Twall looks to be star in home textiles

Staff -- Home Textiles Today, 4/29/2002 12:00:00 AM

NEW YORK —

Though she designs dresses for celebrities such as Mariah Carey and Kate Hudson, fashion designer Mirjam Rosner has also seen the opportunities available in the home area and looks to add color and fun to kitchen textiles.

"In fashion design, I'd spend three weeks on an incredible gown that's worn once," she said.

"I want to spend time on something with more of a lifetime. This makes me much happier."

She opened her retail store, Twall, a decade ago in Aspen, CO, where Rosner settled after immigrating from the Netherlands in 1984. The shop's name refers to a fashion term for the dummy canvas cheesecloth used to fashion a piece of clothing before the actual fabric is cut to make the item.

She began by designing her own fabrics and selling them in her shop, and production was done either by her small manufacturing facility or contracted out.

Three years ago, she added throws to her product offerings, which are also available to retailers. "It was a natural expansion to the fabric line," she said. Since then, she has added kitchen textiles, which this season consisted of bright colors paired with such images as Chinese characters or toile settings.

"We try to offer something that's inexpensive but fun," said Rosner. "Usually everything is either so high end or so boring. We try to find something in the middle."