The Simple Quality of Being Well Made

The Location of This Blog Has Moved

2009-05-05T10:34:00.002-04:00

The items described in this blog may now be viewed at our parent company,Honfleur Home.

In the Words of Maija Isola

2009-01-19T11:38:00.010-05:00

On Independence and Personal Freedom

"Mental freedom is a chance to do a job that you really want. The most inspiring thing is freedom. That you could do things by yourself on trips. Working alone, at home, not in a factory . . . Style came from Armi Ratia, she was enthusiastic and willing to try everything, and she always stayed that way. Everyone was given a chance, everything was experimented with . . . Free. Mental freedom. The most important freedom is the freedom to fail, to mess up completely."

Eye Candy for Take-Out

2008-11-24T09:34:00.012-05:00

Thanks Korto!

2008-10-27T20:29:00.014-04:00

With Affection & Admiration,
Your Fans & Followers (of all ages!)

Bravo TV Project Runway Meet & Greet @ Marimekko

2008-10-27T16:08:00.007-04:00

Meet Korto Momula of Bravo TV's Project Runway Monday, 10/28/08 at Marimekko Silver Spring

6 - 7 pm Meet & Greet

Open to the Public

Above: The Seat Belt Dress Coat By Korto Mormula

Bio

Age: 33,

From: Monrovia, Liberia

Education: Fashion School in Ottawa, Canada

Favorite designers: Tracy Reese, Valentino & Randolph Duke

Fashion must: Great bag

Originally from Liberia, Korto moved to Canada to attend fashion school. After school, she moved outside of Little Rock, Arkansas, where she now resides with her husband and daughter. Drawing from her African roots, Korto infuses tribal details into her classic designs. She is inspired by rich fabrics and textures and says her designs are intended for real, full-figured women. In her spare time, Korto works as a freelance fashion photographer, dances in an African dance troupe and does African hair braiding and makeup. She says her family considers her to be fun and easygoing.

Marimekko Contacts: Michael Ross or Candace Long on 301-565-4705

More Information About Kioto

Korto was born in Monrovia, Liberia. Her family left Liberia and became refugees in Canada. This has had a profound impact on Korto and her family, and she's called herself a “poster child for never giving up.”

She has said that in her life, “The most traumatic [experience] would have to be the civil war in Liberia and how it tore apart my family and the only place that I knew as home. The devastation alone was bad and even though I was blessed to not have to be in the country at the time it affected me the same. My parents were greatly affected. They worked so hard for everything they achieved and to lose everything and start from scratch was hard but we did it and kept the family and our traditions as tight as we could. What doesn't kill you will make you stronger and it did, for all of us.”

Korto was always interested in design, and was encouraged by her high school art teacher to pursue it as a career. She wasn't able to immediately attend fashion school due to the turmoil her family was going through, but eventually she did attend L'Academie des Couturiers in Ottawa once the family settled in Canada.

This early educational experience within the rigors of fastidiously-made couture would appear to have been crucial to some of her success in Project Runway. She admits, “I was not a great seamstress then but design-wise, I was good. It took a while to get my trade together.” She says that when her first design, the yellow tablecloth dress from the Gristede's challenge was called “impeccably made” by the judges, she was gratified, she said, “that all my hard work paid off.”

When Tim Gunn visited her in Little Rock, he saw that Korto's creativity extended beyond clothing. She performs drumming and dancing with an African dance troupe, dabbles in fashion photography and does make-up. Additionally, her fashion talents extend to beading and making cowhide handbags, “complete with cow horn handles.”

In addition to the influence her African roots have had on her fashion, there's another nuance to her work that differentiates it from many of the designers we've seen on Project Runway. Korto says she does focus on making designs that are accessible to women of varying shapes and sizes.

“My designs are flattering to women of all sizes even though they have a lot of detail on them,” she said. “They can be worn by anyone from a size two to a twenty. Women of all sizes are beautiful, and they all want to look great. In the real world, people look like me and they want to buy clothes.”

Above excerpted from a piece by Leslie Seaton

Sew with the Sewing Diva

2008-10-10T08:42:00.016-04:00

Knit, Sew, Quilt & Craft @ Marimekko
Scenes from The Sewing Diva™ Classes @ Marimekko, October 2008

View Our Current Classes

Scenes from Summer 2009

2008-09-16T20:00:00.000-04:00

PAIVANTASAAJA from Marimekko Collection 091.

Goodwill at Marimekko

2008-08-25T18:33:00.006-04:00

Monday, August 25, 2008
When Shopping Actually Helps the World be Better

"Ain't No Junk In This Trunk" . . .
We've all heard of Goodwill. That is often the place you go to donate the things you shouldn't have bought in the first place, right? But did you know that it is also an organization that provides job training and assistance to people with disadvantages and disabilities? By selling the things people donate, it makes money to help others. And for the eco-fashionista, Goodwill is fast becoming a major source of easy basics as well as killer vintage finds.

Goodwill DC has recently launched a great new way to stock up on some one-of-a-kind vintage finds: the Goodwill Travelin' Vintage Trunk Show. Ms. Goodwill Fashion (a very entertaining blogger, who also works for Goodwill) expertly curated the selection of vintage pieces. And, let me tell you, garments (and shoes and hats and purses) were flying off the racks last Thursday at the Marimekko Concept Store in Silver Spring. I was incredibly disappointed with myself to have arrived almost an hour after the starting time! It was also great fun to hang out with some of DC's best known fashion bloggers from Fashion is Spinach and Project Beltway. We tried on outfits and giggled at ourselves. Good fun.

So, if you hear a rumor that there is a Goodwill Travelin' Trunk Show headed your way, make sure you get there early, because Ms. Goodwill's eye is stylishly sharp, the prices just can't be beat, and you will be shopping to make the world a better place.

Where & When

2008-08-20T19:30:00.001-04:00

Thursday, August 21: The good folks at Goodwill are holding a trunk show of vintage and vintage-inspired designs at Marimekko in Silver Spring from 5 to 7 PM. Marimekko and vintage together? It’s like a dream of ours, finally coming true.

Marimekko Fall/Winter 2008

2008-08-01T20:39:00.006-04:00

Presentation of the Fall/Winter 2008 Collection
Helsinki, Finland
January, 2008

2008-07-31T07:07:00.000-04:00

Marimekko for Avon Introduced in UK

2008-06-26T08:32:00.003-04:00

Marimekko for Avon Colour Cosmetics Collection introduced in the UK

As announced in March 2008, Marimekko has licensed its famous floral “Unikko” motif to an exclusive limited-edition cosmetics collection of Avon, a leading global beauty company. The Marimekko for Avon Colour Collection was introduced to the press in London, UK, on 18 June. The collection will launch globally in autumn 2008.

The Marimekko for Avon collection unites Marimekko’s signature brilliant hues and simple, yet sophisticated design with Avon’s fun, innovative colour formulae. Each piece in the range features Marimekko’s iconic ”Unikko” pattern designed by Maija Isola in 1964. Her daughter Kristina Isola re-interpreted the design with a unique look and fresh colouring for Avon.

The collection embodies Marimekko’s unique philosophy – design that brings beauty into people’s everyday lives. Licensing cooperation with Avon is Marimekko's first foray into the world of beauty and will enhance the Marimekko brand's recognition worldwide. With the collaboration, Marimekko is able to reach millions of women and share the exceptional combination of Marimekko’s bold, joyful design and Avon’s superior beauty products.

A Day in Pictures

2008-05-06T07:50:00.003-04:00

Marimekko Around The World:

A Buddhist monk studies in his room at the Kopan Monastery in Kathmandu, Nepal.

Source: BBC News, Day In Pictures, April 24, 2008

http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/em/fr/-/2/hi/in_pictures/7364981.stm

Windows to the World, Now Open

2008-05-04T21:48:00.009-04:00

Thousands Get Rare Glimpse of Diplomats' Side of Capital

By Michelle Boorstein
Washington Post Staff Writer
Sunday, May 4, 2008; C03

One minute, talk at the Finnish Embassy yesterday was on food -- salmon spread on sourdough bread, sweet bread called pulla, and meatballs -- until the description of the Finnish recipes spread out on a huge table turned to a rye and rice pastry from Karelia.

"That's the place Russia stole from us," one of the servers said of the region lost to the Soviets decades ago, in the same matter-of-fact tone she had used seconds before for simply listing ingredients.

Politics, culture and food, intertwined -- a blend that played out all day yesterday with the start of Passport DC, a two-week exhibition in which dozens of embassies open their doors to places typically seen only by diplomats and people with visa requests and official business. Thousands attended, standing in long lines along Embassy Row on Massachusetts Avenue and in quieter neighborhoods around Northwest where the stately government outposts often go less noticed.

A Czech official handed out pamphlets about R&D centers as a bagpiper and drummer played Czech rock outside on the patio. Huge posters outside the Hungarian Embassy touted the "safe, European" economy, while inside a dancer performed with a jug of sloshing red wine on her head. The Finnish ambassador boasted to a packed room of the transparency and openness of his country as Finns in textile giant Marimekko T-shirts milled around. . .

Passport DC stems from a program last spring, when European Union embassies opened their doors for one day and were shocked when almost 40,000 people came. Those same embassies held open houses yesterday and many will hold concerts, lectures and art exhibitions this week. From May 11 through May 16, cultural centers, museums and some embassies will hold various programs, then there will be a second open house May 17 with non-European embassies including Iraq, Japan and Peru. Fifty-five embassies and 20 cultural centers will host public events during the two weeks.

Lines were long in many places yesterday, particularly at the British Embassy, the Portuguese Embassy and, by afternoon, the Finnish Embassy. . . Some came to the embassies because of their heritage, like Joan Janshego, 68. She visited the Hungarian Embassy with her sister in hopes of experiencing the (similar) Romanian culture they grew up with. She had performed ethnic dances as a child and speaks Romanian. "It's just nice even talking to the staff," she said.

Leena Nevalainen-Smith, a 49-year-old from Finland who lives in Cleveland, had come to Washington with her son and American-born husband to renew her passport. Late yesterday morning, she was looking around the urbane, open, cube-shaped embassy of her homeland.

"There's something about the airiness, the light" that is very Finnish, she said. Others came with an eye to the future and crowded the desks at each embassy promoting the countries' investment potential. Others came simply for the wow factor of seeing how the diplomatic half -- such a presence in the District, with 10,000 of them in the city -- lives. . .

Many said they were lured by free goodies, and the lines were long for a tiny cup of Hungarian goulash soup, Portuguese custard and the Czech Republic's Pilsner Urquell beer -- until the beverage ran out shortly after noon as the sun beat down.

"Time to go to France," someone shouted.

We Were Hipaused

2008-04-29T21:04:00.006-04:00

As Seen In Domino Magazine, April 2008, p. 111.

Organize Your Purse
"For the one who cheerfully mixes clashing prints with solids - and isn't too cool for a cheeky status symbol, slip a do-everything palette into this bright, glossy pouch."

Why Not Redeem Someone?

2008-04-08T05:01:00.006-04:00

The Marimekko Gift Card. Online, In Store.

H&M’S TRIBUTE TO MARIMEKKO

2008-04-05T09:37:00.003-04:00

It’s all about the energy of summer. This season H&M brings a burst of life to the fashion scene with its tribute to Marimekko, the Finnish textile company that has thrilled since the 50s with its bold, bright colour. Using prints from the famous Marimekko archive to create 70 pieces for men, women and children, the H&M design team will take you all the way from the city street to the heat of the beach. The collection will be sold in H&M’s stores on all 28 markets from April 10, 2008. Selected parts of the collection will also be sold at 10 Corso Como Milan and 10 Corso Como Seoul, and at Dover Street Market in London.

Marimekko is well known for vibrant bold simple prints. It was fashion icon Jackie Kennedy that put Marimekko on the international map when she wore their dresses during her husband’s 1960 presidential campaign. Since then, Marimekko has always symbolised optimism and positivity, which makes it a perfect match for H&M.

”H&M’s design team has always admired Marimekko’s vivid prints and colours, and they feel so right for this season,” says H&M’s Head of Design Ann-Sofie Johansson. “We came up with the idea of creating a summer collection built around the fun and joyful attitude of Marimekko’s vintage prints.”

Dipping into the massive 60s archive, the H&M design team have taken these fun retro prints and given them a very modern twist. Pinafores, smocks and shorts are the must-have women’s styles that sing out with holiday spirit. Certain designed pieces have been given extra detail for example three buttons on a cotton/silk mix apron dress. When it comes to the beach, the Tribute to Marimekko has both 50s-style one-piece swimsuits and bikinis, as well as sun-hats and versatile scarves that can be wrapped high on the head, or easily gathered into a sarong.

For men, the striking Marimekko stripes are used on what will become the favourite T-shirt of the season. There are also short-sleeve shirts and shorts in more intense prints. For children there are bright fun matching prints on apron dresses, sun-hats, skirted swimsuits and even a patterned teddy bear!

INSPIRATION: The brilliant optimism of the Marimekko archive

COLOURS: Perfect combinations of red and pink; olive and orange; red and turquoise; red, white and black

MATERIALS: Cotton, jersey, cotton/silk mix

2008-04-03T23:33:00.009-04:00

The Ikoni Dress by Mika Piirainen. $219. Available April 12, 2008.

We are currently accepting pre-orders for shipment or in-store pickup. Phone Marimekko Washington, DC on 301.565.4705 to reserve an Ikoni. As many Mairmekko fans know, the Marimekko® brand prides itself on its fine attention to detail and quality of production; they produce in limited batches. All this to say, though we've done our best to stock up on all sizes, dress availability is on a first come, first serve basis.

Also available for pre-order and shipping April 12, 2008 . . . the popular "Pomme" T. $59. Call us on 301.565.4705 to stake a claim.

Marimekko Spring/Summer 2008

2008-03-26T20:42:00.000-04:00

The Independent

2008-03-22T21:22:00.004-04:00

How to Dress Like Jackie O

Fifty years after America's First Lady of fashion took the boat trip that launched the brand, Marimekko's prints and patterns are conquering the world again

"Marimekko's latest collection Features Bright and Beautiful Patterns"

By Susie Mesure
Sunday, 23 March 2008

Marimekko is having a moment. Another moment, to be precise, as almost half a century since Jackie Kennedy put the Finnish design house on the global fashion map its bohemian florals and bold graphic prints are back in vogue in a big way. The iconic 1960s designs, perfect for this season's bright and beautiful patterns, would have looked as fresh as ever on the spring catwalks. No wonder fashionistas from high-end to high street are hooked.

Take Manolo Blahnik, the high priest of footwear. He has splashed Marimekko's most iconic print, Unikko, a bright red poppy flower, across one pair of his masterful stilettos and used BonBon, a black and white print, on another. Dolce & Gabbana has been selling floral-spattered dresses that shriek Marimekko (even if the Italians are now in trouble with the company for, ahem, "borrowing" its famed red flower without asking. Or at least using something suspiciously similar). For those on more modest budgets, next month the Swedish mega-chain Hennes & Mauritz (H&M to us) launches a capsule collection daubed with yet more designs from Finland's national treasure.

So what is it about Marimekko that has suddenly got the fashion world so excited? To Blahnik, Marimekko is an old friend; its fabrics scattered on cushions throughout his homes. "In the 1960s everybody was wearing it," he says. "I remember my sister in their smocks. To me, their prints look more modern today than back then. There are millions of their prints that I adore but I really have a particular fondness for Unikko and BonBon."

Margareta van den Bosch, H&M's head of design, thinks its Marimekko collection, which hits stores on 10 April, will be "joyfully fresh, like a vitamin injection". The 50-piece range will feature prints from the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s on cute A-line tunics, maxi dresses and smocks. There will also be items for men and children. Although this is far removed from H&M's recent tie-ups with the likes of Stella McCartney and Karl Lagerfeld, fashion pundits predict a scramble. If they are correct, the range should do for Marimekko's Noughties image what Jackie Kennedy did for it when she stumbled upon several cotton shift dresses at a Cape Cod boutique. She wore one of her finds on the cover of the December 1960 issue of Sports Illustrated. The public loved her choice and Marimekko loved the effect on its sales.

These days the label is better known in the US than in the UK. Sex and the City devotees obsessed about Carrie Bradshaw's Marimekko curtains (the 1960 print Tantsu) and loved the vintage Marimekko sundress she wore in the cult series' 64th episode. The homewares retailer Crate & Barrel has a long relationship with the Finnish company.

The story of Marimekko – which is Finnish for "Mary's dress" – dates back to 1951, when Armi Ratia transformed her husband's small oilcloth and textile printing company into a graphic-design hothouse. Charlotte Fiell, a design historian, explains: "Instead of being slaves to contemporary fashion trends, Marimekko set out to set itself apart from the fashion industry. Its first collection was so bright and colourful and just so different from the drab, earthy colours of the 1950s. The durability of its designs shows you can have fashion that is impervious to trends."

The company flourished in the 1960s and 1970s, making a name for itself as a resolutely female business, but after Ratia's death in 1979 came something of a decline. After being sold to the Finnish conglomerate Amer Group in 1985, it came close to bankruptcy.

Kirsti Paakkanen, a stalwart of Finland's advertising world, was persuaded out of retirement to buy Marimekko from Amer for a song and under her aegis the company prospered, tapping new export markets. She approved the H&M collaboration because she felt the Swedish retailer would "take the brand forward in a very trendy and high-quality manner".

It was to a man, Mika Ihamuotila, that Paakkanen handed over last month when she retired a second time. She says his gender does not bother her. "He has committed to treasure Marimekko's current culture – both internal and external."

Ihamuotila says he "deeply respects and treasures" the company's heritage. "With its design, Marimekko has spoken a language that crosses boundaries and has made Finnish design well-known the world over. I see Marimekko as a 'pearl'. However, I think the company could be much, much more."

Don't bet on that Marimekko moment ending any time soon.

High on Dry: Clothes, Accessories That Play In The Rain

2008-03-14T06:00:00.019-04:00

GRAY CLOUDS AND SOGGY SKIES don't have to rain on your fashion parade. With all the hip-yet-monsoon-ready trench coats, groovy umbrellas and stompingly cool boots around, bad weather might just make you look good.

Even higher-end designers (Chloe, Nanette Lepore) have gone out in the rain with way-beyond-Gorton's fisherman trenches in eye-popping hues.

Such revved-up storm styles give "folks not otherwise comfortable with unusual prints or bold, bright colors a chance to go to town," says Marni Frankel, owner of Silver Spring's Marimekko.

Add a pair of wild wellies and a 'brella with attitude, which Frankel thinks "gives bounce to your step on a rainy day." That should help you jump over all those pesky puddles.

Jennifer wears a Marimekko Ruusupuu poncho ($75, Marimekko, 8519 Georgia Avenue, Silver Spring; 800-656-3587;marimekkowashingtondc.com) and carries a Pylones umbrella from Fred Flare.

The Ruusupuu Poncho & Umbrella, Art by Maija Isola, 1957

Make Our Day

2008-02-22T15:32:00.021-05:00

From Home & Garden Television's Taniya Nayak, As Seen On HGTV's Broadcast "Designed To Sell" Program.

Wednesday, February 20, 2008

Design Digs: Marimekko Washington, DC - My Favorite New Source. Y'know all those gorgeous fabrics that hang in the Crate & Barrel stores to highlight the displays? I always notice them when I am shopping because they are so cool! They are contemporary, colorful printed fabrics that look just like art. Well, what are these hangings exactly? They're Marimekko.

I stumbled upon the actual Marimekko Concept Store in Silver Spring, Maryland. I am hooked! You will probably see a lot of Marimekko in my upcoming shows. The store itself makes awesome art of these fabrics. I have been stretching them on basic wooden frames that the store staff build in-house. I am loving the fact that I can make it as large as I want, and I splice them up so the pattern continues from frame-to-frame. I also recently used another print for some pillows, and it added the perfect punch of color. I also just ordered a print for my own home (it's abstract pears, also known as Paaryna) and used their in-house upholsterer to create the finished piece. So cool!

My only reason to share this info is that I LOVE Love Love it! My other favorite thing about the store is that they have one super talented manager/designer that is the bomb at giving advice and being very patient (I had about 20 bolts of fabric on the table)! Michael - you rock!

For more information about Taniya Nayak, check out www.designdigs.net.

Flattering February

2008-02-01T19:39:00.000-05:00

Matin by Mika Piirainen Resort 2008. $189. Available in-shop and online.

Uneeda Unessa

2008-01-27T09:35:00.000-05:00

So, it's probable that I'm dating myself here - I mean, haven't biscuits been thoroughly upstaged by scones? Well, irrespective, this is truly great insta-art.

Ingredients:

One Unessa Tea Towel.
One frame to fit the 18.5" x 27.5" tea towel.
One nail or piece of wire to affix frame to wall.

Total Time:
15 minutes

Makes:
One dose of heart-healthy happiness per person, per viewing

Each Serving:
No calories, no artificial sweeteners.

Cause You've Got Personality

2008-01-26T22:42:00.001-05:00

A portion of our Marimekko Concept Store and web site features vendors whose work highlights our Marimekko product offering. Our company is committed to providing exposure and support to both regional and national new market entrants who are not represented by mass market retailers.

To submit a product(s) for our consideration, include a hyperlink to your work and/or digital images, an overview of your product and its target audience, and the location in which the item is produced/manufactured. Vendor inquiries should include the phrase "vendor inquiry" in the subject. While we cannot reply to every inquiry we receive, we will promptly reply to those that we wish to assess.

February Feature
Yomphana Designs
Washington, DC Based Artisan
Courtesy of the Sharon Fine Gallery
Peruvian Opal Necklace
$79