LIFE
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I've been working hard on the newest ckd collection Collection N Fifteen. I've decided to keep these beautiful dark grounds in the new collection. I love how well they print out on wallpaper. Excited to see what they look like on fabric too *wink*.
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The beginning of my 2016 has been cleaning up the mess of what 2015 has left. But I've been cleaning while singing to Justin Biebs or some really good Country playlist on my Apple Music, sipping on a beer, and dancing. The faster I clean the faster I can finally start fresh and move forward. 2015 introduced me to the world of panic attacks and high stress [so fun]. I was literally out of commission for the month of September. I would get waves of dizziness, at times my vision would get blurry, and I couldn't sleep for the life of me. It was probably the scariest month of my life. The only medicine to cure what I was going through was myself [that to me was the scariest part]. I found my way out of that mess and am perfectly fine now, but have learned a lot about myself, what matters, and whatever I can't control I have to leave alone. Which is why I'm taking my time in 2016. Whatever I create will be created with time and attention [new collection details coming in the following post], and whatever dinner date Dan and I go on, or nights out will be enjoyed as if I'm not a designer and I have no stress with nothing planned for the following week. Unless of course I run into Kanye West and he's like "Yo CK, wanna do a collaboration with me for my next collection?", then, then I'm a designer again. So this weekend was exactly this - Friday night Rach and I got all dressed up for New York City, found ourselves at 1 Oak with NFL players and I enjoyed every single free vodka soda I sipped on. Saturday Dan was home from call at the hospital so we walked around, went to a German bar, got ourselves a liter of beer each, and ended the night at Gotham Market [highly recommended].
The Golden Globes was the perfect end to the weekend. An award show one day I dream of attending. I hope you guys had a lovely weekend, Cheers to a new week! x -C
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First Friday night of 2016 in New York City and I plan to make it an eventful one. One of my new years resolutions is to remember I'm still a 27 year old living in the most exciting city in the world. I'm taking the feathers out. x -C
// Bucket list
This morning over my morning coffee and hard boiled eggs, I decided it was time to update my bucket list. It was fun to see how many ticks I could cross off from my last updated bucket list in 2014. Other ticks just had.to.go. I no longer have a desire to sit on the Hollywood sign. Seeing it from a distance is just fine by me. Isn't it illegal to do that anyways? Goals change! I also never would have ever thought in 2014 that I would be designing wallpaper, never mind do mural installs in New York City - so I obviously had to set goals to see where this wonderful, unexpectedness could go. Like why can't I design Beyonce's house, or fill the walls at a Soho House location, or hotels in Paris. My how life works. Pretty increds. According to our Horoscope guru lady Cal, Mercury is in retrograde until January 25th. Which means it's probably not the best idea to push anything until this time has passed. So in meantime I'll be goal setting like the ones above, making a brand new vision board, and working my ass off in the studio [puts on her Apple Music playlist] Happy TGIF! x -C
// Britt's home
I never really thought about what happens once my best friends would start to get married and have bb's. I just assumed everything will stay the same. We would all live in the same area and watch cheesy shows while drinking vodka diet cokes at 1 pm. I live in New York, Sandra is in the city with a baby, and another beautiful girl on the way, and Britt now lives in Cobourg with her husband Evan. Very different than when I left for New York just about three years ago. So, for New Years we packed the car up, and drove the hour to Cobourg to celebrate New Years with Britt and Evan. The town reminded me a little of Red Bank down in the Jersey Shore. Small town, cute restaurants, and quietness. The second last photo is a small bar hidden between homes. Totally my steeze. It was the perfect way to spend New Years [if Dan was with us, that would have obviously made things that much better, stupid hospital hours]. Lately I feel myself jumping between big city life, and small time quietness. What life will best fit me in the long run. Yes - I've also started to think very long term. I'll be 30 in just three short years! Perhaps I'll have two homes. One in the city, and one on the water. Or maybe three homes, one in Europe as well. OK stopping. x -C
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First horoscope, first sketch, first first first, new new new. I love it all. I'm the type of person who loves change and new beginnings. So much so that I tend to do ridiculous things like quit my major source of income and risk everything I've worked so hard for here in New York. It all works out though, that I can tell you for sure. I'm living proof. My first sketch of 2016. I was thinking about hand embroidery when doing this sketch. This most likely won't make it into the collection. This is how the process starts off, 100 sketches, 100 ideas, and only about 5 are chosen.
In other new things, the first horoscope for 2016 in up! x -C
// 01.05.16
Hello from the studio. I've been hard at work over here sketching up 2016. I'm liking what's going on, and wanted to keep you in the loop. Attached is my inspiration for the newest collection. Stars, magic, birds, galaxies [my dad was always obsessed with Space], and of course London. CKD will be looking up at the stars for the new year. I've always used fairytales and magic as my foundation, just this time I'm taking on magic quite literally. It's going to be a very interesting collection and something completely different than anything I've done before. It's time to push myself.
// Way up
Flying over the clouds is like looking at photos of the Eiffel Tower, a view that never gets old. 2016 is feeling pretty good. Touched down at 9 am this morning, and already had phone calls coming in, emails to answer while lugging my suitcase and two bags that are heavy as hell. I have no idea why I decided to bring my whole apartment home with me. I feel good to be back. My 11:30 am headache is kickin in right on schedule, which means some Advil and a fresh coffee please. Same city, same problems, but this time things feel different.
// 2015 - recap
January 1st 2015: I flew back to New York with only an unpaid internship lined up. My OPT [extended student VISA] was to expire in June. If I didn't find a full-time gig by then I would have to leave New York. I was interning in Brooklyn at a textile company full-time [10:00 am - 7:30 pm]. I would spend my days folding fabric, heat pressing, cutting prints, and hanging finished prints on little hangers labeled Spring/Fall 2016. Interning was the best education I could have ever gotten. New York City internships are tough. You are one in a million. And you're treated that way. I was sitting on the concrete floor of the studio in Brooklyn when my phone buzzed with an email from Holland & Sherry. I picked up my phone with my hands and nails covered in black paint, and there it was, my offer for a full-time position as a graphic designer in the rug department. I was staying, and I was going to make a salary in American Dollars in New York City.
May 5th 2015 was the launch party for my first collection. Collection N Eleven. I can still feel the the butterflies in my stomach from that day. May 5th was the day that changed everything. I created something and watched my creation come to life. I was hooked. Things moved quickly after that. I set deadlines for myself and made sure that I met them regardless of how tired I was. Ckd summer collection was next, and most recently Collection N Twelve. On top of all of this I was doing freelance work, like the Spring 2015 lookbook for Roots Canada, 6 am shoots with Blake Lively's Preserve, I was meeting with people, and people were interested in what I was doing. My favourite write up from 2015 was in WTF Magazine. Writer Rosa Kaftan just understood me with the questions she asked. We have actually become and remained friends from that interview.
Following your dreams is not easy guys. I'll be the first to say it. Why? Because it takes time, which can get frustrating when you don't see results. While time keeps you waiting you'll come across mountains to climb, mountains that you didn't see in your horizon when you started the journey. And rivers to swim across without a life jacket in sight, or streets to find without any maps. This is the part when you'll want to give up. I almost did. But eventually you start to build up the endurance and muscles to climb up new mountains, you'll discover the hidden bridges when you come across another river you need to cross, and your sense of direction will get sharper. You'll get smarter, and eventually learn time is your friend. Because in between all of these obstacles and waiting is this thing called life. And life is meant to be lived and enjoyed. Without time, you'll miss life. And to me that's not an extraordinary way to live.
2015 has given me new muscles and showed me where bridges may be hidden. I say 'may' because life likes to test me. It's taught me not to give up. It's taught me how to be very stubborn with my goals, but creative with how I complete them. Let me tell ya, the yellow brick road I started on has taken me on some great adventures and I hope these ruby slippers have enough magic in them to take me on some more.
In 2015 I wanted to learn to walk on my own. I think I've done that now. 2016, I'm ready to learn to fly.
