Crystal W Design About Crystal Walen
I am Crystal Walen and have been designing patterns for textiles since 2005.
My design journey started with a textile design degree, and 10 years in the industry designing print and pattern for fashion and home decor before starting Crystal W Design in 2015.
In the last decade of my business, I have licensed my art with partnerships that typically last for years. I specialize in timeless home decor design, and I update my portfolio to reflect shifts in the market. I also offer whimsical designs that appeal to trend-forward fashion.
Zinnia on indigo
Return to Roots
From Motherhood to Masterpieces: A return to the canvas with New Perspective
While I was raising my child, in the last few years, business went on autopilot and became passive.
In review, I created a thriving pattern design brand, and while I was away, some things changed, warranting updates, including elaborating on my story. My work as an independent designer spans 10 years and continues to garner interest.
I create design for feeling, using flowers as my muse. In a world of AI-generated art, the layered effect of watercolor paint evokes sentiment and a connection to the natural world.
This next chapter is about curation, capitalizing on knowledge and experience, and celebrating my works’ most refined era yet.
Inspirations
Nature and flowers are a muse and a canvas for mood. The words I don’t have become colors and flowers, with a vibe, a look, or a sentiment through design.
Roots
I’m a New England native and moved to Los Angeles to pursue my career dreams in my mid 20s. Soon after moving, my mom became ill and passed away. In my work as a designer, my mom has often inspired me. My moms memoir.
Living in Los Angeles in my 20s, visiting with my parents
Still Reading?
Some favorite quotes about art
“For a person who has the [poetic] spirit, everything he sees becomes a flower, and everything he imagines turns into a moon...”
- Matsuo Basho 1644-1694
“You cannot put together a life willy nilly from odds and ends. Even in a crazy quilt, the various pieces, wherever they came from, have to be trimmed and shaped and arranged so they fit together, then firmly sewn to last through time and keep out cold. Most quilts are more ambitious: they involve the imposition of a new pattern. But even crazy quilts are sewn against a backing; the basic sense of continuity allows improvisation. Composing a life involves openness to possibilities and the capacity to put them together in a way that is structurally sound.”
- ‘Composing a Life’ Mary Catherine Bateson
“I have already settled it for myself so flattery and criticism go down the same drain, and I am quite free.”
- Georgia O’Keefe 1887-1986