January 2017: I was sitting on the balcony with my feet up somewhere in the middle of the Caribbean ocean. I could hear the waves hit the side of the cruise ship. I was thinking how terrifying it would be to fall overboard. I refused to look down because of it. The sun went down. I looked up to see the stars. There was only one. I made a wish and walked back into my room.
I didn’t know then that a week later the Tropical Hotel in St. Barths would be installing their custom palm wallpaper, I would receive an email from Nemo Li in Sydney for a custom print for his Daily Eatery. Nemo Li and I would become business partners in a new venture. I also didn’t know then that I was going to return home to a meeting with Cale from Gelaskins that will lead to a collaboration with Microsoft's surface book - which is where I would discover a program that gave birth to the Sel Rrose flower.
I didn’t know that I would land in Hong Kong three months after that because I was traveling to Australia and Bali, and Hong Kong was my layover. I would eat McDonalds because it was the only thing open. While I was in Australia Palm Lane would be in their planning stages, and would ask me to do a custom print sometime in May. Over martinis one night Caleigh would tell me about her idea to revolutionize the boxing gym and open something called BOLO, and through our meeting with her architect I would be introduced to Sarah - the founder of Mary Be where we would create the first ever Cabbage wallpaper.
Before I left for Australia I had coffee with a woman I had met at an event eight years ago. She introduced me to Ali from Weaver and Loom. I didn’t know that six months later Ali and I would be working on CKD’s first rug collection.
That night I wished for 2017 to take CKD to places I could not have imagined on my own. I didn't know then that wishing on a star really does make dreams come true.
