This gallery contains 7 photos.
We’ve been busy. Sorry I haven’t posted sooner. Our first year exhibiting at The National Stationery Show is coming up soon. May 20-23 – Javits Center NYC. Booth 1871. Be there or be square. Flavor Paper and I have teamed … Continue reading
I’ve always said since the very beginning of this venture that I have never seen doors open so quickly or easily. That as long as I follow the path put forth, the world will have a chance at finding Hilda’s lovely drawings. Last year, I pinned to my studio wall exhibiting details about the National Stationery Show held in May in New York City. It was always in the back of my mind to get a booth there as it would give me the opportunity to meet thousands of retail buyers of paper products.
I had so many other things going that I put it on the back burner but for some reason, in January, I was spurred on to find out if there were any affordable booths left. One tiny one was in the best spot at the Javits Center. I grabbed it and am now, in just three months, am putting together my space. It’s going to be a recreation of Mom’s studio. I still have her drawing table, light and chair. Once I had that concept, the look all started falling into place.
There are many opportunities through The Stationery Show to get publicity. One of those are the Stationery Trends Awards, or The Trendys as they say in the biz. I’ve entered our Simply Divine 1950′s Assorted Notecard Sets in this competition. The first round is for the public to decide your favorites. The ten top faves will then be judged by the pros and the winners will have a choice spot on display at the show.
Our Simply Divine Set
Wouldn’t it be great to have a prominent place at the 2012 National Stationery Show? Here’s a link to follow if you’d like to vote. They are in the Greeting Cards category. You have to register first.
As the weeks go on, I’ll keep you posted on my progress. The show runs from May 20 – 23. The first three days are trade only, but open to the public on the last day. If you can come by, we’re booth 1871.
Two years ago, I was an architectural photographer and now I’m exhibiting at The National Stationery Show. Life is interesting…
Hope to see you there!
A majority of the drawings on TheWhiteCabinet.com were part of Mom’s portfolio. These were her samples, many drawn at the aforementioned Wally’s studio. Laura Mueller and I have recently been reminiscing. She had been one of Mom’s models. I’ve talked about her here. She pointed out how the samples were meant to show certain strengths. What a layperson is looking at may be quite different from a client. Take Roxanne, for example.
I see an elegant, sexy woman in one of the coolest girdles ever.
Now here’s Laura’s take on what a client will see:
Mom needed to show them that she could recreate the feeling of the texture of the fabric. When I really started studying the detail of this drawing, I was blown away.
And this one of Rosemary.
What do you see?
Now look…
With dry strokes, she was able to create fur. Not an easy thing to do. I had a booth recently at the Art League of Long Island holiday show. One woman looked fascinated by this drawing. It turns out, she’s teaches fashion illustration. She said she could only wish that her students understood the details like Mom did.
As long as I’ve looked at these drawings, there is always something new to discover.
When I was a kid, one of my favorite TV shows was That Girl, created by and starring Marlo Thomas. Her character, Ann Marie, was an aspiring actress in her twenties, who moves to New York to find herself. Of course she had the boyfriend, but this show’s focus was on a young woman trying enthusiastically to fulfill her dreams of becoming an actress. If those of you reading are in their early thirties or younger, you might say “big deal”, but in those years (the series aired from 1966-71), this was a groundbreaking concept to be shown on primetime television. It helped show a generation of girls that there were a lot of choices out there for us. Yes, we could even aspire to have out own apartment, even if it drove our fathers crazy! (New York was more affordable in those days 
) It was a comedy, so Ann Marie got herself into some wacky situations, almost always wearing the most fabulous mod clothing of the time. She was cool. She was us in a few years.
I’ve always admired Marlo (I hope she doesn’t mind being on a first name basis), her work and her active role in the feminist movement, so you can only imagine my surprise when I got a call from Lori Weiss, one of Marlo’s producers for her Huffington Post website MarloThomas.com where women can go to find articles and information on health, career, relationships and reinventing themselves over age 40. Lori told me that they were starting a series called “It Ain’t Over Til It’s Over” about women like me who had changed their perspective on themselves mid stream and struck out on a new path. She wanted to include my story of The White Cabinet. So this week is my turn. I tell her every time I read one of her stories, I have to bring out the tissues. So be forewarned. Please share it and the other stories with everyone you know. They are very inspiring. I’m honored to be a part of it.
I forgot to give you the Promotion Code for our sale!! Enter WELOVEHILDA at checkout. www.thewhitecabinet.com
Sorry about that!
Posted in The White Cabinet News
I am thankful for so many things. My husband, my step children, my friends, my family, my animals (3 dogs, 2 cats and a horse – crazy!!)… and this new business venture. The White Cabinet has made me happier than I ever could have imagined. Start ups aren’t an easy thing, but the path seems to have been laid out before me and as long as I follow down the road with open and adventurous eyes, Hilda’s drawings will be enjoyed world wide. What a gift she has given me to wake up every morning inspired with new ideas, excited about what the day will bring.
I am a lucky lady.
As a very small business, to celebrate Small Business Saturday, we are having a very special sale. On November 26, for 24 hours only, all notecards and prints at The White Cabinet will be 50% off. It’s our way to say thank you for making life so much fun!
Happy Thanksgiving everyone!
I’ve recently become acquainted with a wonderful blog called My Vintage Vogue. The blogger, Jessica, shares images of fashion history from the 20′s into the 60′s. To quote her: “I’m just a girl with a scanner and a dream, preserving the past one image at a time”. Her blog is page after page of stunning clothing, some really interesting photography and, of course, fashion illustrations that she has found in various types of publications. Needless to say, I love this site and if you love Hilda’s drawings, you’ll enjoy a visit there as well.
As I was looking through the images, I saw drawings for I.Magnin, Vogue Patterns, Harry Frechtel and I thought, were these done by Mom? If not by her, then by whom? Jessica is lovingly archiving these images and in some cases, she can name the photographer and model (if they were particularly famous), but for the most part, these wonderful images remain anonymous. Hardly anyone signed their work in an ad. I know that Mom thought of herself as a commercial artist, so why sign? There were bigger and smaller clients and they all helped pay the bills. In her mind, she wasn’t a fine artist like my Dad. His paintings hung in shows at the Brooklyn Museum and the like. His work came from the soul. But time does strange things, and now, yup, I think I consider her work fine art as well. Although the initial impetus to start a drawing was commerce, she too put her soul into her work. They have a wonderful spirit to them and now that decades have gone by and the drawings are separated from the ads, people are responding to them as they would had they been on display at the Met.
What happened to all the other artist’s original work? Where have they ended up? I hope in some other white cabinets across the world, ready to show themselves. Or perhaps on a wall at The Brooklyn Museum …
