Thursday, January 28, 2010


Serendiptity


Today, the Writer's Almanac from NPR

had a wonderful piece on

serendipity

here it is....and here too

It was on this day in 1754 that the word "serendipity" was first coined. It's defined by Merriam-Webster as "the faculty or phenomenon of finding valuable or agreeable things not sought for." It was recently listed by a U.K. translation company as one of the English language's 10 most difficult words to translate. Other words to make their list include plenipotentiary, gobbledegook, poppycock, whimsy, spam, and kitsch.

"Serendipity" was first used by parliament member and writer Horace Walpole in a letter that he wrote to an English friend who was spending time in Italy. In the letter to his friend written on this day in 1754, Walpole wrote that he came up with the word after a fairy tale he once read, called "The Three Princes of Serendip," explaining, "as their Highnesses travelled, they were always making discoveries, by accidents and sagacity, of things which they were not in quest of." The three princes of Serendip hail from modern-day Sri Lanka. "Serendip" is the Persian word for the island nation off the southern tip of India, Sri Lanka.

The invention of many wonderful things have been attributed to "serendipity," including Kellogg's Corn Flakes, Charles Goodyear's vulcanization of rubber, inkjet printers, Silly Putty, the Slinky, and chocolate chip cookies.

Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin after he left for vacation without disinfecting some of his petri dishes filled with bacteria cultures; when he got back to his lab, he found that the penicillium mold had killed the bacteria.

Viagra had been developed to treat hypertension an

d angina pectoris; it didn't do such a good job at these things, researchers found during the first phase of clinical trials, but it was good for something else.

The principles of radioactivity, X-rays, and infrared radiation were all found when researchers were looking for something else.

Julius Comroe said, "Serendipity is looking in a haystack for a needle and discovering a farmer's daughter."

Wiktionary lists serendipity's antonyms as "Murphy's law" and "perfect storm."


Last night as I was reading my latest Harper's Bazaar,
I was amused
by these adverts by ghd
To fully appreciate the ads I will repeat the copy which is hard to read:

"Rapunzel, Rapunzel, you're quite debonair
Now you've straightened and curled that long flowing hair
Your locks would appeal to many a suitor
So why not find someone who's taller and cuter?"


then,

"Cinderella's a beauty, her hair all a-curl
No need of a prince for this stunning young girl
She's saying goodbye to glass slippers forever
And running away with a bloke dressed in leather."


and finally:

"Little Red Riding Hood, neither timid nor shy
Whilst straightening her locks, a wolf she did spy
But far from fainting or running a fever
She started to laugh and pulled out a cleaver."

Call me crazy
but I was excessively diverted
and then
I had an e-mail about a new collection
from
Heather Ross
(one of my favorite fabric designers)
and who should appear
but Rapunzel
in her designs
Serendipity

Monday, January 25, 2010


Still in hibernation...

but checking out fabric for my spring line.
Thanks to Pigtown Design for writing about all the treasures at
Debois Textiles in Baltimore.
The Ralph Lauren fabric above is one of Meg's finds at Debois.
This fabric might be just right for the mrr design spring 2010 line,

but then so is the beauty below that I discovered earlier today

This is part of collection that will be available later this winter
as part of a joint venture between the V & A and Liberty.

This lovely print, called Seaweed, was inspired by the V&A archives,
and will be produced in a limited edition
in conjunction with the
Quilt exhibit at the V & A.

Then I remembered the new Sister Parish Designs fabric.
The blue print has been on my short list for a few months.

Notice the similarity between the fabrics.

Blue frames are the most popular in my line year after year.
I keep a good record of what sells and what doesn't.
Usually the fabrics I select are just right,
but occasionally I choose some duds.
Don't get me wrong, the duds are wonderful fabric,
but sometimes the prints or colors do not work
on frames or boards.

I have yards and yards of unused fabric.
Due in part, to my fabric fetish,
and due to the nature of the business -
not all fabrics will sell.

Periodically I donate fabric remnants to the local turn-over shop,
but this spring I might do a big clean-out...
So I am thinking of having a tag sale.
This could be a huge undertaking...time will tell.

Friday, January 22, 2010


Hibernation is wonderful.

On hiatus for a little bit longer...

... still reading blogs, just not posting here.

Here are some terrific bulletin boards


Allesandra Branca
as seen on Stylebeat


and another smart use of space below
by Benjamin Bradley,
NYC designer,
and brought to my attention by PVE
thanks Patricia


Even though I am not blogging much, I am still working on my business plan.
I want to develop more business with decorators and designers.

I just sent my beautiful cards, pictured at the top of this post,
done by the very talented PVE
to some of the top young designers as listed by Traditional Home.

Who knows, one of them might need a custom bulletin board.
Pass the word...need custom work...
shop no further...
give a call
203-216-8717
or e-mail me
marnie@optonline.net

Wednesday, January 13, 2010


Be well, do good work, and keep in touch.®

The Writer's Almanac with Garrison Keillor is one of my favorite sites. Every morning I am greeted with a poem and then a few interesting stories about authors. I highly recommend this daily morning ritual - what better way to start the day... a few of the poems have made it to my office wall... a little inspiration goes a long way.

And here is another daily read via little augury - read this book in daily installments courtesy of Diane Von Furstenburg ... no excuses for not reading a book - just catch snippets at your desk while you are reading other e-mail - it is like a piece of candy...

Tuesday, January 12, 2010

love this photograph
cold, cold, cold
ponds are frozen
i first learned to skate on a pond
maybe i will put the skates on again this week
and take a few turns
can you believe I have had the same skates since I was 16!

Sunday, January 3, 2010

PERSPECTIVE



H ibe r nat ion
Finally time to rest and reflect
and
to gain some perspective for the year ahead.

top or bottom photo from little augury
not sure where i found the others
one is obviously a book jacket.

Friday, January 1, 2010


by george i've got it



the pursuit of happiness


maira kalman has given me such happiness
for the last year with each installment
of her blog:
on the pursuit of happiness
in the new york times.
read today's installment here

by george she's got it -
savor the moment

proust said,
and i parphrase,
because i cannot find the exact quote:
you are never as happy as you think...
nor are things as bad as you think..."

savor the moment
try to find happiness
in life's simple pleasures

i say so long too

so long 2009
may 2010 be all that you hope for.
xo
m