image source www.GeckoRouge.etsy.com

I keep looking for those kind of gifts that you may have never thought of. The latest unique gift idea I’ve found comes from the amazing minds behind GeckoRouge. They are taking artwork and making modern cross stitch and puzzles to be enjoyed by all. This item of the week is a little different. It’s not just one artist, but a shop dedicated to working with some of the best talents; sharing their work in a new and exciting way. The artists who are involved in the GeckoRouge movement are: Sandra Vardgas, Carissa Rose, Shayne of the Dead, Illustrated Ink, Megan Leigh Durgin, Thomas Fedro, Simona Candini, and many more. This is a truly epic endeavor and one with a really amazing final product. Who hasn’t sat down and done a puzzle in their lives? Or can you imagine, you can recreate an amazing talents’ work to hang on your own wall or quilt into a blanket or pillow, with your own hands and in your own time. I couldn’t pass this up, it’s not one product, but the whole concept that I am excited about. Happy shopping, maybe you’ll find the perfect artwork to gift in the collection provided by GeckoRouge!

GeckoRouge puzzles are available online for $45 and up, and cross stitch for $65 and up at www.GeckoRouge.etsy.com.

- Tasha Farrington

At NY fashion week, with so many casual ready-to-wear collections this season I feel as though it was tough for many designers to really shine through, I saw a lot of repeats in trends and mediocre collections. I understand that this is not couture week, but Marchesa’s fall 2011 collection certainly is and far outshines most of what I saw on the runways. The perfect embroidery paired with meticulous draping has always been their signature and was no less in this collection, but what was more was a new perspective on Victorian. Marchesa is very good at showing modern elegance but to blend modern with the kind of nostalgic beauty of the 19^th century is a new endeavor well achieved.

The helpless romantic in me always tends towards nostalgia; Marchesa’s new couture dress collection epitomizes romanticism through what they call “Decaying Opulence”.  The design duo displayed an intuition into how women want to see themselves as beautiful. It takes a certain kind of confidence and personal identity to wear a Marchesa dress, and this collection embodies an alter ego that many women feel akin to but it is at risk to portray.

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