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April's
Articles for Giftware News:
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London influences,
Delhi markets, Equal Design Direction
Dashing into London-town while traveling to Delhi last week, presented
the opportunity of soaking up some British style influences while
enroute to designing Spring 2008.
Spring to spring—season to same season—is a convenient
way to look at things. It is much easier than imagining Christmas
in the blaze of summer, or the freshness of spring when your whole
earth is turning russet. It is hard to get that essential intuitive
design hypersensitivity going when the seasons are so misaligned.
Designing out of season and far into the future has long been
the challenge of design.
It is interesting to note that while some businesses extend their
design commitments ever farther and farther ahead [with companies
working as much as two years ahead on fabric and design developments],
in the fashion industry, the trend is to design closer and closer
to the time when customers actually purchase. In-season designing
is now a reality in many apparel chains—it helps keep product
closer to the customer's wants and also helps manage budgets and
inventory levels—you can always hold back on styles that
are not yet ordered, if business tells you to.
So, with that little meander, I can tell you about my meanders
on Kings Road in London.
I was really expecting to see color directions, trends, and styles—which
I did—there were bright greens of all hues, corals, blues,
grays of every tone, fresh yellows, naturals mixed with crushed
art silks, styling feminine and smock-like. Leggings and blouses
and drapey tops signaled a return to comfort, and probably the
upcoming baby boom.
But the single most exciting half-hour for me was the Kings Road
Farmers Market. In the middle of the busy high street, Saturday
vendors showed their beautiful wares.
Imagine: Chelsea buns—I always wanted to try a Chelsea bun—made
with currants, you know. It was like eating a little chapter of
an English book. I had read about them so often.
Leaf wrapped Banon cheeses—these were so beautiful—like
little organic packages—I had to pick one up for my travels.
Giant cheddar rounds in muslin. I loved the warm ivory color of
the muslin, the open weave of the cloth—the golden warmth
of the cheddar all wrapped up.
Truffles lashed in brie [so good—to die for!]. Think of this
as the upper end of the gift market—the Tiffany's of a Farmer's
Market. And the creamy color with brown truffles fills a beautiful
natural color palette.
There was a whole world of olives—and there is a lot to say
about color in the world of olives: blue, black, red, brown, army
green—and of course olive! The colors—I would call them
rich neutral—good foundation colors.
Cupcakes looking like pretty houses—with thick icing—I
imagined a British tea party and all of the elements involved—a
tea set, silver, a researched tea, a white lace runner, a glass
vase with violets and green shoots.
Miniature wedding cakes—the Kensington crowd must have a
use for these—groom's cakes perhaps? Imagine the pre-wedding
party, the young men in dark suits, the women in flowered dresses,
pretty glasses of champagne. Family to family toasts.
Weddings—that is a big market.
Apple Cake—a German influence here—not the deep dish
pie of a Vermont Farmer's Market—but carefully sliced apples
layered precisely together. I see the cutting board, the steel
knife, and the stove with temperature setting—an apron, and
hand soap for cleaning up—does she use lemon scented? China
plates in stacks of four and a sliver of cheese. What design of
plates—fruit perhaps—or a little scene?
Polish sausage—pungent—earthy in smell—ah, to be
a part of the European community and have fresh market produce
from Poland and Germany and France, in center city London. Eastern
Europe—show me your wares.
And every shop with samples to try—to taste and seduce the
shoppers into buying. I love the customer service implicit in
that. It was just so super finding a Farmer's Market—with
fresh and lively traders—in the middle of a fashion street.
It added to the influences of another culture, double-decker buses,
London cabs, a little rain, spring flowers, English designers:
Paul Smith, Whistles, Monsoon, Tricia Guild, Peter Jones, Terrence
Conran—and the yummy food, made the 8-hour transit time in
London more than memorable.
The next day saw me Sunday marketing in New Delhi—in intense
heat, buying tomatoes and paneer, pulses and yoghurt, mangoes
and bananas under the yellow blaze of a laburnum tree.
I did notice that yellow seemed to be making a comeback in London
shops now. Everywhere I look—it's yellow, yellow, yellow—including
the falling petals of the flowering trees. And then, of course,
there is the green green of the leaves. And pretty orange of a
mango or the red coral of a very ripe papaya fruit.
Design—just go to the market—all of the ideas are there.
New Delhi,
April |
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