A while back I discovered Ester Ramirez’s incredible work with paper and I’ve been a huge fan ever since. Essimar Papel is an amazing art studio that creates a range of gorgeous paper products such as cards, art prints, sculpture, and even paper jewelry. I completely adore the vibrant colors Esther uses in her work. I just want everything she creates! In fact, I think it would be wonderful to commission her to create something for LAMA. What do you think? Hm…

To check out more of Esther’s work, be sure to visit her blog, flickr page, and etsy shop!

Yesterday, my recent interview with a Interviewher was posted on their very cool and very beautiful site. Interviewher is dedicated to sharing the stories of successful women who have “self-started their own business ideas and trends.” I was incredibly flattered when I was contacted by them last month for this interview about how I developed LAMA. It is quite an extensive interview covering topics such as how I got started, challenges that I have overcome as a business owner, and point by point advice on how to start your own successful online shop (this would be a great read for anyone thinking about taking the plunge into e-commerce).

Thank you again Interviewher for inviting me to participate in this fun interview. It was a great way for me to reflect on the journey I’ve been on for the past couple of years and share what I’ve learned with other aspiring business women.

Interviewher is always looking for awesome women to interview so if you’re interested in sharing your story, be sure to contact them here and let them know who you are.

I’m taking the day off from blogging to head out and celebrate a VERY special occasion. All I can say (until I’m done making a million phone calls) is that I couldn’t be happier! On a side note, I wanted to wish my very best friend Miles the LAMA shop dog a happy birthday! Miles is six years old today! He’ll be getting a doggy cupcake and a new squeaky toy to drive me nuts with. Happy birthday Miles! I love you!!

A couple of months ago I was asked to do a mini interview with Living Magazine in Argentina. I’ve been a magazine junkie my entire life (starting with my subscription to Cat Fancy when I was seven), and I never imagined I would ever see my own face on a glossy page. Dream come true! The interview is in Spanish but I’ve gone ahead and translated it into English below. Please forgive the rough translation. Trust me, it’s much prettier in Spanish.

Love For Latin America

The origins of her mother- born and raised in Ecuador- made the American girl Christine Martinez take a pause in her career as an interior designer to travel throughout Latin America. In her travels, she discovered “the most interesting and beautiful design work that she’s ever seen” and she decided that her mission, upon returning to Los Angeles, would be to make accessible the work of independent designers to the US market.

This was the way LAMA designs was born, a site from which she makes known the best of Emi Elias – “owner of one of my favorite stores in Buenos Aires, CouCou” – Cecilia Sonzini, Jimena Rios, and Lola Goldstein, among other Argentinean designers.

What is it that you like the most about Argentinean design?

The quality of work, their construcion, as well as the design. The Argentinean designers are not only looking to keep up with the rest of the world, they also want to transform themselves into leaders in the design community.

What particular traits does Latin American design have?

It is sophisticated and it speaks for itself. It is a well informed society and it is so exciting to see how a very strong movement, like the recycling of materials, is opening new paths and is being used in some of the most beautiful and creative forms that I have seen.

Thank you Living Magazine for this interview. I’m am truly honored. Also, to the incredible Argentinean designers who have read the article and submitted your work to me, thank you! I am so happy we have found each other! LAMA is getting ready to make some big changes and I’m thrilled to have so many of you on this new journey to bring forth Latin American design. I’m always taking submissions so please email LAMA at info@lamadesigns.com. Muchas Gracias!!

A couple of months back I was thrilled to receive notice that LAMA had been nominated for an Oakland Indie Award in the “Innovator” category. The Oakland Indie Awards celebrate the social and environmental impact of Oakland’s independent businesses and artist. Naturally, I was extremely flattered and honored to have LAMA considered for this award by a city I love so much. This past Friday, I nearly jumped through my office roof when I found out that LAMA had gone from nominee to FINALIST!

The whole experience has been so fun and rewarding. The nominee mixer a few weeks back was such an inspiring evening, and learning about the other nominees has been really special. I can’t wait to attend the award ceremony over at Jack London Square. It looks like a great event with tons of fantastic food, awesome folks, and Oakland pride! The event takes place on the evening of May 14th from 5:30-9. If you’re in the area, I highly suggest you come out to celebrate and support the people that make Oakland such a great place to live. Ticket info can be found here. A big THANK YOU to everyone who nominated and supported LAMA! I am deeply touched and honored.

Always great to wake up and find a sweet mention on a cool blog. Thanks Urban Style Vibes! We think our Fiesta Flags are perfect for summer also!

Check out the full post here.

Alqo Wasi, which means “dog home” in Quechua, is an incredible dog-wear company I discovered last night while perusing the internet for cool dog products. Alqo Wasi creates beautiful dog garments created in native Peruvian communities. Founder Patricia Queirolo came up with idea while traveling through the Peruvian Andes. While attempting to come up with a business idea for her university thesis, she became inspired by the incredible Andean landscape outside of her bus window. Keeping in mind all that she loved and was inspired by (her two pampered dogs and her love for Peruvian culture), she created Alqo Wasi.

Alqo Wasi’s products are produced on traditional weaving looms from alpaca and fine cotton native to Peru. I love the traditional Peruvian patterns and colors and how they work on a modern product like dog clothing. I would LOVE to add some of these pieces to the LAMA collection! Hmm… Miles does need a poncho… I’ll have to see what we can do about this. Regardless, I am a huge fan of Alqo Wasi! Miles the LAMA shop dog tambien! Click here to check out the Alqo Wasi website.

Recently, Imagine Magazine based in Sao Paulo, Brazil, interviewed the amazing Calu Fontes (one of my favorite artists and someone I’m proud to work with at LAMA). Aside from a great write-up about her work, Calu was able to curate a spread of her favorite products from Brazil and beyond. I was so excited to see that among her favorite product picks was one of LAMA’s Vintage Wallpaper Notebook’s from Argentinean designer Mercedes Hernaez! Thank you Calu and Imagine Magazine for the mention! (If only I could read Portuguese!)

To view the Calu Fontes collection available at LAMA, click here. To check out more of Calu’s incredible work on flickr, click here.

I’m so excited to finally introduce you to one of our fantastic designers, Julieta Racket of Nido (which means “Nest” in English). We’ve been carrying Julieta’s gorgeous handmade laptop cases for the past few months, so we’re thrilled to finally share a bit of information about the woman behind the work. Julieta has recently had a line of products featured and made available through Tienda Malba, (the premiere modern art museum in Buenos Aires), as well as a mention in the NY Times Magazine Blog, so we feel especially fortunate here at LAMA to work with such an accomplished designer who is well on her way to great things. We hope you enjoy leaning a bit more about Julieta! (ps. I’ll be posting the interview in Spanish below the English post for all of our Spanish speaking readers to enjoy as well!)

LAMA: Where do you live?

Julieta: I live in Buenos Aires, capital of Argentina. In a very nice and quiet neighborhood with lots of trees.

LAMA: What are your favorite things to do in your neighborhood?

Julieta: I really enjoy taking a walk (as long as I can and I have time, I walk to do my activities). I like going to the greengrocer, the small stores. I try to avoid the large supermarkets.

LAMA: How did you get started in your career as an artist/designer?

Julieta: I’m a graphic designer, graduated in 2000 at UBA (Universidad de Buenos Aires) and have since worked at various agencies. I always wanted to combine my work with more activities linked to the hand made. I have studied illustration for the past 5 years with a great teacher, and this will be my second year dabbling in embroidery in a workshop that I love. Years ago, I started to want to use my knowledge in design for achieving tangible objects and leave the computer for a little while. I have always loved fabrics and combining textures, patterns, and colors. I wanted to make a useful article and I thought that laptop bags were a good choice and allowed me to have fun with fabrics. From there I started and now I am adding other things to continue on!

LAMA: What excites you the most about your work?

Julieta: What I like about my job is the selection of fabrics and choice of different combinations. I love go to “Once” (Buenos Aires neighborhood where there is a concentrated amount of dry goods stores and shops selling fabrics, one beside the other on the street Lavalle). I frequently visit the stores that I like and I search and search until I find just what I need, or until I am surprised with something new and unexpected. And then I spend days studying what I have purchased and imagining how to combine them, what buttons they need, what color of zipper or ribbon… it’s an artesanal proces and I love! I enjoy it very much. Another thing I really like and is fairly new to me, is the possibility of joint creations with colleagues I admire. It’s great fun and I learn new and interesting things.

LAMA: Who are your favorite artist and designers?

Julieta: The truth is that I don’t have favorite artists or designers, or maybe I have too many! Some are changing, some are known, others are anonymous. Generally I admire subtle sensitivity, and that some have a lot to say with so little. I love when emotion arises from a judicious combination of material, what the material is, and how it is used.

LAMA: What are your favorite blogs and websites?

Julieta: Estudio Album, Mono-Blocks, Cobralibros, Molde, Foco, Una Flor de Papel, Good Morning Light, Now Idea, Collex, Grijs, Wikstenmade, Bookhou at Home, Mina Perhonen, Toto Kaelo, T Magazine NY Times, The Style Press, Dossier Journal, jjjjound, Redingote, Positively Melancholy, Byte

LAMA: Where do you hope to see your business 5 years from now?

Julieta: I hope NIDO continues to expand, adding new creations, new partnerships and collaborations in my country and around the world! I love doing what I do and I hope to continue doing so and continue to grow.

Thank you so much Julieta for sharing a part of yourself with us! To check out Julieta’s products at LAMA, click here. To find out more about Julieta, be sure to check out her website and flickr page. Also, check out our interview below in Espanol!

1. Vivo en Buenos Aires, Capital de Argentina. En un barrio muy lindo y tranquilo con muchos árboles.

2. Me gusta mucho salir a caminar (siempre que puedo y tengo tiempo, voy caminando a hacer mis actividades). Me gusta ir a la verdulería, al almacén. Trato de evitar los grandes supermercados.

3. Soy diseñadora gráfica, me gradué en el año 2000 en la UBA (Universidad de Buenos Aires) y desde entonces trabajé en diferentes agencias. Siempre tuve la necesidad de combinar mi labor con actividades más ligadas a lo manual; hace 5 años estudio dibujo con una gran maestra y este va a ser mi segundo año incursionando en el bordado, en un taller que me encanta!.
Hace algunos años, empecé a tener ganas de usar mis conocimientos en diseño para la realización de un objeto más tangible y salir un poco de la computadora. Siempre me encantaron las telas, combinar sus texturas, tramas y colores. Quería hacer un objeto útil y se me ocurrió que fundas para laptop era una buena opción y me permitía divertirme con las telas. Por ahí empecé y luego fui incorporando otras cosas y pienso seguir!

4. Lo que más me gusta de mi trabajo es el proceso de selección de telas y elección de las diferentes combinaciones. Me encanta ir “al Once” (barrio de Buenos Aires donde se concentran cantidad de mercerías y tiendas que venden telas, una al lado de la otra sobre la calle Lavalle). Ya tengo seleccionadas las tiendas que más me gustan, siempre voy a las mismas a revolver y revolver hasta encontrar justo lo que busco, o sorprenderme con algo nuevo, inesperado. Y luego me la paso días mirando lo que compré e imaginándome cómo combinarlas, qué botones necesitan, qué color de cierre o cinta.. es un proceso bastante artesanal y me encanta! lo disfruto mucho.
Otra cosa que me gusta mucho y es bastante nueva, es la posibilidad de hacer creaciones conjuntas con colegas que admiro. Es muy divertido, aprendo cosas nuevas y la paso muy bien.

5. La verdad es que no tengo artistas o diseñadores favoritos, o tengo demasiados!. Van cambiando, algunos conocidos otros anónimos. Admiro en general la sensibilidad sutil, la posibilidad que tienen algunos de decir con poco, con lo justo. Cuando la emoción surge de una combinación acertada o simplemente del material que se usa o cómo se lo usa.

6. (links above)

7. Espero que Nido se siga expandiendo, incorporando nuevas creaciones, nuevas alianzas y colaboraciones en mi país y en el mundo! Me gusta mucho hacer lo que hago y espero poder seguir haciéndolo y seguir creciendo.

Lately I’ve been receiving a few inquiries regarding the perceived “slow down” at LAMA. Some of you have been wondering why new products haven’t been added in a while and why newsletters with fun promotions and shop update information haven’t been going out. So I thought I would take some time today to address the faq’s that have been coming in.

The good news is… well, fortunately it’s pretty much all good news! Contrary to the outward appearance of a shop “slow down,” behind the scenes here at LAMA, we’re in the process of embarking on a really cool new journey to create a better LAMA for so many more to enjoy! I’m not quite ready (just yet) to release all the info of the new project, but I will say that it’s everything I hoped LAMA would eventually evolve into, and will give me the opportunity to fulfill LAMA’s mission on a level that I dreamed of years ago when I was running all over South America bursting with excitement. In short, it’s going to be AWESOME! I really feel that deep down and it puts a smile on my face every time I think about it.

However, there is always some downtime to current project while other endeavors are being pursued, and this is what customers and visitors to the site are seeing. My blog posts have gotten quite infrequent and yes, newsletters have not gone out, updates have not been made to the shop, etc. So what’s been going on? It’s simply a matter of resources at this point. With most small businesses, the owner is the largest and most valuable resource. Being that I’m only one person, I have to make some tough decisions sometimes on where to focus my time and attention. With LAMA, I’m looking toward the future and spending a lot of my time developing the things that will come. It just makes the most sense to me. Sadly, this means that the current site won’t be able to change and evolve too much in the present, BUT, the future is looking pretty great and I hope everyone who loves LAMA now will happily sit tight until we throw out what’s next. I promise… it’ll be worth the wait!

Until then, LAMA will be pulling in a few new things here and there (so keep your eyes open) and I’ll be doing my best to keep everyone informed about lots of cool new Latin design. In fact, I recently did an interview with one of the amazing designers we work with that I’ll be posting that interview on Wednesday. I had a great time learning a lot about Julieta Racket of Nido and I’m sure you will too!

Thank you to everyone for your patience and continues patronage during this transitional time! Lots of LAMA love to you all!