Looking back on 2013

I’ve been easing my way back into work this week, starting with planning a new shop window, and also starting to make a very solid plan for 2014. One of my resolutions for the year, however, is to slow down and to look back upon my own history, trying to get a bigger sense of what’s going on, rather than simply rushing headlong to the next thing.

In this spirit, I decided to look back through my blog archives to remind myself of all that we achieved in 2013. It was a busy year, with Rough Cuts launched in March, with a catalogue alongside, a couple of staffing hiccups, a studio and shop revamp, a products catalogue and lookbook styled, shot, designed and launched, as well as the design and implementation of a new website, and a trip to Japan. Crazy! Still, lots of fun had along the way, and here are a couple of things I enjoyed:

Jan: We began 2013 by celebrating our shop’s first birthday with an awesome music mix (made for us by SA’s super-blogger Miss Moss).  We’ve still got it on permanent repeat in the shop!

Feb: High end parfumier Frazer Parfum used our Pincushion design for their exquisite new porcelain parfum solide containers, made by ceramicist Karen Kotze. Beautiful!

March: We love Sweet Paul magazine, and all the energy that comes from the amazing Paul Lowe and his team, so were thrilled to bits to see an interview with me on their pages. Click here to read it.

April: After the mid-March launch of the Rough Cuts fabric collection, we were starting to bust at the seams, so we expanded our studio and storage space above the shop in Bree Street. Click here to see pics of the revamped upstairs studio.

May: We put the new upstairs studio to good use in the first of my macrame workshops. If you like the sound of this, I’d be happy to hold another one. Let me know in the comments section.

June: I was so excited to announce the launch of my second quilting collection for Cloud9 Fabrics, and you can find Up Up & Away for sale in my shop now!

July: Alongside all my other busy-ness, I had a serendipitous opportunity to explore a beautiful old house, and to attempt some detective work into the screenprinting work of one of the Black Sash founders, Anne Finsen. Read all about it here.

Aug: Things were getting pretty crazy as I worked like a maniac to style, photograph and edit pics for our 2013/14 catalogue before going to Japan. Read an edited version of my  balancing act here (I left out all the freakouts).

Sept: My trip to Tokyo was an absolute dream come true, and it has infused me with ideas, moods, tastes and feelings that will last forever. Upon my return, we held a Zakka Show of things I’d bought on my trip. Read about the trip here.

Oct: We released our Products Catalogue & Lookbook for 2013/14, of which we are so proud. I loved working with designer Charl Edwards, who spent early mornings and late nights effortlessly flexing his extremely strong design muscles to create such beauty. View the catalogue and lookbook here.

Nov: This was my favourite month, where I got to do what I like best: holing up in my studio, working on new ideas and designs. I hope that 2014 holds LOTS more studio time for me!

Dec: Of course, this was a sad month in South Africa, with our shared loss of Nelson Mandela. But a highlight of December must be that I started taking Monday morning ceramics classes with Louise Gelderblom. I’m a serious novice, and loving every minute of it.

And now 2014 lies ahead of us, and I have high hopes for the new year. We have an awesome team in the shop and behind the scenes, Pearl has returned from working remotely from Paris for two years, and Cape Town is the World Design Capital. Exciting times, indeed!

Right. I’m off to get a Vitamin B injection to rev me all the way up. Tally ho!