Monday, August 4, 2008

Fascinating Facts, Courtesy of HQ Galerie + Boutique

As I've mentioned at some length, the HQ shopping experience in Montreal recently was truly enjoyable. Regrettably, I wasn't able to meet Angie or Tyson, but Judy and Amanda were excellent ambassadors and the shop was just delish.

Cut to update: Here are a few things I've learned from Angie and the HQ blog over the past few days...

1. My shell necklace has this exciting tale to recommend it:

To give you a bit of the provenance of the necklace, it is in fact vintage, dead-stock to be precise (ie. never worn). But to me the charm in this piece comes from the amazing place I found it. The location is of course a secret, but the elderly gentleman who owns the store speaks very little english, and I speak very little french, (yet) we manage to get along wonderfully somehow and he pulls special things out of his back storage for me. This lovely necklace was one of those things. I'm estimating it's from the late 70's.

Don't you love this??

2. That painted T I bought is by a small line called Urban Pigeon. You can see some great photos of their handiwork, and learn more about their handpainted prints here.

3. And, finally, while we're on the topic of textiles, yesterday's HQ post may be of great interest to you crafty bloggers out there. Spoonflower is this company that will print you up any fabric you design with no minimum. Gotta love this digital age, huh? I mean, Angie talks this up so well that I want to start designing textiles!

9 comments:

  1. I'm so going to explore the textile design you cite. It's one of my secret passions!

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  2. The shopping in montreal is great, I miss it!!

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  3. Why would I not be surprised if you turned out to be an excellent textile designer?

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  4. I need to do this custom-fabric design. I really want a custom skirt, so why not do the fabric, too?

    I love the romantic nature of your shopping experience in the store with the quaint old man. How sweet.

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  5. Miss C: I thought of you when I read about it!

    Jen: I am going to find a way to get a loft in Old Mtl - or a pied a terre at Mile End. Somehow, it will happen.

    Suzanna: That is such a sweet comment. Seriously. My husband is all over me to "start a fashion line" (he doesn't really understand how it works and he just assumes I can draw, design, cut, sew, market, show and merchandise. It's kind of flattering in its craziness!) I say, why not start here:-)

    E: You have to do it. What a great post that would make. Oh, and I love those stories that give you the substance behind the item. It is romantic. Perfectly put.

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  6. Objects with stories are so much more valuable, even if they cost next to nothing. I love the story of your necklace. Bet you'll think of it every time you fasten the clasp!

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  7. What a wonderful story to go with your piece. It's great to know the history of things we own.

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  8. Sal / Rebecca: For me, knowing the backstory (while not critical) is so desirable. I will think about it everytime I flip the clasp! It enables me to contextualize myself in the life of another thing...

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