Spring is the best season for marveling at the talents of Mother Nature. We can’t help but be amazed at the richness and depth of the colors that naturally occur on our planet.  And one of the best examples of color in nature is the Cherry Blossom.  In certain areas of the world, Hanami is a much-anticipated event. Hanami is the Japanese cultural tradition of viewing and cherishing each moment of the cherry blossom season. This past weekend the cherry trees blossomed in the Brooklyn Botanic Gardens. Pink. Everywhere! Take a moment to look through the pictures and the beautiful time lapse photography offered on their website.  And then, see if you can integrate pink into your life, your wardrobe and into your home. 

Echo’s book Color at Home has a whole chapter devoted to pink in its many different shades and hues and how it can work in all areas of your home. Color At Home explores the emotional territory mapped by each hue and will help you choose and define your preferred palette for any room where you’d like to add color.   From the Pink chapter:  “No longer just for little girls, people now ‘think pink’ everywhere from country farmhouses to maxed-out modern lofts. You might say pink has a split personality. Yes it can be soft and reassuring, but it can also be sexy and hot. Pink can be bright bubblegum, deep raspberry, or muted antique mauve.  It can be predictable, as in a girl’s nursery, or boldly unexpected when seen in darker shades in a stately living room. Few colors are as traditional in the home as rose – from tea rose to dusty rose to rosewood. But these days, pink has given way to shades with far more flamboyant personalities. Think of the pop of a cotton candy-colored Victorian house in a New England snowstorm or the sophistication of flamingo-pink walls in a dining room. Take bright lipstick pink, accent it with black and gold, and the look is couture sleek. Pure chic. Young in spirit, neon pink and fuchsia are frisky, flirtatious.  In short, pink is demure… and daring, full of all the joyful contradictions of everyday life.”

I always find it interesting how celebrities and fashion transcend culture, continents and history. I recently took a trip to Italy and found that no matter where I was, a touch of fashion or a celebrity picture was directly positioned next to a historical landmark or cultural event.

In Milan, it was seeing Scarlett Johansson in an ad for Dolce & Gabbana across from the Duomo.

In Venice, it was watching Margherita Missoni as she “flew” down from the top of San Marco Square during the legendary flight of the angel that happens once a year during Carnivale.

 (Yes, that tiny tiny dot on the right hand side was Margherita in all her glory)… here’s a quick video of the whole affair.

I always walk away from a traveling experience with a different perspective on life; I guess one of the takeaways this time around was how fashion and celebrities are often seen as superficial but they do have their own place in history and can, in their own right, be as influential as a historical event.

- Alyssa

If you were using Sunday's NY Times to cover your head from the rain this weekend, you might have noticed a pretty picture on one of the pages.  It seems that the 'Kate Moss' of our umbrella collection was featured in a pretty little photo shoot. Our Geo Zig - Zag behaved well and didn't trash her hotel room. Check out all the other umbrellas and rainwear that fit every mood and maybe you can go back to just reading the Times instead of holding it over your head and running between the raindrops. Thanks NY Times!  We heart New York!

It’s common knowledge that a tremendous amount of design inspiration comes from nature – flowers, leaves, fruit, animal skins, insects, textures, colors – the list is endless.   Studying nature can bring a real appreciation for the beauty of textile designs.  But recently I found that textiles had given me a greater appreciation for nature!  There is a type of fabric called Ikat – which is created by dying the yarns before they are put onto the loom and woven into fabric.  The resulting pattern, due to the inevitable shifting of the threads, has a distinctive irregular “flame-stitch” appearance.  Ikats have been one of the hottest trends in fashion, showing up in every type of fabric and product, especially in scarves and wraps.  So my eye was obviously attuned to ikats, when I came upon a “Mother-in-Law’s Tongue” plant.  You can imagine that a plant with a name like that might not normally be considered beautiful, and usually I just walk by these spiky, uncultivated ground covering plants.  But not this time!  All I could think of was how beautiful the pattern on the leaves was and how they looked so in style!  Here are some of our Ikats: the oversized ikat wrap, the ikat floral tunic and the inspirational Mother-in Law’s Tongue!  -Meg

It may be raining  - we can't avoid that - but a brightly colored umbrella could be the bright spot in your day and add spring to your step!  You know how the saying goes "April Showers..." you've got a whole month of this so skip those dull raincoats and soggy hats and check out some color!  If you were at home tucked under a blanket drinking tea and watching the Today Show then you saw the segment on rain wear that featured Echo's reversible cheetah lined cape!  Maybe you were flipping through the new issue of Real Simple and came across our rain hat! Or maybe you checked your email and you received a little note from us with a gift of 15% off on any rain wear shopping you need to do!  Either way, we've got you covered!  Here's to those May flowers!