indigohome

A Photographer Inspired to Take Action

By:  Morgan Hawkins

 

    For those of you who are a part of the Maui community or have visited the North Shore in the past six months, you may have seen striking photographs from the Omo Valley of Ethiopia taken by Indigo's owner, Daniel Sullivan.  Walking into Cafe Mambo, back in the early Spring, was like stepping through a portal, which swept guests away to another part of the world.    For a month, Daniel's photographs of tribesmen and women, exotically painted and adorned in beads made from raw, natural materials, decorated the cafe's festively painted walls. 

    Daniel's Omo Valley collection is characteristic of his other portraits, which have been taken around the world in places such as India and Central Asia.  His portraits capture the spirit or essence of each person and place; they create a feeling of intimacy like the observer just shared a moment or experience with the person photographed.

    Even though Daniel continues to capture the human spirit in photograph, this most recent journey and project is markedly different. He has taken a special interest in his work with the tribes of the Omo Valley.  He is in the process of creating something far-reaching and profound by  introducing some of the most remote tribes in the world and their plight to the global community.

    By the end of 2011, a hydroelectric dam will be completed and the Omo river, a life line for the people and animals of the Omo Valley, will be cut off.  Daniel, in order to generate awareness and to document the tribes before their way of life is forever altered, has been working to self publish a photography book, which will include an audio CD that captures the songs and sounds of the Omo Valley.  In order to self publish his book, he has created a video and essay on kickstarter.com to raise funds for his project.  Check out the following video for details about his project and to get a sneak preview of his journey through the Omo Valley.  If you would like to contribute to the cause, join the kickstarter campaign at http://kck.st/ps71ci.

 

 

Tribes of the Omo River

Aloha! I'm writing to tell you about my kickstarter project. As most of you know, last year I traveled to Southern Ethiopia to photograph the Omo River Tribes. Now, I am making a book of my work and using Kickstarter to raise funds to self publish it.  If you have never heard of Kickstarter it works like this... Click on this link, Tribes of the Omo River, and watch my video that explains the project, then pledge...any amount helps and its all or nothing- if I don't reach my goal-your not charged-  If I do, I publish the book! The right side of the Kickstarter page shows the pledge amounts and Rewards... wait...rewards, yes! You are basically buying my book, prints, cool gifts at a super discounted price. Exciting! So if you think you might want a book at anytime, or have a friend (they make great gifts!) that would want one, then buy it now, its discounted and they might never get made if you don't :( If your strapped for cash, show your support by pledging $10, every bit helps! Like the project, but can't pledge- please consider passing it on to your friends, co-workers-mothers, fathers, anyone who might be interested. Thanks for your support! Aloha from Maui, Daniel  Please share this link on Kickstarter with all your friends,  http://kck.st/ps7lci

 

Bengali Bliss

By:  Morgan Hawkins

     It's finally here! The long-awaited container from India has arrived with one-of- a-kind home furnishings and textile designs by Indigo's owners, Daniel Sullivan and Cara Miya Davies-Reid. Indigo is blooming with explosive color; the colors and textures will dazzle your senses and help preserve the memory of spring and summer through the coming seasons. Some of the most impressive quilts, furnishings and accessories have been created from antique, cotton, Bengali quilts. Daniel sorted through a thousand antique quilts from Northern India to bring you this stunning collection. The quilts, pictured below, were block printed with natural dyes and hand-stitched by a women's group in Northern India.

      

  Indigo also offers a wide selection of block printed, Bengali pillow cases made from the reclaimed quilts. They are available in 16'x16' throw pillows and Euro shams.

 

     Pictured below is an over-the-shoulder bag and clutch purse designed by Daniel and Cara. The bag and clutch are made from reclaimed, antique Bengali textiles. Each purse from Indigo's collection is unique and offers styles ranging from tribal prints to classic floral motifs. The bags and clutches provide interior, zippered pockets and outer zippered closures. Depending upon the chosen print, these bags can be used as every-day casual totes or can add a nice accent and convenience to an ensemble for an evening outing on Maui.

 

    The Bengali bliss also extends to home furnishings. It is easy to create the perfect, romantic, cozy nook with these pouffes and chowkies made from the soft, cotton quilts. The chowkies, or small stools, have a beautiful mango wood base.

 

 

     If you don't have a chance to come by and see our collection in person, you can get blissed out on Bengalis by checking out our on-line store. Just go to the homepage of our website, indigopaia.com, and select the link, “online store.”

Spring Forecast: Creating the Perfect Climate in Your Home, Part III

By:  Morgan Hawkins

    

    Hopefully, at this point, you have found that you no longer lust over rooms in your favorite design magazine and then feel remorse when looking around your own home. By now, you're working to satisfy your interior by looking through collections of lush, vibrant textiles and hand-crafted, one-of-a-kind home-installations to create your ideal environment.

     Welcome back to Indigo's thread that focuses on revamping your home's interior without making drastic, costly and time-consuming changes. This article is the final in a series of three, and I have saved the best for last. So far, we've looked at how textiles and the right fixtures can enliven rooms by adding color, depth and texture. Now, we are going to delight in finding ways to accent our newly transformed interior.

     Incorporating the right accents in a room is like putting the very last puzzle piece in place. Accents tie the room together and make it a solid, complete work of art, which communicates a tone, mood and style to you and your guests. When choosing the right accents, remember that it is more interesting to have contrast; however, keep the accents' connection to the rest of the room cohesive. They need to agree with what the room is saying, yet they can say it in a different way. At Indigo Paia, guest will find art and home-furnishings, which speak in many tongues and can richly create or enhance diversity in many design schemes.

     Owners of Indigo, Daniel Sullivan and CaraMiya Davies-Reid, have creatively merged designs and styles from Central Asia and India with“living aloha.” Not only do their textiles reflect this amalgamation, but also these mingling influences are evident in a line of accessory furnishings, which range in style from rich provincial and classical designs to festive, colorful patterns inspired by Maui. No matter the predominating style, the lively patterns, colors and aesthetics will easily weave flare and and sense of comfort into your room's design.

     Pictured below are Daniel and Cara's chowkies. These are great for yoga and meditation, but can also transform living room coffee tables into creative work spaces or places to dine.

     These stools are great for sitting or kicking up and resting your feet at your favorite chair. They also make fun, comfortable seats for children.

    Daniel and Cara's benches will create a romantic and comfy nook beside a window or on a porch. The silk embroidered cushion will add amazing richness to a design scheme.

    Pictured below is a sample of Daniel and Cara's pouffes, which range in style from festive provincials to contemporary designs.

    Incorporating a colorful, stylized piece of furniture can speak volumes for a room At Indigo Paia, guest will find intricately, hand-painted furniture from India. The side tables, side boards and armoires are reconstructed and restyled from antiques, which often incorporate decorative iron work in their cabinetry. Adding a piece of furniture with distinctive character can introduce contrast in a cohesive way.

    Another effective way to reiterate the tone and style of your room is by introducing a rug. Rugs tend to make rooms feel more cozy and comfortable by acting as a platform or stage that centralizes your seating arrangements, allowing guests to feel more embraced and connected. Rugs, like any other form of textile, will also create depth by adding diverse colors, patterns and textures.

     Pictured below is a rug crafted for Indigo Paia. The rugs at Indigo are made using traditional methods that have been used for hundreds of years. They are made from high-mountain, hand-spun wool and organic vegetable dyes. Also, great to know, is that these rugs support Afghan refugees. Weavers are paid three times the amount a weaver would typically make, and proceeds have funded the construction of two secular schools in a community on the border of Afghanistan.  The rug pictured below is a pile rug created completely by hand and took five weavers five months to complete.

    Regardless of spring and summer's forecasts you are on your way to designing an interior that adapts to your evolving style and the ever-changing fashion seasons. Instead of knocking down walls, tearing out cabinets and dragging out the paint buckets, revamping a space with textiles, home-installations and accessory home-furnishings is a more cost-effective method to revitalize your home's interior. For renters, it's a perfect way to adapt any living space to your style preferences without investing in someone else's property. For home-owners, using these methods will allow you a summer's vacation rather than an extensive home project. Your pocket book will be able to weather any storm that takes the fashion world for a whirl.  Embrace the ever-changing seasons now that you can create the perfect climate for your home.

Spring Forecast: Creating the Perfect Climate in Your Home, Part II

By:  Morgan Hawkins

 

   For those of you just joining the thread, this is the second article of a series of three. The purpose of this trilogy is to generate creative, affordable methods to create “the perfect climate for your environment,” which simply means revamping the style of your home's interior. In Part I, we explored how introducing beautiful, vibrant textiles was one simple, cost-effective method to revitalize your home's interior. In Part II, we will look at making huge improvements by implementing tiny details. If you're just joining in, I recommend beginning at the beginning; so, scroll down to Part I. For the rest of you, let's begin!

     Especially, for those of you renting, the last thing you want to do is give your home's interior a costly make-over. Even if you own your home, you may find that tearing out and replacing those dated kitchen and bathroom cabinets just isn't going to happen this spring or summer. While textiles can lend a room extreme depth and character, subtle details can make generic or dated home-installations interesting and stylish. At Indigo Paia, we offer a variety of one-of-a-kind home furnishings, from knockers and knobs to hand-crafted woodworks, that will enrich and enliven your home's fixtures.

     By replacing generic or older knobs on interior cabinets with classic or playful designs you can make an otherwise bland kitchen or bathroom intriguing and fun. At Indigo Paia , we offer a vast assortment of knobs, knockers and pulls, which vary in shape, size, color and design to easily reflect your style and compliment your room.

 

 

    Pictured above are hand-painted porcelain knobs from India. These knobs add vivid colors and festive designs to your fixtures. These can also be easily converted into pull knobs for ceiling fans and lights.

     Below are samples of Indigo's exotic brass and bronze pulls from India and Nepal. These culturally rich, hand-crafted pieces will take you and your interior to another part of the world.

 

 

 

    This bronze Naga Kanya door pull was crafted by a famous tribesman from Nepal. He created this piece by a process called lost wax casting. This process involves carving out a cast from wax and then introducing the bronze, which melts the wax. This piece is one-of-a-kind and cannot be replicated since the cast was lost during the process. This piece has been drilled for wiring and can be used as an ornamental wall sconce. The Naga Kanya is a Hindu symbol of protection.

     The functional and fashionable home accessories, pictured below, will add a nice flavor to your room's style and color palette. The hand painted wooden pails from India are perfect for storing magazines, shoes, umbrellas, children's toys or even using as waste baskets. The intricately, hand-carved, teak wood wall racks create visual interest and depth for your walls and is perfect for entry ways or bathrooms.

 

     

    By introducing elaborate detail to your existing home-installations you can reinvent your home's interior without going through the trouble and expense of replacing costly fixtures. Another advantage to these stylish additions is that you can easily replace them or pack them up and take them with you wherever you go. This leads us to the final article in this series, which will provide another way to transform your living space so that you will no longer live in the fantasies of your favorite design magazine. Until then, don't let the ever-changing fashion forecast discourage you because you're one step a way from being prepared for any new trend that takes the fashion world by storm.

 

Spring Forecast: Create the Perfect Climate in Your Home, Part I

 By:  Morgan Hawkins

 

    At the beginning of every fashion season many of us fix our gaze on the catwalk and tune into HGTV in anticipation. Like meteorologists who keep their eyes to the sky, we watch and wait, eager to adapt to the ever changing forecast.  Not only our bodies, but also our homes transform into canvases awaiting new chic color combos and the latest imported textiles.  In attempt to prepare for the new trends, we find ourselves picking up one of the many home decor magazines just to glimpse at what the season will bring.  While flipping through the pages of "Better Homes and Garden" we find entire rooms coordinated and displayed with incredible stateliness.  As we turn the pages, we may even come across a quaint living room with crisp bamboo greens on French white walls accented by splashes of sun-kissed orange.  An arrangement of wicker furniture with rich damask cushions provide depth and an interesting contrast to the surrounding color scheme.  Books, chosen for their clever covers, are coordinated with mathematical precision on top of the spotless, glass-top coffee table, which finds itself in the center of this perfectly constructed universe.  Oh, how we covet such beautiful spaces!

    Many of us can't afford or wish not to spend our money on a home face-lift this spring and summer.  Rather than reinvent the wheel, let's think of practical ways to vamp up our style without knocking down walls, installing new floors or dragging out the ladders and paint buckets.  This article, the first of a three part series, introduces ideas and methods to achieve a professionally decorated look in your home.  Let's begin!

    One of the many affordable ways to resurrect your home's interior is by bringing in the right textiles.  At Indigo Paia you will find fashionable, fun and elegant textiles that range from Maui-inspired, local designs to exotic antiques.  Decorating with textiles from this vast selection will give your home enough originality to rival the flare of the rooms featured in your favorite home decor magazine.  Begin phase one of your project by looking around the room you want to redecorate.  As you move from corner to corner, think about bright, catchy colors that could be used to revitalize your walls and furniture.  The easiest way to introduce refreshing, crisp colors, patterns and textures is to bring in vibrant textiles.  Using the right fabric can bring incredible depth and great visual stimulation to a room. The easiest place to begin introducing new textiles is on windows, tables, beds and furniture.  Check out the following pics to see some of the eye-catching textiles found at Indigo Paia.

    

    Playful prints and colors on cotton make rooms pop!  These beautiful pillows and spreads from India are embellished with block prints and hand stitching.  Not only are they great for your room but are also great for your conscience and wallet.  The Bengali, hand-stitched quilts and pillowcases support a women's group in India and are machine washable.     

    

    

    Prints seem more luxurious when on silk.  These lively quilts, pictured above, are made from reclaimed Indian saris.  The pillowcase is made of re-purposed, hand-embroidered fabrics from Rajasthan in Northern India.  Rajastani textiles are noted for their mirror work, use of color and intricacy.  These textiles will bring your furniture and your room back to life.

 

    Give your walls and windows a makeover with these animated prints on cotton.  Our voile cotton curtains can add playfulness or classiness to any room.

    Preparing our homes for the new fashion season with gorgeous new fabrics is a great place to start. There are still many unexplored options for revitalizing your home's interior.  The following articles will continue to focus on easy, affordable ways to generate new life and character in our living spaces.  Before too long, you won't feel an urge to keep up with the constantly evolving forecast because you'll have already created the perfect climate for your environment.

On the Fringe

By: Morgan Hawkins

 

    Maybe some of you have noticed the dangling, swaying, colorful appendages now embellishing the latest spring fashions. If you haven’t seen it yet, just imagine the image from one of my favorite classic movies, “Gone with the Wind,” of Scarlett O’Hara visiting Rhett Butler in a Union jail. For those of you who haven’t seen the movie in a while or didn’t watch it as frequently as I did when I was a little girl, here’s an excerpt that should jog your memory.

    Picture Scarlett, the queen of vanity, disguising her destitution by creating the most stunning, rich, deep forest green velvet gown from her windows’ draperies. It’s a fantasy that fancies any designer’s imagination. The gown is accented by the rich gold braided cords of the draperies, which make a belt with tassels extending down the length of the garment. The silken cord finishes with the ultimate symbol of wealth and power, gold and green beaded tassels with enough mass that it could contain a small grapefruit.

    Springing forward to today’s time when most of us enjoy the comforts of casual, ready to wear clothing we see an old trend working its way back into prominence. No longer will classic adornments be confined to home décor in the rooms we never use. We are on the fringe of redefining what makes a power suit powerful and what makes evening wear a symbol of extravagance. Our casual and formal wears are being accentuated by bringing back the richness of artful trimmings.

    In appreciation for the eclectic informality of our trendy hipsterness, tassels and trimmings do not only symbolize wealth and power. Our fringes can be anything from flirtatious to edgy depending upon the style of the garment. In spring 2011, tassels of silk can be replaced by an assortment of textiles from wool to leather.

    Here, at Indigo, we have flirtatiously trimmed and tasseled, tribal-inspired bags, which will compliment any casual style. Owners, CaraMiya Davies-Reid and Daniel Sullivan repurposed antique Rajasthani, Thailand hill tribe, Afghan and Uzbekistan suzani fabrics to create hip, vibrant totes. Their redesigned totes are versatile and offer plenty of room to carry beach ware, a laptop or any other small to medium personal item.

    The bags pictured below incorporate fabrics from Rajasthani panel skirts, mixed with pieces of fine-quality hand embroidered suzani bedspreads.

    

    Rajasthan, located in northwest India, is world-renowned for their use of mirror work and rich colors in garments and textiles. Uzbekistan suzanis are noted for their meticulous hand embroidery, which lend incredible depth and color to their intricate designs.

    Below, the totes are made of suzani textiles combined with hill-tribe fabrics, which give the bags a tribal style.

    This spring embrace tasseled and fringed embellishments to keep you on the cutting edge of fashion rather than stuck on the fringe. 

International Women's Day

March 8^th—International Women’s Day

by Morgan Hawkins

Let us celebrate the strength, perseverance, intellect and compassion of the beautiful women throughout history who have paved the way for us today.  International Women’s Day, recognized as a holiday in many countries, is a day to commemorate suffragettes and visionaries:  those who, when faced with injustice, sought equality for all.  Not only is it important to recognize the ladies who’ve made history, but also let us celebrate the strong women in our families and communities who don’t always receive the recognition they deserve.

 

Daniel Sullivan, co-owner of Indigo Paia, offers his inspiring photographs, which capture the beauty of women from India and Ethiopia.  Daniel’s photographs seem to project the human spirit in all of its diversity.  The Indian women, adorned in vibrant, lush silk saris, are equally as breathtaking as the intricately painted women of Ethiopia.  It’s humbling to see such strong, beautiful women persevere and grow from lives of struggle.

 

 

On Women’s Day, empower yourself, ladies, by vamping up your style.  Come by Indigo and check out our locally designed, vibrant textiles and eclectic mix of locally designed and antique jewelry.  Also a must see are Daniel and CaraMiya’s latest jewelry designs, which are refreshing and beautiful.  Our most popular are the wave earrings. These tribal inspired earrings look elegant in sterling silver and yellow and rose vermeil.  

 

 

For a local event celebrating International Women’s Day, check out “The Dreamers Way” in Paia, Tuesday, March 8^th at 6:30pm.  The event is located just above Indigo Paia.  Be inspired by female vocalists and musicians.   One of our rugs will be featured at the performance.  Like most of our rugs, the featured rug is made on the borders of Afghanistan with high-mountain, hand-spun wool and vegetable dyes.

 

 

 

Song of the Omo Valley

 

Photojournalist Daniel Sullivan has been documenting the lives of the tribes of the Omo Valley and how they will be affected by the Gibe III damn, Africa’s most destructive damn which will condemn half a million of the regions isolated and vulnerable tribes to hunger and conflict. The tribes Sullivan has been documenting, the Kara(Karo), the Mursi, the Hamar, and the Nyangatom live in a state of constant hunger, relying on the river for their drinking water, fishing, agriculture and livestock. For the people of the Omo River the water is a lifeline.

Many of the tribes do yet know about the damn, which is scheduled for completion in 2011. The construction of the damn will cause what many are saying will be the greatest ecocide of our generation.

The Omo basin is also home to the last remaining riparian forest remaining in sub-Sahara Africa. The Gibe III damn will cause the forest to dry out, taking with it the last of the big animals living there, including baboons, elephants, hyenas, hippopotamus, cheetahs, lions and countless birds. 

To learn more about the tribes of the Omo Valley and how you can help visit www.survivalinternational.org 

More of Daniel Sullivan's work can be found at www.danielsullivanphotography.com

 

Exceptional Buddhas from Indigo Paia

Here are a few of my favorite older Nepali buddha's at our store. They are all lost wax beautiful examples of Nepali Newari work. Please feel free to contact me with any questions , or come by Indigo. 

Shop locally this year for Christmas at Indigo

Please shop locally this year for Christmas and support your local small business.

Indigo has just received a huge new jewelry shipment, with beautiful 18k gold antique rings from India, contemporary hand hammered sterling rings and tribal designs from Ethiopia. Feel free to call us for orders at (808)579-9199 or visit us online at www.indigopaia.com. We can ship anywhere in the world tax. 

Have a wonderful Christmas!