NYIGF 2011 *Faves* Part Two

I am finally posting part two of my favorites from the 2011 New York International Gift Fair. I began this post on February 17th. I am grateful to have been busy, but still I'm sorry it took me this long to share these wonderful companies with you!

Art Thingys is a brand new company founded in the fall of 2010 by industrious industrial designer, Paul Ocepek. I was immediately struck by how fun, clever and well crafted his wall art is! Paul is also incredibly nice and easy to chat with. I learned that he not only designs and constructs each piece himself, but that he uses sustainably harvested baltic birch plywood and non-toxic water based paints. *No chemical coatings are used :)

There are plenty of great pieces to choose from for a boy or a girl's room or anywhere in the house really.

Visit artThingys.com to learn more and see much much better pictures of his work! His style of writing is as charming and humorous as his artwork, too.

Loved this fireplace display :D

Ecojot is always a must-see for me. Pretty sure I've been purchasing Carolyn Gavin's whimsical eco-friendly paper products since she and her brother, Mark started the company in 2007 :)

All products are100% post consumer recycled and the inks and glues are vegetable based. Ecojot started The Give Program last year and has partnered with The Jane Goodall Institute. 

I very much enjoyed meeting this brother and sister team at last year's Stationery Show.

Click here to learn more about Ecojot's products and programs, plus read a nice interview with Carolyn .

Sisters, Vivian and Tiffany Leung are the designers and creative minds behind 9 Spot Monk. Established in 2001 with a focus on minimalist design, they blend their colorful street chic sensibility with a clean modern aesthetic. They began printing their lines using a letterpress in 2004 and never looked back!

I love these day-glow Pop-Out greeting cards! I'm also a big fan of their humorous Recession Line with lines like "I've always found you vaguely attractive" and "Dad wishes you were good at something" :D

Here are their new hot off the press 2011 color-in notebooks and clocks for kids!

I love sushi and I love coloring!! Let's eat sushi placemat is perfect for me :)

I couldn't pass up all these animal faces staring at me from the shelves!

These cute alarm clocks by Streamline make the sound of each animal represented.

Whoo whoooo ... time to wake up!

In the early '90s, Streamline began it's focus on junior markets and designed the "Bubble Watch". It was a huge hit! Below, a Monkey Flip-Top Bubble watch.

Whether you're looking for something cute and useful or want to indulge in pure whimsy, Streamline creates fabulous items for the home, office, school... wherever you need a pick-me-up!

Colorful kitsch salt & pepper set :)

These Mini First Aid Kits by Kabalab, LLC are perfection! 1st of all, can't go wrong with a bear face, 2nd- the clean design adds just the right amount of sophistication and 3rd You Are OK! Everything you need when you're out on-the-go :D

Kabalab was founded by Karl Schempp and Barbara Kohler and they've received the IDEA (Industrial Design Excellence Award) for these designs. 

Princesses and Pirates, too!

Cupcakes and Cartwheels is a division of Two's Company. They were one of my 1st stops at the show. Their website is currently under construction, but check back with them later to see more sweet and playful items for the home.

I didn't have a chance to speak with Cupcakes & Cartwheels' reps, but I had to take photos of these water coolers saturated with color, funny tea cozy and adorable aprons for kids :)

Cat Studio was founded by husband and wife design team, Terrell and Carmel Swan. With a shared love of travel and inspired by vintage souvenir pillows of the 30s and 40s, they began hand embroidering maps. What started as a pet project quickly turned into a full fledged business! Read the full story here.

Here's a shout out to those of you who abandoned gritty NYC for sunny California :( You know who you are, Margaret. It's a really cute pillow, but lacks depth I think ;)

Ahhhhhh, Brooklyn :)

All 50 states are covered, as well as many cities, regions, resorts, national parks and countries. In addition, you can purchase glassware, dish towels, totes and trays :)

I thought these bags by Graf & Lantz were very elegant.

This LA based design studio was founded by Holger Graf and Daniel Lantz. Constructed in the US, the highest quality Merino wool felt, imported from Germany and Switzerland, is combined with other natural materials. I appreciate the mix of luxury with practicality. These are very well made with convenient pockets inside and out.

I can't take credit for this photograph above. I'm sharing it from their website. This is one lovely duffel bag! Of course, these little dog key rings caught my fancy, too!

Below is Ryan McGibben, also known as RPhonic, a West Coast DJ and product designer at Wolf Designs. He released his RPhonic branded accessories and home decor at the gift fair this year.

It was fun to round the corner and hear some music at the show! His urban inspired designs look great on bags, lap top sleeves and as wall art.

Do you love a particular album cover or covers enough to display? I do! Play and Display flip frames allow easy hanging and displaying of your favorite cover art. Designed by Art Vinyl Ltd, there is no complex assembly. Once mounted, a simple one-finger touch flips the front frame open to slide in your album :) 

Visit their site for more info and see the winners of  Best Art Vinyl 2010!

I've always been a fan of the Vespa design, so I was happy to receive a nice fat catalog. I had no idea they sold so many great accessories and bags, too!

My 1st Vespa Dog painting, called Dudley Scooter Dog for legal reasons, in my mind he's on a Vespa!

Lovely lighting by Artecnica :')

This is Modern Twist a San Francisco/Oakland based eco conscious company founded by Kat Nouri. These are food-grade hand silkscreened silicone placemats that can be colored and cleaned for a fresh start. Check them out on Growing Your Baby blog, too.

Modern Twist collaborates with an array of independent artists. You can see the work is all quite charming!

Cute silicone doilies :)

Crash Candles creates natural soy wax candles. Their clean and quirky designs are created by celebrated designers like Lotta Jansdotter, Binth, Zuz Design, Crash and Susan Mac Connell.

I was drawn to the playful and sophisticated designs on tableware by Ink Dish. You can read more about each artist they work with here.

Above designed by David Palmer

 Dana Oldfather

Alyson Fox adds a narrative touch with her designs. Above, a girl balances a book on her head as small birds swirl around:)

I've included Sukie in several posts and always enjoy seeing their designs :) 

Have to wonder if Charlie Sheen carries this notebook. Winning ;)

Thanks for taking a look at my faves from the Gift Fair this year. There is always so much to see, hope I shed some light on a few artists and companies for which you may have been unaware!