Cinzia Ruggieri of Tictoctac interview

I like the stories Cinzia tells in her prints, I can somehow sense the Sicilian roots we have in common.

Who are you?

I’m Cinzia, Italian. I live under a volcano in a seaside town, with my husband, son and daughter. 
I draw and write stories. I travel a lot especially with my imagination.
Tictoctac is one of my trips from which to send postcards to tell about some of the stories I come across every day. 

Describe yourself in 3 words.

Dreamer, curious, quiet.

As a child you were? 

I was very quiet, often reading. Sometimes acting, singing and dancing with my brother. Creating dramatic and adventurous stories, wearing some of my mother’s old clothes.
I loved to listen to adults telling stories about themselves and their lives.

When you wake up in the morning?

I start my day very early with one hour of home gym or running, then a shower and a good breakfast: a pleasure recently conquered since the children are grown.

When you go to sleep?

Normally I’m very tired and often I fall asleep on the couch.

What inspire you? 

My dreams, details of everyday life and work.

Your home is? 

A place shared with my family, often busy. A place to be with others, where we eat together and chat. 

Your working space is? 

A quiet space hidden in a garden, in my grandparents old home,with big windows, so full of light and silence. I worked for many years at home, so now is really fantastic to have this place where I feel totally in my own world.

How do you relax?
By taking long walks, listening to music and…ironing!

You admire?

Good people.

Favourite things?

Art, travelling, good food with friends and dancing.

Best place you have ever been?

Faro, part of the Island of Gotland, Sweden and London.

Best food you have ever tasted? 

Hard question for an Italian…but, a part of my food, I loved a vegetarian thai food eaten in Amsterdam.

What is your dream?

Long trips, months and months, aimlessly, just for the pleasure of living in different places.

The oddest or funny thing you ever did?

I participated to a dancing marathon in a hotel, in Tarnov, Poland. My husband and I lasted very little but it was really fun and everything seemed so surreal.

Thank you Cinzia.

Cinzia will contribute with Tictoctac prints and postcards at the Knots Collective pop up shop.

Tictoctac Limited Editions

*All photos by Cinzia Ruggieri

  

Sarah Andersen of fen and ned interview

I start the week with Sarah's (aka fen) interview. This Monday reminds me of her, the pale greyish blue sky, the fresh air and the breeze of this September Monday. Sarah not only is the mind behind one of my favourite on-line shop, she's also a silver-smith. I haven't met her in person yet but sometimes we spend hours on the phone and we always have a good laugh.
Ned is her daughter and she's the muse behind fen and ned.

Who are you?

My name is Sarah, I'm 38, and I live with my daughter 'ned' who is 18 years old. We have a dog called Sam.

I'm originally from South London, but moved to the Isle of Wight five years ago.  

I started fen and ned in 2009.

As a child you were?

Always drawing.
How does your day start?

Dazed and confused mostly! I like to wake up early, but I can't usually string a sentence together for at least an hour.

The day will start rain or shine with me on my bike taking Sam out for his run. Back home for breakfast, some quick chores, then work begins around 9am.

When you go to sleep?

Before I can settle, I have to make a list of things to do the next day. The list always includes things from previous nights lists that were not done, so it ends up looking more like a scroll really!

The nights that ned is at home, she'll usually come in to my room and we'll chat and have a good laugh until about 2, 3 in the morning. Other nights, I'll listen to music to switch off from the day.

Your home is?

Always my favourite place, wherever it is, I have moved a lot, 23 times. The house that I've been renting for the past 2 years is the longest that we've lived in one place since ned was 3. We used to enjoy moving, we moved to France twice over the years, but nowadays we're too tired!

Me and ned have lived on our own for the past 15 years, and we both like our own space. We are very similar in a lot of our ways, except for I'm much tidier than ned.

We also like a lot of the same things, so our home has a lot of books, camera gear, records, and possibly too many plants.

How do you relax?

Anything to do with gardening, reading about it, a trip to the garden centre, listening to gardeners question time on radio 4 even though I don't understand the half of what is being said, it always relaxes me! Also in my local town is a shop that only sells vinyl records, it's packed from  floor to ceiling with them, the shop has a really relaxed atmosphere, and hours pass by looking through the records on a Saturday afternoon.

Favourite things?

The camera that used to belong to my dad, the bottle of perfume that used to belong to my mum, good memories, and ned's company.

Best place you have ever been?

For beauty, Cape Town. For fun, Disney Paris with ned.

What is your dream?

To visit all the places in Europe that I would love to see.

Thank you Sarah.

Sarah will contribute to the knots collective pop up with Fog Linens products and her jewellery.

fen and ned

*All photos by Sarah Andersen.

Renilde De Peuter of At Swim-Two-Birds interview

It doesn't happen every day to meet someone to whom you feel a deep connection.
Renilde is one of those persons that make me feel that way, when I met her in person I had the impression that I always knew her.
She's one great person and artist, enjoy the interview!

Who are you?
Hello, I’m Renilde. I live and work in Antwerp and crafting is my greatest passion.
I’m also a collector; as I collected insects as a child, I’m collecting now with the same
ardour all kind of stuff, mainly from the thrift store and charity shops.

Three words to describe yourself:

I’m an absent-minded, daydreaming homebody

As a child you were?

Doing the same things as I do now, only I do not roller skate, climb trees and make

shooting bows any more

I used to be a real tomboy, I hunged my bra in the walnut tree because it bothered while playing

and at the same time I was a very girlish crafter, fantasizing about my dowry and my future husband and walking on mum’s high heels.

When do you wake up in the morning…?
I’m very slowly and I like having my pyjamas on for a while, drinking tea, relaxing. 

When you go to sleep...?
I love to crawl in bed when the sheets are freshly washed, bliss.

Your home is? 

The most important thing for me, it has to be bright and cosy and inviting to create.
I love to cook and invite friends to come and have dinner, I feel at my best in small
groups with quietly rippling conversations and good food&music.
Tell me about your working space.
My working space is my living room, I also work in the kitchen and the bedroom serves
as storage; it is filled with yarns and fabric and a loom, I have another loom in the
living room, so my place is messy but cosy messy, I like that.
I need this cosiness to be creative, it’s also quiet here, very important.
I’ve always dreamed of a place like that where I live now, so I’m very lucky and grateful. 
What inspire you?
I think the stuff that’s in my head is my greatest inspiration; it can be both images or
stories or a dream, sometimes I’m inspired by a phrase or even a single word.
I’m inspired by history, memories, nature, the sunlight, the cosmos… actually by
everything around me.
I’m addicted to pretty things too.
How do you relax?
Crochet and going to the movies are top of my list of most relaxing things, but when I
need an energy boost, then laughing is the most effective.
I love to watch desperate housewives after a day of work.

You admire?
People who get the best out of anything. I admire inspiring and talented people.
And wisdom and tolerance.

Favourite things?
I love cacti and succulents and woods and trees, I love the smell of the poplar on rainy
days, I love fossils and dino’s, even when they’re plastic, I love reading history and
secret hideaways.
I love art and books and cats.
I love to see how my plants grow
I love the morning light and in the evening when the dust and small insects reflect the
sunlight.
I love the sea and the sequoia tree.
I love taking pictures and laughter.
I love high heels and pretty dresses, I love the sun&moon and my yellow skirt and
vanilla ice cream.
I love flowers and ikebana and lovely vases.
And also flea markets and charity shops and funny people etc…. etc…

Best place you have ever been?
I love being in the woods when the mushrooms are growing and everything is quiet.

Best food you have ever tasted?
I love Mediterranean food

What's your dream?

to make a living of my creative work and make fun the whole day, but I fear this is a
rather childish desire.
Actually I long for peace of mind.
Thank you Renilde.
Renilde will contribute to Knots Collective Pop Up Shop with her textiles and mobiles 

At Swim-Two-Birds

*All photos by Renilde De Peuter

how september started

September is my favourite month of the year so far.

The only photo I took of Fanja is when we finally sat down to eat, I was doing this while waiting...

She gave me that lovely basket, I like it very much, I had one like this when I was a kid. 

The light on my studio's wall.

More vintage for the shop.

School has started but we make the most of the nice weather (she's just learnt to do handstands!)

Images 1-2-3-7-8 Instagram

 

Virginie of Mi-avril interview

Another talented French woman and her poetic creations, it's a pleasure to discover a bit more about her...

Who are you?

My name is Virginie. I studied interior design at the Olivier de Serres School of Applied Arts in Paris, and textile design in Lyon (France). Today I am a free lance textile designer. I draw patterns for interior design, fashion and stationery in collaboration with design studios.

I launched my own brand, Mi-avril, poetical and decorative objects for the home. 

Describe yourself in three words.

Creative, sensitive, discreet.

As a child you were? 

I was a shy child ( I still am). I loved to draw and play, especially draw...I was already creating decorative patterns.

When you wake up in the morning...? 

Waking up is not my favourite moment of the day, I’m not an early bird… but I must do it ! So, first I eat breakfast and always drink an orange juice (it's fresh and it do wake me up!), next, in my studio, I read my emails and browse some of my favourites blogs and get inspired for the day.

When you go to sleep...?

When I go to sleep I often think about my projects and sometimes I have new ideas. If I find solutions I get up to write a note so I don't forget the day after.
What inspire you?

Inspiration comes from all that is around me. I like particularly the details of the flowers and the green plants, the ranges of colours seen in the streets or the landscapes discovered during my travels...

You home is?

My home is a flat in a 1960’s building. We've been renovating it for more than one year now. I hope  we will finish the works soon. What we like the most is the view on the Pyrenees, when the sky is clear we can see them.

Tell me about your working space.

I work in the smallest room of my flat. It’s a little studio that I painted all in white to make it look bigger. On one side there's my computer to work on patterns, on the other side my sewing machine and the materials I need to create my garlands.

How do you relax?

I like to cook and test new recipes, I find it relaxing and creative.

I love to take photographs, but I would like to practice more often in everyday life.

My boyfriend and I like to leave the city during the weekends, we like to go hiking in the Pyrenees or to the seaside. It’s a way to clear our heads.

Favourite things?

My camera :)

I love meringues.. I like pudding in general.
Best place you have ever been?

In Sweden: wild camping near a lake, just us, nature and silence.

Best food you have ever tasted?

I remember a Thai restaurant in San Francisco, a delicious pizza with zucchinis in Rome and tasty cinnamon rolls in Stockholm!

And I fondly remember my grandmother’s cakes..

What's your dream?

I dream of a bigger studio where I have space for making and dyeing my own paper or printing my own fabric. And it would be a space shared with other designers to make great projects together.

Thank you Virginie.

Virginie's paper garlands and postcards will be at Knots Collective pop up shop.

Maize-Mi avril

*All photos by Virginie