Front CoverMake sure all important text & objects

are at least .25" (or preferably .5")from the edge of the trimmed page

ISSUE VI MARCH 2012

The Thistle & Clover Diaries

Stories from the Dressing Room Floor

Spring/Summer 2012

Welcome to The Thistle & Clover Diaries Issue VI, launch-ing just in time for our 4th birthday!

As the French say, “the more things change, the more they remain the same.” Over the last 4 years, we’ve watched our little Brooklyn neighborhood of Fort Greene evolve and grow, and have seen many a new face peek through our front door. But we’ve stayed true to our original mission: to promote new and under-represented design talent from the NYC area.

To that end, The Thistle & Clover Diaries Issue VI includes an unprecedented number of young designers whom we met through our Open Call program. If you’ve been following our store blog, updated daily, you might recognize their col-lections. The Diaries will only expand this exposure; they are now read in over 80 countries!

For Spring/Summer 2012, expect lots of nautical summer stripes and breezy sundresses—Troubadour (p.4) and Pretty Penny (p.16) both professed a love of water and were in-spired by coastal beaches. Odette NY (p.8) and ReElle

(p.14) look far into the past and reference ancient relics to keep their contemporary jewelry lines fresh with historically significant twists.

Take a look at our “Mad Libs” section on each page and you’ll be sure to notice a lot of similarities between the de-signers. It should come as no surprise that many of them are friends and even studiomates. It’s this kind of community and kinship that T&C seeks to continue to foster for years to come.

We hope you enjoy getting to know the faces behind the clothes!

xxCamilla & Rand

Editors' Letter RAND NIEDERHOFFER & CAMILLA GALE

TABLE OF CONTENTSEditors' Letter.....................Page 2.

Troubadour..........................Page 4.

Dagg & Stacey.......................Page 6.

Odette NY...........................Page 8.

Brook&Lyn...........................Page 10.

Mason...............................Page 12.

ReElle..............................Page 14.

Pretty Penny........................Page 16.

Sesame Letterpress..................Page 18.

Honey & White.......................Page 19.

Deborah Rice........................Page 20.

T RO UBAD O UR

L indsey Car ter, the des igner of Trouba-dour, named her l ine af ter the music ian-poets of 11-13th centur ies because she re lated to their approach to craf t . “ The

Troubadours were act ing out poetr y and songs be-cause of a l l things that they were inspired by. I t i s that creat ive process that I re late to. ”

Troubadour i s i t se l f inspired by 3 key inf luenc-es : the c i t y, the sea , and the south. Each of these themes i s represented in the des igner ’s crest : ant-lers rest ing above a skul l and an anchor. The ‘c i t y ’ ( the skul l ) refers to New York City, where Lindsey gained her fashion tra ining. “ I am energized by this p lace, and think of i t as another home.” The ‘sea’ ( the anchor) i s the ocean; i t references Lind-sey ’s upbr inging near the beach and her happiness in being c lose to water. And the “south” ( the ant-lers) i s where Lindsey grew up and l ives now.

T RO UBAD O UR After at tending FIT in New York, Lindsey star t-ed working at J.Crew where she helped the l i t t le known star tup Madewel l 1937 establ i sh i tse l f within the fashion industr y. This exper ience endowed Lindsey with the tools she needed to s tar t her own col lect ion, which she soon did, af-ter moving to Char leston, NC, in 2006.

W ith Troubadour, Lindsey seeks to make c loth-ing for “ the downtown gir l , the uptown gir l , and ever y thing in between.” Her pieces have a whimsica l , naut ica l fee l that pay homage to her Madewel l roots but s tay t rue to an inter ior v i-s ion. Spr ing 2012 offers p lenty of f lowing asym-metr ica l skir ts and easy shir t dresses that wi l l look as chic ins ide the office as out . “ I t ’s a mix of o ld wor ld mascul ine, done in a modern femi-nine way. ” Lindsey ’s aesthet ic direct ion is in-creas ingly informed by bloggers l ike Man Re-pel ler and Blair Eadie Bee f rom Atlant ic Paci f ic , as wel l as P interest .

Troubadour i s a one woman show: Lindsey does ever y thing f rom balancing the books, to inspi-rat ion sourcing, to sketching and des igning her col lect ions . “ There are a lot of chal lenges . Prob-ably one of the biggest i s only being one person. S ince I have to wear so many hats , i t ’s harder sometimes to switch gears . So i f I could c lone mysel f that would be great !”

Karen Dagg and Stacey Paterson met in the summer of 2001 while working and designing at a vintage store in Toronto, Canada. A mere 2 months later and their

collection was born. (Talk about a whirlwind courtship for two recent art college grads!) Dagg & Stacey is a “subtle bal-ance of enduring, effortless style, quality craftsmanship, and femininity. [Theirs] are clothes to wear, treasure, and come to be irreplaceable.”

Dedicated to traditional tailoring and quality manufactur-ing—cornerstones, Paterson says, of the Canadian sartorial identity—Dagg & Stacey is inspired by Toronto daily life: “The people outside our door; the strangers on the street; various street style blogs.”

For Spring 2012, Dagg & Stacey quietly reference the sim-plicity of form of the Arts and Crafts movement, noting that A&C artisans stressed the work within the work of art, and the importance of the means to the end. The duo design their own prints every season; even while a few silhouettes may remain ostensibly the same season to season, the collec-tions feel fresh, new and exciting.

Citing menswear, home decor, and international sales as opportunities they’d like to expand to in the future, Pater-son and Dagg are currently concentrating more directly on partnerships and collaborations with others designers and artists. We can’t wait to see what’s in store!

DAGG & STACE Y

Jennifer Sarkilahti’s jewelry line Odette NY first caught our eye while we were on a shoot with her studiom-ate and former T&C Diaries designer, Anne McClain

of MCMC Fragrances. Anne had recently modeled for Odette NY’s FW11 lookbook and was sporting an array of Sarkilahti’s striking stacking rings that she had received in trade. As soon as we saw the pieces on McClain, we knew we had to get the designer into the store for an appoint-ment.

Sarkilahti’s aesthetic, centered on bold textural statements, pays tribute to her former career as a painter. Sarkilahti re-ceived a MFA from George Mason University. In between gallery jobs, she picked up jewelry after realizing that the medium was more suited to NYC space constraints than large-scale painting. “I started playing around with the materials and soon enough, completely took to it.”

Odette NY, a reference to Swan Lake’s evil queen, was founded shortly thereafter in 2006. Sarkilahti employs the method of old wax carving to craft her line; the artisanal nature of the process allows her to make use of her fine arts degree. “I really adore the wax carving process. I con-stantly apply techniques from my art school days to my jewelry making, sometimes drawing into the wax, some-times carving it as if it were a small sculpture. I try to leave little marks and traces of the hand in each style to set it apart.”

Sarkilahti’s styleways span from the very delicate (the Small Amuletum necklace), to the ultra statement (the

Double Amuletum necklace). For now, pieces come in sterling silver and brass, but Sarkilahti plans to create a capsule collec-tion of 14k and colored diamonds for her growing number of ardent devotees.

When she’s not designing out of her Greenpoint studio that she shares with fellow T&C designers Anne McClain of MCMC, Fragrances, Adelaide Ackerson of Honey & White, and Em-ily Hirsch of Talon NYC, you can find her inspiration sourc-ing at various museums around the city. Sarkilahti’s collections frequently reference Mediterranean antiquities: the SS12 col-lection was inspired by a recent trip to Greece and Turkey, as well as vintage textiles from the Grand Bazaar in Istanbul and fragmented relics from the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

ODE T T E NY

ODE T T E NY

BRO OK&LYN

After studying installation art at The Cooper Union, Mimi Jung worked as a graphic designer. She founded the blog Brook&Lyn

in 2008 in order to “bookmark her finds and docu-ment her bold minimalist style.”

Her blog—originally envisioned as a zine—quickly transitioned into a personal platform for show-casing her own necklaces. Jung received a strong initial response from her readers, and decided to launch a jewelry line. Her “innovative, yet wearable” debut collection has been featured in The New York Times, Lucky Magazine and Teen Vogue, among others.

Citing artists Doris Salcedo and Isamu Noguchi as designers that have helped inform her aesthetic, Jung explains that she “approach(es) each jewelry collection as a singular project… the concept always drives the final execution.”

For Spring 2012, entitled ‘Deflected,’ Jung drew inspiration from a friend’s great-grandmother who habitually kept a mirror under her shirt to deflect evil spirits. The friend, in turn, carries on this tradi-tion by wearing a tiny mirror on days she feels will be particularly challenging.

“The SS12 collection is crafted with handmade pa-tina glass mirrors set in custom-cut saddle leather, draped on strands of hand-dyed cotton. I source the saddle leather from Colorado, the cotton strands from Massachusetts and the handmade patina glass from a local Brooklyn artisan. Everything is care-fully assembled in our studio in Red Hook.”

Like many other designers featured in The T&C Diaries, Jung sees Brook&Lyn expanding to include clothing as well as home décor—a natural progression given all of her recent successes.

“My favorite boutiques around the country wanting to carry my collection is such a big triumph.”

MASON

M ichelle Mason began her des ign career as a fashion i l lustrator work-ing for Los Angeles-based label Richard Tyler. Af ter leaving Tyler ’s , Michel le modeled in London, vamping for prest ig ious avant-garde labels such as Hussein Chalayan. The exper ience awakened her to

the “romance” of fashion. “Not with the industr y per se but with the idea and phi-losophy of fashion,” Michel le sa id in an inter view with Barneys .

Upon returning to Los Angeles , Michel le de-cided the t ime was r ight to launch a l ine of her own. Her f i rs t col lect ion, a l ine of shoes , reta i led as a Barneys exc lus ive. A ready-to-wear col lect ion soon fol lowed.

In 2001, Mason launched a di f fus ion l ine, Mason by Michel le Mason. The l ine enabled customers to purchase Mason’s sophist icated f i t and ta i lor ing at a more access ible pr ice point . Celebr i t ies l ike Madonna, Sofia Cop-pola and Angel ina Jol ie soon took not ice of Mason by Michel le Mason and the l ine was off and running.

Mason c i tes ear ly Gal l iano, late McQ ueen and Ann Demeulemeester as inf luences . Spr ing is f i l led with e legant separates , f loaty dresses and per fect date night tops , inspired by the f i lms of the 1950s such as The W ild One, Rear W indow and Ver t igo.

A ser ies of par t icular note--one that Mason has previous ly sold with strong results-- is the cotton and s i lk combo sty le, which uses s i lk in a way that br ings new refinement to casual wear.

MASON

Re-ELLE

T hree smal l ant iquit ies was a l l i t took for Ar ie l le S te in to launch her own col lect ion. S tein f i rs t

fe l l in love with jewelr y whi le working at a bead shop in New Jersey. She sub-sequent ly worked at Aesa and Phi l ip Crangi af ter graduat ing f rom FIT with a degree in jewelr y des ign.

Her interest in ant iques was concur-rent with her interest in jewelr y de-s ign. “My love for ant iques s tar t-ed when I was a l i t t le g ir l , t ro l l ing through f lea markets and garage sa les with my grandmother. My favor i te spots are at the Chelsea F lea Market , a few thr i f t shops in Connect icut , and any ant ique dealer I can find in Delray Beach, F lor ida. ”

She found 3 Chinese Han D ynasty (c . 200BC) ant iquit ies on one such f lea market out ing, and chal lenged herse l f to make as many di f ferent pieces with them as poss ible. Re-El le uses these re l ics and combines them with con-temporar y wax car ving and etching techniques to “ br ing them out of their t ime and into ours . ”

S te in sees her pieces mixed in with other mater ia ls and des igns on a de-ta i l-or iented woman. “She dresses in re lat ive ly s imple c lothing, but i s dr iven toward the s l ightest drape of a necklace, or a rough texture in metal . ”

“NYC i s the hear t o f the c r eat ive wor ld. There i s a lways so much to be inspired by here and so many people a l l go ing through thi s same journey. This i s both what I l ove most about working here and what i s the hardes t par t . ”

Re-ELLE

P RE T T Y P ENNY

M ichael Abbey, VP of Design at Pretty Penny, has worked in the fashion industr y for over 15 years , de-s igning denim for major labels l ike Levi S trauss , Ear l Jeans , Joie and Juicy Couture. An extension of the

men’s l ine Penny Stock, Pretty Penny began as an af fordable, fash-ionable a l ternat ive to higher pr iced contemporar y l ines dur ing the 2008 economic downturn.

S ince the brand star ted off sole ly focused on menswear, i t i s f i t-t ing that there i s a s l ight ly androg ynous look to the women’s col-lect ion. “O ur gir l i s confident , understated and smar t . She mixes her go-to feminine favor i tes with sty les she ’s ‘ borrowed ’ f rom her boy f r iend ’s c loset . ” Pretty Penny subt ly twists c lass ics by adding a punch of color to a bas ic windbreaker, or us ing quirky detai l s to update a bal ler ina dress . Abbey sees “ v intage brogues , with Eisen-hower glasses , and red l ips” as per fect accessor ies to his l ine.

For spr ing 2012, Pretty Penny presents their “Coast to Coast ” col lect ion that “ce lebrates being around the water. ” Expect breezy pr inted tanks, ankle length twi l l pants , and bas ics l ike l inen tees , button downs, and sundresses—perfect wardrobe staples for the lazy summer months ahead.

SESAME LE T T ERP RESS

A trip to Breck Hostetter’s Dumbo based studio reveals a cozily furnished industrial

space filled with 19th century print-ing machines dappled with brightly colored neon ink. It’s this immersion of historicity and current aesthetic ideals that makes the line so unique. “I am always trying to marry Victori-an era decorative details with modern colors and design,” Hostetter says.

After graduating from college with a degree in fine arts, Hostetter worked at various art galleries around the city. In order to earn extra income, Hostetter began taking private commissions as a bookbinder. When Henri Bendel’s asked her to create a series of let-terpress books for them, Hostetter became instantly hooked.

In 2005, Hostetter showed her first wholesale line at the New York Inter-national Gift Fair. The line was well-received and Hostetter was able to

turn her part time side business into a full-fledged career. Since launch-ing Sesame Letterpress, Hostetter’s work has appeared in NY Magazine, Harper’s Bazaar, In Style, and Martha Stewart Weddings, among others. She has collaborated with West Elm on a series of to die for dinnerware,

and, recently, she taught a class for members of the Etsy team (the com-panies share an office building).

In addition to Sesame’s wholesale line, Hostetter works with entrepre-neurs, enfianced couples and expect-ant moms to create exquisite custom letterpress suites. Each arena of the business influences and defines the other. The Spring 2012 collection is inspired by patterns from the wed-ding invitations Hostetter created this past year. Couples selecting baby shower invites or a set of thank you cards can opt to use some of the bo-tanical motifs Hostetter incorporates into her retail line.

“Right now I’m watching Downton Abbey and I wish all of those char-acters were using my stationary. They seem to write and receive many juicy letters. It would be really fun to print custom silhouettes for each charac-ter’s stationary.”

SES AM E LE T T ERP RESS

From the moment I was first introduced to metal-smithing I was in love,” says Adelaide Ackerson, founder of jewelry line Honey & White.

Adelaide studied industrial design at the University of Cincinnati where she became acquainted with large-scale, creative projects welding steel sculptures and furniture. But upon graduation, she began working for a number of large corporate companies, like Coach, designing acces-sories, handbags and belts. “I started to miss actual dirty, hands-on work, ” she says of that time.

Adelaide launched Honey & White as a means of staying in touch with the craft of the design process. Her strong foundation in accessory production has alleviated many of the challenges with which first time designers are faced. However, Adelaide says she still struggles to find enough hours in the day to accomplish her objectives. “Week-nights and weekends are pretty busy for me,” she says.

Adelaide rents a jeweler’s bench at Dobbins Mews Stu-dio in Greenpoint to stay on top of her jewelry orders. The space is shared with current T&C designers Anne McClain of MCMC Fragrances, Emily Hirsch of Talon, and Jennifer Sarkilahti of Odette NY. “It’s a one story space with a skylight that surrounds a tiny courtyard and a generous fig tree. You enter through a metal gate, which

conceals the secret hideaway. Everyone always says it feels like California! I love New York, but it is nice to be able to make this quick escape sometimes!”

This season Adelaide was influenced by the Art Deco era and Southwestern jewelry, two major trend stories for SS12. Going forward Adelaide plans to expand a few key design motifs that have been popular thus far. Our Thistle & Clover favorites are the delicate feather and heart styleways.

H ONE Y & WH I T E

“ When I ’m working, I tend to imagine my f r i ends wear ing my des igns . Most o f them l ive in Brooklyn and are ver y c r e-at ive in the ir own r ight . [ They’r e ] ar t i s t s , photog raphers , musi c ians , s t y l i s t s - and a l l have s t rong per sonal s t y l e s . ”

D eborah Rice had severa l di f ferent career i tera-t ions before f inal l y honing in on des ign. Most re-cent ly, she was a bookkeeper for smal l businesses .

The job paid the bi l l s , but was ul t imately unful f i l l ing. Rice rea l ized that she was in desperate need of a creat ive out let . She promptly enrol led in a c lass at S tudio Jewel-ers in Manhattan. As Rice gained confidence in her craf t , she star ted to think about turning her pass ion project into a business .

Rice now designs a ser ies of hammered s i l ver and vermei l necklaces , as wel l as a run of s i lk cord necklaces , that have been f l y ing out of T&C. The s i lk cord pieces came into being af ter a serendipit ious repair request f rom her mother-in-law who needed a peark necklace restrung. “ I ended up in the bead distr ict , looking for s i lk thread. And I instant ly fe l l in love with a l l of the gorgeous s i lks colors . I decided to incorporate s i lk as a main e lement in my most recent col lect ion.”

W hen she can’t re ly on happy coincidence, Rice der ives inspirat ion f rom natura l and organic forms. “ I grew up on a vegetable farm in rura l Pennsy lvania and some of my fondest memor ies as a kid are working the farm with my grandfather. ” The outdoors are never far f rom Rice ’s work; leaf moti f s , branches and s i l ver feathers are scattered throughout her jewelr y l ine.

DEBORAH RICE

MagCloud.com1501 Page Mill Rd, MS 1157 POSTAGEPalo Alto, CA 94304

221 DeKalb Avenue ° Brooklyn, NY ° 11205(718) 855-5577 (t) ° (718) 855-5533 (f) ° info@thistleclover.com° www.thistleclover.com

Spring 2012 DesignersCLOTHING

81 PoppiesAce & Jig

Amanda UprichardAmerican Vintage

DaceDagg & Stacey

DemyleeEdith A. Miller

FischerJeunesse

JoieMasonMyne

Pretty PennyTroubadour

TrovataRachel Rose

Wren

JEWELRYAmanda Rudey

Aroc UrtuBittersweets NY

Blanca Monrós GómezBROOK&LYN

BRVTVSCatbird

Deborah RiceGaffney DesignsHoney & WhiteJené DeSpain

Katrina LaPenneMax Steiner

Mia LaraNettie KentOdette NY

Rebecka FröbergReElle

Robbie Simon JewelryTalon

Thistle & Clover Private Label

ACCESSORIESBlue Ribbon Letterpress

Chan LuuClare Vivier

LolliaLucia

Marais USAMCMC Fragrances

Nona E RoseOne & the Same

Payal LuthraRifle Paper Co.

Sesame LetterpressTatine Candles