Things have been busy here at Karl Ivan. On the horizon we have new unisex jewellery cast in sterling silver coming out shortly featuring historic Swedish symbols and icons. We are also developing our next collection which is on the sportier side using materials such as nylon and leather trim.
Check back soon for a sneak peak!
We’d like to wish everyone Happy Holidays. Cherish the time with your families and loved ones and have a safe holiday.
Today Karl Ivan products will be featured on the runway in Palo Alto, California. Aspiring Couture has organized this fantastic event to start at 7PM tonight, December 12th at the Women’s Club, 475 Homer Ave, Palo Alto, CA 94031.
Come take a look!
To celebrate the Christmas season, we’re offering 20% off on ALL Karl Ivan products. Hurry up! We’ve already sold out of Ukase – our leather laptop and document bag!!!!
Karl Ivan is proud to announce plans of a collaboration with a Hong Kong celebrity jewellery designer for future design including cufflinks. We’re in the initial stages right now and are sketching out some concepts. Here’s one that we’re very excited about!
nordic cross cufflinks
Being environmentally responsible is important to Karl Ivan. That’s why instead of using a cotton dust cover bag or even organic cotton which is also under scrutiny, we chose a non-woven bag.
Non-woven bags are environmentally which contain no poisonous pollutant and can be recycled. These bags are made of spun bond polypropylene naturally decomposes within 90 days in soil and may be completely incinerated without any product of poisonous pollutants. Additionally, the bag provides water resistance while still being permeable to air and is also fire resistant while containing no irritants to the skin.
To our customers in Canada we just wanted to let you guys know that if you happens to live around the Toronto area Reebok Canada is throwing a huge party to celebrate the 20th Anniversary of the Reebok Pump . On November 20th, Reebok will be celebrating the 20th anniversary of the revolutionary and iconic Reebok Pump. In collaboration with Stolen Riches, Red Bull and Heineken, Reebok will be hosting a private VIP event featuring legendary hip hop artist Pete Rock, Kid Koala and maybe you… If you want to take a chance in gaining entrance to this private VIP event all you have to do is find and solve a few clues on the web and around the city of Toronto and you’ll be taking part in Reebok Pump history. Visit Reebok Canada now for more information.
If you will be in Palo Alto around the middle of December, please make sure to check us out at the “Winter on the Runway” fashion show produced by Aspiring Couture. Karl Ivan is proud to be a part of this upcoming event.
Tingo, one of our largest bags, was inspired by the need to carry a large volume of objects but have alternative options in how to carry the bag. I wanted this bag to have a lot of complementary metal to the abundance of leather as there is close to 20 square feet of cow leather used in the construction of Tingo!
Like all of our products, Tingo started with a sketch. I prefer to hand draw a concept first and then refine it in Adobe Illustrator. For products that require a little bit more depth, I’ll export the paths into Photoshop and add some shading to give it a more three dimensional feel.
Initial Tingo sketch
First sample Tingo in Brazilian Cow Leather
Final Tingo in Italian Cow Leather
We’re often asked how Karl Ivan began. Well here’s the story…
A Swedish native, Alex Ekberg, and Canadian native, Ryan Brady, are the two founders of Karl Ivan. Alex and Ryan met in Hong Kong as exchange students, both not quite sure what to expect of Asia. Captivated by the energy and hustle and bustle of it all, it was not long before they set-off to explore more of this foreign land. First stop: Thailand.
The trip to South-East Asia was incredible. The group which consisted of a variety of wide-eyed foreigners arrived in Bangkok and then traveled to the exotic beach of Sihanoukville, Cambodia via a variety of painstaking transportation methods including a 12 hour school bus ride on unpaved dirt roads and being burnt to a crisp on the top of a 5 hour jet-boat down the Mekong River.
Ryan and Alex continued to travel to Thailand every year thereafter as part of an annual ritual. It was in the airport lobby of Bangkok a couple of years later, waiting for a delayed flight and watching cargo containers being loaded, that the two brainstormed the concept of Karl Ivan.
Ryan and Alex in Angkor Wat, Cambodia
