Our friend and talented jewelry designer Ely Milano (who was just featured on New York Spaces The Muse), has teamed up artist and fellow jewelry designer Caroline Glemann to co-curate an amazing mixed-media exhibit at the Liloveve Gallery.  Just in time for Valentine’s Day, the exhibition is all about love. It will feature work from thirty different artists.  The group show opens to the public on Friday, February 12th at 5:00pm.

Details provided from select works, artists listed from left to right: Natasha Gornik, David Miller, Charise Isis, Shella Robinson, Jess Levey and Junko Shimizu.

We spent the better part of Sunday afternoon walking through the crowded isles of the New York International Gift Fair. The vibe was extremely positive; the show floor was filled with new introductions with tons of buyers snatching up the goods. It was a step in the right direction and, we hope, a sign of good things to come in 2010.

Fittingly, functionality, creativity and sustainability were three main themes that really stood out at the winter fair. We found Royalvkb’s jar tops, designed by Jorre van Ast, to be both smart and stylish. The screw caps can fit on any jar and give new life to something that might otherwise get tossed.

Made by Humans had lots of fun and quirky gadgets including Kaiju Photo Holders and Rubik’s cube clocks.

We loved Molla Space’s Love Grenade Coin Bank, Animal Shot Glasses and Flowing City Coasters.

Cardboarddesign was another on our list of favorites. They use recycled cardboard to create eco-friendly modern furniture and accessories. From vases to slinkies, they showed a number of new shapes and sizes at the show.

Neó, a first-time Accent on Design exhibitor, had quite a lot of traffic in their booth. Their baskets, bags and jewelry, hand woven out of neoprene yarn, made people stop and touch the products. We loved their products and the three lovely Italian ladies responsible for the designs!

Speaking of creative, the A+ ™ The Young Designers’ Platform was a great place to see emerging talent and brand-new products.  We had an opportunity to talk to Jung-Woo Lee from ekDesign in Seoul, Korea.  Her new Umbrella Handle was designed to hold a paper cup or coffee cup.  It’s just what we on-the-go New Yorkers need on a rainy day. She also introduced stacking rulers, leather rulers and a nail cap.

In terms of green design, we met an Australian designer, Marc Harrison, who is creating tabletop items and furniture out of a composite material he made from recycling macadamia nut shells. The beauty in Husque is that the final products do not fall far from the tree as they evoke the same look and lustre of the Australian nut.

Also noteworthy is a new paper called Terraskin. It is an elegant, durable (water and tear resistant) and completely tree-free paper made from minerals. And because it is a fiber-less material, it uses 20-30% less ink than conventional papers.

While we loved all of the products, we selected one of the aforementioned pieces as the recipient of our Blogger’s Choice Award.  Check back later today to see who it is!

Tonight, our friends at The Future Perfect are hosting an opening reception for the arrival of “Friendly + Fresh” with new designs by Farrow, Alex Hellum, Matthew Hilton, Donna Wilson and Terence Woodgate for SCP.

Where: 55 Great Jones Street, NYC

When: Monday, Feb. 1 @ (5-7PM)

David Stark may be a master when it comes to design, but he seems to be a bit lost in the naming department. David Stark Design just announced they have a new addition to the team – in the form of a lovable young Yorkie – and they need your help in devising a name! So far, we’re partial to “Starkey.” Think you can do better? Send them your suggestions here!

It’s official….I’ve been to the Interiors Awards Breakfast for five straight years and one thing is for sure. Neither cold weather (nor the inclement conditions of last year), nor cross country travel… not even an extra early wake up, can stop our industry from celebrating good design.  This morning close to 600 guests – from leading manufacturers to top-notch architects & designers – joined together to recognize the 2010 winners, thank Contract for its 50 years of dedication to the industry and look forward to the next half century. The 31st annual awards program highlighted fifteen innovative projects in categories such as small office, retail, healthcare and education.  The one-and-only Art Gensler was given the Legend Award. After a moving speech by a long-time client and colleague and an equally sentimental presentation from his son, Mr. Gensler graciously accepted the prestigious honor. Rather than selecting one, The Designers of the Year Award went to a fabulous team of five from Graft.  The 2010 recipients are: Thomas Willermeit, Gregor Hoheisel, Lars Krückeberg, Alejandro Lilio and Wolfram Putz. Krückeberg accepted the award on behalf of the firm and said that “he felt like he was joining a fraternity of notable names, the likes of which includes William McDonough and Shigeru Ban.” He talked about the inspiration behind Graft, which he explained as “the putting together of two opposites” and how he is trying to do his part to bring east and west, north and south closer together (his wife is from East Germany and he is from West Germany). All kidding aside, the firm is active in the Make it Right program to help rebuild New Orleans’ Lower 9th Ward and bring affordable, green, storm resistant houses to displaced families. They truly deserve this honor and we wish them all the success in the world.

2010 Legend Award Winner Art Gensler

It sometimes takes great tragedy, such as the disaster in Haiti, to make us realize that charity is the greatest gift.  It is no wonder, then, that the New York International Gift Fair (NYIGF) has established a variety of initiatives for this year’s fair to collect donations for Haitian relief efforts.

The NYIGF is now allowing participants to make individual donations through NYIGF’s Handmade® Division from January 30 to February 3 at the Jacob Javits Center.  The NYIGF has collaborated with Aid to Artisans, an international non-profit organization dedicated to promoting economic development in the craft sector, to identify companies selling Haitian products. Together, the two organizations have coordinated a list of exhibitors donating portions of onsite proceeds to relief efforts, charitable organizations, and directly to Haitian artisans.

Currently, a group of 23 Handmade exhibitors plan to donate proceeds from sales at the NYIGF to Haiti. Participating exhibitors include:

Acacia Creations; Aid to Artisans; alexandra ferguson; Alison Blair Studio Jewelry Designs; Angie Olami Inc.; Aster+Sage®; CALLALOO; Dwelling, LLC; Eco-Brazil Corp/Echo-the-World; Ethnic Pride Marketing; Hila; Laurel Denise; Lea’s Alphabets; Lulu Designs; Madera Exotic Woods, LLC; Manos de Madres; One World Projects; Sarah Cavender Metalworks; Tesoros Trading Company; The Niger Bend; Vilmain; Wasabi; and Watchcraft.

Also, NYIGF has made direct donations to two relief organizations: Artisan Grant Initiative (AGI) of Vital Edge Aid, a humanitarian micro-aid organization supporting indigenous artisan communities in Haiti, and AmeriCares®, a nonprofit disaster relief and humanitarian aid organization which provides immediate response to emergency medical needs.

Proving that no donation is too small, NYIGF will set-up donation collection points at several points on the Handmade exhibit floor, where exhibitors and attendees can make individual donations starting from $1.

The NYIGF will take place from January 30 – February 4 at the Javits Center and Pier 94.  For more information on the NYIGF, click here.

Tonight, we look forward to heading over to the Ralph Pucci International New York showroom’s exhibition space, Nine (Gallery), to catch the opening of their exhibition of Denyse Schmidt’s colorful quilts.  The exhibitions at Ralph Pucci – notable for blending the fine arts with interior design – are a delightful shock to the senses and conventional sensibility, and tonight’s installation promises the same. Denyse Schmidt’s quilts will be complemented by the furniture pieces of Jim Zivic and Robert Bristow, as well as photography by the duo Michner Spindler. Who knows, we might even rub shoulders with the design showroom’s signature mannequins…

WHAT:  Opening Reception, Denyse Schmidt Quilts

WHERE:  Nine Gallery, Ralph Pucci International, 44 W 18th Street, New York

WHEN:  Thursday, January 28th; 6:30 – 8:30 PM

RSVP at info@ralphpucci.net

From the moment man set ink to paper, text and textile have often been two interwoven entities.  For anyone interested in the history of typography, Thursday night’s lecture at the Type Directors Club promises to be a must-attend.  Photographer Adrian Wilson will present his collection of 19th century typefaces and trademarks used by fabric merchants in Textile: Typography of the 19th Century Textile Trade.  Interestingly enough, Wilson began his collection when, while keeping a studio in an old Manchester cotton warehouse, he was given a bag of textile stamps that were being thrown out by the warehouseman.  He has since become an authority in the field, appearing in 2005 as a special guest on BBC’s Antiques Roadshow.

Who: Adrian Wilson

What:  Lecture, Textile: Typography of the 19th Century Textile Trade

Where:  Type Directors Club, 347 W. 36th Street, suite 603, New York

When:  Thursday, January 28, 2010; 6-8 pm

Cost:  Free for TDC members; $20 for non-members; $15 for non-member students.

Seating limited, email director@tdc.org or call 212-633-8943 to register.

For the past 20 years, M2L has been devoted to bringing contemporary European design to the American market. Whether it’s the colorful and flamboyant creations of Pierre Paulin or the streamlined, classic looks from Norman Foster, the company has become known for holding authenticity as important as form and function.

Unlike DWR, whose rampant practice of selling knockoffs was recently investigated by New York Times writer Fred Bernstein, M2L wants to educate the public about the harmful impact of knockoffs – starting with the designers of tomorrow. Last year, the company created the Genuine Design Competition in conjunction with Ruth Lynford of New York Eleven to raise awareness of the complexity and responsibility of the Interior Design profession among students.

M2L is now accepting entries for the 2010 Genuine Design Competition – a video challenge open to design students across the country. A distinguished panel of judges (including David McFadden, chief curator of the Museum of Arts and Design) will award $8,500 in scholarships to four selected finalists.

To be eligible, students must create a 1-4 minute video in the form of a Public Service Announcement on the topic of genuine design and why furniture designers deserve the right to protect their work against unauthorized copies and counterfeits. The deadline for submissions is Friday, March 5, 2010. For more information visit: http://www.genuinedesign.com/