Protect Our Earth: Order From Linoto!

When I founded Linoto, I envisioned luxurious, high-quality eco-friendly products. Our beautiful linens are are naturally pleasing, tactile, and sensuous.  But shipping a physical product meant that I had to consider the extra "stuff" each customer would be forced to deal with after they received their items. It all adds up, and my conscience wouldn't allow me ship out hundreds and hundreds of plastic bags destined for the trash can shortly after arrival.  At Linoto, each item is folded by hand and packed with loving care. Crinkling plastic would ruin the experience of opening the box. Plain and simple kraft paper wrapped (like an old-fashioned parcel) provides and elegant solution.

Sheets purchased from most big box retailers are mechanically wrapped and then sealed in a thick vinyl zippered bag that will undoubtedly languish for lifetimes in a landfill. I am tremendously proud of the fact we hand pack all of our  products. Then we ship without the use of vinyl, plastic bags or, in fact, any plastic at all. Every bit of our packaging can be recycled. Additionally, all of the wrapping, including the care instructions enclosed with every purchase are made from recycled materials. Linen: It just feels right.

The Autumnal Equinox: Linoto Linen Coverlet and Shams

Linoto quilted linen coverlet in natural oatmeal

Can you feel it? Autumn is in the air. And with it, we are pleased to release a sneak peek of our newest item: A quilted linen coverlet and shams with silk and wool batting.  

Snuggle up under this soft quilted blanket made from 100% natural fibers. 

Like all of our fine products, the Linoto quilted linen coverlet and shams are hand sewn in our workshop in New York City.

Linoto quilted linen coverlet in graphite

So as Autumn begins her breathy chill and the leaves turn to jewel and flame, wrap yourself up in one of our linen blankets. Drink a spiced tea and turn up the music on your stereo. Welcome Autumn in all her glory, with pleasure.

Please contact support@linoto.com for more info!

Be Linen Movie by Benoit Millot

BE LINEN MOVIE from Benoit MILLOT on Vimeo.

Linoto- at home in the Garment Center!

I am pleased to announce that Linoto has moved our workshop and offices into to a fantastic, sun-drenched new space in the heart of New York City’s garment district. We're minutes from Times Square and The High Line park. In the morning, I commute on my bike through Central Park.  Arriving each morning to a space with plenty of windows and high ceilings is such a joy. I'm very excited about hanging plants to add a bit more joy to the space.

With added machines and a larger cutting table, we will operate more efficiently. This is also a perfect space for photo shoots.  The addition of special drying racks allows us to conserve on electricity by cutting out nearly all of the mechanical drying. The linen sheets are fluffed for only a few minutes then hung over tall racks to finish air drying. This air drying method is the secret to soft, luxurious, linen sheets. 

Here, Edina, works on the same machine she's used for years, but moved in front of a large sunny window on 39th Street. Making large items like linen coverlets and linen duvet covers requires space for cutting, sewing, washing, packing, and storage. Making high-quality, hand-made linens requires a talented and dedicated staff of very skilled artisans who can notice every detail and finish each item with care and precision.

As we move into autumn, I hope you'll celebrate the exciting move for Linoto. I am eternally grateful for all of the wonderful customers who have purchased Linoto linen sheets,  tablecloths, and other beautiful home accessories. Look for our upcoming Linoto blog posts about the fantastic new short film, Be Linen Movie by Benoit Millot. , New linen qualities in pale blue, warm gray, and graphite, as well as a linen coverlet and shams with luscious silk filling!

A Linoto Wedding Story

Linoto has officially entered the wedding canopy business…Well, perhaps the business remains unofficial, but earlier this month our very first stunning linen and lace wedding canopy (called a Chuppah in Jewish tradition) served as the centerpiece at the Linder/Fannin wedding in the Berkshires of Western Massachusetts.

A Chuppah serves as a symbolic representation of the home a bride and groom will make together as they stand beneath it to recite their vows. The significance of the four open sides represents an extended invitation into it to family and friends.

We are admittedly proud that the sun did its glorious part to alight the fabric and gently illuminate the faces of the happy bride and groom.

Wedding goers expressed their great approval with the white pompom trim and the floral motif eyelet. We at Linoto relished the praise and agreed that our handmade canopy looked exquisite set on four of nature’s finest white birch poles. 

We wish the couple a lifetime of beauty and happiness.

For more information about Linoto's wedding canopies please contact support@linoto.com.

Urban Parks

Ueno Park

During the warm summer months getting outdoors is an imperative. But sometimes when you live in the middle of a big city, it’s hard to know where to go. Here are Linoto’s top picks for the world’s best urban parks. If you can, go and see one of them today!

1. Luxembourg Gardens (Paris, France): Featuring a large population of statues, this Paris treasure is a wonder to behold. A seventeenth century fountain and a pond for model sailboats make this park renowned for a calm and peaceful atmosphere.

2. Central and Prospect Parks (New York, New York): Both of these urban getaways, in the hearts of Manhattan and Brooklyn respectively, were designed by Frederick Law Olmstead and Calvert Vaux. The many and varied tunnels that seamlessly connect each of the parks’ splendid landscapes, were designed with the intention that each view would be like a framed photograph.

3. Ueno Park (Tokyo Japan): This large public space contains museums, concert halls as well as several shrines. The zoo and the park’s peaceful pond make this one of the world’s most frequented parks.

4. Park Guell (Barcelona, Spain): Antoni Gaudi, arguably Spain’s most celebrated architect, designed this artistic masterpiece. The structures designed with intricate and colorful mosaic tiles are surrounded by grassy knolls and fantastic city views.

5. Golden Gate Park (San Francisco, CA): A whopping 1,017 acres of public space, Golden Gate Park contains botanical gardens, a zoo and endless rolling green hills. An easy place to get lost, this urban park can make you forget that just around the bend, a city continues to rumble.

Beach Bicycling

Who doesn’t hope to get to the beach at least once every summer? Once there, we will laze on our beach chairs drinking iced lemonade, getting sand in our hair and hiding under our Jackie O hats. Our linen towels falling away, there is ample time to run in the surf.

This year, we recommend reaching back to a little burst of childhood on your beach vacation: Ride a bike! Beach hoppers can be rented in almost every beach town if you can’t be bothered to bring your own.

Nothing parallels the feeling of the salty wind on your face as you pedal effortlessly from adorable beach town to adorable beach town. Make sure you stock up on salt water taffy and sample the rich frozen custard if you are pedaling on the East Coast. If you pedal up or down the West Coast, sample the bounty of the vineyards or enjoy the fresh fruit smoothies.

Or, if the nearest beach is a lake, great or small, make sure you pack a fresh lunch in your bike basket and picnic on a boat dock under the setting sun.

A Rose By Any Other Name...

“The Earth laughs in flowers.” –Ralph Waldo Emerson 

One of the most wonderful things about summer is the plethora of fresh cut flowers that are in season everywhere you turn. There is just something magical about a beautiful glass vase filled with brightly colored sunflowers, irises, posies, roses, daisies and all the other varieties you can imagine.

You can cut them yourself out of your own early summer garden or buy them at a nearby farmers market. But once you have them, what are some tips to make them last?

1. Cut With a Sharp Knife: Don’t use one with a serrated edge and cut at an angle. Then plunge them immediately into fresh, cold water.

2. Add Lemon Juice: About two tablespoons to one quart of water will help kill bacteria in the water.

3. Put them in the Fridge: It is said that refrigerating fresh cut flowers overnight will help preserve them threefold.

4. Don’t Remove Thorns: A thorn-less rose, while less dangerous, also has a shorter life span. You should remove any leaves or flowers that are underwater, but leave the thorns.

Butterflies!

So you’re someone who thinks, “Not everything is sunshine and butterflies,” but that doesn’t mean you don’t like those things. After all, butterflies are truly one of natures most gentle and glorious creatures. And sunshine is, well, sunshine.

Feasting on nectar from flowers, butterflies assist the bees in transporting pollen. Their graceful  flight is achieved using four wings of varying shape, color and size. And now, most cities offer some kind of exhibit featuring these wonderful insects. From conservatories to gardens, these habitats are filled with flowers and butterflies from all around the world.

We decided to visit on such exhibit at the Franklin Park Conservatory in Columbus Ohio. Due to overcast conditions, the butterflies in the greenhouse were mostly hiding in the leaves, protecting their delicate wings from potential rainfall. But we did manage to spot some wonderful and inspirational colors in and among the foliage.

It’s an experience you won’t regret if you can find one in a city near you. And if you smell good and wear the right colors, don’t be surprised if they mistake you for a flower!