This Nationally Known Designer Reveals Her Fav Rhody Artisans To Shop This Season
Her knits have been featured in hit tv shows (The MIndy Project, Oprah, and The Nanny to name a few) and movies (including The First Wives Club). This coming weekend at the Art Providence Holiday Show (More deets about it at the bottom.), she'll be showcasing and selling pieces from her new line, Elana Carello Sweaters, a reboot of the original that earned her high praise from customers buying up her creations at places like Saks, Neiman's, and Nordstrom. We asked her to name some of her fav local designers and artists to shop this Holiday and here's what she had to say.
Her Top Picks
My favorite artists for Holiday gifts, all have a connection to RI and I have bought gifts from all of these artisans this holiday season:
* My RISD classmate, Tracye Chin Mueller, makes charming felted birds, critters and kits and has done custom work for me in the past. Her work has incredible attention to detail and I can’t resist her little birds. I buy and use them as ornaments on the tree: TCM Felt Designs.
* Tracye's daughter, Olivia Chin Mueller, also attended RISD, is a very successful illustrator and she has some gorgeous pins and is super popular, so you have to buy quickly or risk losing out. She also has some collaborations with her mom: Minnow and Moss.
* The Rusty Scissors features very creative soft decorations in fabric and found objects, and won’t break the bank. I’m obsessed with her work, and even ordered custom items from her (that I can’t reveal here since it will ruin the surprise on Xmas day). Nancy is the designer and makes everything herself, her creativity seems to hold no bounds, and she can always be found at the Providence Flea.
* I found Lauren Blais Jewelry when I sold at Craft Westport. She is from RI and her work is incredibly original, exquisitely executed, and very very cool. It’s pricey but worth it. I see a lot of jewelry at shows, and her work is the best in this price range.
* Richard Bradley also went to RISD with me, and makes the most charming and whimsical jewelry and small decorative items for his line, My Pink Planet. His jewelry just makes me smile - I own a few pieces and plan on acquiring more.
* I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention Painted Buildings, where you can order a House Portrait, which is a custom architectural illustration by Rob Leanna. Order a portrait or sketch of your home, school, wedding venue - any building that has meaning to you and you’d like to have hanging on your wall. Each one is hand painted, the work is nothing short of genius, and the price is ridiculously affordable.
Art Providence Holiday Show, Dec 9th and 10th at the RI Convention Center
- Click here to see the organziers on The Rhode Show.
- Click here for more info about the show and tickets.
Photo Credits: Model and photographer, Valerie Dittner (in first 3 photos) from AdornYourselfAccordingly.com; Veronika Novotny (girl with hat) from GirlandCloset.com; Patty J photos (at the end) courtesy of Stacey Doyle Photo