Katwise lives in upstate New York and her life is one big colorful adventure, starting with her home, her bus — and the way she makes her living. I would just love to live surrounded by this much color. How could you not be happy? And yes, it’s spring, and the blossoms are on the trees but even in winter — this place rocks. In fact, the colors and the snow are such stark contrast, it’s almost more appealing (except for the cold).
As she describes her vibe on her website, “Welcome to my whimsical world of recycled sweaters, wacky art, tall tales, psychedelic school buses, and general creative mayhem.” But don’t be fooled. Creative mayhem is constructive. And Katwise is always creating.
The house, in upstate New York, was a bit of a project but with some (a lot of) help from her friends, it became a reality. As you can see in the before and after below, this was not an easy task as it started out as an ordinary house. Well, we see an ordinary house on the left. Katwise saw … potential.
Quite the before and after shots!
I love the eyes and the mouth on the back of the house! She didn’t go through this alone. Katwise, whose name is Kat O’Sullivan has a partner in crime – Mason Brown – who, thankfully, shares the same vision (otherwise, could you imagine?)
So much attention to detail – so many little special touches.
And, she makes these incredible sweaters and sleeves – and they sell out in minutes when she posts them on her Esty Store. Just look at this:
How could you not be happy when you’re wearing such happy colors? And they’re all made from recycled clothing, upcycled really. So you’re doing a good thing for the environment when you buy a Katwise sweater or arm warmers instead of something off the shelf at Nordstroms. Not that that’s where you shop, necessarily, if you are a fan of Captivatist ?
All the colors of the rainbow – she often does plainer combinations but don’t kid yourself, they’re still complex. Check out the range of warm hues on the coat below.
She certainly has an eye for color and a wicked sense of style.
Katwise does do solid colors, and sometimes even muted tones for those of you who aren’t into the multi-color pieces. Her work is amazing. I love the white one.
And here’s a lovely moss green hoody with her signature hood.
The rest of her house is almost as colourful as the outside. Tres chic, tres bohemian.
Do you know anyone else who has a stove in Frida blue?
And seriously, hold on to the railing when you go down these stairs, especially after a glass of wine!
As you can see, color is a very big part of the Katwise home, work, and life. Her house is like falling through the looking glass – into a kaleidoscope of color.
The color combinations depend on what she’s collected at the thrift stores. I bought one of her patterns 10 years ago, and haven’t made it yet – I have never used a sewing machine but I did collect a garbage bag full of cashmere sweaters with moth holes from the thrift store, my own drawers and assorted friends. But I think I’ll leave the creation to the expert and try to order one. However, these coats are elusive, exclusive.
She sews like a whirling dervish (I kid you not), then puts them all up on Etsy at once (with some prior notice on her social and in the store) — and they are literally sold out in minutes. Then she and Mason seem to just go somewhere cool, traipsing around the world, collecting inspiration then back home to the color full house in NY to create more joy.
Her creations are worn around the world. If you see someone wearing a Katwise piece, compliment them on it. You’d be surprised how small a world it is when it comes to her work. Or maybe we just notice it and talk about it more – because it’s so distinctive. It’s like a club, almost.
I keep looking at this photo and thinking … what can you write that sums up up the Katwise theory of life better than this shot? Get on that swing. Life is a journey to be enjoyed. And for Katwise – and her fans – it’s a colorful one.
All photos courtesy of Katwise. Please visit her website for more fun and color.
