The Salisbury Collection Launch!

November 19, 2015 Ninel Studio

I am so excited to announce the launch of my first handmade pillow collection, The Salisbury Collection. Salisbury is a town in Massachusetts (north of Boston) and the location of one of my favorite beaches in Massachusetts. The collection consists of 10 one of a kind pillows. Each pillow was handmade with an impeccable amount of attention to detail. They are made of 100% linen; in a blog post a couple of weeks ago I explain why after much testing linen was my fabric of choice. They also feature an invisible zipper which gives each pillow an elegant and clean look.

Each and every pillow in this collection was designed and created from a very thoughtful place, although a few of them were experiments that turned out beautifully, others were hand sketched beforehand. I used a (modern version) of an ancient Japanese technique called Shibori which calls for specific methods of folding, pleating and pole wrapping to achieve the beautiful and organic patterns. I came across this technique while I was doing research for my grad school thesis and fell so much in love with it that I have not looked back.

The actual collection has been completed for about 2-3 months now - I needed to take some time to work up the courage to finally launch. While launching something I have put so much time, love and effort into is SO exciting it is also really scary. Scared of what you may ask? I am not exactly sure what I am scared/nervous for but in my heart of hearts I know that there is absolutely no other excuse I can give myself to not launch and I also know there will never be a perfect day or time to pull the trigger.

I hope you take a look at the shop and let me know what you think!

5 TIPS TO GET BETTER SLEEP AT NIGHT

November 12, 2015 Ninel Studio

Our lives can get kind of crazy and when that happens there are two things that in my experience tend to go array very quickly and that is eating habits and sleeping habits. There are a few simple habits we can create in our everyday lives that will help us get a better night’s sleep. As always, creating new habits takes time so I suggest incorporating these into your lives one at a time and putting your best foot forward in terms of sticking to the habit. You will be glad you did once you have reached your goal!

set an alarm to go to bed

Yep, you read that right! I know (from firsthand experience) that we can get easily distracted in the evenings. Think: Netflix, Hulu, Instagram, Pinterest, etc. – you get the drift. My point is that if we are not conscious about it our evenings will fly by and before we know it its 10PM and time to prepare to the next day. So, setting an alarm to be in bed by will keep you accountable with how you spend your time in the evenings.

avoid exercising 4 hours before bedtime

Regularly exercising has amazing benefits on your body (and mental) wellbeing, BUT, exercising late in the evening can come in between you and a good night’s sleep. I have especially noticed this if I do some type of cardio workout but not as much if I do Yoga or light Pilates.

ditch the caffeine after lunch

This is a tough one for me during our extreme seasons (summer and winter) – on the (very few) hot summer days I will give in and have an iced latte and on the (very many) cold winter days I get the urge to drink a hot cup of coffee in the afternoon. While I have not solved for the summer days iced latte urge I have done a pretty good job at eliminating coffee in the afternoons during winter by replacing my coffee with a cup of decaf tea. I have never been much of a tea drinker; however, I am learning to appreciate it more and more these days.

spray your sheets

There are certain natural scents that are very calming and relaxing like lavender, chamomile, vanilla and ylang-ylang. My favorite is lavender or a lavender-vanilla blend. You can easily make your own calming mixtureto spray your sheets a few minutes before getting into bed by mixing a few drops of essential oils (can be found in pharmacies or grocery stores) into a spray bottle.

white noise

Having some type of white noise on at night can do wonders for your sleep because it will help tune out noises (cars, dogs and/or people) that can wake you up at night. I have a air purifier that not only purifies my air but also serves as white noise - double win! Another option is to search white noise on YouTube and you will come across videos that are 8-10 hours long.

WHY IT IS IMPORTANT TO SUPPORT SMALL BUSINESSES AND BUY HANDMADE ITEMS

November 5, 2015 Ninel Studio

Handmade items have had a huge upsurge in the last few years and for many good reasons – unless you live under a rock I am positive you have taken notice! I believe that (finally!) more and more people are grasping the negative effects that companies who mass produce items are having on economies all around the world and the ecosystem. This realization is allowing people to look at other more sustainable options when making their purchases <insert handmade>. In a post a few weeks ago I touch upon the negative side of items that are mass produced – Buying High Quality Fabric & 3 Easy Tips to Care for Cotton – check it out!

I have friends and family who do not fully understand the reasons behind buying hand made products because they cannot get past the price tag and on some level I get it. Handmade products are more expensive than their mass produced counterparts but there is a very good reason for that. Not only are they unique but they have superior craftsmanship and are more environmentally sustainable.

I did not understand the rave around it until I did my grad school thesis on the handmade industry two years ago. The thesis opened my eyes to the vast world of handmade items (in particular to Etsy!). I focused my thesis on female owned small handmade businesses and not only did I feel empowered by the business savvy these female business owners had I also realized the greatness in handmade products. Below I’ll share three reasons I believe handmade products are important.

Uniqueness

Have you ever walked in to a restaurant or a party and notice that at least one more person is wearing the same exact shoes or dress or handbag? It has happened to me before! And while it is not as bad as some people make it seem it has made me think how “generic” my wardrobe is - there is not much special about it. However, if you were to have a beautifully handmade handbag not only will you stand out of the crowd but I can almost guarantee that someone will ask you where you purchased it from – which can lead to an awesome conversation!

Craftsmanship

Since handmade items are made in very small batches and typically finished off one-by-one the quality of them is much, much better than anything you can purchase in your usual big box store. The level of attention to detail that is given to each and every item is beyond outstanding. That is the type of product you want to put your hard earned money towards.

SustainabILITY

As mentioned above handmade items are made is very small batches or one-by-one this in turn makes for an environmentally sustainable practice. Many artists who make and sell handmade goods purchase their supplies right from their local communities. That alone is environmentally sustainable and is very commendable.

These are just a few of the reasons why buying hand made products and supporting small businesses is important on many levels. With holiday shopping right around I really do encourage you to keep handmade and local options in mind! Happy shopping!

Are you a handmade supporter? If so, what drew you in to the handmade industry?

4 TYPES OF LIGHT BULBS AND HOW TO LIGHT YOUR HOME

October 29, 2015 Ninel Studio

We all know that lighting really sets the mood for any environment. Think about the lighting you encounter when you go out to dinner, for example, if you go to a fine Italian restaurant chances are that the lighting is dim and sets off a warm atmosphere but if you go to a casual pizza restaurant the lights are likely to be brighter and set off cooler atmosphere. My point here is that the lighting in your home definitely has an impact on the atmosphere.

Some of you may have the benefit of living in a home that has a lot of natural light (this has been in my wish list for years!). I live in a garden level apartment where I get virtually no natural light. For full disclosure I could get some natural light if I opened the shades but I do not really want passerby’s looking through my windows! So, the next best option for me is to switch out the lighting throughout my apartment to liven up my place.

Light Bulb Round Up

Here I have summarized 4 of the most common types of light bulbs you will come across when light bulb shopping:

LEDs | Light-emitting diodes are the newest options we have in terms of light bulbs and what is great about them is that LED lights use a fraction of the wattage other types of bulbs require. In other words you will save money overtime if you switch to these light bulbs. Why overtime? Well, they are pricier than your other options, but for good reason.

CFLs | Compact fluorescent lights were all the hype a few years ago (at least it was in my parents’ house!). These light bulbs were great until studies showed that their life expectancy dramatically decreased if they were shut on and off frequently.

Incandescents | These are your old fashioned light bulbs where the electricity that is powered through the bulb heats it up to the point that the filament glows into a light.

Halogens | These bulbs are slightly more efficient than the incandescent bulbs because there is actual halogen inside the little tube that holds the filament. What this gas does is that it allows the used up gas to remain usable to a longer period of time.

How to Light Your Home

Now that you have an idea of the different options you have to light your home you can start to think about how you’ll implement light. I am slowly converting all of my bulbs to LED for a few reasons. Like mentioned above they will save energy and money overtime, they are brighter and they are a newer technology (I’m a sucker for new things!).

There are two main types of atmospheres you may want to incorporate into your home – ambient or productive. I like both and like to have both options and in order to achieve both options I like the dimmer lights – bless the person who invented these! Most homes have the regular on/off light switches, if your home has these, you will need to install (or have installed) dimmer light switches. These are relatively inexpensive; you can find good options that range between 20-30 dollars at your local hardware store. Of course, there are fancier options, but they basic ones will cut it for me.

Also, if you do convert to LED lights it is important to note that not all LED bulbs have that capability so look for the bulbs that say “dimmable” on the packaging. On that same note, not all dimmer light switches are compatible with LED bulbs so if you do install these make sure the ones you purchase are compatible with the bulbs you decide to go with.

There you have it! Lights in your home have a power to create any mood you want. Like I mentioned in the beginning of this post, my apartment is pretty dark and I absolutely love bright and open atmospheres – this is why I need bright lights in my home and why I chose to go with LEDs.