Designer Gretchen Jones has crafted an ethereal, mystical world for her beautiful clothing line MothLove.  Aside from the fact that I fell in love with a ton of pieces during my recent introduction to her work (esp the blazer she designed and was wearing), I was most impressed by the way she had cohesively branded her business. The overall look feels like a natural extension of her own personality and vision, the ideal way to market yourself, in my opinion. The video she has running on her site does a great job of encapsulating the overall feel of the clothing, and it represents Gretchen’s mellow, friendly vibe as well.

From her site…

You can find Gretchen working on a her record collection, daydreaming about rides on a 67′ BMW R60/2 600, contemplating the metaphysical, playing with her long hair, wearing pretty lingerie, working too late, trying to eat healthy and somehow, always wishing she was sun bathing by the river…Mostly in her mind, and sometimes outside of her studio.

In case you didn’t spot this post on NOTCOT today, be sure head over there now to get a thorough run down on Manifest Equality. Better yet, check out this incredible multimedia art show in person. It’s going on all this week in Los Angeles in Hollywood on Vine. In addition to the eye candy, there is a great music line up as well including the Crystal Method and Sea Wolf.

Via Brand X:
Through Sunday, more than  10,000 people are expected to tour Manifest Equality, including film industry glitterati stopping by between Oscar engagements. An opening night reception Wednesday features musical act Fitz & the Tantrums and DJ sets by artists Tim Biskup and Fairey. Another event Saturday features performances by indie band Sea Wolf, singer-songwriter Sam Sparro and Modest Mouse’s Isaac Brock, with DJs sets by the Crystal Method.

All photos are the property of NOTCOT.

I spent two days in Vegas for the apparel shows last month and lucky for me, this time I wore sensible shoes. Twice a year Vegas hosts thousands of designers in shows like Pool, Project, Magic and ENK. This year I was struck by the innovative ways brands are balancing the need for their booth to be attention-grabbing, with a tight recession budget. From Woolrich’s book design (my favorite), to Diesel’s chain link fence, the economic downturn once again appears to jump start everyone’s creative juices…

Love the piles of felt that act as resting spots for conference-goers.

Simple wooden frame positioned at eye level by Superdry allows passersby to peek inside and encourages people to wander inside….all for half the cost of materials.

Diesel creates an urban look complete with posters, neon and a chain-link fence. Not only is the fencing cheap, it allows people to peek inside and see the goods.

My favorite. Hands down. Woolrich’s stacks of books added color, texture and give the traditional brand an edge. The insides of the booth were papered with pages from books. Love this!

Cafe Bustelo served complimentary espressos to fashion folks in the Workroom showroom. This has nothing to do with booths, but I loved the yellow tulips in the Bustelo cans. They brightened up the back end of a showroom and beckoned tired peeps.

A designer literally pokes holes in a model’s shirt, designing on the fly before an impromptu shoot. Note the wooden booth structure…a bit trend this year.

A super creative, ‘live’ booth design by Big Star. They wallpapered both the interior and exterior with dollar bills. On the exterior, the bills formed large blank spaces spelling out the name of the brand. During the trade show, employees carefully peeled the bills off the walls and dropped them into a bin to be sent to Haiti earthquake victims. Great idea.

A mural is outlined by cardboard. Cheap and common becomes modern and clever.

When I was a pre-teen (tween, whatever), I was *obsessed* with Tretorns. I would literally wear a pair until I could see my toes peeking out from the sides. They naturally ended up covered in drawings, friends’  names, etc and my Mom had to rip them off my feet (esp if there was snow on the ground) and force me to wear ‘normal’ shoes. Ick. Well, I spotted the Tretorn booth and fell in love with these elastic sneakers. Hopefully, I will soon own a pair of my own!

Have you seen any creative ways to beat the recession in window displays or catalogs?

Artist Stina Persson is an artist and illustrator based in Stockholm, Sweden. I was recently struck by her watercolor work and had to do a quick post on this rainy Saturday. Her work has appeared in many publications including Elle, Flaunt, Marie Claire and Travel & Leisure. You can purchase prints here or view her work here.

While in Las Vegas last week for the apparel shows, I stopped by sales and branding agency Indigo Showroom’s booth. While looking through their client roster, I discovered Uhuru, a Brooklyn-based furniture company focused on environmental sustainability with an avant garde design sense. Uhuru was founded in 2004 by RISD grads Jason Horvath and Bill Hilgendorf.

“We strongly agree with the shaker assertion that ‘beauty rests on utility’ We strive to make furniture and products that are beautiful in their simplicity with an acute awareness of materials, and craft. Many of the items we create utilize materials that have been reclaimed, recycled, repurposed, reused or otherwise rejected from their original function.”

Delicate observations and comments on the world from a young artist in London via The Unicorn Diaries. Presumably penned by artist Bunny Mitford, the work and writings deliver me to the heaviness and magic of being a young girl. Dreamlike, whimsical, syrupy sweet and melancholy. It’s easy to get lost here on a just-right hazy morning.

A few exerpts from Miss Mitford:

But you can’t be brave just from wanting.

I know that, sometimes, people are born and their hearts are too small.

There are diaries and dresses underneath. Letters from Kitty.
Everything I couldn’t bare to keep.

I remember the Before, the black cherry bubblegum, the broken book, the black and the white, the worry.

If you’re visiting or living in New York, you’re probably hiding out from the cold and snow in your tiny apartment or hotel room. Mama’s Food Shop (200 East 3rd Street, btwn Ave A + B) is a reason to pile on the scarves, pull on the gloves and trudge to the Lower East Side.

Run by Chicago-native brothers Jeremiah and Brendan Clancy, this comfort-food focused restaurant will send your blood happily to your stomach, where it belongs. A member of the staff (perhaps the third Clancy sibling, Erin) will hand you a heaping plate of incredible comfort food that you will eat happily under dozens of framed portraits of Mom.

Jeremiah, a NYU Tisch grad, photographer, video artist, father of two, and member of Fischerspooner runs the front of the house. Brendan is a formally trained chef who quickly moved up the ladder in fine-dining establishments around the world, including the W Hotel in Mexico City. Obviously, these two don’t mess around.

So, pull on your boots and head down to Mama’s Food Shop to see the Clancy brothers tonight. Done and done. And please note that a “vintage” photo of the Clancy brothers’ Mom, Christine, will be front and center (middle photo, above). She’s the one with candles lit by her framed image. And if you get lucky, Chris will be visiting from Chicago when you stop by.

Raymond Molinar is one of dozens of artists (and skateboarders) represented this Friday at This gallery in Los Angeles. Photographers and husband-and-wife duo Jeremy and Claire Weiss are two of the five artists behind this newly formed creative space in the Highland Park neighborhood of LA. Some familiar names showing on Friday include Shepard Fairey, Alex Prager, Todd Selby and Jason Lee.  I’ve been following the work of the Weisseseses (sounds fun) for years and look forward to seeing what else they have in store for This. Be sure to check out the gallery’s blog to see what their friends (including Mr. Molinar) were up to when they stopped by the space to say hi.

“THIS is a group of 5 artists pooling their resources under one roof to provide an outlet for themselves and other creative people. The intention of THIS is to provide a gallery space which brings friends and family together in the Highland Park neighborhood of Los Angeles not just for traditional gallery shows, but a venue for artists to speak about their work, to interact with their audience and facilitate a creative atmosphere in the community.”