I live
in the suburbs of Seattle, Washington, with my husband and two kids - a boy and a girl.
Home means
comfort. I want to walk in the door each day and feel happy with what I see.
We have lived in our current home for 11 years and I have loved picking out paint colours, updating our furniture and rearranging our accessories. Decorating and redecorating is relaxing for me.
If I could change one thing about my home,
I would enlarge my studio or add a basement. Who knows what else I could create with all of that space?
I don't love
shopping so by using my own paintings and pillow designs I can reinvent our space as and when I feel like it.
I think our home is happy and colourful. Even my kitchen towels "decorate" my kitchen as functional art.
What I love most about where I live
is that we have the best of all worlds: the mountains and the water are just a car ride away. Our town of Snohomish has several small, eclectic shops, and Seattle has wonderful restaurants, museums and galleries, and colourful street corners perfect for people watching.
The rain makes everything lush and green, and when the sun is out there's no place that is more beautiful.
The most important designer of our time
is Steve Jobs. I'm not much of a technical person, but I love the iPhone and the iPad. These devices have changed lives for the better.
Right now
I am working on sorting through all of my ideas. I can't seem to turn off my creative thought process.
I am drawing some new designs for printing on pillows and aprons, and I want to design some simple wine totes.
Usually I decide to make something that I would like for myself and I needed a full chef-style apron, so there you are. My work is also client driven, so there are a few custom designs and products I am working on as well.
The easiest way
to jazz up a space is to add some colour, either on the walls with some fun paint or with some whimsical and unique pillow covers.
I like to add something in each room that is a bit unexpected, such as a small art object or an interesting painting or small chair; it can be a real conversation piece. In fact, I think a room looks best when some of the accessories don't match.
If I could design one thing that I haven't yet,
it would be larger textiles such as curtains, duvet covers and fabric by the yard. I am in the process of redecorating our master bedroom and I have ideas in my mind that I have yet to find. This is where a big basement studio would come in handy. My small studio space is perfect for my pillows and aprons but anything bigger wouldn't fit.
On my iPhone
you will find a whole range of songs, from Aerosmith and Duran Duran (I loved the 1980s) to Coldplay and Adele.
My kids share their songs with me and I love their suggestions. I love, love, love my radio app because I can listen to stations from all over the world while I am running. To be honest, most often I just pick my local National Public Radio station. But to know that I could pick any station is really exciting.
This year,
I want to add even more designs to my products, especially for my pillow covers since those are my most popular items. These new designs would also work for some new items I am hoping to add, such as wine totes, small zipper pouches, linen scarves and chef-style aprons.
I have a blog and a website and I would like to spend more time updating these for marketing and journaling purposes, but I enjoy the drawing, sewing and printing part of my business way too much to stop and simply type on the computer. I have to remind myself that I am a business person as well as an artist.
If I had to choose between form and function,
I would definitely choose function. I spent hours searching for the right fabric to make my kitchen towels and I have the perfect linen and cotton fabrics that work as well as they look. Believe me, there are lots of fabric choices I would love to use, but a kitchen towel must function as a towel first and foremost.
Design is important because
it can make a simple, useful object look nice. It is as simple as that. A towel or pillow cover is fine if it is a plain piece of fabric, but by adding a unique twist, it turns into something you will be happy to use and look at every day.
To buy Beth's products in the Middle East, visit www.boxedonline.com. Read her blog at sweetnaturedesigns.com
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MOST%20POLLUTED%20COUNTRIES%20IN%20THE%20WORLD
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Sholto Byrnes on Myanmar politics
APPLE IPAD MINI (A17 PRO)
Display: 21cm Liquid Retina Display, 2266 x 1488, 326ppi, 500 nits
Chip: Apple A17 Pro, 6-core CPU, 5-core GPU, 16-core Neural Engine
Storage: 128/256/512GB
Main camera: 12MP wide, f/1.8, digital zoom up to 5x, Smart HDR 4
Front camera: 12MP ultra-wide, f/2.4, Smart HDR 4, full-HD @ 25/30/60fps
Biometrics: Touch ID, Face ID
Colours: Blue, purple, space grey, starlight
In the box: iPad mini, USB-C cable, 20W USB-C power adapter
Price: From Dh2,099
The specs: 2017 Dodge Viper SRT
Price, base / as tested Dh460,000
Engine 8.4L V10
Transmission Six-speed manual
Power 645hp @ 6,200rpm
Torque 813Nm @ 5,000rpm
Fuel economy, combined 16.8L / 100km
The bio
Who inspires you?
I am in awe of the remarkable women in the Arab region, both big and small, pushing boundaries and becoming role models for generations. Emily Nasrallah was a writer, journalist, teacher and women’s rights activist
How do you relax?
Yoga relaxes me and helps me relieve tension, especially now when we’re practically chained to laptops and desks. I enjoy learning more about music and the history of famous music bands and genres.
What is favourite book?
The Perks of Being a Wallflower - I think I've read it more than 7 times
What is your favourite Arabic film?
Hala2 Lawen (Translation: Where Do We Go Now?) by Nadine Labaki
What is favourite English film?
Mamma Mia
Best piece of advice to someone looking for a career at Google?
If you’re interested in a career at Google, deep dive into the different career paths and pinpoint the space you want to join. When you know your space, you’re likely to identify the skills you need to develop.
21 Lessons for the 21st Century
Yuval Noah Harari, Jonathan Cape
Recycle Reuse Repurpose
New central waste facility on site at expo Dubai South area to handle estimated 173 tonne of waste generated daily by millions of visitors
Recyclables such as plastic, paper, glass will be collected from bins on the expo site and taken to the new expo Central Waste Facility on site
Organic waste will be processed at the new onsite Central Waste Facility, treated and converted into compost to be re-used to green the expo area
Of 173 tonnes of waste daily, an estimated 39 per cent will be recyclables, 48 per cent organic waste and 13 per cent general waste.
About 147 tonnes will be recycled and converted to new products at another existing facility in Ras Al Khor
Recycling at Ras Al Khor unit:
Plastic items to be converted to plastic bags and recycled
Paper pulp moulded products such as cup carriers, egg trays, seed pots, and food packaging trays
Glass waste into bowls, lights, candle holders, serving trays and coasters
Aim is for 85 per cent of waste from the site to be diverted from landfill
Match info:
Wolves 1
Boly (57')
Manchester City 1
Laporte (69')
Normal People
Sally Rooney, Faber & Faber
Tenet
Director: Christopher Nolan
Stars: John David Washington, Robert Pattinson, Elizabeth Debicki, Dimple Kapadia, Michael Caine, Kenneth Branagh
Rating: 5/5
Disposing of non-recycleable masks
Use your ‘black bag’ bin at home
Do not put them in a recycling bin
Take them home with you if there is no litter bin
- No need to bag the mask
Where to buy
Limited-edition art prints of The Sofa Series: Sultani can be acquired from Reem El Mutwalli at www.reemelmutwalli.com
Empire of Enchantment: The Story of Indian Magic
John Zubrzycki, Hurst Publishers
How to keep control of your emotions
If your investment decisions are being dictated by emotions such as fear, greed, hope, frustration and boredom, it is time for a rethink, Chris Beauchamp, chief market analyst at online trading platform IG, says.
Greed
Greedy investors trade beyond their means, open more positions than usual or hold on to positions too long to chase an even greater gain. “All too often, they incur a heavy loss and may even wipe out the profit already made.
Tip: Ignore the short-term hype, noise and froth and invest for the long-term plan, based on sound fundamentals.
Fear
The risk of making a loss can cloud decision-making. “This can cause you to close out a position too early, or miss out on a profit by being too afraid to open a trade,” he says.
Tip: Start with a plan, and stick to it. For added security, consider placing stops to reduce any losses and limits to lock in profits.
Hope
While all traders need hope to start trading, excessive optimism can backfire. Too many traders hold on to a losing trade because they believe that it will reverse its trend and become profitable.
Tip: Set realistic goals. Be happy with what you have earned, rather than frustrated by what you could have earned.
Frustration
Traders can get annoyed when the markets have behaved in unexpected ways and generates losses or fails to deliver anticipated gains.
Tip: Accept in advance that asset price movements are completely unpredictable and you will suffer losses at some point. These can be managed, say, by attaching stops and limits to your trades.
Boredom
Too many investors buy and sell because they want something to do. They are trading as entertainment, rather than in the hope of making money. As well as making bad decisions, the extra dealing charges eat into returns.
Tip: Open an online demo account and get your thrills without risking real money.
Tamkeen's offering
- Option 1: 70% in year 1, 50% in year 2, 30% in year 3
- Option 2: 50% across three years
- Option 3: 30% across five years
