Twinkle By Wenlan

My last day at Twinkle brought to mind all the experiences I’ve had here over the past couple months. I have seen a collection from sketches on a board to being presented before the press and everything in between. I feel that all of my design skills were used to their fullest advantage while I was here. I was so inspired by the entire Twinkle staff and how they all work together to produce such a fun quirky product. So thank you for letting me be on your team and for keeping my hands knitting!

Annalise Frank

Annalise Knitting

So, it’s here, the time that I’ve been dreading.  My last day at Twinkle has come, and I must say, I’m definitely going to miss it.  Everyone here has been such a great help, and it was an amazing learning experience.  To sum it up, in the five months that I’ve been here, I’ve done everything from running errands to assisting with my first fashion presentation.  There are no words for how thankful I am to have this knowledge of the industry, and I can’t even imagine what will happen next, all thanks to Wenlan and her team of amazingly talented people.  Goals cannot be met without a little help sometimes, and had it not been for the help of everyone here, I don’t know if I would have been able to accomplish so much in so little time.  So, to my fellow interns, and the whole staff:  Thank you.  I will miss you all so much, and I will never forget the time that we shared, even those times we just spent sitting around, snacking on oreo’s and laughing at each other’s jokes.  Remember this, spread love wherever you go.  Let no one ever come to you without leaving happier.  Afterall, that’s what you did for me.
Love,
Josh

Josh’s Goodbye Picture

I started knitting late in my life. I approached it from a pure design angle. Later, especially after I published knitting books, I started seeing the cultural side of it. Its grass-root-meet-conceptual art character fascinates and surprises me every now and then.

I recently read about Sarah Hardacre, 31, from Salford, Manchester, who with helpers knitted a sweater for a bus! I can imagine the fun they had while making the “bus cover”!
This project reminds me of Isabel Berglund who knitted a room. There is gigantic mushroom, bee’s wings and trees, all knitted in the knitted room. (http://www.isabelberglund.dk/) I want to visit this knitted wonderland when I visit Copenhagen, Denmark. Christien Meindertsma, an artist/designer from Netherlands who made “one sheep cardigan” where each cardigan is made with yarn from one sheep. (http://www.christienmeindertsma.com/) Each cardigan is numbered and tagged with the sheep’s picture. The cardigan is not a product but has its own life here.

I looked at the first knitting project I devoted myself to- a yellow asymmetrical tunic dress mixed with clear vinyl tube and wool/polyester yarn, its alien existence is what attracted me to this business in the place. It’s that little bit quirky and unreal approach to clothes that intrigues me. Obviously running a business is the most realistic thing. But I’m happy that my first creation is something from the similar sphere of Isabel’s wonderland, a place we can all be child again.

Wenlan

Knitted Bus

With Mother’s Day fast approaching, one would think it would be a good time to start looking for gifts.  This is, after all, the singular woman that gave you life, so the proper gift has to meet many criteria.  A gift should be for one, thought out.  Moms are always drawn immediately to the thoughtful card with the mushy poem in it.  However, to make your gift even more personal, it might be a good idea to make something.  How about knitting her a blanket or a hat for next winter?  You could put together a scrapbook of all of the good times you’ve had with each other.  Gifts should also be something from your heart.  Taking gifts to the next level by adding a personal touch is such a great way to send a special message to your mother.  For example, what a great idea it would be to take a piece from Twinkle’s fine jewelry collection and add a special little note in the box!  However, sentimental as they may be, gifts are not the only thing that mothers want on their special day.  The best gift of all is the gift of time.  Spending time with your mom will make her feel appreciated and you don’t even have to spend any money!  Overall, your mom will love anything you get her, whether big or small, so just make it a special day and nothing will go wrong!
Happy Mother’s Day!
-Josh

Don’t let straggling April showers deter you from reveling in spring – create your own May flowers with Earl Grey Tea Cookies. These simple yet uniquely tinged cookies will become a favorite whether or not you’re a tea totaler.

Ingredients:
•    2 cups flour
•    ½ cup sugar
•    ½ cup confectioners’ sugar
•    2 tablespoons Earl Grey tea leaves (six tea bags)
•    ½ teaspoon salt
•    1 teaspoon vanilla extract
•    1 teaspoon water
•    1 cup unsalted butter, in pieces

Directions*:
•    Preheat oven to 375°
•    Combine all dry ingredients in a food processor until tea leaves become pulverized
•    Add vanilla, water and butter and mix until dough is formed
•    Divide the dough in half, placing each half on plastic wrap
•    Roll each half into 12 inch logs (add a little water if your dough is too crumbly)
•    Wrap and chill for 30 minutes
•    Cut into 1/3 inch slices
•    Place the slices on baking sheets covered with parchment paper or foil, spaced about two inches apart
•    Bake until the edges begin to brown, approximately 12 minutes
•    Cool on the cookie sheet for five minutes and then move to a wire rack

*Be sure to add 30 minutes to prep time to allow dough to chill!

Though loose leaf tea leaves would be expected to have a stronger flavor, tea leaves in tea bags will best embody the distinctly aromatic essence. By replacing the butter with margarine or shortening, vegans can also enjoy! And yes, whole wheat flour works, too!

So while you may be homebound, put on a comfy sweater, curl up with a good book and let your taste buds savor spring.

YAY!!! The sample sale has arrived and with less then 24 hours until Twinkle opens it’s  doors the show room is complete with comfy sweaters, silky blouses and the most magical prints ever.
All day the girls and I have been marking down garments, putting together racks and even picking out a few items for ourselves that we just couldn’t resist without! Can you blame us?
Organizing was such a big part in this sample sale and after sorting out sizes and fabrics each rack was over flowing with some amazing stuff and bargains you cannot live without! And after every thing was done the girls and I couldn’t wait to sit our buts down….. we were officially exhausted!!! But it turned out to be the most amazing sample sale ever!!!

Lauren

Armed with a gun, I was ready to take on the day’s challenge; a tagging gun that is.  We have been busy at work getting ready for this week’s Sample Sale.

The usually calm uncluttered showroom will soon be transformed into a jam packed storefront filled with savvy shoppers pilfering through the racks. I can only imagine how crazy it will be! Today the racks look beautiful, arranged in color order and sectioned off by size. I’m sure it will only take a couple hours into the sale for this to change.

Interning with Twinkle no day is the same. You never know what is in store when you get to work and that is what makes it so fun.

Brenda

After seeing the amazing hand knit sweaters that were shown at the Twinkle Fall 2009 show, I was inspired to start knitting.  However, not having a grandmother that knits, or someone to show me, I was in a bit of a pickle.  Knitting instruction books are way to expensive for my student budget and it’s almost impossible to find knitting lessons in New York.  Then I thought to myself, why not try a website where you can basically find any video on any subject, Youtube?  It was pure bliss from then on, and with a few simple stitches underneath my belt, I was ready to start.  There was one problem though.  I didn’t have any yarn!
Well, luckily, I work for a company that sells yarn, so that’s exactly what I spent my hard earned Twinkle dollars on.  After knitting a few small items for my friends out of the fun and easy to follow books, “Twinkle’s Big City Knits” and “Twinkle’s Town and Country Knits,” I realized that it was time to start making things for myself.  So, I gave myself a time period of a week to knit myself a sweater.  The books made it really easy to get creative with all of the knitting techniques and as I finished the “Nantucket sweater” from town and country, I decided to be a designer and do it my way.  I flipped the sweater upside down when I was finished knitting and added a bottom panel.  This gave the top of the sweater a really great cowl effect and when the sweater was flipped over the right way, the bottom panel turns into a beautiful collar for the ultimate warmth. Overall, the experience taught me a lot about knitting, and within a few short weeks, I made some really cool projects!

Josh wearing his sweater

Working at the Twinkle office, I have learned a lot about how great designs in one’s head comes to actualization to be worn by lovers of whimsical clothes, among many many other great things.  On top of the great experience we get here, there’s more!  People here all love to eat -don’t be surprised- everyone loves to share!  I love it when people bring in snackies.  We just munch-munch until it’s all gone.  What a nice way to take a break, surrounded by everyone’s gorgeous smiles!  Now, send us more snackies!  It would be even more awesome if it didn’t contain any animal products.  Being the only vegan person in the office, my self-control is tested on every weekly basis

By Hana

Hana by the desk

So… it’s only been one week so far interning at Twinkle and I must say the experience, atmosphere and the Twinkle crew is quite amazing!

Of course I felt so nervous the morning of my first day, but by the end I didn’t want to leave. Not only were everyone super helpful, but very welcoming and they definitely made it feel like home! So, on the first day my assignment was to create the “sample sale” poster and after a few tweaks and fixes on Photoshop I have to say with a deep breath “mission accomplished!”

And at the end of the day underneath the chaos, messy desks, and powerful inspiration boards Wenlan always successfully pulls together the feminine and whimsical clothing that is completely breathtaking. So, before I end my little entry I have to say I’m so lucky to learn from a true designer. Thanks for having me!!

By Lauren Orloff

Lauren at design table