PurpleRunnerBean72511

New products, ( Beyond Burlap runners, Dots Tablecloths, Rattan Napkins and more) media kits, price lists, re-organizing our booth ... these seem to be the hot topics on my mind lately.  But, at the same time, I'm trying hard to make time to enjoy my garden (it's lovely this year except for the rabbits and the leek fungus), take a swim in the lake, walk before the birds stop singing in the morning, and watch the sun set each night.  I'm also trying to be "laid back" (I am a product of the 60s ad 70s.) by not counting how many days 'til August 13 and the beginning of the NYIGF.  Rather, this year I've created a contest between the NYIGF and my lovely purple runner bean.  I'm betting my runner bean will be at top of my pergola (see picture of runner bean and pergola above) before I leave for NY on August 10.  Certainly more fun than counting the days on the calendar.

In case you want to know who wins, come to Creative Women's booth at the Show ... 6308. You'll get to see our new products and find out the race results.

Ellen

It's Spring here in Vermont (with some record breaking flooding in the Champlain Islands where I live) and I'm thinking alpaca. In a few months I'll be back at the New York International Gift Fair, listening to our customers asking for something more wintery than our Ethiopian cotton and silk. So, I decided that it's time for Creative Women to branch out ... to another country(s) and another fiber. And since the Peruvian government offered to sponsor my trip, I traveled to Lima two weeks ago to attend the Peruvian Gift Show.

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Lima is a bustling and interesting city. There are lovely areas for walking and looking at small shops, old architecture, and tucked away residential areas. There's also some wonderful small museums; Museo Amano, a private collection of pre-Columbian pottery and textiles and Museo Lorca with lovely gardens and a visual presentation through the display of sculpture, pottery and art, of the historical progression of the people of the Andes.

Stripes have always been popular.

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The food is terrific.  If we hadn't stayed in the 3B (a wonderful, friendly small hotel in Barranco) with their cooked to order breakfast everyday, we would have eaten out 3xday, sampling seafood, grilled meats, hip, au courant bistros, and Chifa (Chinese and Peruvian fused together into something delicious). Every morning there were lots of conversation about what/where we ate the night before.

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And yes, I did go to the Peru Gift Show. Going to Peru (7+ hours by plane) made it possible for me to meet Bryant Archie, the founder of D.Bryant Archie, a creator of classic and contemporary textiles (throws, pillows, rugs) hand-woven in Peru. Of course, I could have met her in NY; now that we've met in Peru, we'll follow up in NY. Both our products reflect our admiration for traditional motifs, hand-woven textiles, and simply elegant contemporary style.

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I also met very friendly and helpful Peruvian producers and designers who gave me an introduction to alpaca. I learned that there are differences between doing business in Ethiopia and Peru; Ethiopia is a "one-stop" shopping experience, where in Peru, often different businesses or coops specialize in different steps in the production process. But  I left Peru with ideas for 3 different collections of scarves and throws (all alpaca) and am now working on how to take my idea and turn it into a warm and cozy product that our buyers will wow over ... and buy.

I hope to have some prototypes to show you at the NYIGF in August.

Ellen