Visit to Bebe Chic

I got a chance to visit one of my vendors that make so much of our beautiful custom  children's bedding at Cici Crib. Located directly across the Hudson River from Manhattan, Bebe Chic is just one of my favorites. Each piece is made locally and with such care and quality. I am always excited to open up the box to see how our vision was translated. Our current look is made by Bebe Chic..

Her very efficient and organized workroom...

Some inspiring classic fabrics ...

Creating very classic bed skirts...

New looks being put together..

Some customers prefer quilts to duvets. An example of their quilting...

I picked a fabric for my new Spring bed...

Can't wait to see how it turns out.

See you... Christina

Go Giants! Celebrate Football!

Most everyone in my house are Giants fans. Oh well, better luck next year for my Steelers.  I'm still trying to get excited because....

Football art at Cici Crib...

Always love my vintage kids football items that we are getting ready to put online..

Football sheet sets are on sale until the end of the month. 280 thread count, pure Egyptian cotton. Really beautiful quality.  Twin: $120 Full$135 and Queen $175.

Go Giants! See you...

Christina

Vintage Planters

I have always collected vintage planters from the 1940-1960's. Way back when, they were given as baby gifts and I assume they had plants in them.   I used them to decorate my kids' nursery.  I use them for their toothbrushes. I use them to store pencils. I have one in my bathroom. Here is the elephant in my bathroom...

At the shop we have a planter on the counter that we use to hold pens. I used it when the kids were babies  to store A & D ointment and thermometers. It has such sentimental value. I won't sell it...

The planter that holds the business cards sold recently. A new holder is in place...

We have put together some great little gift planters using some of  the vintage planters. They come with a minky soft rattle and a handmade baby comb from Switzerland. They will be going on our ecommerce website that will soon be up and running.  Hurrah!

See you...

Christina

Happy Tangerine New Year

Tangerine Tango is the pantone color for 2012! It is bold. A no apologies, fantastic orange...

Ducduc has forever used this color inside all of their casegoods..

Tangerine Tango is sprinkled throughout the shop. Art  for a baby's nursery..

 Custom lamp in the great color...

Love these Euros..

Have a happy and healthy New Year!

See you...

Christina

Happy Holidays!

Christmas is almost here. Even though the boys are teenagers, they are still counting down the days! I wanted to do a video holiday card for my blog, but it just got too complicated. I wanted to play this music box as the top whirls around. I purchased the music box from an Armonk estate sale many years ago. It is so worn and loved.

Every year I look forward to my sister's present. Although I love the contents (we get the same gift every year- very special homemade soaps. My favorite is lavender,bergamot and lemon), it is her special wrapping that is just so beautiful. I love the vintage card.

Happy Holidays everyone!

See you...

Christina

Kyle Bunting Beauties

There are certain design elements that will have a permanent  room in my design brain. One is the work of Kyle Bunting. His group of designers create pieces from cowhide that are just spectacular. I remember seeing a rug  in Amanda Nisbet's room at Kips Bay last Spring. See post.

At Highpoint I saw rugs that were Bunting-like. Mass produced, less expensive, but fulfill a niche.

But there is nothing like the real thing...

So beautiful.

See you...

Christina

Getting Ready for a Trunk Show at Cici Crib

We are getting all new merchandise in for the show this Friday and Saturday.We went looking for  unusual holiday gifts for kids.  Briati Jewelry will return with her very special fine jewelry for girls. She is bringing a nice collection of earrings both studs and drops for little ones.

Much more fun jewelry will be brought in. Feathers and little leather bracelets. Layer them like Chan Luu..

Bunches of these little bracelets make great inexpensive holiday gifts...

Slap watches that you can trade with your friends....

But some kids may want to get their hands dirty, Time for a dino dig..

Some little guys would prefer a softer dinosaur...

Hope to see you  this Friday and Saturday...

Christina

Cici Crib Trunk Show Dec. 9th and 10th

It's our second annual trunk show at Cici Crib!

We decided to mix things up alittle this year. We have been gathering together unusual holiday gifts for boys and girls. There will be cool excavating kits and dinosaurs for budding paleontologists. We are also bringing in the beautiful  fine jewelry from the talented European company Briati. From slap watches to leather bracelets to feathers , totally cool accessories will be displayed.

Enjoy the season with some holiday refreshments at Cici Crib.

Hope to see you!

Christina

Bedding for a Little Guy

A very lovely customer was looking for bedding for her son. She was completely taken by the Trina Turk fabrics from Schumacher. How exciting to do kids bedding in something so unexpected. There were so many fabrics to choose from Turk's fabrics are bright and punchy.  So very unique....

We chose this Ikat inspired pattern for the pillows. They will be trimmed in a narrow navy flange.

She needed a coverlet to go with them. We chose a complementary fabric that wouldn't compete with the pillow fabric. This fabric will also trimmed it in navy.

Her little guy loved his new bed. Notice how she mixes it with other traditional elements in the room. It really works..

See you...

Christina

A Change in Plans

I was supposed to go to Austin, TX last weekend with my son for a fencing tournament. I did research on antique areas, food trucks, shopping, etc.. Would have been great, but our flights were cancelled and we couldn't get there in time for the tournament. Bummer... All our plans down the drain.  At the last minute I decided to take a quick trip to Pittsburgh to visit with family. My brother in law and I like to check out real estate in Pittsburgh.  One morning we crossed the river to check out the Northside- a spirited community that is up and coming.  The birthplace of Mary Cassatt and the Andy Warhol Museum . What a combo. It is like walking back into Victorian times. Every house and every  building is completely intact.  Coming from New York, the real estate prices in this area are so unbelievably reasonable.. Must be  what the meatpacking district was years ago.. What a great loft this would be..

An old coffee company and battery and flashlight factory is also nearby...

Just down the street it turns residential. Sidewalks made from brick. Houses painted in vibrant colors.   Woodwork  that is nothing short of spectacular. It is like this street after street in this area.

The other side of Northside borders the oldest park in Pittsburgh.

I can't wait to go back to discover more of this area...

See you..

Christina

New Art Arrives at Cici Crib

We have received our first order of  a new kind of art that is already getting  rave reviews from our customers. The art has a glowing effect due to it's construction. It is printed on acrylic and is invisibly mounted on the wall. The piece below is 30" long. They also come in different sizes.  Kind of Andy Warhol like, it is a great decorating addition  for a tween's bedroom..

Also great modern artwork for a baby's nursery or child's bedroom..

See you...

Christina

Marimekko Store at Flatiron District

A couple days ago I got a chance to check out the new Marimekko store in NYC. I remember my mother's great Marimekko dress in the 1970's.  I saw it the other day in my sister's closet. As you approach the store, huge Marimekko umbrellas are clustered around Madison Square Park.

The entire store is filled with their signature prints.

Fabrics can be purchased by the yard.

Great inspiration for decorating kids' rooms...

How can you not be in a good mood after visiting the store. The evening seemed to get even better. As we stopped for a coffee at Stumptown, who walks by?  Yes, Anthony Bourdain from No Reservations.  My favorite tv show! I just about jumped out of the window to say a few words to him. You would think I would tell him that his sharp wit and writing is just so special. Something alittle more meaningful than" I love your show." I did mention that I thought Stumptown had the best coffee in the city. He said- " I know." I guess that was sort of profound.

See you...

Christina

Highpoint Part II

This is a story of two vendors. I saw them on the same day and they couldn't have been more different. Visiting  Bevera Design House, I felt like I was at my mother's dining room table raking over all the new acquisitions she had purchased at the latest auction.  I think I could have spent all day there sipping tea and chatting about their collection.  A very personable and inspired group of artists that sell a very well curated group of products and art. Each piece in their collection has a real story behind it.

I particularly liked the work of Rebecca Szeto. She took the thorns from the lower branches of  rose bushes and created Kiss. Not only  do the thorns make a statement, but notice how the shadows cast another element to the piece.

Szeto also recycled her old paint brushes and created little personalities. Just as a side note, the brushes below are sitting on a console made out of  discarded NASCAR parts.

From there we went to see the Lily Pulitzer Home collection. What a complete difference. Like going from an intimate theater production to Broadway. A sharply produced commercial production that was just  fantastic.

The entrance was inviting.

The collection was so Palm Beach sunny. It was too bad we couldn't get much more from the showroom staff as they were pretty indifferent to say the least.

Below is a jewelry and lingerie station . Can you believe how useful this is..

Talk about storage. Looks like an "ordinary" Lilly Pulitzer ottoman.

But no, shoe storage as well..

The spirit was bold throughout the showroom...

Lily is a major fan of pink and green. A favorite decorating palette for a girl's bedroom..

It was a fun day at market! See you...

Christina

Highpoint Part I

Wow is just about all I can come up with when describing Highpoint. Highpoint is the largest furniture show in the country. With more than 10 million square feet of showroom space, it was a race to see as much as we could. I went with a designer friend. We felt like kids at camp! We started out the day with a discussion on global trends by Hermine Mariaux. She just returned from Maison & Objet in Paris. In a nut shell- She believes the future of color will move away from grays, turquoises, acid greens and pinks and gravitate towards  browns, golds, spice and other jewel tones. Deep reds and blue ultramarines will be significant. It's just a forecast....

From funky to traditional to modern, Highpoint has everything.

From the invisible...

To super saturated color with out apologies...

I love these pod stools for kids rooms. So comfortable for an adult as well as a child.

Lots of interesting rugs. Always looking for rugs, that work in tween bedrooms..

Upholstery with solid direction...

And ofcoarse beds...

To interesting dressers...

By the end of the day we were so tired, but couldn't resist taking this pic of these glasses  for a giant...

Day one at the market was so much fun. . More to come ...

See you...

Christina