05-09-09
Grow House Grow
Brooklyn based Grow House Grow specializes in hand printed wallpaper with a narrative twist. Each collection features an array of wallpapers inspired by stories of murdered frontier women to bunnies in the back yard. They’re currently featured in this year’s Brooklyn Designs, going on this weekend.
05-03-09
Interview: Vanessa Bertozzi
I’m very excited to publish our first Melon Made Interview with a dear friend and inspiring creative force, Vanessa Bertozzi. Editor of the Etsy.com blog, filmmaker and world traveler, she gives us a little peak into the world that is Etsy and what it means to live handmade.
Tell us a little about yourself, and what you do.
Hi there! I’m Vanessa Bertozzi. I grew up in the countryside outside of Providence, RI, and when I was little I not only loved horses, I wanted to BE a horse. Now that I’m in Brooklyn, I miss the green but I don’t know miss having to drive a car around. I walk to work and that has become an essential part of my daily routine. I have the hugest, warmest 12 lb coat meant for the arctic and that has become an essential part of my winter work walk.
I’ve been working for Etsy.com for almost 2 and a half years and I love it very much. Etsy is an online marketplace where you can buy handmade items from the people who make them and vintage items from indie purveyors. It’s also a community of creative people who help each other out, have interesting discussions, and who are ‘livin la vida etsy.’ I run the Etsy blog (http://blog.etsy.com) with a fantastically talented group of people… Read more…
02-24-09
Roebling Tea Room
Sometimes the gems you stumble upon by chance are the best and brightest ones. After a trip to Black Betty in Willy-b proved fruitless, our party made their way one block over to the Roebling Tea Room for a birthday dinner. The ambiance of this spot alone will have me calling again, but the food is amazing to boot. Highly reccommend the carrot & ginger soup if they have it on special, and sea bass & trout items from the menu had smiles going all around. Plus their impressive tea list lives up to the restaurant’s name. Go do it!
02-22-09
Cara Osborn
The work of Cara Osborn is a mix between the supremely surreal and the extremely life like. While her prints are available online, I don’t think the site does these detailed works justice. I saw her stuff at the Brooklyn Flea, Dumbo. Highly suggest you see them in person, really beautiful stuff.
02-20-09
Mast Brothers Chocolate
A chocolate renaissance seems to be underfoot in NYC. More and more chocolatiers are popping up, and the old standbys are quickly adapting to the growing market. Mast Brothers Chocolate just opened their doors in Williamsburg, and are the only bean to bar chocolate makers in the city. I’m willing to try, from the looks of their photo, they’re serious about their sweets.
02-16-09
Faile
“Our process of creating work involves synthesizing images to create visually visceral experiences, very similar to the way a DJ samples beats to create an audible experience.” Behold the work of the Brooklyn based art & design collective, Faile.
02-15-09
Erie Basin
Nothing beats a trip down to Red Hook Brooklyn on an almost-spring type of day. After brunching at Hope & Anchor, Key Lime Pie-ing it at Steve’s Authentic and grabbing a brew at Ice House, I came across Erie Basin, the best curiosities shop that side of the BQE. Great antique and unique jewelry, furniture and folk art, the highly curated collection lives up to the name and deserves a trip back. A gem within a gem of a neighborhood.
12-06-08
Cog & Pearl
This is an oldie, but goodie. Cog & Pearl has been a staple in Park Slope Brooklyn for years now, but it’s worth noting that they continuously provide shoppers with the best in hand and locally made wares, and as aesthetics go, their store ensures one of the most plesant shopping experiences on the 5th ave strip. Really, I keep going back.
