Last May I came across Jessica’s Flickr photo of her dog, Mick, sitting alongside a Fauna Boston Terrier pillow. My heart melted. This posting is a little bittersweet because Mick, aka Mister Puppy, aka the best dog ever, passed away last year. My heart is melting even more. Thus, a DP Customer Profile in memory of Mick with respect to his owner, Jessica…

Name: Jessica

Where do you live? Charlottesville, VA

What do you do? I am a PhD student in art history, and I work at a cute shop called O’Suzannah

DP Purchase/s: Fauna Boston Terrier Pillow

What’s your favorite DP product and why? My beloved Fauna pillow. Boston terriers are the bee’s knees, and this pillow is seriously amazing. I mean, have you ever seen anything more adorable or squeezable? Yeah, that’s what I thought.

Any favorite design ideas? I don’t identify with super modern design that much, although sometimes I wish I did. I suppose one of my favorite things to do is to use repurposed or secondhand materials in my home. I love old things and using unexpected materials. My “entertainment center” that houses my TV and stereo is made of plywood, rope, and about 90 very old bricks that I salvaged from an apartment building being renovated in Birmingham. The movers thought I was crazy when I moved to Charlottesville and had boxes labeled “bricks,” but I’m still rather keen on the piece and haven’t found anything new that I like more.

Tell us about your home, office, workspace, or favorite nook and cranny: My favorite spot in my house (for things other than sleep) is my desk, which is the classic repurposed door picked up off the side of the road in Birmingham, Alabama. It was tossed out of a house that was being renovated, which is crazy to me because it’s beautiful and solid and chippy. The afternoon light comes in, and to my left are three shelves with some of my favorite possessions, including my Fauna pillow, a Lisa Congdon collage, a Polaroid transfer made by my momma, and a Foxy and Winston woodblock screenprint. Directly in front of me are multiple calendars, from Nikki McClure, Ilee, Modern Printed Matter, and Lotta Jansdotter, as well as my prized Lovely Design wooden rolodex. Above that is strung a series of large-scale prints. I love being surrounded by all these things that I love. (And since there are still four more dissertation chapters to write, I’m going to be spending a lot of time right here).

What was the best advice anyone ever gave you? Regarding my self-deprecating sense of humor, “If you wouldn’t say it to or about someone else, don’t say it to or about yourself.” (Thanks, Leslie.)

Four sites/blogs you visit daily:

www.designspongeonline.com
www.poppytalk.blogspot.com
www.decor8blog.com
www.cuteoverload.com

Do you collect anything? Tell us of your treasures….Any prized possessions? In terms of collections, I have a problem with all paper goods, from stationery to prints and photographs. Some of my most prized possessions have come from my grandmothers – my great-grandmother’s ca. 1925 grocery case, and both of my grandmothers’ sewing machines, one from the 1940s and the other a more functional Pfaff from the 1990s. I love having these machines that helped clothe our family and create everything from softies to napkins through multiple generations.

Thanks, Jessica. Mick, you will be missed.

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