Designs: Color Crazy

Pierogi Picnic: Color Crazy Fashion

You know that the season’s-a-changing when people starting peeling back layers of black and grey to reveal bright and bold hues underneath!

Pining for pops of color after a long and dreary Chicago winter, it seems my palette is also bursting with pinks, yellow and saturated blues. From neon blouses graced with prints to colorful vintage finds that have been altered for a contemporary fit – there’s a definite theme to the Spring Pierogi Picnic collection!  Take a peek at all of this season’s creations in our color-lovin’ Facebook album. 

Here’s to a season of rainbow hues!

A Touch of Spring

I love love love playing up each season in my home using knick knacks and materials that are already strewn about our place.

So when  curating the look of my home for Easter and spring, I thought it would be fun to put a creative twist on the traditional symbols of the season.

Can you spot the themes?

pierogi picnic a touch of spring (3)

For this fun and vivid display I collected all the bird-like objects that I had dispersed throughout our apartment and brought them together on a runner of bright green moss.  Compiling items with a similar shape, theme, color, texture or size is a great way to make an  “instant collection” with pieces you already own. Not a dime spent here!

pierogi picnic a touch of spring (6)

I’ve been obsessed with brass vintage figurines this past year. Having found a set of bunny statues a couple years back – I have found myself moving them around the apartment at the shift of each season. But with it being spring – they are front and center on my side tables.

pierogi picnic a touch of spring (5)Feathers feathers feathers! They’re so easy to find and there are endless ways of using them! Whether collected in vases or strewn across the fireplace mantle with twine and washi tape – these natural (and trendy!) wonders add an airy texture to any space.

pierogi picnic a touch of spring (4)

These pillows! I just couldn’t stop myself when they appeared in an email newsletter from fab.com. These unique animal plushies are created when artist Kristin Loffer Theiss draws out the image using thread. She then scans and prints the design onto the fabric and stuffs each with filling and love! The result is a collection of unbearably adorable pillows! Here I’ve collected several of the more spring-like animals together to sit upon my re-upholstered vintage chair. Continue reading

Designs: Take A Bow

Pierogi Picnic: Handmade eco-friendly sweater cowl

I know I know – the end of winter is at hand so what business do I have making more cold weather gear? Well, I don’t know about you, but as far as I’m concerned the layering will continue for at least another couple of months as the current season wanes and spring takes hold. So as I was laying out my design plans for the coming days, I decided to throw caution to the wind and make more cozy layerables that can be stacked over sweaters and raincoats. And so “Take a Bow” was born.

Handcrafted from knitted, itch-free, vintage sweaters, these adorable chunky cowls are both utilitarian and fashion-forward. Creating a warm loop around the neck, these fun accessories have a pinched front to create an over-sized bow shape when worn. Great for wearing indoors or out – I predict that this new design will be a fan favorite in no time!

Item of the Week: Hide N Seek

Forest Green Crop Sweater handmade by Pierogi Picnic

What do you get when you throw together a soft pre-loved sweatshirt, lace, thread and some major scissor cutting? The adorable and oh so cozy Hide N Seek sweater! One of my personal favorites – this soft and toasty piece has a modern boxy shape with just the right dash of charm. Sporting an over-sized cowl neckline, lace embellishment, raw edges and over-sized fit, this fun piece is great for wearing alone or being layered. Perfect for the shifting season – the Hide N Seek sweater series will have you snuggling up to someone special in no time!

Inspiration: Jayson Home

jayson home by lydia krupinski (1)

It’s winter in Chicago which means I’m starving for visual inspiration. There’s only so much pinning a girl can do! So on a recent Saturday afternoon I embarked with my equally eager hubby to Jayson Home to get my creative juices moving again.

If there’s ever been a place to whisk away the winter-blues it’s this eccentrically elegant home and garden center in the heart of the Lincoln Park shopping district. Filled with a cacophony of furniture odds and design ends this beautiful boutique expertly choreographs each and every display. Moody reupholstered furniture combine with brightly colored accent pieces, one-of-a-kind handmade dishware and fair-trade imports. To bring together such a wide variety of aesthetics and make it seem this fluid is artistry at its finest.

Setting trends in furnishing and design, Jayson home is the perfect place to escape on a dreary gray afternoon. Snapping pictures left and right, I know I took lots of notes and will be playing out some of their ideas in my own place. Whether it be with pops of potted plants or delightfully tacky prints, this is the place to go for a fresh dose of inspiration for the home this season!


jayson home by lydia krupinski (5)

jayson home by lydia krupinski (4)

jayson home by lydia krupinski (3)

jayson home by lydia krupinski (2)

jayson home by lydia krupinski (8)

jayson home by lydia krupinski (7)

jayson home by lydia krupinski (6)

Item of the Week: Valentine in Blue

blue valentine one of a kind vintage printed blouse

When thinking about what I should feature this week the choice was easy: my hand-stenciled Polish-folk blouse.

Created using a vintage women’s top, the style of the design is reminiscent of the Polish tradition of “wycinanki” which literally translates to “cut-outs”. Looking to bring the unique aesthetic to a Pierogi Picnic design, I hand carved a stencil with which to create the print. Including the silhouettes of hearts and leaves, I made a whimsical scene that I could then transfer with fabric paint onto the front of the blouse.

The captivating back-story to this particular piece is that my first print also became my last, as my plastic template morphed beyond recognition after the first stenciling. I even wrote an article on how we as indie biz owners can accept defeats gracefully – and guess what inspired the post? This design!

So in ode to Valentine’s Day I bring you a bittersweet design that’s truly one-of-a-kind.