this just in...

new pillows from john robshaw!!!

i can hardly contain my glee. we have the whole line of pichwai hand painted pillows. they come in 3 sizes: 26 x 26, 20 x 20 and 12 x 20. each one is unique and although we've carried them before, i really think this newest grouping is the most vibrant and interesting of the lot.

new to the shop is the maharaja line of bolsters. too cool for words, really.



and we also got in some new pillowcases in a number of designs. we've noticed that people buy the cases and often not the sheets. it's a great way to get a pop of color, some interest and the luxury of hand block printed linens without the huge cost. just add them to your crisp white sheet set and voila! instant chicness.



we're still waiting on another order of spring '08 pillows (seen below) hopefully arriving at the end of the month, so check back. and as always, if you're not in town and can't make it to the shop, you can call and have it shipped to you. enjoy! and happy shopping! k&m

20x200

[don hamerman]

i haven't posted about 20x200 in a while, so i thought i'd share what's up for april. a couple of interesting photographs by don hamerman (it would be great to collect his whole series), stephanie cinelli's beautiful, yet troubling still life photos and a new work by 20x200 fave alli schmeltz. per usual, her small prints went immediately, but there are still some in the $200 range and of course, for those of you with fat tax refunds, a couple of $2000 originals. enjoy! and happy shopping! k&m


[don hamerman]


[stephanie cinelli]


[ali schmelz]

etsy love?

[adam mcewen, i was very disappointed, 2004, sold for $9,375, at phillips, de pury &co., march 31, 2008]

on the whole i like to keep this blog cheery and picture filled and light on commentary. not to dumb down the audience in any way, but we're all busy and sometimes a blog is just a lovely break in the day to view beautiful design objects and pretty pictures. but i just can't keep my mouth shut about last night.

i have to tell you that i was very disappointed in yesterday's panel discussion at vcu titled, making meaning and the marketplace. i had high hopes. so high that i showed up 30 minutes early so that i wouldn't get locked out as i have on many an occasion to see lectures at the grace street theater. first of all, the auditorium wasn't even full. i know 5pm is a tough time to get downtown. and i know that people have jobs and families. but i really felt like the crafting community would have come out in full force with etsy in town.

the good news is, if you didn't make it, you didn't miss much. first of all, i thought the panel selection was poor. one panel member had never really been on etsy. another was an artist who uses etsy but didn't have much to say in general. yet another was an actual etsy employee who seemed quite intelligent, but was so busy trying to hook up the virtual web cam lab thingy that he hardly even looked our way. and last, but certainly not least, rob kalin, etsy's founder.

not even sure i know where to start with this cat. don't get my wrong, i LOVE etsy. i love it's layout, the artists who sell there, it's philosophy and the fact that it has created a whole new marketplace for the handmade. but i don't have as many good things to say about it's creator. i found him to be a bit pompous and condescending and on many occasions insulting. he's quite the politician acutally, never really answering a question straight, but always dancing around it with some little antecdote. his ideas are lofty and his product is great, i'll give him that, but he disregards the economy and system that has made him so successful. i won't go on, but maybe one of the other 2 founders should accept these lecture invites in the future.

i guess my biggest complaint is toward vcu. we had a great opportunity here to discuss the handmade market and the place it is carving out in richmond and around the globe. and i thought the panel choices were odd and that a truly groundbreaking discussion opportunity wasted. maybe i'm just bitter they didn't ask a handmade shop owner to be on the panel ;o) i don't know. i just hope we keep talking about it and everyone in this community as well as others supports the local economy. and for all of the vcu art students, keep working and we'll keep selling. happy shopping! k&m

i'm so excited...

and i just can't hide it...

so, so happy to announce the early arrival of a new line at openhouse. welcome Flowie! designer Yaling Hou is the creative mind behind our new line of textiles. she was born and raised in taiwan and currently lives and works in menlo park, california. she is a professionally trained textile designer who launched flowie last year. all of the fabrics are hand screen printed locally in the Bay Area and finished products are hand sewn as well.

we're starting of with a small selection of bags, tea towels, napkins and wine carriers. you can see pics of everything we have in stock here or come on by the shop and check them out!

enjoy! and happy shopping! k&m

etsy love...

it's been a while since we've highlighted some etsy goodness, and with the arrival of etsy founder rob kalin a day away, i thought the timing was right. make sure to check back friday for a "this just in..." spring is literally in the air as a super cool new member of the openhouse family is at this moment heading our way and we're so excited about it's arrival.

today i wanted to highlight etsy artist suspect shoppe. san francisco based aritst mati rose mcdonough is the creative mind behind these fantastical prints and paintings. great for a children's room or really any room. the colors are so vivid and the stylized creatures are reminiscent of Charley Harper illustrations. at around $30 each, why not buy a whole wall full? enjoy! and happy shopping! k&m

piece of cake

[bird cake stand, large $130]


[footed cake platter with dome, $59.95]

i don't bake cakes, buy cakes or eat cakes for the most part. but lately i've had an insatiable need to have cake stands. i own a great set of vintage glass stands that i received as a wedding gift. but i can't seem to stop bookmarking more and more of them lately. i love glass stands, ceramic, contemporary, vintage, traditional, decorated, plain, whatever the style. so i thought i'd share some great designs i've stumbled across lately. a few of them we might see at openhouse in the future. enjoy! k&m


[little cake plate, $20.00]


[linda bloomfield cakestands]


[birthday party cakestands, $19.00-$39.00]


[pair of cake stands, $135]




[petite clanwilliam ckae stand, $98.00]

white

on this oh so gray day in Virginia, i thought to share some images pulled from desire to inspire a while back. i keep looking back at them hoping to gleen some sort of inspiration on how to pull off an all white house. maybe i just don't have the bones or the natural light or the cahones to pull it off. but the images from this victorian london home are stunning and it makes you wonder how anyone could ever call white, cold! enjoy!

this just in...

new ceramics from karin eriksson!!! can not tell you how excited we were to get our latest order from our favorite swedish designer. we are stocked up on large serving bowls, small dishes, tea lights, tall vases, wide vases and tea cups. get into the shop SOON and grab something for yourself or as a wedding gift. not to spoil surprises, but everyone i know who's getting married this spring has an eriksson vase waiting for him/her. our last shipment was in store for about a week, so i'm not kidding when i say you have to get over there now. enjoy! and happy shopping! k&m

[photos courtesy of chris cariano]

etsy in richmond

the craft/material studies program at VCU presents Making Meaning and the Marketplace next thursday, april 3 from 5:00-6:30 p.m. at the grace street theater. etsy founder rob kalin will present a program to bring new ideas on how students (and designers alike) can market their work. the program is dedicated to exploring the next generation of craft artists and their burgeoning influence in the market and culture.

i think it's so exciting. with shops in town like ours now catering to the handmade, the rise of etsy and great indie design blogs and a travelling series like this, you can just feel that we are all on the cusp of something great. mass production watch out! ;o)

just a tip, the grace street theater is not that big and i've been locked out of many a great lecture, so show up early. enjoy! k&m

this just in...

new collection of kobo candles! the garden collection features 6 of the most interesting scents to date. we're consistently impressed with the bizarre groupings of flavors and scents these folks come up with. antique lavender, citron artichoke, heirloom vine, jalapeno (surprisingly yummy), moon wisteria and sparkling rose. we never can keep these in stock long enough, so swing into the shop and check them out for yourself. enjoy! and happy shopping! k&m

in the news...

great feature in the march issue of richmond magazine. pick it up on newsstands all over the city. page 42 shows a few openhouse designers: our new campy planters from perch as well as some great spring pillows from three sheets 2 the wind and paper cloud. and don't forget, we still have our spring cleaning sale going on. we've cleared out so much! but you can still scoop up some great deals on a number of wonderful designers. happy shopping! k&m

sneak peek

i just had to share with all of you the newest designs from j. mendicino out for spring '08. we won't have them in shop until april, but i just couldn't wait! they are so adorable. the way joanna has combined such traditional images with preppy colors and yet maintained her signature clean-lined style. we're in love. who can resist mint green and soft pink along with netherland dwarfs and fiddler crabs?! (even if you've never thought of it that way, i bet you can't ;o)

there will also be a chance to win one of these lovely, handmade pieces as well. stay tuned in the coming month as we release more details about a great fundraising event for the Children's Hospital of Richmond.

happy shopping! k&m

eating wonderland

if you're in richmond, or plan to be in the next few months, don't miss this show at the university of richmond museum:

"The Lora Robins Gallery of Design from Nature, University of Richmond Museums, presents Eating Wonderland: Recent Work by Sue Johnson, on view February 8 through June 15, 2008.

In her latest artwork, contemporary Maryland artist Sue Johnson (American, born 1957) addresses themes of food, consumption, marketing, and mass production in her ceramic castings of dinnerware and popular foodstuffs. Along with her paintings on paper and digital collages, this exhibition features work that explores the creation and use of imagery in popular culture, the influence of context on these images, and how simple manipulations can result in humor, aversion, and complex commentaries on contemporary society."

"Incredible Edibles, which consists of ceramic castings of objects imbued with nostalgia and commercialism related to eating, such as TV-dinner trays and figurines of characters from advertising like the Pillsbury Doughboy and Sprout, the young companion to the Jolly Green Giant, is the first series.

Accompanying series Episodes in a Fantastic Landscape, comprised of mixed media two- dimensional images, likewise focuses on issues of food and consumption and includes fantasy elements, and a sense of impending violence or doom lurks within each piece. Finally, her over 16-foot wide painting New Stories from Wonderland (Life of the Dodo), created specifically for this exhibition, merges all of these themes while including specific references to Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and commentary on the environment."

we find her work so clever and very much at the heart of openhouse commentary. enjoy! k&m

back in action

sorry to have disappeared. i was wisked away suddenly for a suprise vacation in the mountains to celebrate my 30th (ugh). relaxing, picturesque and completely cut off from the internet (gasp!) it was wonderful, but i'm glad to be back in action.

i had planned on posting this last thursday and have noticed design*sponge has since, but i thought it was a worth a mention to our audience as well. great new designs out from galison books for spring. i had the pleasure of working for galison as a young, fresh-faced new yorker straight out of college and i've always loved their paper products. it's a small office full of creativity and i've enjoyed watching it grow. you can get these online at galison or at most local paper shops. enjoy! k&m