Chit Chat Friday with Wovenplay

Being a kid is such a beautiful thing, where daydreams are reality and innocence is something you still long for. Running freely through the garden dressed in their favourite costume fighting off pirates or pretending their dancing on the stage at the Royal Opera House, it's this carefreeness that makes kids so special. Kids live everyday with an excitement that everyone should admire. Wovenplay from Brooklyn, New York, takes all these things into consideration when they are designing their collection for the little daydreamers. They are capturing those daydreams and expressing them through their beautiful pieces. I had the opportunity to have a lovely chit chat with the creative director of Wovenplay, Katherine Edmonds and this is what she had to say:

http://wovenplay.com/WOVENPLAY/Shop.html

1.    TELL ME ABOUT YOURSELF. WHAT IS YOUR BACKGROUND?

I became fascinated by shape, color, and the human impulse to create when I studied art history in school. So much of what we do at Wovenplay is based upon the idea of meaningful construction; we use tools to dye, shape, and print raw materials, creating something expressive and unique. When I first moved to New York I took a class on French dressmaking, after which I delved into the fantastical world of imagination, freedom, and unpredictability that has become my brand, Wovenplay. 

2.    HOW LONG HAS WOVENPLAY BEEN AROUND? HOW DID THE BRAND DEVELOP?

Wovenplay was founded in 2007, with a line of costumes.  As I got more into the idea of creative everday-wear for kids (because who doesn’t like to wear a tutu everyday?!), I expanded the collections into a full children’s clothing line.

3.    WHAT INSPIRES YOUR COLLECTIONS?

Shape and form are a huge design inspiration, as is beautiful hand-work and color; these inspirations feed my ever-lasting desire to embellish and manipulate materials, texture, and structure.

4.    HOW DOES WOVENPLAY SET ITSELF APART FROM OTHER BRANDS?

At Wovenplay we do a lot of our own handwork. We use silk-screen printing techniques for original artwork, we dye all sorts of fabrics, hunt for fantastic vintage beads - a lot of experimentation with materials, textures, and colors goes on in our studio as we design each new collection. Each season starts as an inspiration board, on which we pin new ideas for prints, color combinations, unique embellishments, inspiring pictures and artwork. We are constantly doing little art projects in our studio, trying things out, and really inspiring one another to create, create, create!

5.    EVERYTHING IS MADE IN YOUR BROOKLYN STUDIO, HOW MANY OF YOU ARE THERE NOW DESIGING AWAY?

There are currently four members working on designs and product development at Wovenplay.

6.    BESIDES YOUR OWN BRAND, WHAT ARE YOUR FAVOURITE KIDS DESIGNERS AT THE MOMENT?

Simple Kids and Flora and Henri are a couple of our favorites.

7.    IF YOU COULD COLLABORATE WITH ANYONE IN THE WORLD, WHO WOULD THIS BE? WHY?

I find a lot of inspiration in the artwork of Sonia and Robert Delaunay, Wiener Werkstatte, and Richard Diebenkorn, - if I could really collaborate with ANYONE (living or no), it would be one of these artists.

8.  DO YOU HAVE A FAVOURITE CAFÉ, BOOKSHOP, MUSEUM, PARK, ETC THAT YOU CAN GO AND GAIN INSPIRAITON FROM?

My design team and I are completely spoiled living in New York and working in Brooklyn.  There are endless museums, exhibits, concerts, and hole-in-the-wall café’s to be inspired by. Most recently, we took a field trip to the Punk Fashion exhibit at The Met, which was amazing. (Go!!)

9.    DO YOU LISTEN TO MUSIC WHEN YOU ARE DESIGNING? IF SO, WHAT ARE YOU LISTENING TO NOW?

I like to listen to Ryan Adams, The Flying Burrito Brothers; between the interns and the rest of the design team we really get a taste of everything.

10.    WHAT’S THE BEST ADVICE SOMEONE HAS GIVEN YOU?

To wholeheartedly believe in your endeavors and what you want to do – if you are persistent in pursuing what you want you would be amazed at what you can accomplish.

11.  WHAT ADVICE CAN YOU GIVE TO US?

SMILE! And always hang on for your sense of humor and the ability to laugh at yourself!

12.  ANY EXCITING PLANS OR NEWS YOU WOULD LIKE TO SHARE WITH US?

Aventuur by Wovenplay, is our new line of play-clothing (that is entirely machine-washable!), and we have been so excited for it to hit the shelves. This new line is a tribute to our costume-roots, and we have had so much fun hand-finishing each piece at our Brooklyn studio for the last few months. From the classic ballerina (with a bit of Wovenplay flair), and beautiful hand-dyed fairy wings, to an old-meets-new space voyager costume. We wanted to create something so new and imaginative, with the important benefit of the pieces being comfy for the kids, and easy for the parents!