Jump High

A Monday morning, especially after a nice long weekend, is hardly a time to be jumping high with enthusiasm, but I'm going all out and hoping this is going to be a great week!

{Photo: National Geographic}

Suno + Warby Parker

So you know I like SUNO (fine, obsessed might be the more appropriate word) and I'm one eye-doctor appointment away from a pair of new Warby Parker glasses because everyone I know whose gotten a pair looks fabulous and a new prescription certainly calls for new glasses, right?!? So it goes without saying that the combination of SUNO plus Warby Parker can be nothing less than amazing as these sunglasses prove!
{Photos: Warby Parker}

Major Ayor

Isn't this a major shot of Sudanese model Ayor Makur Chuot?! Her complexion, the beautiful kelly green and the blinging top take this image over the edge for me!

{Photo: Beauty is Diverse}

Drink to Africa

What happens when you combine beautiful design with a little philanthropy? Well we all know that many wonderful things can happen, but today I'm talking about Bib & Sola where these handcrafted Murano carafes and glasses are made. Besides just providing you with a gorgeous way to store and drink a cool glass of water, 10-20 percent of your purchase goes to the ONE Foundation to build water pump systems in Malawi and provide clean water members of those communities. I can totally drink to that!

{Photos: Bib & Sola}

Couch of Wax

Oh yeah - the orange couch just goes so perfectly with all these wax cushions....even the shoes fit the picture!

{Photo: House to Home}

Through the Lens: Mwanzo Millinga

I never tire of photos depicting the lives of albinos throughout Africa, and Tanzanian photographer Mwanzo Milinga has done a remarkable job at this task. I saw these images prior to reading the text about the photographer and instantly found myself drawn to the use of the frames within the shots.  I later learned that Milinga give the frames to the subjects as a representation of the restrictions they often face in life. The subjects were allowed to hold the frame in whichever way they wanted and clearly some of these poses are amazing! I love that even something as simple as holding up a frame allows the subject to insert a bit of their own personality and creativity into the image.

{Photos: Photoquai}

What to Carry

Sometimes I think I'm so accustomed to images of African woman carrying a bucket or bundle on her head (and maybe a baby on her back), that this image really took me by surprise. But given all the things people seem to be able to balance on their heads, why shouldn't this Sudanese guy carry a bed!

{Photo: The Lens - New York Times}

Zapiro: Jiving with Madiba

One of the most fun and surprising exhibits I saw while in Cape Town was the Zapiro: Jiving with Madiba exhibit at the South African Jewish Museum. Jonathan Shapiro, a native Capetonian, Shapiro started drawing at an early age and knew early on that being a cartoonist was the path from him. While Shapiro could have been like many of the cartoonist out in the world (i.e. making amazing work but not being noticed), he rose to national fame starting in the late 1980s through his political cartoons depicting Nelson Mandela. Throughout the transition to democracy and the entire years of Mandela's presidency, Shapiro documented South African political history in a way to brought humor to and provided a common ground for all his fellow citizens during a most challenging period. The exhibit showcases Shapiro's documentation of Mandela from his years on Robben Island, throughout his Mandela's and his life as a retiree. It's probably the only art exhibit I've been to where you and all those viewing just walking around laughing in full volume from cartoon strip to cartoon strip!

{Photos: Jonathan Shapiro}

Adire Collection

A Peace Treaty has been on my radar forever because I'm obsessed with their products. Their Adire collection is an ode to the patterns found in these tradition designs by Yoruba women. In addition to a healthy dose of indigo, these cotton/silk scarves also are available in soft pinks, greys, and rust.

Also check out their Les Coeurs Collection of cashmere scarves that are beyond jaw-dropping!

{Photos: A Peace Treaty}

WDC2014 Cape Town

Yup - the World Design Capital (WDC) for 2014 is indeed Cape Town!

What is WDC? 

• For those who aren't in the "know" (umm...like me until a few days ago), WDC is like the Olympics or the World Cup but for design and minus the separate pot of money for new projects, is held every two years instead of four,  and has good design as it's focus.
• The idea is that a city gets this honor because they are already busting out really cool design related stuff, and by getting named the "World Design Capital" all the design related powers that be will now shine their spotlight on Cape Town and all the cool stuff that is being designed down there.

Why it matters?

• Serious no-brainer!  A city in the motherland gets this huge honor hot on the heels of hosting the first World Cup on the continent.
• Tons of South African (and other Africans who reside in Cape Town) will have that much more of an opportunity for people around the world to see how hot design from the continent really is.

Why does Brandie care?

• First: This award isn't just "ohh, let's see what pretty things South Africans can make"! Instead, the focus is really on how design can be used for social, cultural and economic development. Who can argue against design being used as a vehicle and medium through which lives are improved?
• Second: Cape Town is planning to seriously focus on using design to reconnect communities separated by apartheid. How awesome is that?!? 2014 will be the 20th anniversary since the end of such a sad historical legacy and I think design is such an awesome way to bring people together and highlight how they are connected rather than divided! 

To find out more about what this is all about and how the city and design community is going to rise to this occasion, check out Cape Town 2014. Better still, head on down to Cape Town and see what all the fuss is about! Just be prepared to be really sad once you get home!

{Photo: Cape Town 2014}

L'Occitane in Africa

So I don't know who is that Africa champion over at L'Occitane but I'm so in favor of that person(s)! First there is the packaging which immediately stands out in this wintry climate. Inspired by the bogolan cloth traditional to Mali, the design team at L'Occitane added some vibrant colors that seem to inspire a "spring will be here soon" vibe! Once the packaging has the products firmly in your grasp, you open up the hand lotion or lip balm and smell the heavenly scents of Africa. Desert Rose hails from the perfumed deserts of Morocco while Egyptian Hibicus comes from, you guessed it - Egypt! Cocoa flower hails from Ivory Coast and their original shea butter keeps it's roots, but also gets caught up in the beautiful new packaging! Considering how much I was loved their Frangipani hand lotion last winter, it goes without saying that I'm going to need to seriously stock up!

{Photos: L'Occitane}

Skinny Tea Towel

Over the years, I've been a big fan of Heather Moore's designs over at Skinny Laminx so you can only image my surprise to find her stall, with her working her wares, while I was at the Neighborhood Market at Old Biscuit Mill (so much more on that later)! Not only was it wonderful to finally see all these wonderful designs in person, but it was great to meet the person behind so much creativity!

Needless to say, this fun, quirky tea towel is now adding so flavor to my little kitchen!

{Photos: Skinny Laminx}