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mood board
November 28, 2011
hope you all had a great long weekend holiday. this year i didn’t work too hard but my younger daughter made me cook again, for thanks giving. i simply roasted baby chickens (cornish hens?) with lots of herbs and seasoning and a couple of side dishes. was delicious. after all, my husband is overseas and i know i will have to repeat this meal when he returns. soon.
in the meantime, while my husband is on a business trip and i stayed here to take care of everything else, he is my eyes and i got a lot of updates from him and our partners in nepal about my new rug collections. i was so excited to received images of the new designs on the loom. it’s just amazing to me, and i’ve said it many times before, how from a simple idea, a sketch or a piece of something, the concept is progressing and finally a beautiful piece of hand made art is created – in my case – a hand made rug. there are so many steps and hands involved in such a creative process you simply have to admire that, don’t you think?
i would love to post all of the images and updates but i don’t want to spoil anything. i even want to surprise myself. i will, however, tease and share with you one of my mood boards. the background in this mood board shows a cropped image of one of my favorite rug designs this year:
my rug design mood board
mood board transports feelings about a product or something you like in particular. it’s a way to communicate a direction in which you are going with your design. i love mood boards (most times they are in my head so you can imagine how many moods i have), and when i look at one of my boards and think about the design behind it, i’m immediately taken to another place…sometimes another era. many times i create mood boards for myself but often, and lately, i’ve been asked to show my mood boards beside telling the inspiration behind the design.
so here it is and please, if you have any thought…share.
The funniest thing in life come free
November 19, 2011
before we had money…a long time ago…i remember my husband and i were sitting in our small living room watching holiday commercials on tv (seriously, not because we liked it but because there wasn’t much to do between breaks when a movie was on), and it was around this time of year – thanks giving and all the holidays. i would watch this one particular commercial where the man would leave a huge box in front of his beautiful big house wrapped in a gigantic red ribbon. the wife comes out…pulls the bow…the box opens flat and boom – a brand new. expensive. white car. i love white cars. i think i was more excited than the wife, i should have been in that commercial. i smiled, looked at my husband and said so when is my turn? jokingly (but i really wasn’t).
and my husband would always answer the same thing: it’s coming honey don’t worry (but i wasn’t). i would look at my watch and sarcastically say at what time?
after working our butt off (still do nothing’s free you know)…not long ago, we finally moved into our first home in a new state (still don’t get why i left nyc but that’s another trauma), my favorite month was approaching – october – my birthday. this month always makes me feel like a superwoman more than any other month of the year.
on that birthday i had cake…balloons…wishes…date with my husband…singing with my daughters…it was fun. the following day, on a wednesday, my husband said he was running late and if i didn’t mind. of course i don’t i said (but i did). around six pm i heard a loud sound outside our house. i was going to see what was going on but then my husband called and said we are going out…he will pick me up in half an hour wear something nice he said. i did but didn’t feel like going out. half hour later i’m outside ready. i heard a loud car horn and a loud car sound – well people – it wasn’t in a box and it didn’t have a red ribbon, but it was white. brand new. shiny. fully equipped sports car. this is for you babe, he said, remember my promise? i didn’t know what to think. where is the box? just kidding.
happy birthday? to me? 
sweet. sweeeeeet . and not because of a white brand new sports car (well, that too), but because he means everything he says. that’s what makes him so special. i went out for my first cool ride. the next day i went to shop for food with my expensive new gift. it was cloudy and about to rain. i parked the car near the supermarket and rushed inside (feeling proud) before i get wet. i hate umbrellas.
on my way out it started to drizzle. i spotted my shiny car and ran to it pushing a thousand pounds shopping cart. as i got closer i noticed a big horizontal black mark on the back of my car, about 9 inches. i almost fainted no, it’s brand new. i just got it…why??? my poor husband…he’ll be so disappointed…he’ll freak out. the rain came down hard but i had to do something. i pulled a tissue from my bag and tried to rub the scratch off. it was big and it was ugly.
when that didn’t work i tried my saliva. i had no choice. i’m getting wet and here i am trying to wipe off a deep black scratch of my car, with my saliva. i rubbed so hard my fingers hurt. yeah sigal good going. my new blow dry got a nice freeze and i looked like i just came from snorkeling. i was cold, soaked and mad. i had to put my wet food in the car so i pulled the keys out of my bag and pressed but the car wouldn’t open. i pressed again and again moving my hand around – nothing. just when i was like oh sh*… i looked at the license plate – it wasn’t my car.
h a p p y t h a n k s g i v i n g
beautiful nepalese faces
November 18, 2011
why i love photographing kids
there is something special about nepalese kids: they always smile. every time when my husband and i visit nepal we get to interact with kids, it’s almost inevitable. if you don’t interact with them they will most certainly interact with you.
most kids i met were happy to pause for my camera after i asked them. one by one they took turn and smiled at me. some wondered. some were just curious and refused to get near. i would wonder around kathmandu between meetings and watched them carry their backpacks or younger siblings on their back, going to or coming from school. being kids. but very different kids. some of them we found to be very clever, street clever and funny too. they are always the ones that ask questions. they make me wonder about them and then…i start thinking about my own kids.
kids are captured in pure expressions, that’s why i love these images:
one of my favorites: my husband (vidal) on the left of course.
the image above: my absolute favorite.
the sweetest little thing.
enthusiastic young boy. he asked me to take five pictures of him. i did. six.
i’m a wonderer but sometimes i try not to think too much. the sad thing with these trips to nepal is when i have to go back home to the states (can’t wait to hug and kiss my own kids), it’s hard to say goodbye, to not think about these children…you know what i mean?
check www.goodweave.org for more happy faces.
sunday inspiration
November 13, 2011
when i’m asked where my inspiration comes from, which happens quite often, i almost always say the same thing: inspiration is everywhere, but in my mind my thoughts are a little abstract, they wonder.
this picture reminds me that nature is my biggest inspiration in every possible way. yeah sure, it’s a rustic small bird bath so what’s so special about it. it’s been sitting in my backyard for a couple of years and i almost never pay attention to it. until now.
i bought the bird bath thinking birds would come and…bath in it, nothing special. my daughter laughed at me saying mom what were you thinking it’s too small. she was right so i just left it. but let me tell you, this thing has been abused and beaten by harsh rains, sun, dust, even my sister’s cigarettes which soon enough it became her favorite ash tray.
but if you think about it, i love how the worn look of this metal bird bath changes colors when light hits it during the day, the simple stark color combination that caught my eye, the play of shadows and texture – the simple things that we tend to overlook start to play a different tune in my mind.
when let loose, elements like color, texture or composition are enough to cause a shift in my head and makes me add this special image to my design list.
so what’s your inspiration?
my most famous moment with the most famous sailor – happy veterans day
November 12, 2011
remember this handsome guy? here’s a couple of hints: he is a veteran. WWII. time square. he’s captured in one of the most memorable moments of all times:
if you did guess (good for you), or didn't: this is carl muscarello, from "the kissing sailor".
a copy of the photo below (the same one above held by me and carl) is signed and handed to me by carl himself, at a museum event in florida where i had my paintings shown that night. many people have attended the event and they all got a snap shot with the famous sailor. i had to wait a while until things got a bit calmer then i had the most pleasant conversation with him. he had told me how it all started and how he became one of the most memorable figures captured on camera. this man is so full of memories he made me go back in time and wonder. still a good looking man, very interesting and very funny. he even gave me his home address so i would stay in touch with him. sadly, he said, he doesn’t know how to use his wife’s computer, he crashes it every time. what a gentleman.
kissing sailor
happy veterans day
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