winter 2011 collection inspiration

I've been dreaming of living in Rhode Island ever since I visited when I was seven or eight years old.  There is just something about the cliffs, the hanging fog, the monochromatic feel, and that piscine sting that takes me to my happy place.  And I don't know if it's the fact that it's always sunny and 70 in Los Angeles, but I am craving some wintery weather.  As I impatiently wait for my fiancé Taniel's transfer to Boston, while excessively listening to Bon Iver and running the A/C, I've been trying to shape the Perenboom winter collection organically.  By daydreaming about a snowy New England coastline.  Ghostly harbors, whipping winds, gray skies, all dolloped with brightly colored winter birds.

And for some reason, the word mystic has been popping up in my life lately, so I'm taking it as a sign that:

- I need to move relatively close to Mystic, CT, as my dearest friend Kellan insisted.  He lives in Cambridge, Mass and we've got plane tickets to see his handsome face in October.  Perfect weather for gathering inspiration!

- Heliodor (Beryl) must be involved.  What could possibly be more mystic than a stone that never retains its original color.

- A ghostly pallet with splashes of random color is a possibilty

With all those things in mind, I've developed this preliminary inspiration board for the Perenboom Winter Collection 2011.  I really love the thought of winter bird colors on natural knits.  I'm not so sure about the addition of Navajo art...though I love it, I'm not sure it really fits in.

welcome

I'm going to start this blog by telling you a little bit about Perenboom.  The name originated from the crisp, clean taste of slightly unripe pear and a love for the simple and line conscious renderings of the Dutch.  Perenboom is about natural fibers, impeccable construction, simplistic silhouettes, anthropological artifacts, and environmental textiles.  It's my pet project and I couldn't be more excited (scared, overwhelmed, anxious) about developing my first ever Perenboom collection for Winter 2011.  There will be handknits catering to a functional and yoga-friendly lifestyle, basics for everyday wear, and accessories from a time before modernization.  While the shapes, knits, seams, and dreams come together (or fall apart), this blog will serve as Perenboom's story.  Handwritten by me, in my tiny West Hollywood apartment studio and hopefully soon-to-be from the foggy, frigid New England coastline.