We will be traveling, November 14-28

Posted on November 13, 2015 by Emily _

The studio will be closed from November 14-28 as we head to Dubai and Hong Kong for some travels.

Follow us on Instagram @auretour_emily to see what we are seeing, eating and getting inspired by!  Any orders placed from November 14-28th, will ship the first week of December.

And sign-up for emails to receive news about upcoming holiday sales and a give away!

 

New Fall Arrivals

Posted on November 11, 2015 by Emily _

New table linens are up online - ready to adorn the tables of your holidays fêtes and feasts!

Halloween Costuming

Posted on October 26, 2015 by Emily _

I'm planning my Halloween costume for this year, here are a few images I'm looking to for inspiration.

This particular character from the Japanese film Spirited Away.

Belgian artist James Ensor's paintings of Karneval or Fasching.

Traditional dress of the Maasai people in Kenya/Tanzania.

Actual images of Karneval or Fasching.

Paul Klee's puppets - I just cannot even say how much I love these.

Field Trip: Donald Judd Foundation, 101 Spring Street

Posted on October 15, 2015 by Emily _

Last week, I finally made it to visit the Donald Judd Foundaton here in NYC with some colleagues from Lindsey Adelman Studio.  Friends of mine have been raving about it since it opened after an extensive renovation in 2013.  I'm not totally sure what I was expecting, but I enjoyed the visit much more than I thought I would.

Purchased by Donald Judd in 1968, 101 Spring Street is a multi-story building that housed his studio and living space, at least, during the periods when he was not in Marfa, Texas. 

The Judd Foundation does not allow pictures - which at first sort of had me a bit bummed out, but it actually makes a lot of sense, given his work.  These pictures are all courtesy of the Judd Foundation.

Of course the spaces were quite open and empty and most of the furniture he either designed or was found.  I loved seeing his collection of art and textiles, often tucked away in unexpected places, and the ways in which he built out the space to add bathrooms or sleeping areas.  The kitchen and the library, with their carefully arranged tools and dishes, were my favorite spaces.

Summer dyeing

Posted on September 16, 2015 by Emily _

I've spent the later part of August and September in the yard behind our studio working on some dyeing projects.  In the afternoon, the sun clears the building leaving me with some shade to work, but fills our small yard with gorgeous, warm sunlight - perfect for some indigo dyeing.

I've only worked with indigo a few times in the past - but it is really memorizing.  I can always see why the colors and process capture the hearts of so many, and have for centuries.  I had some fabric stored away that I've been saving until I knew what to do with it and I'm excited to debut some new, very limited edition indigo dyed table linens here in a couple of weeks.  They will be perfect for fall parties and great gifts heading into the holidays.

Here are a few process shots and sneak peeks of how things are looking.

Favorite Books: Nomadic Furniture

Posted on July 21, 2015 by Emily _

I have this thing about only owning really light furniture that can be moved easily and/or easily dissembled, packed flat and then successfully re-assembled.  If it stacks or folds even better.

Nomadic Furniture by James Hennessey and Victor Papanek was published in 1973.  It's filled with handy, practical instructions and ideas on how to build or source and customize ready-made components for light weight furniture that is easily taken apart and moved. Of course, it's an interesting book to look at in the context of the current DIY movement, these two designers' place in design history and their influence on socially conscious design today.

A little history and some ideas on customizing your own "butterfly" chair.

There are some groovy ladies in the book showing you how it's done!

Some of my favorite pieces and things I would most like to make from the book are the stools/tables.

Studio Scenes: Summer Sketches

Posted on July 08, 2015 by Emily _

I'll be working on sketches and ideas for designs a lot over the coming weeks - it's really (unsurprisingly maybe) my favorite part of running Au Retour, and one that can often get pushed to the side.  I find more and more I try to spend at least an hour each day in the studio fiddling around with something.  Its the moments that you aren't sure whether or how something might work out that can be the most fruitful and interesting, so I try to at least aim for that.  Here are a few images from around the studio.

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