are of the showroom and their papers organized by color.

I also got to visit a paper store called Papier Labo in Sendagaya {Harajuku JR Station}. They are a little shop that sells anything paper {cards, envelopes, notebooks} and also takes custom letterpress orders. This was the first time I saw metal type for Japanese characters - seems obvious but I just never thought of it. Anyways, I loved their shop presentation and selection of items - as seen photographed below - and walked out of the store with some new items~

sushi in japan

Visiting Tokyo right now, I had to make a visit to my parents' regular sushi place, Senpachi. They serve fish that I sometimes can't even translate into English - and it's all delicious. Pictured above is o-toro {extra fatty tuna}, uni with lemon and salt, one of the fish I don't know how to name and aji with yuzu. Below is the entrance of the sushi place - right now is the season of chrysanthemums, and they have an arrangement shaped like a tree -, scallop with uni sauce, grilled tuna + scallions and anago {fresh water eel}. There are no added decorations - you eat everything that you see and get served. Beauty in simple presentation is what I get to experience here...and is one of the things I love to appreciate of Japan.

colors of pais vasco

I've been out of touch for a few weeks {sorry!}...but I have a lovely excuse of a wonderful trip. I saw my best friend get married to a wonderful man in Guethary, France - and with that came lots of traveling around Spain and France's Basque Country {Pais Vasco}. What better way but to SHOW you what I got to see. And I'm back to regular blogging routine now so I'll be in touch~ Have a wonderful weekend...

I present to you the color spectrum {there are so many!} of the Basque Country...above are reds. {1. Door detail of the Parador castle in Hondarribia, Spain - 2. a charcuterie plate featuring chorizo, jamon iberico + lomo - 3. a wall of postcards at a bar in Logrono, Spain that was celebrating the San Mateo festival - 4. pinxtos in Logrono}

Here are yellows...
{1. iron and rock in Biarritz, France - 2. figs + foie gras at the renowned Arzak restaurant in San Sebastian, Spain - 3. empty street of the medieval town of Laguardia, Spain }

and greens...
{1. view from a window in Guethary, France - 2. the beautiful countryside hills of Bidarray, France - 3. flowers + champagne at the wedding - 4. images of surfers on a cafe wall, by FAR the sport of the region}

and blues...
{1. Hotel Le Madrid in Guethary, France, the host of us and the wedding reception - 2. rocks protruding from the sea in Biarritz, France - 3. I heart the Basque Country - 4. church top in a small village we passed through in Spain}

and purples...
{1. Frank Gehry's design at the winery of Marquis de Riscal in La Rioja region in Spain - 2. moon starting to show in St. Jean de Luz, France - 3. grapes of Rioja wines - 4. sunset view from boardwalk in St. Jean de Luz, France}

and blacks {with accents}...
{1. San Sebastan, Spain hosted their annual film festival and I saw a wonderful Argentinian film called "El Secreto de los Ojos/The Secret of the Eyes - 2. delicious oysters on a plate at the wedding ceremony}

Thank you Pais Vasco for the wonderful trip memories~

off to europe~

I will be out of touch for the next 10 days as I take a trip to Europe - my best friend is getting married! I'm so looking forward to spending some time in the Basque country on the French and Spanish sides.
I leave you with some postcards {well, a photo of them} that seemed quite appropriate...from the creative minds of Yellow Owl Workshop!

{Image courtesy of Yellow Owl Workshop website}

playing hookie {sandy hook}

Summer is ending?! Feel like I need to take advantage of it as much as possible, so I took a day off and headed to take in some sunny rays. Did you know that you can take a ferry from Wall Street and in 30 minutes land on the shores of Sandy Hook? So I jumped on the 9am boat...

...and then this is a little of what I spent the day seeing and doing:

The water is relatively clean and the big stretch of sand with not a lot of people made a super relaxing day {although I lost the chess game!}. And the best part is getting to and from there - no car hassle, traffic or anything of the sort. Instead you get beautiful views of the city, while passing under the big 3 bridges in the East River...and even a far glimpse of Coney Island from the water side. Some pics here to share with you - and I definitely recommend it to all the busy New Yorkers who could use a quickie break from the everyday without the need to plan too much~

norfolk chamber music festival

This past weekend was a getaway to Norfolk, CT for the end of the Norfolk Chamber Music Festival. My friend's father is the violist for the Tokyo String Quartet, who performed on Saturday evening. The concert's program included string quartets by Schubert and Mendelssohn and a clarinet quintet - with guest clarinetist David Shifrin - by Mozart. The performance was housed in a wooden country barn-like music hall and we were all able to listen to beautiful classical music in the midst of the picturesque Connecticut countryside.

This Festival is part of the Yale School of Music and hosts summer music programs for aspiring musicians. All of the members of the Tokyo String Quartet {and other artists} are mentors and teachers for the program. All of this takes place on acres of land of rolling green hills owned by Ellen Battell Stoeckel. Upon her death in 1939, she left her estate in a private trust with instructions that the facilities be used for Yale University’s summer music school, ensuring an enduring artistic legacy. Now in its 68th season, the Yale Summer School of Music - Norfolk Chamber Music Festival has a dual teaching/performance purpose. So we as visitors also got to hear bravo student performances {their final recital at the end of the program}.

Also on the premises is The Art Barn that houses the studios for fine art summer student programs. The studios were vacant at this point of the summer, but I got some fun shots of their work and materials scattered through the space.

We stayed in the cottages that are distributed through the estate that usually host the faculty members. The musicians and their families stay here over the duration of the summer - as my friend did in his early childhood years - and I got to see how this summer program nurtures the arts in a simple and unpretentious way. This weekend ended up being a really nice few days in the peaceful countryside surrounded by beautiful music and wonderful friends and families.

nature side of new york

Exited the city this past weekend and entered Mongaup Pond in the Catskills. Was immersed in the various shades of green of the trees and the tranquil sound of flowing water. Above are some snapshots to capture a view of what I got to see {forests, lake, waterfall, and creeks} and below is some of the outdoor cooking that was done {preparation of whole red snapper and roasting marshmallows in the fire}. <-- mmm~ Hope you all had a nice weekend too! Now back to business :)...

storm king

Someplace I have always wanted to go is Storm King Art Center, a sculpture park up the Hudson Valley area. And I got that opportunity this weekend! With 500 acres of landscape, the property is sprinkled with various kinds of sculpture and landscape art by renowned artists. I'm not sure where else you can see works by Maya Lin {new addition this year!}, Alexander Calder, Isamu Noguchi and Roy Lichtenstein {as photographed below in order} all in one place.

My overall favorite - taking into consideration the landscape - was Storm King Wall by Andy Goldsworthy {photographed below}. It is a stone wall that started from the edge of the park, down a big hill, into a lake, out the other side of the lake and curved around the trees of a wooded forest. The idea is simple but to me it seemed really thoughtful in location and use of natural materials - and was a piece that could be appreciated from many points-of-view.
Below are a series of photos taken to roughly show the experience of progression one gets as a visitor by seeing a sculpture from afar, then close, then appreciating the fine details/materials of the piece. Left is Mark Di Suvero's Pyramidian and right is Calder's Knobs.
It's really a beautiful experience to walk through the vast park and get to see large-scale art without walls or a ceiling - just the sky, trees, grass and clouds framing each piece. Despite a half-day spent out there, I can see myself wanting to go back and getting a chance to notice new things that I couldn't catch from this 1st time. Below are 2 more details I loved - carved signage for all the artwork + Calder's huge signature {and year of work} soldered on his sculptures.

modern wedding

My friend's wedding {whose wedding invitations I did} came and went - it was a beautiful modern ceremony and wedding at the Disney Concert Hall in downtown LA. Photographed here is the stunning venue, the matching programs I designed, dark rich floral arrangements, the amazing interior, and more. What a nice {and stylish} way to start a new chapter in their life~

schmap photo

Fun little tidbit - a photo I took during my last visit to Paris of the Pompidou Center has been used in online travel guide, Schmap {direct link to this page}. As a free guide of many cities around the world, this site is quite informative of travel destinations in terms of history, sights, top picks, reviews, maps, and links. They even enable for you to download the guide to your machine, as well as having their guides iPhone-optimized. So check it out for your next travel rendezvous~
Have a great weekend all!

market at san telmo {buenos aires}

Hopped over to Buenos Aires {taking the Buquebus ferry from Colonia to Buenos Aires} and got a chance to walk the colonial streets and take in the city vibe of the capitol of Argentina. On Sundays, everything {and by this I mean EVERYTHING} is closed but there was a market at San Telmo that was filled with people, antiques, tango dancers, musicians, handcrafted artisan goods and more. San Telmo is a very old neighborhood in Buenos Aires that has cobblestone streets and little cafes with vintage signage. I walked through the market and it was such a visual treat to see the beauty of old but lasting craftmanship. Above photos were some of my favorite items: {Top left} A collection of original iron door knockers in the shape of a hand. {Top right} A collection of tango hats. {Bottom} A collection of old glass soda bottles from Argentinian cafes in a beautiful mix of colors.

aladdin toys {joaquín torres garcía}

I visited the Museo Torres García, a museum for the famous {but new to me} Uruguayan artist Joaquín Torres García. Famous for his Constructivist art and introducing the art theories and practices to Uruguay, his art is simple and linear but his work of ALL mediums has a very strong personal style. And with his art dating in the 1890's to the 1930's, you can tell he was quite avant garde for his time. My favorite pieces were these little wooden toys that he created for the Aladdin Toy Company - a business he started due to a lack of income from his art. He manufactured a collection of transformable wooden block toys that could be pieced together to create different kinds of people, animals, and scenes. The above piece is of a horse + carriage {the real thing still common in the streets of Montevideo} and the bottom pieces are build-you-own person kits. With a range of circus clowns, to dogs, to old women, to city streets, I found these pieces to be so charming and stylish.


{As photographs were not permitted in the museum, images posted here are courtesy of Museo Torres García website and Jacobo Zanella's Flickr photostream}

type finds {uruguay}

Sharing some photos of interesting typography finds from Montevideo. With many of the older buildings adorned with Art Deco details, while a lot of public walls have painted/graffiti-ed murals, there is definitely an interesting mix of styles.

{Top} In Plaza Independencia, a bold yellow line that defines the line of the Ciudad Vieja/Old City borders {Middle} Mural for the upcoming presidential election {Bottom} Art deco style type on the facade of a residential building

colorful weekend {uruguay}

I am fortunate to be able to spend some time in Uruguay, South America right now. And this past weekend, I left the city of Montevideo and headed east to soak in the sun and coastline. Here are some of the colors I got to see during the weekend - so bright and happy.

From top left going clockwise: 1. shells on the beach 2. a view from the top of a rock after a 2 hour walk from the town of Cabo Polonio 3. a home in Cabo Polonio 4. a big truck that brings people to and from the beaches of Cabo Polonio {that don't allow cars} 5. a hillside of flowers in Punta del Este 6. a fisherman's boat-turned-restaurant in Punta del Diablo.

places to go in 2009 {ny times}

One fun thing to do at the start of the year to think/dream about the places you could go to before the next Times Square drop of the ball. The New York Times released the 44 Places To Go in 2009 and my mind definitely drifted away while reading the descriptions and perusing the on-site photos. Above are *some* of my choices from the list {clockwise from top left} that I would jump to in a heartbeat: Copenhagen, Alaska, Cuba, Berlin, Red Sea-Egypt, and Marrakesh. And you?

astier de villatte {paris}

I went to a wonderful French-ized Thanksgiving dinner party at my friend's home in Paris. She created a feast of rotisserie turkey (<-- not dry and really tasty!), butternut squash soup, garlic mashed potatoes, homemade stuffing, pureed pumpkin, brussel sprouts, and more! During the heavy consumption of food, I could not help but notice her super charming dishes - handmade terracotta tableware glazed in a milky white porcelain finish, seemingly inspired by 18th/19th century designs but modern in good taste. The dishes are really light to the feel and helps to create a unique ambiance on the tabletop. The dishes are from the collections of Astier de Villatte, a French boutique that sells their designs of various tableware. {Above are screenshots from their funny little website} My friend mixed and matched their various patterns {such as the above} to create a naturally eclectic but very put-together look - like true Parisian flair and style~

my paris

There is something extraordinary about Paris. It rained for many of the days I was there but it didn't matter. I got to see friends, travel out to Bordeaux and St. Emillion to visit wine producing chateaus, eat amazingly well, be inspired by the natural sense of style that the city has - quite a special week. Above are some photos from the trip! Thank you Paris and look forward to seeing you again soon.

my walk to paris

The children's book, Henri's Walk to Paris {illustrated by designer Saul Bass and written by Leonore Klein / published in 1962 by Young Scott Books} is the story of young boy from Reboul, France, who, after reading a book about Paris, decides to pack up a lunch and head for the city:

Like many of us Henri wants to see Paris.

In Paris, there are thousands of buses. In Reboul, where Henri lives, there is only one bus.

In Paris there are many parks and rows and rows of trees. The Park in Reboul has only five trees. In Paris there are many zoos full of animals for the people to see.

And off I go to Paris for a few days!...how thankful I am. Happy Thanksgiving to all - may it be a wonderful weekend for you and your family~

More amazing photos of this vintage book...