Welcome, Summer Intern Maddie Donley & ... We're in The Washington Post!

It’s been a whirlwind few weeks as the kids wrapped up the school year, transitioned to summer camps, joined swim team and … I welcomed my first Summer Intern, Maddie Donley to Mira Jean Designs. Welcome, Maddie!

Maddy by one of her paintings from 2015 

A rising second year student at UVA, when I first met Maddie I knew she’d be a great fit. She is smart, positive, has great ideas -- and is a fellow artist, too. I'm thrilled for you to "meet" her via this quick interview:

Where are you from?

I grew up in Arlington, Virginia and have lived here my whole life. I love the proximity to DC. It's always surprising to me when people visit that they’re shocked by the monuments; I did crew for four and a half years and would see them every day, rowing on the Potomac.

What are you studying currently at the University of Virginia?

I haven’t decided on a major yet, but am studying French and am trying to decide between Art History and Government. I’ve always been interested in public policy - and I’ve always had a passion for art. It’s so interesting to see how art has developed over time.  

Do you have a favorite artist? 
I love Degas; the way he’s able to create movement in all of his paintings.

You’re an artist yourself; what kind of work do you do?

I love to paint, I’ve been painting since I was little. My favorite thing to paint is portraits. I usually work in oil and acrylic. My art teacher in high school was a real role model. She never said there was a right way to do anything - because there isn’t really in art - and she was very constructive and helpful in getting people to develop their own styles.

Check out one of Maddie's portrait paintings, here: 

What inspired you to want to intern for Mira Jean Designs?

I was interested in the small business and artistic aspects. I’ve never really seen how a small business works and art has been a passion of mine, so the connection between the two is interesting. The experience will also help me decide what I want to do, career wise.

* * *

These past few weeks Maddie and I have been in serious office work mode, tackling some not-so-glamorous - but necessary - activities to help grow the business. Speaking of growing the business, did you see we were in The Washington Post?! You can read the full article here. 

I am still pinching myself that this happened. They ran the article online in mid-June ... and then IN PRINT(!!) last weekend. Special thanks to my SCORE business mentors Ed Coleman and Ellen Brotman who helped make this possible.

More soon, and hope your summer is off to a great start.

xo, Kate

Happy Fourth of July!

I don't know about you, but I'm pretty excited for the weekend. Not only is it July 4th, but we also have some dear friends coming in from out of town and the forecast here is looking (mostly!) great.

Before we head into the barbecues and time offline, I couldn't resist sharing a few photos of red, white and blue interiors for a little dose of Independence Day color ... and a pic of our growing pup, Piper (now 6 months old!) ... enjoy!

Love this one, and how just one wall of blue and a pillow can make a bold statement: (pic found here)

This one's an easy way to change up an interior in celebration of a holiday ... it's as simple as, swap out the pillows! (pic found here)
 

Then there's this one, an entryway truly after my own heart. Talk about making a statement with fresh flowers and wallpaper; I *adore* this space! (pic found here)

I imagine how these interiors would look with our watercolor textile designs, now also available in wallpaper:

Last but not least, here's a candid of our little pup, Piper (I get to call her "little" for at least a few more months, right?!).


Happy Fourth!
xo, Kate

Lights, Color, Action

I am so excited to share this next feature in my Collaboration series on the work of fellow creative entrepreneur Linda Daniel of Elle Daniel. If you like color, inspiring stories and ways to brighten up a room - literally! - then you are in for a treat.

I first met Linda earlier this year and we immediately struck up a friendship. She has such positive energy and we quickly discovered we have a lot in common: we both took a leap of faith and changed career paths mid-life to pursue more creative work. Linda's craft? Designer lampshades. Check her out ... love this pic from Linda's website!

Linda began creating designer lamp shades in the fall of 2011 when she left the DC political world cold turkey. "I knew I wanted to do something creative as I come from a family of designers, artists and winemakers. I always had in my homes beautiful, colorful lampshades — NEVER white! I walked into Anthropologie one day, subconsciously headed straight to the lampshades and thought, “I can do that, and I can do that better!”  Shortly thereafter, Linda found a mentor and perfected her  craft. The rest, as they say, is history.

Linda's work reminds me of other great design icons' work, too. For example, check out these pops of color featuring iconic designer Marimekko's fabrics: 

Picture from here

There's also Galbraith and Paul, an artisan brand I've admired for years. Their first lampshades were actually made out of paper. Today, they work with their stunning hand block printed textiles to create shades and pendants like these: 

Photo found here

In addition to second careers as creative entrepreneurs, Linda and I share a love of nature. Her home state of sunny Florida inspires her work - shares Linda, everything from its "bright yellow sun, blue skies, green grass, turquoise waters and colorful fresh flowers."

Linda's advice to other women entrepreneurs? Dream big, stay focused on your goal and do something big every day to get there. I couldn't agree more. 

Fun fact: Linda and I recently teamed up to create a limited edition series of mini-shades or night lights. How sweet are these, for a little kid's room? p.s. local (Arlington, VA area) friends: you can find a few of these at one of my favorite local boutiques, covet. 

Enjoy! xo, Kate

Color Me Seaside

Last week, I had a true treat: a bi-annual getaway with girlfriends to two of my favorite places on Earth: Seaside and Watercolor, Florida, on the Gulf Coast.

If you haven't ever been, I highly recommend it. In a word: Heaven! Seaside and Watercolor are two communities on the Gulf Coast, side by side. One blends into the other. Truly heaven on Earth! My happy place.  Here are a few pics:

A pic on the way to the beach in Seaside:

The view on the other side: 

My favorite of the two communities, truth be told, is Watercolor with its perfectly designed walking paths, architectural lines, meandering natural lakes and perfectly curated gardens. Here are a few pics:

from the beautiful Watercolor Gardens

.

A sample of the amazing architecture throughout the planned community (this is the community boathouse)

A pic of the pathways and pedestrian bridges along the way

The view alongside the Watercolor pedestrian bridge. 

(This pic makes me want to paint lily pads and channel Monet for future textile designs)

Even walking around the more "urban" Seaside proper inspires: check out this random mural on a side wall behind a commercial building that I came across ... makes me want to paint in watercolor circles!


And I haven't even told you about the houses. Oh. my. goodness. (Pssst ... if you are looking for a rental, I highly recommend Sanders. I've rented from them twice now, and they could not be more friendly and accommodating. Not to mention, the houses they rent are amazing!! Ours had me at chandelier):



The houses of Watercolor are like eye candy for those that love interiors and design. Painted in muted taupe and pastel tones and beautifully designed, it's hard not to marvel at each and every one.

picture from here

Picture from here

While I was in town, I couldn't resist visiting a few boutiques that I knew had a penchant for great taste (The Art of Simple) and creating stunning interiors (@Summer House Lifestyle). For example,  how about this amazing vignette created by Summer House Lifestyle, with its colorful wallpaper from Schumacher?

What a wonderful way to add color and pattern to a room -- and on just one wall. Talk about a bold statement - without going overboard.

One of my favorite finds @SummerHouseLifestyle was the ceramicist Susan Steele Meyer. Her work is absolutely stunning ... definitely something to bookmark for my house when the kids are older and we don't have a 6 month old puppy running cartwheels in the living room!


Speaking of the puppy, she is getting bigger every day. I took her to the vet last week and they confirmed she is now over 50 lbs(!). She celebrated her 6 month birthday last week. My daughter Mira created this half bday card for her on Snapchat (@MiraJeanDesigns):


Finally, at The Art of Simple, I couldn't resist taking a pic of this book. It poses a great question:

As I keep growing @MiraJeanDesigns and our textile lines, I often wonder and love to envision where it will be in 5 years. I might have to print this one out and put it on my desk as a daily inspiration and reminder.

xo, Kate

Collaboration Feature #2: She Believed She Could, So She Did

I am still pinching myself about this past week's events. It truly is an honor to highlight the work of my new friend and fellow artist, Kristin Try  - the second post in this Collaboration series. (Spoiler alert: get ready for a healthy dose of color and great words of inspiration!).

I first met Kristin earlier this year through Amy Rutherford, owner of Red Barn Mercantile (Thank you, Amy, for connecting us and your ongoing support!). When Kristin's not raising her two girls, working on interior design projects or at Red Barn (I know ... how many hours does she have in a day?!) she paints.

Kristin's paintings are like eye candy. If you like color and texture, you won't be disappointed:

Painting photos courtesy of Gingham and Grosgrain

Kristin's story is an inspiring one: she's been professionally painting for only a little more than a year ... yet look at how many canvases she has already transformed! Too many to count. She used to work in government relations and as an association executive. After the birth of her second daughter she began pursuing a more creative path. Read more on her story here.

This spring, Amy, Kristin and I were talking about our business goals and discovered we had a big one in common: building relationships with interior designers. How could we help one another? Collaborate on a private event for interior designers. We would showcase Kristin's abstract paintings, Red Barn's new Trade Program, sustainably made furniture by Cisco Brothers and new textile designs from yours truly.

Fast forward to this past week, and I'm thrilled to share the event was a success. Here are a few pics:

On the left: textiles from our new spring collection. On the right: Kristin's new painting, Reflection

I'm honored a few of Kristin's new paintings were inspired by Mira Jean textile designs (... how fun would it be to have a room with colorful pillows and roman shades in Palatial Peach, beside this oil painting on the wall?!)

Our Palatial Peach watercolor textile design on Cotton Linen Canvas

Here's a sample room for inspiration:

(Source: here)

My personal favorites are these two ... LOVE the aqua greens and blues!:

From left to right: Summer Grass (Retail price: $650); Stillness; bottom: Lime Leaves, Kiss me Jade, and Aquafern textile memos)

I asked Kristin what suggestions she might offer fellow creative entrepreneurs, just starting out. Talk about great advice:"Do one thing towards your goal every day. It can be a few minutes or a few hours - it will add up."

She also credits a recent article by artist consultant Laura C. George on how, "No one should ever feel bad about not doing something their whole life. If you want to do something new, just do it! Stay true to you and don't let others define who you should be or make you feel less for not having th path they think you should have." 

Kristin has a print in her studio that says, "She Believed She Could, So She Did." Follow her work on Instagram and you'll see, this is one artist and creative business owner that walks the talk.

Photo courtesy of Gingham and Grosgrain

Spring Showers & Show Houses

I don't know about you, but I am ready for the sun to return. I've lost count how many days in a row it's been grey and rainy. It made me want to re-visit this textile design I began work on earlier this year. I think I am going to call it April Showers (or Rain, Rain, Go Away!).

Despite the weather, it was a busy weekend with the pop up Studio Sale at friend and potter Stacy Snyder's home studio. Stacy's spring works included new glazes in beautiful yellows, celery greens and more. I can't wait to share more with you about her work in a future post.

With the cold came a number of organic throw blanket sales ... I love it how the weather impacts what sells at shows. Whenever it is cold out, the throws sell! Makes me want to read more about the psychology of shopping. One of my favorites to go was one in our new Winter Fern design, added this past winter (which reminds me, I still need to add it to my website!).

Last, the expression "when it rains, it pours" is so true. Stacy and I had set our Spring Studio Sale dates months ago. Then last week I heard from friend and interior designer Regan Billingsley: the DC Design House site for this fall had been selected and would I like to tour it with her. The tour dates? You guessed it: the day of the Studio Sale opening. I had to do both! So after setting up early Friday morning, I headed to NW DC to meet Regan and see the house before heading back to the pop up.

What is the 2016 DC Design House site like? In a word: BIG. Home to former French Ambassador and located at 2509 Foxhall Road, NW, this house's middle name is Grand. (You can view a virtual tour of it here). The residence includes over twenty(!) spaces available to designers to transform. Here's a view off the kitchen - the "informal" rear staircase:

My favorite spaces in the home include these little alcoves. (I kept thinking, how sweet would these be with bench seats and pillows in Mira Jean fabrics and roman shades?!)

Here are two examples, for inspiration:

(image from here)

(image from here)

This room got me thinking: imagine if each of these 'panels' was filled with a Mira Jean print?

It would be like multiple large canvases, throughout the room. Talk about a dose of color and pattern!

(image from here)

(image from here)

(image from here)

Designers have until May 16 to submit proposals; winners are selected by the end of the month. I can't wait to see how this property is transformed, come the fall. The best part? The event always raises thousands of $$s for Children's Hospital.

Cheers,
Kate

What's Up? Pop Ups!

It's been hopping around here as usual. With the arrival (finally!) of spring typically comes spring pop ups, and this year has been no exception.

Last Saturday we were back at the wonderful Red Barn Mercantile with our pillow collection. I always love being in this store, whether it's for a Mira Jean Designs event - or just to shop. :-) (Confession: favorite purchases are cards from their amazing and funny card collection ... so hard to choose! And Syndey Hale candles).



While there, we tested out some new textile designs including our Navy Waves lumbar pillow. I'm pleased to share, it quickly found a new home. (Wouldn't this be the perfect pillow on your couch or sun porch, come Fourth of July? Email me and I can make you one, too!)



Post Red Barn, the pop up prep continues. This weekend I will be back at my friend and the very talented potter Stacy Snyder's home for a joint home studio sale. Below is a glimpse of Stacy's work. I have admired Stacy's work for some time. We met years ago through our kids' preschool, and I love that we are now collaborating on a spring show together.

All are welcome at the Studio Sale! Hours are: Friday wine & cheese opening 5-7pm / Saturday 10a-5p / Sunday 11a-3pm. Address is: 508 N. Kenmore St, Arlington, VA 22201. 

Meanwhile if you read my last blog post you know I've been inspired by my wedding florist Holly Chapple to paint some new floral textile designs. While I'm not in *LOVE* with any of them yet, the painting continues. I hope to have some new floral designs to share with you, soon.



Until then, enjoy this glorious weather - and if you're in / near Arlington, VA this weekend, mark your calendar to pop by our spring studio sale! Hope to see you there.

xo,
Kate