Monthly Archives: September 2017

Kinetic Store Design | The new trend in VM

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Lets put it in motion! As retail spaces are getting smaller, designers have to be more and more creative about what to do with all of the store’s product. The new design trend is building up, kinetically. Stores are bringing their displays to life while maximizing space in a small square footage. Conveyor belts and moving clothing rails are automated and add an entertainment factor. Going beyond that, displays can also hold stock in the ceiling area to free up premium floor space below.

Here are a few examples of the coolest kinetic stores right now

MCM’s latest concept store in Seoul has a conveyor belt, touch screen installations, and robotic displays.

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MCM

Aether store in San Fran stacked 3 shipping containers on top of each other and created a conveyor system to carry stock between all 3 floors.

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Aether

Dolce & Gabanna used kinetic design in creating a ceiling that can descend to create a special VIP room within the space.

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D&G

Our favorite! Check out this moving display on our Insta @designworksinternational from Descente Blanc in Tokyo. They created a unique stock display system that can be lowered depending on what the shopper is looking for. This same practice can also be found in their larger Fukuoka Store, creating a striking visual impact.

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Descente Blanc // Tokyo

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Descente Blanc // Fukuoka

 

Hope you got your daily dose of trend inspiration!

In the name of print & pattern,

DW

Hurricane Relief for Texas & Florida

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Everyone, we did it! Today, we are sending out everything we collected the past week and a half to Texas (The Texas Diaper Bank) & Florida (The Diaper Bank of Central Florida). We are really proud to see our artists and clients come together and make an impact. A big thank you to Kathleen Winton for hand-making over 15 baby blankets!

Thank you to everyone who participated. Your efforts are noticed and appreciated!

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The DW Team!

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Kathleen Winton’s AMAZING baby blankets

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The recognition print designed by the DW studio.

In the name of print & pattern,

DW

I have seen the future!

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Welcome to Worlds Fair Nano! Meredith here, social coordinator and resident millennial of DW. I explored the first-in-class future festival in Brooklyn this past weekend and had an amazing time learning all about the future of our world; everything from food and product to VR and biomechanics.

Here are the top 3 categories that caught my attention and you should know about:

VR 

Woah! My mind was absolutely blown while learning about the future of  VR & AR at the panel on Saturday morning. Ultimately, the experience is making the impossible, possible by making something far away close. The coolest thing about this was a company that had partnered with the African Wildlife Foundation in creating a VR were people can get up close & personal with the animals and in turn want to help in their conservation efforts.

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FOOD

My fav food was the “Beyond Meat” food truck where I tried a completely plant based burger. YUM!

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Some facts about Beyond Meat

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My own delicious burger!

Also I tried a snack made with cricket flour by SEEK and learned about NURAVINE the future of growing your own food & plants in your home.

PRODUCT

Now for the cool part.

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The future of night-lights. Bioluminescent pet, anyone?

 

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The future of mans best friend. Imagine a world where you take your dog everywhere with Dog Parker! 

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The future of safety. Meet Athena, the newest form of wearable safety accessories. 

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The future of getting around. Zip the street with the Boosted Board! 

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The future of personal assistants. Meet Sanbot S1. All the perks without the attitude!

 

Overall, it was the coolest Saturday I have had in a long time. The Worlds Fair Nano is coming to the west coast in January, so if you are out that way, don’t miss it! I know I’m already planning on signing up for next years NYC show.

In the name of the future (and print & pattern),

DW + Meredith

5 Red Carpet Fashion Trends to Try in Your Home | Real Simple

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real-simple-logo.pngNancy Fire & Design Works International were featured this week in Real Simple!

Immediately after the Emmy’s, Real Simple editors checked in with Design Works International to see what trends on the Red Carpet would be showing up in home design this season.

Click on this link for the full article:

 5 Red Carpet Fashion Trends to Try in Your Home | Real Simple

 

Here are 3 out of the 5. Check the article for our other 2 favorites! 

 

Feathered Fringe

Iridescent

 

Green Hues

 

In the name of print & pattern,

DW

 

Design Works (Goes) International

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Happy Friday everyone! Before we head off into the weekend we want to share a little inspiration from our creative director, Nancy Fire, who spent the last week traveling through Paris, Lisbon, and Madrid. Nancy discovered and captured some gorgeous colors and patterns on her adventures and we thought we would share a little bit of her finds with you today! (Aren’t you lucky?) So sit back, relax, and lets go on a little trip to Europe (visually, at least).

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From the world traveler herself:

“Inspiration is everywhere in Lisbon, especially if you love Azulejos Tiles. Today these tiles are dominant in every Portuguese city and are embedded in its history and culture. The word “azulejo” means “small polished stone” and although they are not a Portuguese invention, by the 18th century no other European country was producing as many tiles as Portugal. Over the years, azulejo tiles have become an art form used for a variety of design applications both in exterior and interior home design. Spending time in Bairro Atlo and Principe Real, two older areas of Lisbon, I spotted various azulejo tiles on homes in different color combinations and patterns.”

In the name of print & pattern,

DW

Yellow, is it me you’re looking for?

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What you will learn: 3 Fall 2017 trends you should know about!

How long it will take you to read this post: 1 minute & 37 seconds 

Why you should read it: So you can be in the know… duh 

3…2…1….GO!

Good morning. As Hurricane Irma is subsiding into a tropical storm and the people of Houston are beginning to recover from Harvey, we can all take a deep breath and continue in our efforts to help the people affected. With the US being hit by two record breaking hurricanes within a two week span, it is hard to talk about color, print, pattern, trend, and everything else we do everyday in the studio. Hopefully these bright, beautiful trends will make us all feel a little bit better as we let ourselves get wrapped up in something pretty, at least for a minute. That “something pretty” today will be yellow ochre! 

Now that September is fully upon us and New York Fashion will week soon behind us, we can look towards the 2017 Fall trends with ease. Let us take the guess work out of what you will be seeing:

Stripes & Plaids

We are seeing stripes and plaids more and more on the streets & on the runway this fall.

Check out this take on vertical stripes from the Dior Fall 2017 collection along with a few others…

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Hello Clueless! From the 90’s grunge inspired plaid blazers of NYFW to the Italian runway of Ferretti, we are seeing it more and more. Do you have any vintage left that you can pull out the the depths of your closet?

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Mohair Yarn & DIY 

Tactile, chunky, fuzzy, oh my!  We know people love their DIY and we keep seeing mohair yarn used to make beautiful pieces. We have never tried knitting but this makes us want to test it out! Would you?

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Also, we saw this mohair-blend coat by Michael Kors and our heart skipped a beat.

Turmeric

So, food. When thinking of yellow foods, we want to shine a light on something different than bananas and lemons. Turmeric is popping up more and more as an ingredient and these turmeric date balls are anti-inflammatory, lower your risk of heart disease, help treat depression, and help to improve your brain function. Honestly, what is not to love about them?! Plus, they are beautiful, tasty, and easy to make.

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@spinachforbreakfast Turmeric Date Balls

It looks like others are seeing the yellow ochre trend too! For more yellow ochre and trend inspiration, check out our Instagram @designworksinternational.

In the name of Print & Pattern,

DW

Design Works is collecting locally for Texas and Florida!

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Listen up!

**Update: Since the article was written, Hurricane Irma has hit Florida and devastated many families. We are expanding our diaper drive efforts to include Florida as well. Please continue to send (or let us know to pick up) diapers, wipes, adult diapers, baby supplies to, 494 8th ave, Floor 12. All of your help is much appreciated!

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We know how horrible this situation is in Houston and we want to help. No-one comes together better than New Yorkers, so lets prove it. We have been brainstorming in the studio today, and have decided we are setting up a baby diaper & wipes collection to send to The Texas Diaper Bank. They are directly helping families everyday and we want to support them in their efforts and we need YOUR help!

We want to make it EASY:

  1. Drop off diapers/wipes/non-perishable baby supplies to our studio conveniently located on 35th & 8th Ave // 494 8th Ave, Floor 12
  2. Email lisa@designworksintl.com and let us know where WE can pick up your donations (anywhere M-F, South of 125th street)
  3. You can also send a box of diapers through Amazon to our Studio (https://goo.gl/Mx5gdk)
  4. We are sending the box on Monday, September 25th, so get your donations in before then! 

In memory and recognition of people who have been affected by the storm, we have created this print- We hope you enjoy.

Looking for other ways to help? The American Red Cross is accepting donations on its website. You can also text HARVEY to 90999 to donate $10. Donations to the Salvation Army can be made online, by calling 1-800-SAL-ARMY (1-800-725-2769) or texting STORM to 51555.

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Design Works International Texas Support Print

 

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Design Works International Florida Support Print

Freebie: September 2017 Desktop Wallpaper

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Happy September!

In honor of the start of a new season we are excited to kick off September with some wallpapers for your tech using elements of our favorite in-house prints!

This print is right on trend… do I hear Gucci calling? We don’t want to dub it grandma chic, but we know the coolest grandma out there would dig this wallpaper.

September Download.jpgDownload one, download all!

Desktop Wallpaper

iPad Wallpaper

iPhone Wallpaper

In the name of print & pattern,

DW

Design Works International is a lifestyle studio located in the heart of Manhattan that’s been helping to define and capitalize on trends for over 30 years. Originally (and still) a print studio, the in-house artists at Design Works International are busy every day exploring, inspiring, and creating to bring you original prints that are on-trend and sure to sell!