News from Graymarket

Whew! After a crazy few months of renovations and moving out of our old studio in Frankfort and into our new studio in Louisville, we're finally settling in to our sweet new space in Nulu (810 E Market St, come see us!) 

2018 was our biggest year yet, and between Matt and I having two small but growing businesses and what the parenting books have told me is a "spirited" 2 year old (hahaaa!) things felt slightly frantic a lot of the time. I was stretched to my max, realized I needed more help, and had the most wonderful assistant/everything person join the team in Dec. We've had fun setting up the shop, and are looking forward to bringing in the goods of some of our favorite makers as well-- and we're loving our spacious new order fulfillment area and studio in the back of the space. I'm hoping to do a lot more actual designing this year, rather than spending so much of my time working on shipping and logistics issues. It's so funny and has happened to so many creatives I know- you start a business doing what you love, and then don't get to do that thing most of the time because the actual running of the business takes all your time. So it will be a joy to get back to the colors and textures and patterns, and I love that I get to hunker down and base out of this great little neighborhood.

Here's to a calmer and more balanced 2019- and if you're in the Louisville area please stop by and say hi!!

Love, Hallie

https://graymarketdesign.com/

BEFORE PICS (late November 2018)

AFTER PICS!! JAN 2019

This past weekend we did a photo shoot for our little quilts. Conveniently, I have a little guy at the ready for shoots like these... but because he's one and on the move non-stop, we have about 15-20 minutes before he gets bored hamming it up for the camera and starts trying to tackle the photographer and knock over the lights. Here are some shots that didn't make the final cut.... out of about 120 shots we got maybe 7 we can use:) Also! If you happen to be reading this and know of a baby or little one who would ever want to join Ash for a photo sesh, please shoot me an email! Models get a copy of a few great pics and a little quilt for their time:)

You know when you're so busy, and have so much work to do, that you can't find the time to go to the grocery store, let alone take a vacation for a week? Matt and I found ourselves in that very situation last Sunday night, as we frantically packed for a beach vacation that felt crazy to take. But we'd planned this trip a year ago with my parents, and sometimes you just have to step away for a while, especially for family time. We spent time in the Bahamas and Miami, and it was so amazing to unplug and recharge a bit. Ash loved the ocean (almost a little too much-- I imagined him sitting on the beach playing with buckets in the sand, and instead he became obsessed with the water and crawling as fast as he could into it every time we turned our backs), we ate the freshest seafood, drank enough Pina Coladas to last me the rest of the year, and watched some beautiful sunsets. Restful it was not, as I've heard it never is with a baby, but we feel rejuvenated and so lucky to have been able to make some amazing memories in such a beautiful place. 

Now we're back, and ready to get to work! But here are a few moments from our sweet, sweet time at the ocean......

xHallie

The dust is finally settling after returning home from NYNOW, and I feel like we're just coming up for air! It was an amazing show for Graymarket, and an..... interesting trip for our little family:)  Ash of course came with us, and fell into some kind of major sleep aversion for the entire ten days we were gone. He was waking up literally every hour at night, and eventually we had to get another hotel room (which became known as "the magic room"), where Matt and I would alternate getting a semi-full night's rest so we could be somewhat coherent at the show during the day. We also all got sick, BUT all of that aside we had a wonderful show and it was so great to reconnect with our wholesale customers and meet new inspiring makers and store owners. My mom and stepdad also came to NY to help with Ash while we worked, and after the show we had a fun few days exploring the city.

Matt's booth was such a success--- as some of you might remember, he built our new booth using some self-taught basic carpentry tricks, lots of YouTubing and many conversations with Lowe's employees trying to help make his plan a reality. Below are some pictures of the booth in the making and then set up at the show. We'll definitely be using this one at the next NYNOW, which is somehow only a handful of months away! 

Now we're home, trying to get organized for the busy season ahead and waiting on big shipments from India to get in so we can fill our orders. And the good news is that we've had a successful week of sleep training the little guy, so I don't feel like I'm walking around in a fog anymore:) 

We LOVE the rich, vivid colors of fall, and are celebrating the season with some beautiful fall table shots:)

We recently became a featured designer on Cataluv, a new mobile app that curates a feed of amazing home decor and accessories from shops and designers. I thought we should call attention to it because it's AWESOME and will have you totally hooked on the never-ending stream of amazing textiles, ceramics, art and other decor in no time. It's basically like Instagram for home decor enthusiasts, and the best part is that you can tap on each picture in their feed to learn more about and buy the featured pieces in the image. Really amazing place to discover new up and coming brands and get design ideas- check them out! 

Our Fall/Winter collection is here, and we recently hit the streets with some friends to do a little photo shoot with the new scarves. Here are some of our favorites......

I grew up spending part of my year in South Dakota, and I still go back to visit for a month every summer (I'm here now, in fact!). 99.9% of people I encounter outside of the state have never met someone from South Dakota, and it is a remote and thus mysterious place for most. Since I'm currently surrounded by the beauty of the Black Hills, I thought I'd share some pictures from this sparsely populated but seriously beautiful and geographically diverse state. 

The Badlands

Photo credit: Barbara Ann Spengler | http://tinyurl.com/phpkagx | 

The Grasslands

Photo credit: http://tinyurl.com/pae39kw | 

Roughlock Falls

Photo credit: Kimon Berlin | http://tinyurl.com/oey23ar |

Outside of Spearfish 

Photo credit: Debra Kelley

Birch forest near Deerfield Lake

Photo credit: Debra Kelley