Chef Tara Thomas is a DESIGNHEAD
Blog — 8.19.22
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What’s design got to do with it? DESIGNHEADS is a Pink Essay project featuring the new generation of designers, tastemakers, and creatives *shaking up* the design world.
Name:
Tara Thomas
Age:
24
Location:
Currently Kristiansand, Norway — but residing in Brooklyn, NY.
Instagram:
@cheftarathomas
Website:
my Instagram, current website is under construction :)
Are you a designer? Why or why not?
Yes, food designer? Lifestyle designer? I am in love with living well and creating an environment of peace and nourishment — whether it's through food, living spaces, gardens, or community.
One word to describe your take on design:
Frequency — Vibrational — Alive
The last thing you made:
I made a garden curry in yellow massaman style — Thai curry with botanicals of aromatics, greens, and herbs from the garden at the home here in Norway. The dish was created based of the ingredients I harvested: mustard seeds, egyptian walking onions, fresh coriander seeds, and kale. Heat came from the serrano peppers gifted to us from my boyfriend’s brother’s girlfriend's family farm, as well as a kabocha squash I roasted and seared in a tarka to serve as the core of the dish, with garnish of a squeeze of lime and fresh herbs. I made a coconut ginger rice inspired by my friend Chef Woldy Reyes — won't share the ingredients, but its the ultimate umami moment!
The next thing you want to make:
I want to make a lovely spa evening for my boyfriend Morten and I. We always enjoy sharing rituals around hygiene and nourishment with one another, at the core it's Redoux bar soap as a cleanser, herbal bath salts to soak, exfoliation, and moisturizing with shea bother and massage. I'm also looking forward to creating more dishes while I'm here, I've felt so uninspired and disconnected in the city. I believe these tender moments of loving will spiral into experiences of high vibrational connection.
A designed object you adore:
I love the Alessi Juicy Salif Citrus Squeezer, what a moment to celebrate a citrus!
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The Alessi Juicy Salif
A designed object you can’t stand the sight of:
Grey sectional sofas lol
A moment of pure creative joy:
Right now, I'm spending quality time with my partner and I remember how on our first date we shared our dreams and they were so similar — today I see so much of the visions we foolishly stated to one another become our realities. It's truly priceless.
When we say “designing the future,” what comes to mind?
What comes to mind is creating for longevity — it shall be beyond aesthetics but is a tool. A tool that allows the beholder to create peace, care for their community, and feels really good.
If you could show your work to anyone in the world, who would it be?
I'd share my work with the United Nations because they are an organization who has done little to unite communities and create peace.
Your aesthetic embodied as a...
sound?
Foliage in the wind.
color?
An orange that is like a rusty tangerine with splotches of moss green, and plum purple.
texture?
Mohair.
Your *grail*: if you could own one iconic design work, what would it be?
A silver La Cornue Grand Palais 180
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The La Cornue Grand Palais 180
Blog — 8.19.22
What’s design got to do with it? DESIGNHEADS is a Pink Essay project featuring the new generation of designers, tastemakers, and creatives *shaking up* the design world.
Name:
Tara Thomas
Age:
24
Location:
Currently Kristiansand, Norway — but residing in Brooklyn, NY.
Instagram:
@cheftarathomas
Website:
my Instagram, current website is under construction :)
Are you a designer? Why or why not?
Yes, food designer? Lifestyle designer? I am in love with living well and creating an environment of peace and nourishment — whether it's through food, living spaces, gardens, or community.
One word to describe your take on design:
Frequency — Vibrational — Alive
The last thing you made:
I made a garden curry in yellow massaman style — Thai curry with botanicals of aromatics, greens, and herbs from the garden at the home here in Norway. The dish was created based of the ingredients I harvested: mustard seeds, egyptian walking onions, fresh coriander seeds, and kale. Heat came from the serrano peppers gifted to us from my boyfriend’s brother’s girlfriend's family farm, as well as a kabocha squash I roasted and seared in a tarka to serve as the core of the dish, with garnish of a squeeze of lime and fresh herbs. I made a coconut ginger rice inspired by my friend Chef Woldy Reyes — won't share the ingredients, but its the ultimate umami moment!
The next thing you want to make:
I want to make a lovely spa evening for my boyfriend Morten and I. We always enjoy sharing rituals around hygiene and nourishment with one another, at the core it's Redoux bar soap as a cleanser, herbal bath salts to soak, exfoliation, and moisturizing with shea bother and massage. I'm also looking forward to creating more dishes while I'm here, I've felt so uninspired and disconnected in the city. I believe these tender moments of loving will spiral into experiences of high vibrational connection.
A designed object you adore:
I love the Alessi Juicy Salif Citrus Squeezer, what a moment to celebrate a citrus!
The Alessi Juicy Salif
A designed object you can’t stand the sight of:
Grey sectional sofas lol
A moment of pure creative joy:
Right now, I'm spending quality time with my partner and I remember how on our first date we shared our dreams and they were so similar — today I see so much of the visions we foolishly stated to one another become our realities. It's truly priceless.
When we say “designing the future,” what comes to mind?
What comes to mind is creating for longevity — it shall be beyond aesthetics but is a tool. A tool that allows the beholder to create peace, care for their community, and feels really good.
If you could show your work to anyone in the world, who would it be?
I'd share my work with the United Nations because they are an organization who has done little to unite communities and create peace.
Your aesthetic embodied as a...
sound?
Foliage in the wind.
color?
An orange that is like a rusty tangerine with splotches of moss green, and plum purple.
texture?
Mohair.
Your *grail*: if you could own one iconic design work, what would it be?
A silver La Cornue Grand Palais 180
The La Cornue Grand Palais 180
What’s next for you?
I'm truly manifesting spending more time between New York and Norway, the vision has always been living off of the land!
I'm truly manifesting spending more time between New York and Norway, the vision has always been living off of the land!
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DESIGNHEADS is a Pink Essay project. Are you a DESIGNHEAD? Send your responses to these prompts & a hi-res photo to hello@pinkessay.space.
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