Lately

Hiya! Remember me?

Me, being wacky, 2.5 years ago

I suppose now is a good time to divulge what I've been up to lately. In moving to Austin, knowing very few people, I planned to find a job working under another designer, rather than continue as self-employed. Just before we moved, I was so busy wrapping up projects in New York, I really had no time for job hunting in Austin. So, against everything I stand for and am comfortable with, we hopped into a truck and drove to Texas without a well-mapped plan. Once here, I sent out some cold emails and attended a handful of horrifying networking events (where I met some terrific people, I might add...in the end, they weren't all that horrifying). In the first couple of months, I picked up some freelance and temporary work. Eventually, I landed the real deal: I recently accepted a full-time position with Cravotta Studios, owned by the illustrious and infinitely talented Mark Cravotta, who has an impeccable eye for high-end design and a thirst for finding the latest, greatest and most beautifully created furniture and accessories. A few favorites from his vast portfolio (note: I had nothing to do with these projects, although I wish I did!)




When Mark told me he'd been to the furniture fair in Paris and was thinking about going to Chicago's Merchandise Mart at some point, I made a passing recommendation that he someday check out New York's own International Contemporary Furniture Fair (ICFF). I made this comment about two weeks before ICFF was to begin, assuming my suggestion would perhaps be taken into consideration for next year. Much to my surprise and excitement, a few days later I received a text reading, "We're going to ICFF!" WE? Yes, we. Lucky me!

So, last Saturday, May 14, we boarded a non-stop flight to New York, spent Sunday at ICFF and Monday jetting from one designer showroom to the next, squeezing in a stint downtown to hit the less mainstream boutiques. There has already been a lot written about ICFF (mostly about its shortcomings), but Mark and I returned to Austin with new contacts and inspiration, so, as far as we are concerned, it was a success – I'll leave the constructive criticism about how the show failed the greater design community to other bloggers. I pulled together some of my favorites from the show on houzz.com: check out Killy's Top Picks from ICFF!