core77 built a fantastic resource for design students called hack 2 school. full of great advice on classes, work and promoting your work, this is one guide you won’t want to miss if you’re a student or designers fresh out of school. i got to add a little bit to the blog section but the meat of the guide is practical advice from the experts at core77. click here for the full shabang.

hearing from students has got to be one of my favorite things in the world. there’s something about the world of art and design school that i find endlessly inspiring and creative. so naturally i was thrilled to hear from british artist emily morris who just graduated from design school in the uk this summer. emily graduated with a degree in printed textile and surface design and recently debuted her first collection- a collection of laser cut paper panels called mister charlesworth- at the new designers exhibition. mister charlesworth is a stunning series of panels featuring insect imagery that has been transformed into intricate lace-like cut paper designs. the panels were on display at chiltern st. studio in london (seen above and below) and are really more beautiful than words. emily doesn’t currently have a website but if you’re interested in commissioning her work or just contacting her you can email her right here. [thanks, emily!]

designer christine misiak emailed me over the weekend and i was blown away by her new/old tea sets. based in durham england, christine created her unique tea sets as her final project at northumbria university. afterwards she showed the set at the 2007 new designers exhibition where she received the peter walker award for innovation in product design. what i love so much about these new/old teasets is the way she reuses old tea set parts and combines them with pieces from new tea sets. a little bit of the old and new is such a fun idea- and it certainly gives the set a distinct look (you can see sketches from christine’s design process right here). christine’s sets aren’t currently for sale but you can view more of her work and contact her online right here. be sure to check out her other tea sets in which she’s repaired and repainted found tea sets in bold colors. [thanks, christine!]

as i continue to blog and work on d*s, the one consistent love i have in the design world is student work. i’m always drawn to student shows and exhibitions far more strongly than the big fairs at javits each year. something about the raw talent and creativity they exude is endlessly inspiring for me. because i live in brooklyn i definitely have a soft spot for pratt and their incredibly talented students. so i was thrilled yesterday to hear from pratt student kimberly lewis who’s over in copenhagen (along with her classmates) taking part in a textile design studio. she created a blog to mark her progress and work in the class and i’ve been poring over it all morning. there’s something about watching an artist test things out and then hit their stride that’s just so exciting. you can click here to check out kim’s blog and watch her textile work progress- her latest linen pieces are really beautiful. [thanks, kim!]

every now and then i meet an inspiring student or designer looking for work and want to offer any help i can give. when i was down in savannah at scad i met two such students, lillian farag (that’s her work above) and kimb james. both were students in the fibers department and are highly skilled pattern makers. it’s tough to find a job straight out of school so i thought i’d share some of their work here in hopes that someone out there is looking for a new hire or might know a spot for them. both of their websites have their contact information so if you think they might be right for your company please don’t hesitate to contact them- they’re wonderful girls and would be a great addition to any staff. also, speaking of staffs, house & garden is looking for a new editor. details below:

House & Garden magazine has an opening for a style editor with a passion for design and broad experience covering the luxury home design market. The editor will contribute story ideas and produce shopping stories on such topics as furniture, design, kitchen and bath, fabric, and technology. It helps to have writing and reporting experience and ability, deep contacts in the design community, and a strong visual point of view. Applicants should send a resume and cover letter to Eliza_Honey [at] condenast.com.

hopefully someone in our community can help with all of these. in the meantime, i’m working away on a d*s job board that will focus on helping students and those interested in independent design find ways to hire and be hired. stay tuned…

[designs above by lillian farag. you can contact lillian right here]

[3 patterns above by kimb james. you can contact kim right here]

i wasn’t able to get a good photo of constance’s beautiful sea urchin ottoman at icff. constance was part of the risd/swarovski project that i was ready to move into- her piece was playfully dotted with crystals along the ribbing for such a sleek but fun design. you can view the rest of the collection (including the chair i would have run away with if it would have fit inside my bag) right here. enjoy!

if you attended the scad lecture on wednesday and would like to download the lecture notes and outline i’ll be uploading the documents and posting them this weekend. i’m having a little technicaly glitch getting them uploaded but as soon as they are i will post them right away.

one of the (many) highlights of my trip was a visit to shopSCAD. i’ve seen a lot of art school shops and i’ll have to say, SCAD is in a league of its own. i was scheduled to stay there an hour (which i thought was nearly impossible) but i could have easily stayed for 2 or 3 just looking at the artwork. the fabulous joe bush (who’s about to move to silverlake!) and kyle of shopSCAD were incredibly helpful and knowledgeable about every single tiny piece in the shop, which was founded by amy zurcher and katie runnels in 2003. i felt like i’d stumbled into the home of some incredibly eccentric, artistic (maybe a little crazy?) southern woman with impeccable taste. there were beautiful little pieces tucked into every nook and cranny- not to mention the sculptures hanging from the ceiling. my favorite pieces belonged to artist stephanie howard, who created a series of “shag queen” (named for the dance) illustrations that use stippling and tiny lines and dashes to create the incredible pieces above and below. her work oozes the sort of southern-ness that i crave living up here so i’m in the process of saving up to invest in her work when i can. along with stephanie i really loved molly dingledine’s work (i bought some of her wood and pearl earrings) but you can see a big big big slideshow of shopSCAD artwork, products and store shots right here. i hope you’ll check it out- the shop is lovely and i’ve identified nearly everything in the photos (roll your mouse over the photo and then click on the “i” for photo information) so if you’d like to buy anything you see you can find the piece online at shopSCAD and have it sent to you. thanks so much for joe and kyle for making my visit such a fun one.

i’m heading home today but i just wanted to share a quick sneak peek of what i’ll be posting on thursday from my scad trip. this has, without a doubt, been the most inspiring design trip i have ever made. the students working here are creating pieces that have opened my mind and changed the way i think about the entire design process. i wish i could somehow transport all of you down here to see what’s going on (you know, oprah style with plane tickets under your laptops)- these students’ dedication to the craft and traditions of design have been such an amazing thing to see. i’ll be sharing more student work tomorrow but i wanted to share this piece from susana cacho garcia- a gorgeous necklace make of fabric and swarovski crystals (as part of a swarovski-sponsored project). i could have stared at it for hours. after i saw susana’s work i headed over to at home- a beautiful home shop in savannah where i picked up these gorgeous vintage handkerchiefs. i’m a sucker for little pieces like this. more to come tomorrow, today is my last day so i’m headed to shop scad and portfolio viewings at the fibers department. have a great day…[thanks so much to everyone who came to the lecture!]