So, let me start this post by saying, thank you, my patient and loyal readers, for sticking through the silence and subscribing, visiting and checking in on me. Please know that I haven’t forgotten you and/ or DD and am just working out a few kinks. So while things may be a little slow around here, I am following the advice of the uber-encouraging and creative-supportive Tim Gunn, who I dream of telling me in person one day, “[Ziva], Make it work!”

And in celebration of the mental blocks and life obstacles that we all have to deal with and overcome in one way or another, this week’s all about baggage! Ha, get it? Both the mental/ emotional baggage we all carry around with us and the beautiful bags that we physically carry around with us.

To kick off the week, I’m going to start with the Magnes Sisters beautifully crafted, handbags and shoulder bags. A few reasons why: the company’s founders Israeli-born and super talented; the bags are divine looking; and (and here’s the funny part) I actually met Dina a few years back, traveling through Vietnam – which was totally, unbelievably amazing btw. Harry and I were out on a junk boat in the middle of breathtaking Halong Bay, in the middle of nowhere. And wouldn’t you know it we met other Israelis and Jews from NY. Ha. Small world indeed.

Back then, Dina was talking about the company she and her sisters were starting to get off the ground. We talked about the production and design I remember. And now, I’m thrilled to see they’re making waves. And rightfully so: the Classic Martini and Dry Martini Clutch featured above are amazing feminine, retro shapes made of colorful leather so luxurious it’s satin-y. Pricey for an everyday bag but certainly perfect for a special occasion.

Take these three tee-shirts by Israeli design student Irit Lanciano. The idea is simple: the human body has receptacles and containers – hands, stomachs, breasts – and manufactured products serve as receptacles and containers. What happens when the two meet? When what covers your body serves the same purpose with the addition of a newly attached appendage. Where does the human body begin – by its definition and purpose – and the manufactured ‘body’ begin?

Or how about these beautiful leather shoulder bag by Riva. Called the Torso for Design by Riva, it’s a slender and elegantly shaped lithe fashion accessory that comes in an amazing array of colors. (The leather textures are quite sumptuous too.) The detailed stitching and layering of materials along the top edge – what makes the rectangular shape almost hourglass – recalls the curves of a (woman’s) body her hips or her chest. Either way, this small open-hole detail elevates an everyday shoulder bag from merely beautiful to somehow sensual.

Finally, these leotard-clad dancers are by Israeli ceramic artist Meira Una. Despite the impression of flexibility and movement they give, they’re actually frozen in their poses. As vases, the extensions of their body – what actually moves and breathes beyond the ceramic case – are the flowers, plants or leaves that you put in them. An interesting take on what’s natural, alive, (im)material and eternal.

So for a little cherry atop this welcome back Thursday sundae, above are the beautifully crafted Sugar handbags by Israeli accessories designer Riva Naroshevitch. Her line Design by Riva is ubiquitous on Tel Aviv’s shopping-forward streets mostly setting trends with its careful attention to design and clever use of textured fabrics. In her own words, “When I approach the design, I try to visualize the clients wearing it as if it was a dress or a shirt.” In other words, nothing more basic or rudimentary to your wardrobe than these lovely purses, shoulder bags and wallets.

I love beautiful sketchbooks, journals and notebooks. Not only because of the feeling from crisp white quality paper (more exciting than it sounds). But also because, when done correctly, the creativity that happens on the inside reflects what happened on its outside. And on that note, take a gander at the gorgeous writing pads by Israeli fashion and accessories designers Ilanit Neutra and Sharon Brunsher.

Ilanit Neutra strives to create eco-friendly design products by recycling inner tubes and tires into handmade, purses and wallets and other accessories like belts and sketchbook bindings. The sketchbooks above each have 82 blank white pages, of high quality paper, and range in size from 100 x 160 mm to 150 x 230 mm. All are bound with recycled truck tires. I love how Neutra manages to combine elements of the industrial, aesthetic and textural in her work. And you can rest assured that your deepest doodled secrets are safe in these durable rubber covers.

On the lighter and airier side of the design spectrum is ‘lifestyle’ designer Sharon Brunsher who, according to this recent WWD article on her and other Tel Aviv trendsetting Gan HaHashmal designers, mixes old and new, and textural and luxurious with monochromatic and modern. Her pieces range from fashion tops and bottoms to accessories – booties and scarves – to bedding and notebooks. Brunsher’s notebooks below come as a set of three in varying sizes with a chic leather binding. Together the set not only forms a pyramid, in the designer’s own words, but they also literally and visually tell a story. The sentence “Sometimes you should keep a memory forever” appears on the cover of the notepad itself and, obviously, the way you set them down each day may tell a different story. Given their layered packaging and meaning, Brunsher’s notebooks allow you to dream away – of times more chic and where memories were made.

So whether you’re looking for somewhere to hash out your parachute colors or brainstorm your next business venture, these Israeli designers’ sketchbooks give you two very different points of entry: one from the industrial, the other from the ethereal.

See you tomorrow as Re-Design Your Workspace, Israel Style continues

Weekly Wrap Up:

~ Up-and-coming Israeli designer Kobi Nakav recalls the verticality of trees and natural growth in his square cork hanging plant frames. An ecofriendly solution, it also puts forth the importance of bringing the outdoors in – even in the most urban of spaces. Crossposted to Green Prophet.

~ Expect the Unexpected: Israeli jewelry designers render amazing three dimensional objects from the most unlike of sources. Recycled materials and two or even one dimensional objects are transformed into beautiful objects ranging from bracelets to modern Judaica. Crossposted to Modern Tribe.

~ Israeli artist Mike Darnell revisits the Biblical era from a Digital perspective in Digital Zion. Catch the exhibition on view at the Yellow Submarine in Jerusalem through March 12th.

Links I’m Loving this Week:

~ Israeli designer extraordinaire Arik Levy’s new glass candleholder (above) for Gaia and Gino is featured in a NYTimes’ Home & Garden slide show on getting your home ready for Spring.

~ Israeli artist Pinhas Cohen Gan wins the prestigious Israel Prize for his artwork (Haaretz English)

~ Fresh Paint launches their English website heralding their first art happening – exhibition and sale – of independent and up-and-coming Israeli artists. Coming to Tel Aviv on March 6th-8th, you can bet your bottom shekel that I’ll be covering this exciting event – and it looks like it’s going to be goood.

~ Industrial design headquarters Core77 announces the winners of its Greener Gadgets competition which include three Israeli designers in their ‘Notables’ winning circle: Atar Brosh, “Postmode”; Oded Shorer, “The Parasolar”; and Roni Baram, “The Handheld Vacuum Cleaner”.

~ This interview with leading British interior and home furnishings designer Tom Dixon in Metropolis magazine about his entry into the US market. Brief shoutout at the end to pioneering Israeli design superstar Ron Arad.

First off, what immediately attracted me was their texture. The woven braids on the cuffs and bracelets seemed so intricate and layered that my fingers literally started walking across them atop the glass just itching to cop a feel. Then, reading the artist’s statement, I realized they were made of cardboard – egg crate cardboard to be more specific! That’s right, not what you first think of when you hear of textural jewelry or think of coveted bracelets. Berkovich cuts diamond shapes into the cardboard and when rounding them into the bracelet shapes generates a 3D effect – what I thought originally was a woven pattern. Berkovich’s overall technique aims to recycle used materials into beautiful accessories and challenges users to rethink the beautiful and the possible in what we casually throw away.

A little ways away in the same glass case, Israeli jewelry designer, Yael Friedman, also got my fingers itching. A delicate pewter-metal blend gold Hanukiyah or Chanukah Menorah presented the neatest little DIY project that just couldn’t go wrong. A one-dimensional page of metal provided cut outs of semi-circles – each with laser cut decorations – that can be slotted together to form a fully functioning eight-plus-one candle holder. The details gave some light and delicacy to the metal material and the adornment was reminiscent of jewelry techniques. And the idea of being able to mail someone a flat DIY Menorah in time for the holidays? Opens a whole new world of holiday card options. Now if I could only get my hands on these items…

~Crossposted to ModernTribe~

Designed by Anat Safran as part of her creative line of ‘container items’ from purses to passport and ticket organizers to business card holders to change purses. The pita pocket is everything Israeli/ Middle Eastern without the politics of identity, religion, ethnicity or just plain politics. Everyone loves pita, everyone eats pita. It’s the quintessential Israeli/ Middle Eastern staple. Food and eating are the fabric of our society and culture and, punningly enough, reprinted here in detail on the pocket’s fabric. Each one is handmade and printed, rendering each pita pocket unique. As Safran explains, “Instead of falafel – small change. Instead of fried eggplant – an mp3 player.” The pitapocket surely offers those missing Israel a pleasant alternative to those cheesy tourist items. Plus, it evokes the amazing flavors of Israel without drenching your purse in tehina.

At the Designed in Israel 08 exhibition, Pita pockets fresh from the oven

Read more about Safran’s design background and interesting source of inspiration – a discarded French dictionary? – here on her infobag English site.

Fun things are afoot at the Circle K as this week looks to be an exciting one. For starters, I’ll be visiting the Designed in Israel exhibition in Tel Aviv (at the fairgrounds again through Fb. 16th) and checking out the newest and most daring furniture, lighting and jewelry designers coming out of Israel. “Design works” (as the event poster above says) is being run by the Israeli Design Center with The Marker business journal, the exhibition is accompanied by a conference and key lectures focusing on Israeli design and its potential impact in the international scene and market. I know I’m definitely curious to learn more about it – and I hope you are too. I plan on scoring some revealing interviews with student and professional designers on-site and sharing pics of the great works on display. So look for that as we head into midweek.

First though, I’m thrilled to announce that I’m going green – and not with envy but with environmentalism! I always thought I was a visionary but now it’s official: I’m becoming a prophet and joining the esteemed ranks of Green Prophet contributors. I’ll be covering Israel’s eco-friendly design beat which I’m happy to share with talented Greenprophet founder and eco-inspired writer, Karin Kloosterman. Aside from tackling tech issues together, Karin and I are also talking about joining forces for a great giveaway next month, so keep your eyes peeled for that later on. But first, head on over to GP and read more about how to make your life more eco-conscious, in Israel or wherever you are. The poster above is by Israeli graphic designer Aviram Meir for the Designed in Israel exhibition and I think it’s incredibly catchy and memorable – and hopefully will make an impression on some to conserve water or reuse rain water in this case, a process which some cities in Israel, including my home town of Modiin, is trying to put into practice.

And finally, but ironically most immediately, another side project that I’m also excited to tell you about is now taking off over at Modern Tribe. Modern Tribe sells great modern Judaica and Israeli design products from the US and the blog covers everything smart and savvy from new Israeli music to creative Shabbat candlesticks to these cute aleph-taf (or A to Z) Hebrew alphabet bookends. Jennie and I seem to share the same appreciation for cool things so I’ll be piping in with some posts about the latest in Israeli design, fashion and home decor over on MT – or at least pointing you to some great stuff to buy. And she’s kicked off the DesignistDream crossposting bonanza with an interview with yours truly over at Modern Tribe. So head on over and check it out though I’m not sure about the picture… But enough about me, tell me more about you, what do you think of me? (Sorry but I couldn’t resist that one) Looking forward to a great week!

PS. If anyone in Israel wants more information about the exhibition but can’t read the Hebrew-only site, feel free to contact me for info.

DD: What is your inspiration?

SL: Now based in Tel Aviv, I take inspiration from the urban surrounding. The geometry of architecture, the rhythms colors and textures of the city. It is a dialogue derived from the idea of contradiction. My raw-refined designs illustrate the mastery of juxtaposition and the ability to find beauty in the unconventional. The designs explore the duality of the natural world by embracing imperfections and playing upon opposites: glamorous and gritty, dark and luminous, structured and organic. O-Shan is at once young and powerful, delicate and poetic, minimalistic and quiet with clean geometrical shapes. All designs are made in small editions, carefully hand crafted with attention to even the smallest details – thereby making each work a rare and unique object.

DD: What is your background in this medium?

SL: I have been making jewelry since I was in the fifth grade. I would sell them to kids on lunch breaks… I graduated from the Bezalel Academy of Art and Design in Jerusalem from the Department of Jewelry and Accessory Design.

DD: Who do you design for? Is it someone you know and if so, who?

SL: My designs are made first for myself. I design jewelry that i would love to wear and be adorned in… [But] I would also love for Cameron Diaz to be wearing my designs one day…

DD: What does the creative process mean to you?

SL: Creating and designing are an inherent part of my being. I am a very creative person and alwyas have to be making new things, even when I’m just cooking. It is an inseparable part of who I am.

DD: What are you creating for us next season or in the near future?

SL: My next collection is going to be a bit more sophisticated and complex with many layers and textures mixed into beautiful collages…

DD: Which designers do you admire?

SL: I adore Yohji Yamamoto, Tom Binns, Muji, and more locally, Sharon Brunsher and David Sasson.