Those of you who are frequent readers of my blog may be wondering where I have been. So have I! Beginning in January, I traveled to Frankfurt, Dublin, Frankfurt again, Paris, Las Vegas, New York and Frankfurt for a third time—all in about 30 days. I attended trade shows, developed the themes for trend exhibits for one of the European trade fairs, spoke six times in Europe, again at the Las Vegas Market and the New York International … [Read more...]
Having Fun in D.C.
November 23, 2007 By
I was not at work today. And I was not out shopping. I am enjoying a fabulous Thanksgiving get-away with my family in Washington, DC. I have done nothing but visit sites and museums, non-stop for two days. Yesterday, we walked to the White House, the Lincoln Memorial and Washington Monument, the WWII Memorial and the Vietnam Memorial (so moving!). Our final stop was to see the Edward Hopper exhibit at the National Gallery of … [Read more...]
Trend Talk in Dublin
November 8, 2007 By
I am at the end of an amazing week of work in Ireland. I have been busy,giving trend seminars and workshops to craftspeople and retailers of craft products in Drogheda and Leitrim. Both places have a delightful craft community. And each has a community shop dedicated to local craft products. A picture of the products at Craftmark, where I visited with the staff in Drogheda, is included. Take a peek at the lovely vases on the left … [Read more...]
Dinner with Wolfgang Puck
October 24, 2007 By
I had a delightful time tonight with friends at 20 • 21, Wolfgang Puck’s restaurant and bar at the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis. The food was great and the company was fun. These are things I fully expected to enjoy when Editorial Correspondent to The Trend Curve John Currie extended an invitation to dine out. But what I did not expect (although John knew) was that Mr. Puck himself would be there. Wolfgang Puck was nothing short … [Read more...]
Colin Powell – AND ME!
March 20, 2007 By
I have subscribed to hfn for years and read as much of it as I can or am interested in every time it shows up in my mailbox. I was paging through the March 19 issue this morning when I saw an article about the Hunter Douglas International Alliance Conference, which will be held in Denver this July. The team at HD asked me to speak at this event months ago, and I am hard at work on my presentation. Already, the number of confirmed … [Read more...]
200 People
January 22, 2007 By
I am both exhausted and energized. I spoke to 200 or so people today, presenting my forecasts for 2007 and 2008 (depending on the audience) to three groups at Showcase, Ireland. I am taking a short break at the hotel to regroup before I head out again. Tonight I will attend an event sponsored by Enterprise Ireland at the National Museum of Ireland. This will be the only piece of Ireland, apart from the trade fair, that I will get to see … [Read more...]
Eco-Chic, Moody Blues
January 21, 2007 By
Yesterday I traveled from Minneapolis to Amsterdam on the 9pm flight. Leaving so late, I thought I would sleep like a baby. I was wrong. I slept not at all. After a delay of more than an hour due to high winds, I went on to Dublin, Ireland. Once again, no sleep. I arrived at my charming hotel call Butler’s Townhouse, located in Ballsbridge. I was so tired I could hardly see straight. How delightful that they got me to my room, brought … [Read more...]
Showcase, Ireland
January 21, 2007 By
I have never attended Showcase before. It is an artisan trade fair in Dublin, Ireland that is a real delight. There are hundreds of craftspeople here, showing their creativity in materials like pottery and porcelain, wood and paper, metal and wool. There is tableware and lighting, greeting cards and clothing, throws and pillows. It’s an interesting mix, housed in the RDS (Royal Dublin Society) building just a few blocks walk from my … [Read more...]
Snoopy at the Manger
December 28, 2006 By
We returned just last night from Ft. Lauderdale where Steve, Alex and I visited our daughter Biz for a couple of days. We loved the area where she is staying, which has lots of tucked-away suburban neighborhoods with well-cared-for houses, neatly manicured hedges and lovely trees. Lots of people had decorated their yards and homes for the Holidays. It was a hoot to see lengths of fabric “snow” on Florida lawns that were also … [Read more...]
Student Follow-up
November 10, 2006 By
I have received two thank-you emails from students who attended our San Francisco roundtable discussion after the talk I gave for design professionals at the San Francisco Mart last week (see prior post). It was delightful to hear from them! One of them wrote a longer message, asking me if I thought any new jobs would emerge over the next few years. I replied that taking sustainability seriously was going to require positions and … [Read more...]
