jojotastic | category | look what i did

May 20, 2013

Yeah, that’s right… I designed a cabana for Anthropologie! Based on a vintage sample our buyer found, I drew artwork for the embroidery and had an absolute field day picking out the trims to create a fabric cover for a wooden frame. This is one of those projects that you tell your friends about, but no one quite gets it until it’s real.

While designing this piece, I envisioned being on vacation… maybe I’m ocean-side and want to enjoy the breeze off the sea, but without getting full sun exposure? With that in mind, I added sheer panels to the under-side of the cabana so that you could cinch the heavier top laying, thus allowing more air movement and a dreamy, floaty feeling!

The best part? During the design process, we kept calling it the “Joanna, Joanna cabana…” and then I would do a little salsa-inspired dance!

images via Anthropologie. You can see more of my designs here!

my latest design: the Spinnaker curtain for Anthropologie!

look what i did!

May 13, 2013

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home decor + interiors, look what i did

I have to admit… it’s a good day when something I’ve designed shows up in the Anthropologie catalog! It means that your product gets viewed by even more people and shown in an entirely different light than in the normal, studio-photographed way.

These sail-inspired Spinnaker Curtains are a good example. While the website shows the curtain close up and in a hand-drawn environment, nothing beats seeing it billowing in the breeze! I feel that this catalog shot really captures the open sheerness of the fabric while also showing off just how saturated the colors are. If I could, I’d give our catalog team a gold star for this!

PS – there’s a blue colorway, too!

Images via Anthropologie. You can see more of my designs here!

look what i did!

May 8, 2013

6 comments

home decor + interiors, look what i did

Despite my ability to kill all plants ever, garden pots are the some of my favorite things to design. There’s just so much to play with: scale, surface texture, color. For example, you see that yellow one? It’s massive… I’m talking tree-sized. Meanwhile, the polka dotted friends below are the perfect size for a single plant. There’s even a low dish, perfect for mini succulents. It’s not often that a designer gets to dabble in such a big range of scale!

These polka dotted minis are my favorites though. If I had more of a green thumb, I’d like them up on a deep window sill!

images via Anthropologie

look what i did!

May 1, 2013

2 comments

look what i did

Warning: there will be a few of these posts in the coming weeks! Summer product has hit stores and, I must admit, it’s a season of product that I truly loved designing. I have so much to share with you so let’s start with the Medersa Pillows.

Inspired by our design director’s trip to Bordrum, Turkey, each pillow features hand-drawn traditional susani motifs that are layered and cropped. Perhaps it’s because I’m Greek, but something about that trip inspiration really spoke to me! Picturing crisp cobalt and white boats cutting through the turqoise waters, I drew each motif on these pillows by hand, then used Photoshop to complete the layouts for each side.

Set against a pure white canvas base, I love the way the jewel-tone colors pop. Like these other pillows I did, they feature crewelwork embroidery and are completely reversible. This time around though, I tried to keep the backs a bit more modern and graphic, while letting the fronts be an ethnic punch for any decor.

images via Anthropologie

look what i did

April 15, 2013

5 comments

look what i did

It’s funny… the designs that I do for Anthropologie often veer far from my personal aesthetic, but they always make me so proud to say I did them. Actually, I think that is one of the things makes me a good designer: the ability to separate my own tastes from what my customer prefers. These dishtowels are a perfect example of the two influences. The print has an ethnic sensibility that mimics block-printed artwork, while the fabric is a super soft open weave. I personally am drawn to the top-notch material (I’m serious, you really need to go to a store and feel these!) and to the bold stripes of color, whereas the Anthropologie look is all about the printed artwork. I am so happy with the balance that these dishtowels achieve!

During the design process, these dishtowels were so popular, we decided to add a tablecloth as well. As soon as the sample came in, I was over the moon for it! Can’t you imagine sultry summer nights sipping ginger beer and playing cards around that table?

images via Anthropologie
links: dishtowels / tablecloth

Can’t get enough of me? Check out my newest post on Anthology today!

look what i did

March 29, 2013

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art of all kinds, home decor + interiors, look what i did

Have you shopped Anthropologie’s new arrivals for home lately? During the design process, we were having a bit of an ocean-inspired nautical moment and I couldn’t help myself while designing this Love Knots wallpaper. I was totally inspired by some of my favorite knots used when climbing, but also one very sweetly tied bow! I illustrated each knot and loop by hand, then layered in watercolor washes to make it super painterly. Then I added a touch of silver metallic to define the rope because you always need a little shine!

Be sure to check out my Love Knots Wallpaper for Anthropologie here!

images via Anthropologie

did you hear?

February 4, 2013

4 comments

look what i did, press

Exciting news! I am the newest contributor to the Anthology blog! I’ll be blogging twice a week about all kinds of things, including the Wandering Thoughts series. Click here to check out my first post where Anne Sage curates her top picks for a soulful, peaceful treat!

look what i did

January 31, 2013

6 comments

home decor + interiors, look what i did

The wait is over! I can finally share the absolute coolest things I have ever designed. Do I say that every time? But really though… look at them! During the design process, I took inspiration from the classic Thonet chair, but I wanted to give it a modern twist by making them really big, over the top, and grand. Believe me, this chair is an absolute throne!

images via Anthropologie: chair / bench

two really good things

January 15, 2013

5 comments

look what i did, two really good things

Ok, ok… maybe four really good things… These are the Half-Shell hand towels I designed for Anthropologie and I am obsessed with them. Ever since Marc sent eyelet down the runway, I knew it would be a huge trend. The challenge though is how to incorporate it into home product, aka my forté. These jacquard hand towels achieve that form/function balance — enough surface area where you could actually dry your hands, but just enough cutwork eyelet patterning to make your bathroom the most exciting room in the house. Now if only they’d dance, too…

images via Anthropologie

look what i did!

January 6, 2013

7 comments

home decor + interiors, look what i did

Pillows are one of my favorite things to design — they’re like mini works of art with tons of tiny little details. Oh, and the best part? They are reversible! It’s basically twice the canvas to cover with whatever I want. These are the Embroidered Bhangra Pillows I designed for Anthropologie, basically my most favorite pillows I’ve designed to date! The embroidery technique is called crewelwork and can become very traditional looking, but with these I wanted to mix it up with a jute base fabric and quirky, bright colors. Oh, one more thing, those tassels make me really, really happy.

photos via Anthropologie.
left: 22×22 pillow. right: 16×24 pillow.

PS – special shout out to Katie for showing me how to animate this post!

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