Upcoming Event This FRIDAY, NOV 13th

L&G is making something new for this up coming show! Yeah, it's about time!
I'm also excited to share that Erich Ginder who now co-currates for fancy is gonna carry some of L&G studio items! We've always love Sally & Erich's playful yet refined taste, so we're more than thrilled to be in their store!

enough said...here's the info about the show!
fancy jewels and JOIN present:

Limited edition design objects in scrap wood from Seattle designers &artists.

Friday November 13, 20096-9pm

Featuring:
grain
iacoli & mcallister
ladies & gentlemen studio
laura yeatst
rey jones and darin montgomery urbancase
fortyfive09 and &c.

fancy
1914 2nd Ave
Downtown Seattle
Btwn Stewart & Virginia
206-956-2945

more info: http://www.joindesignseattle.com/scrap.html

Another day at the office

I have to give my collegues and myself a good pat on the back. It's been a busy year for us at Henrybuilt and it's all starting to pan out:

First, the much anticipated launch of our new company Viola Park, which offers a kitchen system that shares much of the same sensibilities of Henrybuilt's at a mid-ranged price level. It's goal is to give all of us aspiring to Henrybuilt an option for a well-designed cabinetry system. At it's core is a fully standardized system that's versatile enough to fit most spaces and fit any look from traditional to modern minimalist with an equal level of functionality and refinement. Just like Henrybuilt, the quality is top notch, differing from Henrybuilt in material options and hardware finishes. However, it shares many of the same construction techniques and functional hardware. We're able to offer the system at a lower price by consolidating design assistance into an online interface that takes you through a few simple levels of questions to present a set of design options to fit your situation.

I personally had a hand in helping develop the cabinetry options, the website's design tools, and the aluminum pulls/handles that are Viola Park exclusives. So exciting to see it all come together after months of preparation! Expect to see much more for Viola Park!

The second bit of exciting news: Henrybuilt is featured in I.D. magazine's New and Notable edition! This is for a project I also had a role in ushering to reality: the Workspace Component Group. It's an integrated set of tools (cutting board, colander, and knife block) designed to integrate with our backsplash system and interface with the workzone around the sink. Hooray! This system was also recently nominated in the Interior Design Magazine products of the year, which has yet to reveal the finalists. Fingers crossed!

Eay My Story Report Part III: Stories+Maker=Pizzas

Not to make this a novel or anything...but there's just so much to every pizza that I must share! There are 18 pizzas total, and each has a great story and interesting combination of ingredients! Feel free to make any of these pizzas so you can try it yourself!

Here's a run down of each pizza and the cliff-notes version of the stories:
Jared: Improv of this quote:
Happiness is not something ready made. It comes from your own actions.

Ingredients: Pear, olive oil, sage, salami, ricotta, and mozzarella woven together on a web of self-made happiness!

David: Improv of this quote:
Star light, star bright,
Here’s the wish I wish tonight.

Ingredients: olive oil, mushrooms, eggplant, fresh tomatoes, figs rosemary and fontina cheese
Chika: Improv of this quote
His Elvis impersonation left something to be desired; his lip didn’t
quite curl and he always forgot the verses to Hound Dog.

Ingredients: peanut butter, almond butter, apple slices, peeled amd seeded grapes, honey, and ricotta cheese.
Jamie&Brian: Compromise Pie (Improv)
Story:Brian and i share a LOT. when we go out to eat we always share each course. That way we can order an appetizer, a salad and entree and sometimes when we're feeling crazy, a dessert. this allows us to experience the entire meal progression without breaking our belts or our wallets. the only thing we do not share are our drinks. but of course, we each get two of those.

Ingredients: one half: potato, onion, salami, goat cheese and green onions
one half: black olives, goat cheese and green onions
Melanie: Improv of this quote

OUR share of night to bear,
Our share of morning,
Our blank in bliss to fill,
Our blank in scorning.

Here a star, and there a star,
Some lose their way.
Here a mist, and there a mist,
Afterwards—day!

Ingredients: salami, green onions, garlic, yellow tomato, eggplant, and 4 type of cheese (goat, port townsend, mozarella, and ricotta)
Story author: Linda & Nicholas
Maker: Natalia
Story: They share a sweet story of how every year, a herd of goats are brought in by the Unviersity in Tacoma to graze some 8ft tall of overgrown area for 2 weeks straight. They'd hop on each other's back to get as how friends would do to each other in order to reach higher and eat some more.

Ingredients: goat cheese, blackberries, wild greens, olive oil, salt & pepper
Story author: Chelsea
Maker: Andrew
Story: Two islands: Chelsea contrasted the sites and sounds of living on Bainbridge Island relative to her previous home in Manhatten.

Ingredients: Stinging Nettles, Island Grown Shiitake Mushrooms, Port Madison Farm Goat Cheese, Nanami Togarishi, Dandelion Greens, Old Amsterdam Gouda, Fingerling Potatoes, Goya Hot Sauce
Story Author: Christa
Pizza Maker: Jean
Story: Purple not Pink: a story about childhood obsession with the color purple and how she O.D on drinking grape juice at a party and puked it up on her bed that night.

Ingredients: purple cabbage, purple potato, grape seed oil, grapes, figs, prosciutto, raisins soaked in red wine and balsamic vinegar. ricotta cheese, topped with crushed blue corn tortilla.
Story Author: Nin
Makers: Linda & Nicholas:

Story: Nin tells a story professing his love for ketchup (in contrast to his sister's hatred for it)

Ingredients: heirloom and orange grape tomatoes, balsamic vinegar, honey, chili oil, olive oil, salt and pepper, cheese
Story Author: Julia
Maker: Christianna
Story: Leopard print meets Scarlet Begonias: Julia's college years as a wannabe hippie-child contrasted sharply with her first dorm-mate a rebellious home-schooled punk.

Ingredients used: 1/2 Hippie patchwork side: blue potatoes, yellow bell pepper, beet greens, shallots, soft goat cheese, grape tomatoes, tomato sauce, Parmesan. 1/2 Punk leopard skin side: sliced garlic, black olive slices, yellow bell pepper pieces, Parmesan.
Story Author: Mike
Maker: Chelsea
Story: Mike set aside personal comfort in favor of meeting a challenge to take down a pile of world-famous "suicide wings."

Ingredients: habanero peppers (both yellow and orange), heirloom garlic (both cooked and raw), jalapeno peppers and sun dried tomatoes, marinara sauce, hot pepper oil, ricotta cheese, mozzarella cheese, basil, parmigiano.

Story Author: Andrew

Pizza Maker: Julia
Story: How Andrew won Tricia over with repeated orders of Huevos Rancheros.

Ingredients: chopped hard boiled egg, black beans, green onions, fresh tomatoes, avocado, blue corn tortilla chips, chile oil, tomato sauce, mozzarella, queso fresco

Story Author: Natalia
Maker: Christa
Story: A move back to the NW from LA inspired Natalia's for spicy comfort foods.
Ingredients: spiced brisket, roasted garlic, gruyere cheese, removed habenero jalapeno (not available)
Story Author: James
Maker: Nin
pizza made: James' day-dreamt retirement plan: being a simple shepherd on a majestic mountain.

Ingredient: Sheep's milk cheese, lamb, olive oil, chives, salt, tomato sauce.
Story Author: Jean
Maker: James
Story: Jean laments the low market value of her Asian packed lunches on the American cafeteria exchange.

Ingredients: Pork Belly, Cilantro, Sesame Oil, toasted garlic slices, lotus root
Story Author: Christianna
Maker: Tricia
Story: Christianna shares a story of her recent move from Port Angeles to Seattle and a new neighbor who shared homemade plum jam as a welcoming gift.

Ingredients: Plum Jam, Quince, Lavender,
Story Author: Dylan
Maker: Mike

Story: Dylan tells the story of the atypical ways people's ages play a role in his life.

Ingredients: Green tomatoes, Port Townsend Trailhead Tomme cheese, green onions, queso fresco, salami, extra virgin olive oil

Story Author: Tricia
Maker: Dylan
Story: Tricia learned early on as a child that she's a way better cook than her mom and dares to experiment with unconventional combination of ingredients. Maybe sometimes a little too daring....but she eventually learned overtime that sometime basic classic combination of ingredients simply hits the spot.

Ingredients: Dark chocolate, sea salt, Habanero peppers.

Thanks Tricia for giving us an opportunity to do such a fun event! and of course thanks everyone for making such great effort in coming up with all those amazing pizzas!! GROUP HIGH FIVE!!

All the participants names starting from the left: Nicholas, Linda, Christa, Nin, Tricia, Andrew, James, Chelsea, Christianna, Heath, Mike, Julia, Melanie, Jamie, Brian, Chika, Jared, David, Dylan, Jean, Natalia.

I dream of tube amp

Several years ago I got pretty deep into collecting vintage audio equipment...it got pretty serious: stacks of classic receivers, turntables, and reel to reel tape decks. I have to say, there is a permanent soft-spot in my heart for sexy audio equipment. The past couple years I've kept my consumptive hi-fi habits at bay and purged a good deal of my stuff... clean and sober for a good 2 years I think.

After seeing Case Real's Elekit tube amp, I have serious cause for concern about a relapse! Look at how gorgeous this thing is!! I want one! I can't control myself..

Eat My Story Report Part II

At long last we get to our wrap up post on the latest greatest Brite event: Eat My Story.
Let me just start by saying this without a doubt this was most the delicious Brite event thus far. True, this was not so hard to do with Seattle pizza powerhouse Via Tribunali graciously hosting the event plus the creative (albeit amateur) culinary skills of all the event's participants. For every part deliciousness, Tricia Martin of Eating is Art and Food Loyal (her new venture!) added equal parts fascination, experience, and social interaction with her big picture concept:

How can a pizza tell a story?
The rules were simple (and the results awesome...more on that later):

• Share a short story with the group (150 words or less).
• Pick and bring pizza ingredients to the event that will tell you story.
• Come to Via Tribunali the day of the event. Pick someone else's story at random.
• Interpret that person's story on the pizza using their ingredients (adding or subtracting as necessary)...lotsa room for creativity here.
• Cook your creation to perfection at 1000 degrees F in Via Tribunali's wood fired oven.
• Share your the story and pizza with group...drink vino...converse...revel...enjoy.

To shake things up a bit, we added an improv edition at the last minute for those unprepared without stories. These were short stories, quotes, limericks, even tweets chosen at random from a hat.
The results were amazingly beautiful and delicious as well as accurate at telling their corresponding stories. Here's the play-by-play of the day: It was a perfect pizza day at lovely Georgetown (south Seattle). Via Tribunali was the perfect spot for the event with lots of rustic charm and "little slice of Italy" feel. The space was perfect: a long communal table and plenty of room to make some mess.

In true Brite style, Jean laser-cut some signs in cardboard and of course made Brite merit badges for each participants...neatly arranged at the sign in table. As people began too arrive, the ingredients table turned into a cornucopia of amazing ingredients. Everything from heirloom tomatoes to grapes to pork belly to chocolate and everything in between.
Tricia handmade and illustrated these amazing peels for every pizza including cute drawings of each ingredient and the story of the pizza.
Once we were situated, Via Trib brought out the wine and a parade of their signature pies and anti-pasti plates. Leonardo, their GM (and a real Italian of course) introduced us to the history of the resturant, telling the colorful story only as a true Italian can with great expressive hand gestures. We learned how pizza began, it's importance to Italian culture, and how Via Trib's owners had a dream of bringing that to Seattle, decided to buy a defunct pizzeria in Naples, shipped it here, and started their very own Napolian pizzeria right here in Seattle.

We were ready to leave our own mark. Everyone set out to work preparing their incredients and working out the details of their interpretations. There was a healthy buzz around the room as people shared their stories as well as their ingredients and offered eachother ideas and support. Go team! You could see the creative concoctions taking shape:

Jean was trying to make sense of the variety of purple ingredients in front of her.

Christa carefully cut up her ingredients to try to mimic the farm fields when seen from air.
Andrew was contemplating what would happen to Tortilla chips at 1000 degrees.
Chika was confidently crafting a pizza loosely based on a poor Elvis impersonation... Leonardo and his staff carefully showed us how work dough into a thin-crusted pie letting us try and succeed in some way, shape, or form in making our own vessels for our stories. 3 at a time we went to the dough station to try our hand at it and artfully arranging our ingredients.
Roughly 2 minutes after plunging each pizza into the via tribunali inferno, the group was blessed with steaming hot pizza...charred perfectly around the edges. Triumphantly, the pizza makers would reenter the dining hall proudly presenting their creations. After a photo op, each pizza had it's story read aloud to the group then we dug in. It was amazing just how much more each story resonated after tasting the pizza and going through the whole ritual Tricia had orchestrated. I've never tasted so many different types of pizzas in my life! I think everyone went home and took a pizza nap after the event, and some leftovers, too.

Next post will have all the stories and the individual pizzas!

Here is where you can see ALL hundred+ yummy looking photos of the event!

Island Getaway

We're heading out to adorable Guemes Island this weekend for our good friends Terri+Chris' wedding! This little hidden gem is secluded and surrounded with stunning NW nature. We visited our dear friend Jessica of Slow Loris Tshirt couple of times, but have yet spend much time to actually explore around the island.
It's been awhile since we've gone on a getaway trip together, so I'm totally looking forward be part of the wedding, take the boat out, sit by the water, and toast some marshmallos over a bonfire! We'll also be staying at Gumes Island Resort in a yurt! woo hoo!

Happy weekend!

Vote for Henrybuilt

Henrybuilt's has been nominated for couple of categorizes on this year's Interior Design's 'Best of the Year 2009'.
How exciting!

One of the nominated work is under the Accessories category of HB's Workspace Component Group, (I'm proud to say that Dylan designed it himself!) which includes a cutting board, colander, and knife block designed to integrate with the Henrybuilt backsplash system. Vote Here!The other nominated work is their new line, ViolaPark, a cleverly designed versatile modular kitchen system.
Vote Here!
Also vote for our friends from Graypants who are the creators of the Scrap Lights! Vote here!
Voting ends Sunday,Oct 11 at midnight (EDT). Go Seattle!

Me Hungry!!

For the month of October, I'll be participating in Chelsea's (from Grain) food documentation blog, called 12 Month/12 Friends/1 Meal:
Two friends share their last meal of the day.

Every month a new friend is invited to join in on a month of meals. The documentation of these feasts are collected each day.
Chelsea's concept is to use everyday meals to connect with friends close to afar. Nothing better to connect people than with food, right?
The meals on the left are Chelsea's meals, and the meals on the right are mine.

I'll be in Taiwan for half of the month, so the documentation of the meals will be extra exciting since the food there is always so good! But in general, this project is totally up my alley, since I take photos of food all the time anyways!!
I've been posting all the meal photos on my flickr with details of what I ate.
Me hungry.....Munch munch munch.....me want food!!!

Eat My Story Report:Part I

This last Saturday, Brite's collaboration with Tricia Martin of Eating is Art went super well! The event, EAT MY STORY:Make a Pizza, Tell A story, had a great turn out. Besides making and tasting some (actually A LOT) of pizzas, everyone also enjoyed some fantastic house wine, as well as delicious Via Tribunali appetizers donated to us.
Tricia made these wonderful individual pizza peels for each story submitted. It had the story, and all ingredients drawn on there. It made the experience that much more special.
Tricia is super diligent and did her homework of updating about the event already. So here are some photos from her. I'll have more updates later and TONS of delicious looking photos. Stay tuned.Everyone making their own dough. It's totally harder than it looks!
we got to taste 20+ never been tried pizza flavors!!
Plum jam+quince pizza/ peanut butter+almond butter+honey+apple pizza/ huevo ranchero pizza/ heirloom ketchup pizza/ pork belly+lotus root +cilantro oil pizza/ chocolate+coco nibs + habanero peppers pizza, ....and more.Stay tuned!

Designer Profile No.2: Urbancase

Is it October already?! I guess that means it's time for another JOIN Designer Profile interview!
On a quiet dead end off the main strip of Seattle's working-class South Park neighborhood sits the dynamic hub from which Darin Montgomery of Urbancase spins his creative web of multi-faceted design efforts. The Urbancase studio is well organized and compact, smaller than we expected for a predominantly furniture-centric studio. As we learn more about what goes on there we were convinced more and more that we've quite possibly stumbled upon a Utopian design studio. Here creativity is kept fresh by experimentation with materials, ideas, hands-on prototyping, and occasional contract work, but kept a sustainable business by smart, selective outsourcing to skilled local craftspeople and manufacturers. In a format reminiscent of Italy's post-war designers, Urbancase has managed to use it's local resources to create great products with minimal in-house manufacturing capabilities opting instead to use the services the Northwest has to offer. What was so striking was the ease at which Darin delegates his production work to others while keeping the critical creative functions firmly centered within his company. When asked if trusting others with the critical task of executing his vision was in any way problematic, Darin shrugs it off "I pick people who care about what they do. I try to work with others in a similar position to my own."
He went on to explain his belief that keeping production local and small scale has allowed him to replace a rigorous QC process with a level of trust and confidence in his suppliers. "I was inspecting every box they gave me and realized at a certain point it wasn't necessary. They cared about their work as much as I did." This absolutely shows in the work: curved cabinet edges executed seamlessly, beeswax candles (in the shapes of classic cameras) casted with precise details, finishes carefully applied and rubbed by hand. Can't wait to hear more:

Studio Name: Urbancase
Member(s): Darin Montgomery
Location: Seattle, WA
Website: urbancase.com
Started in: 2002

What's the story behind your company/studio? What made you finally realize that you wanted to start your own design company? Take us back to that exact moment when you thought "I'm gonna start my own freakin' design studio!"
I was in Vancouver, BC for a weekend getaway with my girlfriend Rachel. I left a job several months earlier with the intention of starting my own business but was still trying to figure out what direction to go. Rachel finally suggested I should just do what makes me happy. It seemed so obvious. Design makes me happy...so that's what I did. What's your design philosophy and approach?

My philosophy is pretty basic and I try to apply it to every aspect of my life. Whatever I do...whether it's design, cooking, or interacting with people...it should be simple, functional, thoughtful, and beautiful.
What are some highlights (life changing events) you've experienced that influenced your current work or design?

Growing up, my Father owned an auto body shop and for many years it was the gathering place for my Dad and his buddies. He had a group of extremely talented friends and I spent countless hours working on projects with them. They would engineer everything from suspension systems for hot rods to enclosed motorcycle trailers with fold down seating and eating areas. Material and budget limitations were common and more often than not they would solve problems by committee. It was a great environment to grow up in. The experience of working with them influences every project I approach. The level of craftsmanship and functionality they achieved is something that is with me every day.What's your favorite place to visit and get inspiration?
We took a trip to Berlin two years ago and it had a huge impact on the way I look at design. Unfortunately, I can't pop over every time I need inspiration. But...I have the photos to which I refer frequently. Any industrial or area in disrepair is a great source of ideas for me as well.

What do you like to do when you need a break from design?

I try to keep a project in the shop that I don't have to think too much about. Something that requires sanding or polishing. If I'm having difficulty resolving an idea or I've been on the computer all day, repetitive motion can be very relaxing.

Every Sunday Rachel and I have a ritual. We make breakfast, have coffee and listen to records then walk through Freeway Park on our way to the library. Even though I'm surrounded by incredible architecture, it's routine and comfortable so I don't even think about design. It's a great way to recharge my batteries.

We recently started learning French. I'm not very good so it takes all my brain power. I don't have the energy to think about anything else.

I also play guitar and even though I don't practice often enough, 10-20 minutes a day is a real treat.

In the winter I play hockey. When I'm on the ice, design is the FURTHEST thing from my mind.
What do you consider your most successful and or rewarding project?
The projects I rush through or don't resolve completely are the most successful. I learn so much from them and usually have one lying around to remind me of what not to do. Perhaps the most rewarding project was a wine glass rack I made for my parents when I was eight. I built it from scraps found in the garage. It was hideous. My Dad cried when it got knocked off the shelf and shattered. What are the strengths of design in the Northwest? How do you see it becoming stronger?

I love that design in the Northwest has a feeling of honesty and sincerity. It's not arrogant or pretentious.

I believe if the design community in the Northwest continues to communicate, share information, ideas, and resources, it will only get better. JOIN is an awesome organization and the people involved are unbelievable. It's a great feeling when you pick up the phone or e-mail someone in the same discipline that you work and know they will share whatever information they have.

What's your favorite, well-designed food? why?I would say a seed of any kind. They're perfectly designed for their environment and have a little secret tucked away inside. Salsa is a pretty close second.

What's your favorite object? Why?
A micrometer that belonged to my Grandfather. It's beautiful, functional, and very satisfying to use. It doesn't give you a sense of how much effort it took to design. I love objects that conceal their complexity.

Tell us about your very first experience when you did ICFF. What was it like? How did you prepare yourself? Do you any tips or words of wisdom to all the baby designers out there who are thinking about ICFF?

It's funny to look back now, but I remember being very anxious at the time. My friend and I shared a booth and it was the first show for both of us. I arrived at the Jacob Javits Center bright and early with a box of postcards, order forms, and comfortable shoes. I was set. Unfortunately, when I arrived at the booth I found a big hole in the side of our crate. I have no idea what happened, but needless to say...I freaked out. I couldn't open it because my buddy had the cordless drill and was nowhere to be found. I ran around frantically trying to find a drill. Workers at the Javits Center won't loan tools and it seemed as though EVERY other exhibitor was wandering aimlessly looking for a cordless drill. It felt like complete mayhem. I called my friend continuously for the next two hours. Eventually...he answered the phone and the first thing he said was..."do you know the bars stay open until 4 AM?" When he finally arrived at the Javits center he'd forgotten to put the drill on the charger. All we could do was laugh. Once we got the crate open all was good. That was my first three hours of ICFF.

I was naive enough to think my product would sell itself and underestimated the importance of booth design. I'm still learning because there's a science to the dynamics of a trade show. The booth layout has a huge impact on how people approach you. It's sort of like being alone on a dance floor waiting for the music to start. All it takes is one person to join you and others will follow.

I would strongly encourage anyone who feels their product(s) are suited for ICFF to figure out a way to make it happen. There are opportunities you won't find anywhere else. And...if you go one year, plan on going the next. It's an incredible experience, lots of energy, inspiration, and seriously cool people.

For anyone thinking of going I would suggest:

1. Hook up with someone who has done the show. They can help with simple things like finding a hardware store, shipping facilities, and ways to cut through the red tape at the Javits Center.

2. Set aside plenty of time to design your booth and presentation materials. Some people want postcards, some want electronic communication. You should have several options.

3. Most of the rumors you've heard about the staff at the Javits Center are true. They're not on your schedule, you're on theirs. It's all good if you roll with it. Fight it and you'll be miserable (it took more than a year for me to figure that out).

4. Try to have two people in the booth. It's exhausting to do it by yourself. And...somehow it makes your booth more approachable.

5. Eat right, brush your teeth, and don't run with scissors.

What other design shows have you done or would like to do in the future?

ICFF is the only show we've done. Milan is on the radar. We're shooting for 2011.