Mahalo nui loa to all those who supported us at Seabury Hall’s Craft Fair this past Saturday! It was another beautiful event that was super fun to be a part of – we can’t thank the staff and volunteers enough for such a wonderful day! We saw many old friends and met lots of new ones too!
Definitely a special day we’ll remember for some time to come! Thanks Maui!
Top photo courtesy of Seabury Hall
At Kym Nicolas Designs, we are all about honoring the mama – after all, we are a mother-daughter team! From first-time mamas to great grand mamas, every mother has a special place in our hearts and deserves to be pampered. With Mothers Day just around the corner, it’s time to start gathering treats for your favorite care-taking woman!
In the spirit of motherly celebration, we’re holding a “Love Your Mama” Spring sale from now through Mothers Day! Kicking it off on the day we honor the ultimate mama, Mother Earth (aka Big Mama) – we’re offering 15% off all of our greeting cards! From single cards for writing a special message to beautiful boxed gift sets, we’ve got the right sized gift for you and fifteen gorgeous designs to choose from.
Our greeting cards are perfect for any occasion, come with lovely press & seal envelopes, and are eco-friend-ily printed on recycled paper created with 100% wind power - a fact that makes Big Mama very happy!
Visit the KND shop today to make your selection – while you’re there, why not pick up a treat for yourself too?
We also have stunning, one of a kind pottery available – unique and unbelievably beautiful gifts – a perfect combination for all the deserving mamas on your list.
Be sure to use the code “iluvmymama” at check out to receive your special discount!
This is Big Beauty…a collaboration between my fabulous potter friend, Jeff Blandford and me. Jeff threw the form: 21″ wide and I finished it by glazing. It appeared twice today on CBS Sunday Morning: first as a big beautiful bowl and second as it’s incarnation as it appears when I translated the design into fabric. This “Big Beauty” is currently for sale and on display at Jeff’s wonderful gallery, “Volmod Ceramics” which is located in Saugatuck, Michigan. 
To be honest, I don’t know a lot about tea bowls and I’ve never attended a tea ceremony. But I have been intrigued by the form, the function and the ceremony. And so I thought, since I am currently working on small vessels in porcelain, that it would be an appropriate time to explore the idea of creating a tea bowl in my particular style. While creating, I kept this wonderful essay written by Barry Lancet about tea bowl aesthetics next to me and in my mind. (You might ask: Do these small vessels have to be used as tea bowls? No. They can be used for any elixir that might be enjoyed in a special cup at any time…but it is in the spirit of tea bowls that they were created.)
About Tea Bowl Aesthetics: A five century dialogue.
“The tea bowl is at the heart of the Tea Ceremony; the ceremony which invites us to wake to the world.”
“The Japanese fascination with tea bowls has always been a puzzling one to many Western ceramic enthusiasts, yet a close look at both old and new pieces reveals that there is much to be said for these deceptively simple pieces. In Japan, the tea bowl has become a sort of artistic Holy Grail. Over time, the tea bowl’s central position in the tea ceremony has made it the nexus of functional, aesthetic, and spiritual demands, prized older works are breathtaking examples of the finest that Japanese ceramic art has to offer – at once noble and serene – though it must be pointed out that many inferior bowls are treasured for their lineage (that is their ‘Tea History’), a fact which clouds the issue in Western eyes.”
“‘If you can make a good tea bowl, you can make anything’ is almost an adage in the Japanese ceramic world and there is more than a grain of truth in it. To bring together the lip, the inner surface, the outer profile, and the concluding foot with the right mixture of clay, glaze and fire to produce the elusive balance of utility and grace is not a feat to be taken lightly. To bring them together with a touch of spirituality is magic.”
“The successful bowl will have an inexplicable serenity to its stance as if it knows what it is about.”
~Barry Lancet, Executive Editor (Art), Kodansha International from his essay Shiro Tsujimura
To see my latest batch of tea bowls and those available for purchase, visit our shop. Or you can join us in conversation on Facebook.
“I am seeking, I am striving, I am in it with all my heart.”
- Vincent Van Gogh
At this moment, Lindsey and I are seeking to find a solution. We are striving to overcome a challenge and we are in it with all our hearts.
Almost two weeks ago, we discovered that the dye had failed on some of our fabrics. It had faded beyond anything we could have anticipated after it had been washed according to our manufacturer’s instruction. We were stunned and immediately pulled all of our products that had not been washed from the market. We contacted the company for assistance and have been testing each and every fabric we have on-hand. One by one, we are documenting before and after results and deciding whether each individual design meets our standards.
Some of our products are in your homes and we are concerned about disappointing you – you, our wonderful friends who have so generously supported us. If any of you have experienced this situation and are disappointed with your product, please get in touch with Lindsey or myself. We are seeking solutions to salvage the fabrics we have, including those in your homes and will certainly keep you informed of any solutions we find.
I have specialized in functional art most of my career and realize that function is integral to the beauty and quality of what we create for use in our homes, items we purchase to enrich our lives. We strive to have “nothing but yummy” at Kym Nicolas Designs and we are trying to maintain a positive outlook for our future as we keep in mind a quote or two from Richard Bach’s book “Illusions”:
“You are never given a wish without being given the power to make it true. You may have to work for it, however.”
“There is no such thing as a problem without a gift for you in its hands. You seek problems because you need their gifts.”
“Every person, all the events of your life, are there because you have drawn them there. What you choose to do with them is up to you.”
We are choosing integrity, honesty, optimism, and heart.
We still have beauty-full cards, magical pottery, and some flags and bags available… and hope to have an update soon as to where this path will lead.
Thank you for your continued support. Feel free to contact us if you have any questions.
Since December 2009, a selection of Kym’s beautiful images have been featured between story segments on CBS’s Sunday Morning television program – over 40 times! This wonderful weekly show shares works from a multitude of artists that appear suddenly and then are gone in a blink of an eye.
This gorgeous piece is the latest of Kym’s work to be featured just this past Sunday, March 24th.
“Love Lasts for Eternity #2″ (below) was aired two weeks prior on March 10th.
Each time it happens, the flash of Kym’s work is both a surprise and an honor. Many of our friends and clients are “CBS Sunday Morning Spotters” now too – it’s fun to share in the excitement of the surprise!
We’d like to thank CBS Sunday Morning for their continued support and love of Kym’s work and for making Sunday mornings even more enjoyable.
Wear your heart on your sleeve, or better yet, hang it in your yard for the world to see – with these gorgeous flags from Kym Nicolas Designs!
Currently, we have 12 designs available in two sizes – 12 x 13″ or 18 x 19″ – and a beautiful poem available in 12 x 13″ (below). Each flag is lovely on its own, but you can also mix and match any of the 18 designs!
Check out our online shop to see the full collection! All of our flags can be used indoors or out and are made with 100% organic cotton fabrics.
Boutique on the Go!
Greeting Cards Galore
Visit us in Wailuku at our cute little “Pop-Up Store”!
If you’re on Maui, come to Wailuku’s First Friday Town Party from 6-9pm! We’ll be there again this month with our gorgeous selection of handmade, eco-friendly goods.
Including beautiful greeting cards – printed on paper made from recycled materials and produced by 100% wind power!
And pillows, napkins, handbags, flags and more – all handcrafted with luscious 100% organic fabrics!
Pillows and Napkins and Bags Oh My!
We would love to see YOU! So, come on down – say hi, hug a pillow and be joyful – help us celebrate the arrival of some brand new fabric designs, the beauty of our surroundings and the excitement of being together!
Invite your friends and share the Aloha – see ya there!
Can’t wait til Friday? Check out our online shop to get a preview now!
Beautiful 9 x 9″ Cocktail Napkins!
These napkins are the perfect size for a cocktail party, a casual night at home, or even in your lunchbox! They are lovingly handcrafted with a gorgeous cotton sateen fabric that is 100% organic and hand-fringed for the utmost attention to detail.
They are priced individually for the ease of our clients to order the perfect number for their families, and at just $3 each, how can you go wrong?
We currently have a small selection of prints already available in our shop, but also take custom fabric orders with over 200 exclusive and innovative designs to choose from!
Take a look today – Spice up your home with delicious designs found nowhere else!
Kym has been busy over the past 15 months on a brand new venture – creating beautiful fabric designs that are inspired from her original pieces, both pottery and paintings. So far, she has developed over 200 innovative designs and has plans for many more!
These fabrics are like none you’ve ever seen – rich colors, lusciously soft, and designs that just make you feel good! They are custom-created exclusively for Kym Nicolas Designs by an eco-friendly textile printing company here in the USA that uses premium natural fabrics – that’s right, 100% organic and responsibly made.
Because it’s nearly impossible (if you’re just one person) to create original pieces and develop and market new products for reproduction all at the same time, we have put together a small but dynamic team (currently Kym and her daughter, Lindsey) to bring Kym’s beautiful work and incredible ideas forth to the masses.
Currently, we’re developing finished products with Kym’s gorgeous fabrics and so far we’ve been inspired to create napkins, bags, pillows, table cloths, flags, table runners, and place mats. We have also made a handful of custom-ordered quilts. Each of our pieces is lovingly handcrafted for the utmost quality and attention to detail. To see finished pieces we currently have for sale, you can visit our online shop – we also have original pottery works and greeting cards there too!
We’re most excited to share with you though the new Fabric Designs page of our website – here you can see 140 of our 200+ designs that are currently available for public viewing and custom orders. Because we love so many of the designs, we would love to have your input on which fabrics should be made into finished products next. Feel free to peruse the designs and then send us a note with your favorites!
We’ll be bringing you more of our story and insight on Kym’s long history of multi-media creation in upcoming posts! We are excited as we enter our first full year and look forward to bringing many more gorgeous, soulful, and luscious pieces your way! Kym will continue creating original pieces too – there is so much to anticipate, so stay tuned!
