Especiallynowdesigns

Hello, my name is Penelope Anne, a designer of textiles, the owner of Especiallynowdesigns, a full service shop for all of your textiles needs, and also holds, "The Upscale Re-Sale", formals for any occasion. THE PARTNER of ARTISTRY... a collective effort to introduce to the world what beauty surrounds us and makes life just a bit more interesting through living art. And also, a very special work in progress, . . . . . .THE PAINTED APRON, CREPERIE & TEAROOMS, that will encompass rooms filled with beauty and art from artists far & wide.. .High Tea & Low Tea . . . you will be able to experience and enjoy the taste of warmth and elegance from special places that have touched my life.....Lithuania, Latvia, Russia and Canada. Especiallynowdesigns and The Painted Apron is a show of imagination, artistry and above all, a place , like no other. Click on the links above to stay connected with each individual & unique direction and events for all three. 👗 ♥🧵 ✂ 🎨 🖤

Let me introduce to you, Especiallynowdesigns, it is a very visual shop that you can visit or call for all of your textile needs to do with upholstery, interior, alterations, creating designs and watching them come to life. All parts of your life, formalwear, men and women, children.... or to your home, leathers, suedes, zipper replacement, to upholstery on furniture, to boats or any kind of recreational vehicles. No request is too small or too big. Facebook, also, has given me a platform to work from for many years, an opportunity to meet amazing clients from around the world, and an easy access to converse with people daily. Enhancing my life in 2018 with some added directions, with The Partners of Artistry , the Illinois River Valley Sales Ride { a yearly event} & The Painted Apron Tearooms & Creperie', which has been my pet project, quite a venture in progress and is being driven by Covid-19... My life is a very visual one, so I am also on INSTAGRAM.💕


September 4th, 2016. Sunday

Welcome to my official blog! I hope you LOVE it! I created this to share with you a bit about my life and my passions. As suggested by the name, I am a designer and a couturier of textiles. Being an avid reader and writer, 24/7, I am guaranteed to have by my side a book and pen, tracking my daily events from my heart and my soul. Which now gives you another peak into my world. I am also a communicator, not only communicating with my daily clients, but with people from around the world. Expressing myself easily and having the ability to articulate what lies, inside where most people hide their feelings, helps in capturing the true essence of the valued relationships that I have come to cherish over the years... this gives myself and my clients a great platform to collaborate from. The power of speech, is one of my basic tools, of also being an entrepreneur. There's just as much value in words...as there is in the silence. While I am continually working on my web page, I invite you to visit me on Instagram. EspeciallyNowDesigns IS NO LONGER on Facebook, as I have taken a major leap of faith and have upleveled how I conduct my personal & professional life. To the thousands of people I have met Facebook, it was time for change.

My life professionally and privately are very much interwoven. I have this saying...... "That life takes you, where you need to be," which in return is how I ended up living a life as I do, full of deep seated decisions, from day to day. As time go by, you will learn more about me as a person, how I came to be who I am and where my path will be taking me next.

So check out my pages and watch my blog grow!

September 19th, 2016 Monday, 2:05 am

INSPIRATION & CREATIVITY

From day to day, I will be posting about the world in which I live and evolve. These past few weeks, I have been caught up in many projects that have taken me right into the personal lives of my clients, from all walks of life and also creatively collecting the newest layouts for my new web page. My newest page of my site which will contain a lot of my work will be in a page called the " Gallery," will be a ever changing visual. As all of my work comes from deep inspiration and creativity, my shop also holds the feel of the unusual. So, always expect the unexpected when you enter my shop and studio, and remember...You are always welcome!

Sunday, September 26 th, 2016

HAVING MANY OARS, IN MANY WATERS.....

With it being the last Monday and week of September, enough already has been said. Self proclaimed deadlines, are always taking me in so many directions, also mirroring the many needs of my clients. Working on a wedding, redesigning my shop, and staying always ahead of the holiday calendar, and taking a hiatus from social networking....not wanting to get sidetracked. Doing it all with purpose and much determination, my day doesn't always end up as planned...but life always takes me where I need to be. There's always challenges, that need to be sorted out from work ( which is my passion)... to matters of the ❤. Creativity and problem solving, works right along side of my empathetic nature. Unleashing my potential, a lot of the time starts with recognizing the emotional or the physical pains of my clients, far and near. Recognition leads to a whole new world, once it begins. Stay safe and See you soon !

October 14th, 2016

Experiencing my artistry, will take you into the world of textiles. From the sharper, versatile to the elegant and sublime. The world of textiles in general, you can feel the comfort of a absolute soft to a rigid firmness, the beauty of them all will hold a purpose and frame a certain potential to create whatever comes to the mind of a client, to solve a much needed problem to bring an everlasting memory for a very special occasion... textiles, of any kind, is what this world right from the very beginning of time has given a purpose, a look, a touch. Take care... xo

This morning working from my shop, yes! it is Sunday, my work encompasses the lives, with far off plans to the needs of last minute items, I am always available if life permits. My corporate clients, have tight schedules and not as flexible as my own, and so I work my hours to fit. Flexibility and change, lays in the forefront of opening my shop doors everyday. Some people require to run their lives by a calendar, some barely make it from day to day with the heavy loads of commitments in which they live, this all can be a part of my work load and how I can be of assistance. Over the many years, the variety of requests have given me such a different outlook on life, because with most that walk into my shop, comes a story that in time, will bring them back or touch my life in such a way that my life will never be the same......And this is what gifts my passion! Being born and raised in the city of Chicago, I came from a life of strict routine, both parents were my pillars of strength, both worked as I grew up,, teaching me independence at a very early age. My life was mirrored by a mother who, worked at Time and Life magazine, on Michigan Avenue, the Magnificent Mile in Chicago. She was without realizing it at the time , my inspiration and that is where my passion thoroughly began. She made most of her clothes and gave me the wide open range to discover myself, from watching her create. Downtown Chicago, along State Street, was a amazing place to find fabrics of any sort at that time, from the gracious display of stores. My own expertise of sourcing fabrics was taught to me, by long, long hours of rummaging through huge tables of fabrics with my mother, her passion was overwhelming, her love of the search for a desired feel or look, kept me close, memories, techniques, systematic ways to discover ways to make everything come together..... it all had to be precise. Today, sourcing my fabrics for my shop and my clients is not as easy as back when, but can be just as fun, if you know where to go. The fascinating array of textiles that I have discovered over the many years, has most definitely pushed my creativity and purpose for what I do. The sewing in fact is only a very small fraction of what I do or where my passion lies. Inspirational views and creative concepts from my designing from small to large scale, to prepping projects...., from creating the design, to bringing it into view, takes alot of solace and performance, and that is where my love of the pen, my writing comes into play. The quiet exchange between my passions, writing and working with the textiles. My writing, comes from, a moments notice... to capture a fleeting thought, which in return, brings extreme harmony to problem solving, it's an emotional tradeoff. My many years private schooling, of meditation, also plays into this...... calmness, aids in the peacefulness that I need to create, altogether bringing a strong foundation for me to work from. My skills, attributes and wisdom for what is, is vitally important and is what brings about a beautiful outcome.

In 2008... my life changed forever in so many different ways on a personal and professional level. Explaining it all in a much-valued quote of mine is....." one of life's best dualities is found where humility & boldness collide," pretty much sums up what happened in my life. The most profound moment of all was when I entered into my first shop, that is where my work got interesting on many levels. To purchase my own building, truly led me to discover the path in which I now follow daily, it was an awakening that took me into a whole new realm of thinking that I wasn't prepared for at the time. To know you are passionate about something on one hand, is amazing but, on the other hand, to be serious enough about it, to take a walk into the unknown is exactly what happened. In one deep breath.... becoming an entrepreneur / bricks & mortar was consistently pushing me out of a normal comfort zone and I was totally falling in love with the challenge of it all, with every step, along the way. Well, let me just say in now looking back......."life will always take you where you need to be," is where this favorite quote of mine came from. On so many levels, my objectives at the time never saw what was approaching, nor could have ever imagined possible how different my life would be today, all for the love of my passion.

So to all of my friends around the world, and right here in my own backyard that I have met through my work, may life keep you safe. A thank you, is not enough for all that you have done for my heart. Remember, to make someone smile,and keep pushing forward no matter what, that is how life takes you where you need to be. Stay safe. xo

October 18th, 2016.... Seasons of Comfort

This is the time of the year, where change is quite obvious. Autumn is here, the color of change is everywhere. The boaters are already closing up for the season, bringing in any kind of requests for upholstery to be done over the winter months to have ready for late springtime, early summer to be back on the water. Just as life is seasonal,so is living here in the midwest, so is the feel of work in my shop. Hearing that we are in for a rough winter, things will only get more interesting, when it comes to people looking for comfort. One thing is for certain, is that when it snows, life as I see it here, comes almost to a crawl. There is something so valuable, that one can learn from living in a small town, their charm is radiant with friendliness, boldness and importance, in all that they do.

Over the next few months, winter will be settling in for a vacation. Snow will once again capture the lives of many, hunters are visible on the river and always touching my shop for one necessity or another, as well as the local farmers, whether it be for their warmth, comfort, I am always welcoming the opportunity to help however I can. The seasons end, bringing new beginnings, welcoming faces and always much desired outcomes, is what will always get us through until the season changes again. So for now, enjoy the gorgeous weather and stay safe. xo

October 20th, 2016 A Much Desired Outcome.....

With the start of my work day, it was all about finishing up on a recent project of painting on a wedding gown. The prep work, took me to areas of mixing the different paints and mediums to achieve the exact results wished for. Once you begin to paint on a wedding gown, there is no turning back, so the preparation from all angles is vital. Well, needless to say, it is always amazing where a client's request can take me with my work... in my wildest dreams I never imagined that I ever would be painting on a wedding gown. The results so far, are absolutely gorgeous! When working with paints and mediums, on fabrics of any kind, anything can occur, so being one step ahead of the work, at all times is where I need to be. The soon to be bride, came in to check on it and her words were, " I love it! " Which at that point in time, is what I needed to hear. Working with something so delicate and refined as a wedding gown and also, her veil, the intended outcome is what I hold so close until I complete the work, and Yes! I did say, veil.

As the day now has turned into night, attending a after hours business social after closing up the shop for day. Taking time to meet up with local business owners, listening to upcoming town events, economic developments that make small town living valuable and interesting. These are the moments that smooth out the wrinkles of everyday life, not working, not being busy, just taking time to be a part of something, that can reshape a community that has been touched by every changing times. The heartbeat of life that encompasses our everyday lives, is what makes people feel like they might just make a difference........

For further updates... go to the " Blog"

EspeciallyNowDesigns by Penelope Anne

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