Studio TOTA

park in bloom {central park}

2010-04-30T09:39:00.002-04:00

A quick uptown and run {106th and 5th Ave to be exact} and it's almost like you are not in NYC anymore~ There are these beautiful gardens in Central Park - and right now there are endless tulips, lilacs, azalea bushes and much more in bloom. My mom tells me that it's healthy for your eyes and mental state to see lots of natural greens...I think I'm all set ;) Here are some photos I took...{Although the flowers are amazing, we can't forget about the gardeners - whose presence you see in the bottom photo - who take care of it all~} Have a great weekend!

strawberry macarons

2010-04-27T12:07:00.001-04:00

This is from last week but someone brought home the best macarons I've ever had...fresh strawberries {top of the list!}, chocolate and vanilla...bites of pure happiness.

april 2010 {tota press}

2010-04-22T07:11:00.001-04:00

You mention April to me...and what comes to my mind are sakura cherry blossoms. The mix of pinks - from really light shades where they are barely pink to a more rich plum pink - is something that can only be seen in the beginning of spring. And although last month's cards were created in the midst of late season snowfall {and rain and rain and rain}, we are now definitely getting a stronger promise that we can say goodbye to winter~ And with that, I bring to you this design of line-art cherry blossoms for this month's cards.

Right now I am visiting the city of San Francisco. Walking around the Nob Hill area, there is a little park that had a few but beautiful cherry blossom trees that are JUST starting to bloom. This reminded me of a few springs seasons ago, when I went to Kyoto with my parents and experienced the real deal in terms of cherry blossoms. We went to many of the old temples that had carefully curated gardens with willowing sakura trees over a pond and sakura trees lined up by a pathway. When we walked around the city, there were also grand sakura trees in the gardens of homes that made me wonder how long these trees have been standing there. In Japan, everything {the schoolyear, new hires for work...} begins in April - it is the equivalent of Septemeber here in the US. So when the cherry blossoms emerge in April, it is not only a welcoming of a new season, but also a symbol of new beginnings. And I love that something so simple and pretty can have such a strong sense of seasonality.

Personally for me, there just happens to be some new beginngings. One of the things is that I'm becoming an aunt for the very first time. So for happy times for our family and happy times for all with a warmer season, I bring to you some cherry blossoms on this month's cards in varying shades of pink, just how they are.

Many much more photos on our Facebook page - April 2010 album »

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tegu blocks

2010-04-20T22:42:00.003-04:00

Been away from here a bit too long!

My sister just had a baby girl {hello Sophie~} and my attention is going to kids things! Here are some fun toys from Tegu {that actually my sister first introduced to me}. This is their story...the founder of the company wanted to create something fun that inspires children's creativity while doing some humanitarian good. A company based in Honduras, Tegu is "a creative business founded to address unemployment, under-utilized natural and human resources and the need for entrepreneurship in Honduras..." Look at all the fun things you can create - all with a positive social impact too. Love these toys that is built on the notion of inspiration and will hopefully inspire us all~

{Photos courtesy of tegu}

miette

2010-03-31T11:42:00.002-04:00

In the downtown area of San Francisco, the Ferry Building has all these small cute little food shops. And from what I've had a chance to try so far, they are all good stuff. Try a crabcake sandwich at the San Francisco Fish Company...some strong coffee {!!!} at Blue Bottle Coffee Co...pick at some jamon and other pork goodies at Boccalone...and have some sweet bites, like Gingersnap cookies or salted caramels at Miette. I wanted to find some little gifts for people back at home and found the cookie packages here at Miette so cute and perfect. As soon as you walk in the vicinity of the shop, everything smells like good sugar. I pass along some photos of their treats to you here...

{Photos courtesy of miette}

cherry blossoms

2010-03-30T08:22:00.002-04:00

I'm in the city of San Francisco right now and over the weekend, I got a glimpse of spring as the cherry blossoms are making their debut. This is in a small neighborhood park in the in Nob Hill area. Sending some sunny blue skies to the rainy east coast...

the little mermaid {sf ballet}

2010-03-26T12:52:00.006-04:00

I am in San Francisco right now and last night I was treated to a night out to the ballet. For 2 weeks, the San Francisco Ballet is performing The Little Mermaid, based on the original story by Hans Christian Andersen. Led by Hamburg Ballet Director and Chief Choreographer, John Neumeier, the SF Ballet does a modern interpretation of the tragic story of a mermaid enduring so much because of her committed love for a human Prince. What I loved so much about this performance was the melding of the choreography, stage design, and costume design. The mermaid costume complimented the choreography that resembled movement under water...the minimalist set design utilizing neon lights {I wish I could find a picture!} complimented the bold color palette of the costumes...some of the company dancers seamlessly transitioned from being sea creatures to being supporters of the mermaid...I don't think my descriptions can justify the truly original and unique production they put on. It was VERY modern - choreography, music, set design, everything - but I really appreciated the opportunity to see a full-feature ballet that was quite different from the NYC ballet companies. Check out the video above or here to get a preview and behind-the-scenes look at this performance...

{Photos courtesy of San Francisco Ballet}

threeasfour

2010-03-25T17:57:00.004-04:00

I'm working with ArtTable - a leadership organization for professional women in the visual arts - and creating materials for their Annual Award Ceremony and Benefit Luncheon on April 16. This year, Yoko Ono is the honoree of their Distinguished Service to the Visual Arts Award, and so I have had the pleasant surprise of really learning more about her and her contributions to the art world. One fun aspect of her recent work is her fashion collaboration with threeASFOUR, where Yoko Ono's prints were used in their collection {as seen above}. I like their avant-garde creations and then just discovered that OAK is carrying some of their items {as seen below}. Interesting yes? I will keep you posted with the actual materials that I create for this event~

{Photo courtesy of threeASFOUR and OAK}

softest of warmth {natural gas ad}

2010-03-17T07:46:00.001-04:00

This ad is AMAZING. I feel as though there is a huge stop-motion trend out there, but this one is still unique, representing natural gas with a cozy knitted textile.

From Ads of the World:

“How to make the invisible visible?” That was the question we asked ourselves when we were conceiving the new ad campaign for Natural Gas, our new client. Based on the client brief, the idea of “the softest of warmth’s” quickly became obvious. Now we just had to find a way to make this visible and touchable. We decided to materialize the softest of warmth’s delivered by Natural Gas, by a very natural and soft fabric: wool. The 35” film tells a very simple story: it shows the moment early in the morning, where a cold house starts to warm up and this way bringing comfort to its inhabitants. The soft warmth spreads around the house and hence we see wool being spread around pipes, radiators, floors, stairs, walls and other objects. ...The result is quite surprising, even poetic.

march 2010 {tota press}

2010-03-16T08:20:00.002-04:00

This year, the east coast has gotten more than a full dosage of snow. But as the bright sun shines and the white melts away quickly, there seems to be some signs of spring approaching. With that anticipation in mind, this month's cards are inspired by that burst of light and color that the spring season seems to bring to us.

I've had a few days here and there where I've been awed by the bright sun shining through the trees, off the snow and onto the glass facades of our NYC skyscrapers. It seems to be most noticeable that moment you walk out of your apartment building or come up the stairs of the subway, and I find myself uplifted by the bright rays {even if my boots are still jumping slushy puddles...well, baby steps}. As the sun goes down a tiny bit later every day, I daydream about putting my flip flops on and doing summer strolls through the street while trying out a new gelato flavor~

As a designer, I also know that March and spring are here because my work load includes wedding invitation designs! June brides {congratulations to you~!} are getting their planning underway and wedding invitations are a fun step in the process. I recently completed an custom-designed and hand letterpressed invitation package for a couple getting married right here in NYC in June. As I peruse through websites and magazines for inspriration, my eyes are filled with soft color palettes, light fabrics, garden parties, bright flowers and more.

Winter is beautiful in it's own way, but at a certian point we are ready to move onto less layers and more time spent outside. So I bring to you a burst of yellow on natural craft paper, as well as a sprinkle of lavendar on the classic white paper and share the hope of March bringing some spring to us all very soon.

Many much more photos on our Facebook page - March 2010 album »

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ballet-inspired wedding

2010-03-15T06:52:00.000-04:00

I just printed a set of wedding invitations for a lovely couple here in NYC & a few hundred cards for the American Ballet Theater...so when I saw this posting of ballet-inspired bridal fashion on Martha Stewart, I felt like it was everything on my mind. I liked how the bottom dress was described with how in ballet, it's so important to have costumes that are beautiful from all angles. What a great source of inspiration! Top dress by Vera Wang, middle dresses by various {Ouma by Monique Martinez, Badgley Mischka + Lela Rose} and bottom dress by Jim Hjelm.

{Photos courtesy of Martha Stewart}

sun goddess {karen walker}

2010-03-11T11:03:00.004-05:00

Check out this ad campaign for a designer, Karen Walker's, sunglass/eyewear line...fun stuff.

{Photos courtesy of Karen Walker Eyewear}

precious

2010-03-08T10:05:00.003-05:00

Yesterday were the Oscars - and despite not having had a chance to see a lot of the nominated movies, I watched a good part of the show. {Looks like I need to check out The Hurt-Locker, yes?} One movie I did watch was Precious - and despite it being a super intense and heartbreaking story, I liked the movie. A few weeks ago, I was on a transatlantic flight and spontaneously bought Push at the airport newsstand. I read it in one sitting and was captured by the difficult complexities of Precious's life. On top of that, reading the cover article in the NY Times Magazine, The Audacity of 'Precious', and learning about how the film came about, I had to see it. I think all of the attention the cast and crew have received are super worthy - I love when something totally new can be seen on the big screen. Now on to the other movies~

{Photos courtesy of here}

pulse nyc 2010

2010-03-04T15:19:00.003-05:00

Tis the season of the big art fairs in NYC - and this morning I got to check out the Private Preview of PULSE New York. Above are some shots of the space located right along the West Side Highway and Houston. The big industrial space is filled with galleries from around the world representing up-and-coming artists of all sorts of mediums. Photographed below are some my likes. The bottom photo is a "self-portrait" as a camera captured passerbys {me!} and interpreted them into crayon color swatches. PULSE goes on until the weekend so check it out for fun~

taste of 7th st

2010-03-02T10:04:00.002-05:00

Over the weekend, Scoop St. had a really great idea group deal called Taste of 7th St. Promoting the idea of "collective commerce"," this deal was a ticket pass to try the foods of some great eateries on 7th Street in the East Village. Below are bad blackberry photos {in the order of my attendance} of the locations: Caracas Arepas Bar, Luke's Lobster, Porchetta and Butter Lane Cupcakes. For $18, I got to fill up on an arepa, mini lobster roll, snack porchetta sandwich and 2 cupcakes. I will definitely be frequenting Butter Lane for their really cute cupcakes where you can choose your bottom cake {vanilla, chocolate or banana brea} and icing {list of 12+ icing flavors including caramel, french vanilla, mint chocolate, etc.} Mmmm....great idea Scoop!

brook&lyn

2010-02-25T07:14:00.003-05:00

Check out these super cute things found at a friend of a friend's shop of pre-loved items, called Brook&Lyn. The little mouse is a ring holder and the foot form is a paperweight! She also has shoes, accessories and clothes - and from the selection, a really good eye for rare finds~ {thanks A for introducing...}

{Photos courtesy of Brook&Lyn}

i ♥ ny {christoph niemann}

2010-02-23T07:30:00.001-05:00

Over the weekend I was at Rizzoli and to my utmost pleasant surprise, I saw this book - Chrstoph Niemann's I LEGO NY - on the front desk. As a big big big fan of Abstract City, especially of this visualposting just about a year ago, I didn't even hesitate to grab a copy {this one as a gift to a fellow Niemann fan}. Here are a few excerpt pages of this board book that is a perfect little gift for a fellow NYer. Can you tell I'm excited? ;)

{Photos courtesy of amazon}

february 2010 {tota press}

2010-02-22T07:43:00.003-05:00

Although I hope that your 2010 has started on a good note, our heart goes out to the families, children and friends of Haiti with the devastating earthquake that has awakened so much tragedy and challenging moments on this small island. This month's card is a simple motif that is made up of many many many origami cranes. Senbazuru - or one thousand cranes - is a tradition of folding 1,000 origami cranes to grant a wish, such as hoping recovery from illness or injury or wishing for a long life. With those thoughts, our version of senbazuru as this month's design has been handpressed on each and every card to wish for health and longlasting recovery for the people of Haiti.*

The red + blue card are for the colors of the Haitian flag and the 2-toned blue card is to honor the UNICEF blue and their color of hope. All profits from this month's subscriptions will be donated to UNICEF for their efforts in Haiti. This donation from TOTA Press is on behalf of our subscribers as it is from their support that this is possible. So thank you to our subscribers...

And we want to share the message to you that every kind gift counts. For those interested in donating, please go to www.unicefusa.org or other websites that are contributing funds to the cause of Hope for Haiti Now.

*Note to subscribers: Senbazuru is a wish for anything - not just for recovery. These cards can be used to wish a couple continued happiness, a person to land that dream job, someone a good day and much more...on that note, happy writing~

Many much more photos on our Facebook page - February 2010 album »

We are accepting orders now...go to www.totapress.com and click on "Yes, sign me up".

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Join the mailing list...go to www.totapress.com and click on "Join Mailing List" on top right of page.

visualizing music

2010-02-18T11:56:00.006-05:00

This video Vanishing Point {stills photographed here} reminded me of Edward Tufte's work as a statistician and his books such as Visual Explanations. I'm always awed by people who can represent quantitative information in a beautiful way - and I feel like the creator of this video, Takuya Hosogane, might be quite good at that.

See video here:

Vanishing Point from Bonsajo

{Video stills courtesy of Vanishing Point}

hearts to you

2010-02-12T07:26:00.002-05:00

This weekend is ♥ day and I wish you all a fun weekend...whether it be with friends, a loved one, family or your dog who gives you unconditional love and kisses. Found some yummy looking treats at Bergdorf Goodman, including chocolates from Vosges and Charbonnel et Walker or candy hearts from Papabubble. XOXO to you~

we're hit!

2010-02-10T15:51:00.003-05:00

After a fake-out warning of snow last weekend {at least for NY-ers}, today we are hit with a white blanket over the city. Here are some snow photos {from my back window}, urban style...pretty in it's own little distressed way. Or for more picturesque views {that's plenty here too!}, check out the NY Times reader submissions...

morgane le fay

2010-02-08T10:48:00.002-05:00

I'm on the search for some dresses recently, and I discovered a {new-to-me} designer Morgane Le Fay. Apparently a shop that started in Soho back in the early 80's when Soho was REALLY Soho...they have established themselves to presence on Madison Avenue now. Their style is to create mysterious pieces that can be worn in various ways - use a sash as a tie piece around the waist or bring it up and over your shoulder to create an asymmetrical accent. Creating maybe a dozen cuts of outfits, they are executed in some basic hues to create a full collection. "Our sole concern is for fit, ease, and elegance - not for age or background."...which was seen as the dressing room was comprised of totally different types and ages of women. On a fun note, Morgane Le Fay debuted costumes for the world premiere of Peter Martins new ballet for the New York City Ballet last fall - which I can totally imagine seeing all the flowing chiffon and silk materials used in their pieces. Here a few snapshots - and check out their website for a better look at their beautiful collection~

duck duck green

2010-02-02T07:33:00.002-05:00

I'm planning a baby shower for my sister and so I'm taking notice of all the cute baby things out there~ {and there is SO much!} On that note, I wanted to introduce my friend's online shop Duck Duck Green that sells everything eco-friendly for those newcomers to this world. My friend and her partner are moms and have collected their favorite things - and even created some items for their own line. Photographed above is their cozy kit that includes everything soft and cozy for the little one. I recently bought a few gifts and the packaging is so great topped by their cute branding touch - photographed below. I also read their blog and they had this great digital scrapbooking idea to create an email address for your baby {exerpt here}:

When our kids were born, we created an email account for each of them. We email them on special occasions, or whenever we feel like sending them a little message. Birthdays, we send a happy birthday message & attach a jpeg of their invitation. When we send baby photos to family members (almost daily, I admit) we CC our kids. First steps, video clips of dance parties, Halloween costumes. Or most often, we’ll just send an impromptu love note.

We also gave their email addresses to our family and close friends so that they can say hi when the mood strikes.

Every so often, we’ll check their email accounts. It’s already so much fun to read about all the little moments we’ve had with our kids over the past two years. It’s sort of like a photo album meets journal meets scrapbook. I love to picture our son, 10 years from now, reading a note from his uncle on his 2nd birthday. Or our daughter watching a video of her first birthday cake.

Great idea right?

{Product photos courtesy of Duck Duck Green}

happy feet

2010-02-01T08:28:00.001-05:00

Bundle up out there {or you'll end up like me, a stuffy sinus mess!} With the frigid weather back, everyone/thing needs those extra layers...and why not your chairs? These chair personality socks made me smile. Argyle or athletic tubes...I think I would do a mix and match for a kid's room or put them on your boss's chairs to fun up a Monday morning?

{Photos courtesy of Charles & Marie}

dancing poem {lou doillon for vanessa bruno}

2010-01-27T11:53:00.004-05:00

Found this...love it.

From Style.com:

Lou Doillon returns in the second installment of Vanessa Bruno’s ongoing video poem directed by Stéphanie Di Gusto, which goes live tomorrow on the designer’s Web site. Kitted out in Bruno’s designs, Doillon performs impromptu choreography in talc and goes for a quick frolic in the dunes, all set to a composition especially for her by the Canadian pianist Gonzales. “There’s something really primal about Lou; she has great freedom,” Di Gusto told Style.com. “We just left it up to her, and at one point, she just let go. There was talc all over the room.” We got a sneak peek, below.