well after much technical difficulty, the podcast is finally up! this week i’m speaking with san francisco’s lotta jansdotter- though she’s now bi-coastal and living in brooklyn as well. bear with me because this is the first time i’ve attempted this medium, so the sound is a little less than ideal (you may need to turn it up a bit) but i promise the next one will be crystal clear. so, aside from me sounding like a total dufus (i chose not to edit out any stumbles or screw ups on my part for the time being) you’ll get to hear what lotta has to say about design, collecting, inspiration and her own personal design favorites. so, click here to listen to the podcast (it may take a second to load) and be sure to check out the podcasts icon on the left hand side of the site. here you’ll find all the podcasts archived for your convenience. thanks for your patience with the sound. i’m used to doing a radio show but this was a whole new ballgame- i’ll have this patched up and more professional soon. [an extra special thanks to diane at craftypod and seth at sparrowcast for helping me with all of this. thanks so much guys!]

[also, as a special offer to d*s newsletter subscribers, you'll have access to a special extended interview with lotta. she'll answer some fun bonus questions just for scubscribers! want to know her favorite restaurant in san francisco and her advice to fledgling artists? subscribe here and you'll get to hear all about it!]

kristina at three layer cake just did a fun interview with the brains behind chair london, a fabulous modern design store that i had to get up before i left today. [short day today, i'm interviewing lotta jansdotter for our podcast section. she'll be up shortly with some great new pieces]. chair has a huge collection of fantastic fresh european (and american) design to choose from- but what i found most intriguing was their focus on young british designers. chair has a great section where they profile up and coming designers and studios and give little snippets of info about their work and missions. aside from great info on the next generation of british design, chair stocks some of the most gorgeous pieces of furniture, tableware and home accessories (e-commerce coming soon). click here to view their full collection and get some tips on who’s the next great british designer. enjoy! [thanks, kristina!]

[i'll be back tomorrow with tons of fresh content. thanks so much for your patience while i record and edit these upcoming podcasts that will launch this week- finally! also, new mini trend coming tomorrow!]

stephanie at stylemaven did a great interview with scott frankum of eboniste- a fantastic furniture manufacturer specializing in modern glamour. it’s a great read and scott’s work at eboniste is gorgeous. click here to read the interview and click here to check out more by eboniste (be sure to check out the “great cities” collection- my favorite. [thanks, stephanie for passing this along! photos are from stylemaven]

kristina at three layer cake was kind enough to include me in her series of interviews with design personalities. aside from finding out what dessert d*s would be if i had to choose, you can find out all sorts of embarassing things about me right here (in additon to more professional, design-related questions). [thanks, kristina!]

seth of sparrowcast was nice enough to include me as part of one of his podcasts for and about the creative community. aside from the fact that i sound like a rambling teenager in sections, i thought some of you might get a kick out of it (or enjoy a good laugh on me). it’s surreal to hear your own voice talk about design for minutes and minutes on end. thanks so much to seth for including me- and sandwiching my interview between two really great songs. you can listen to the podcast right here, it takes a few seconds to load after you click “direct download”. thanks, seth!

mocoloco has a great interview with idfuel’s dominic muren up today- i think it’s a fantastic idea. dom has some really interesting things to say as he heads back to school for his masters in industrial design at the university of the arts in philly. check it out if you have time.

deadline schmedline- lorena barrezueta is worth the wait. this brooklyn-based designer has what it takes to keep a notoriously impatient writer (me!) from giving up. i was anxious to talk with her the second i saw her designs at the future perfect and at this year’s brooklyn designs show, my crush was confirmed. lorena barrezueta is the coolest.

barrezueta has a degree in product design from parsons- and she knows how to use it. debuted this past spring, lorena’s gourmet dishware collection is some of the most creative work i’ve seen in awhile. made of porcelain, slip
cast in the form of disposable, alluminum take-out containers, the collection is available in white porcelain, rimmed with gold leaf, or in a colorful array of bright glazes. (i bought a little, two-section number in a great spring green…it now houses my teeny tiny collection of nice jewelery

the beauty of barrezueta’s gourmet collection is in its concept- discovering and appreciating the beauty in what most people see as disposable, unimportant items. inspired by “tasteful kitch” and all things second hand, barrezueta designed a seventeen piece collection now available throughout the city and through her website, lorenabarrezueta.com

the queen of everday gourmet sat down to answer some questions of mine over the past week or so- here are the highlights. enjoy! buy gourmet dishware!

design*sponge: where does your inspiration come from? could you maybe tell me a little bit about your design process?

lorena barrezuta: find inspiration it what others might consider to be ordinary. i also like questioning various forms of etiquette and social norms. my design process usually involves a lot of writing. i need to hash out three or four pages of emotional banter before i get to the basic idea of what i’m trying to address with my design. then there’s a lot of prototyping, revising, obsessing and refining until i’m satisfied. music and laughter also play a HUGE part in my life as well as my work.

design*sponge:tell us a little bit about yourself- where did you study, did you enjoy your experience in design school, were there any sort of movements or trends a foot at school that you think will be popular in the near future?

lorena: i graduated from the product design department at parsons school of design. design school was challenging but i fortunately had some very close classmates that i really admired, respected and loved to laugh with which helped make the experience quite enjoyable.

design*sponge: how involved are you in the design community? do you attend shows and design school events? or has running your own studio and producing this line taken up a lot of time? do you pour over design magazines for ideas and an idea of what’s big in the market or are you more concerned with your own work?

lorena: i like to be aware of what’s out there but i don’t care to obsess over anyone or anything. i’ll attend a show or discussion here an there but i mostly like to focus on my own work.

design*sponge: what’s been the most difficult part of becoming a professional designer? what are your goals professionally- would you like to continue in a studio of your own or perhaps join up with other designers to form a company and do you plan to branch out to other mediums besides ceramics?

lorena: the most difficult part about working on my own is that i do everything myself. that will eventually change as my company grows but it can sometimes get a bit overwhelming. i want to continue building my design company and eventually expand my product line to furniture, jewelry, handbags and more. i also would like to collaborate with other designers in the future.

designsponge:what do you do in your spare time and do you have any favorite local stores where you feel great design is being represented?

lorena: i really enjoy spending time with my boyfriend, close friends and family. i love dancing…a lot….and i actually don’t go shopping very often.

design*sponge:what are some of your favorite things in the design world right now?

lorena: i enjoy the hands on quality of some of the work that i’ve seen recently. what disappoints me about design in general is the underlying pressure to constantly produce new product. i feel that this mentality doesn’t really allow time for refinment of ideas and utimately stunts the quality of design and innovation.

design*sponge: what would you like to see more of in the design world. this could be as broad or as general as you like..

lorena: i would like to see more quality and less quantity.

design*sponge: lastly, just for fun- could you make a list of 5 things you can’t live without? it can be anything, a dish, a band, a place or person, anything…

lorena: i can’t live without music, food, water, tissues, & all of my loved ones!

DISH IT UP [gourmet dishware*lorena barrezueta] the colored version….

PORCELAIN PICNIC [gourmet dishware*lorena barrezueta] pure porcelain, pure genius.

GOLDEN GIRL [gourmet dishware*lorena barrezueta] gold rimmed, for those who don’t want to rough it too much…