L&G at Sight Unseen Shape Shop Popup

We're excited to have some special new necklaces for Sight Unseen's (one of our fav design blogs) upcoming popup shop at Creatures of Comfort!

 These are times when I wished we lived closer than the total opposite side of the states. :(

But if you're in NY, go check it out!  The shop will be up from from April 9th to May 6th.
See more event info and RSVP HERE.

Defenders of America!

Go check out THREAT by AmDC  that's all about weapon of defense in every shape & form happening on March 9th.
A show about weapons? Hey, don't judge! This is America we're talking about here!

All this is more about encouraging designers from all over America to all come together and have fun designing & create cool shiz.

Here's what we made....
Hit & Strangle Stick

Yup! You guessed it! You hit, then strangle! It's EASY!

This defense object is a sleek hitting stick made with the use aluminum and copper tubing and fishing rope inspired by dog catchers.

The simple telescoping action allows the defender to tighten the rope by pushing the aluminum tube forward and therefore can capture (and strangle) the invader from afar.

And now...in REAL action!

TAKE THAT!! 
....That'll show you to never walk in the house with your shoes on!
Below is a sneak peak of what's also gonna be in the show. 

(Photos provided by NYT)

The show opens this FRIDAY, MARCH 9th (runs from March 9 to 15)
At Present Company, 29 Wythe Street (North 13th Street), Williamsburg, Brooklyn.

Also read this great interview on NYT with Kiel Mead  about the concept of the show
....and other intense topics of discussions like, jail beating weapons, squirt guns with hydrochloric acid, and our dark sides.

Oh...This is gonna be goooooood.

L&G ready for NYIGF 2012!

We can't believe it's that time again! 2011 year ended and now L&G is TOTALLY pumped for 2012 and ready to share some brand new works!

L&G will be showing an exciting brand new line of table top items & jewelry along with JOIN and eight other Northwest based studios.
So come visit us at Accent of Design at the Jacob K. Javits Center, Level 3. We'll also be right next to other talented young designers from American Design Club and A+ Young Designers.

It's gonna be a par-tay! woot woot!

Aug 2011 NYIGF Wrap up!

Here's a recap of the JOIN at the NYIGF for the 3rd time!

This time with us being in the lobby outside of the Accent on Design area turned out to be a MUCH more pleasant of a space to be in...especially when the sun is out! Just look at how everything shines on the table!

Above: New server colors and cake servers from L&G, and colorful big Silicone ring by fruitsuper....and NO they're NOT eraser rings!
Here we got Chelsea H. from plainMADE getting a little sun tanning sesh at the Javits....


Photos above by Grain

New frame light colors from Iacoli & McAllister.

Also this time being next to AmDC made it 100 times more fun, too!

photo by Steph Mantis
Here are some highlights from AmDC's booth:

Bracelets made with mix marble cuts celebrating the colors & patterns of the various types of stone. By Chen Chen & Kai Tsien Williams.

Chika and I got to trade with Patrick Kim for one of his clever wooden tons and these lovely cutting boards with a simple rubber band at the end to keep it from slipping around.  So clever & thoughtful!

Beautiful and sleek glass vessels from Felicia Ferrone based out of Chicago.

Playful two-headed animal necklaces in various metals by Steph Mantis! (and yes... exclamation mark is required when referring to Steph!)

...and of course, we wouldn't feel complete at the NYIGF until we have some sort of birthday celebration! and this year is no exception...

Here's Chika with her doughnut birthday cake composed by me and Christa (of blkPINE bags). This is second time celebrating Chika's bday at the Javits and we went all out and made a doughnut tower with yummy doughnuts from Doughnut Plant....surrounded with coconut macaroons, strawberry Pocky sticks, and flower pom pom with napkins provided by the Javits.

Yes...I know...only a master mind & a true artist can create such master piece such as this. Christa and I took MAD pride in carefully piling the doughnuts up and sprucing it all up...and all the  grease spots on the box only shows how much thought went into this...

A Perfect day in NY

After 5 long grueling days of smiling, smirking, staring, standing, speaking, and more staring at the NYIGF, I finally got some downtime right after the show ended.
and totally had myself the most perfect day....

First, I stopped at the closest Dean & Deluca and paid for an over priced iced latte and one of this amazing carrot cake doughnuts from  doughnut planet and "wrote" a card to Dylan with one of these Utility Cards by Grain. Each card is filled with words all of sorts for every occasion possible. It's more than brilliant!
It took me a while but composed my own phrase "WAHZZ....UP....MY....BOY....FRIEND....I....MISS....YOU....WAY....TOO....MUCH....YEA..."

Then I walked through Highline checking out the new addition, which is even more amazing than before!

I sat one of the the lounge benches and ate one of these deliciously handmade peach elderberry popsicle.

Then I actually got to soak up some sun for at least couple of hours... and as shameful as this sounds (but I'm not longer ashamed) I starting hearing Sheryl Crow's "soak up the sun" in my head out of nowhere!
Normally I'd freak out if that song were to pop in my head at any other moments, but instead I kept my cool...and just embraced it.
I got to read a bit, stared at the clouds, did some people watching, and all the while still humming the song....it was so refreshing.

Then what made it EVEN more perfect is that I met up with Chika & Jesse and got to enjoy THE most perfect dish at Joseph Leonard with all the simple ingredients I love the most....
Just look at that perfect egg sitting perfectly on top of a cute little piece of brioche..next to a perfectly healthy bed of frisee salad topped with perfectly crisped bacon bits....


Can't say that I get to expereince a lot of days like this anymore, but whenever it happens...I just totally love every moment of it...even if Sheryl Crow comes into the picture.

L&G and JOIN Friends at NYIGF Aug 13-Aug 18

We can't believe it's already been a WHOLE year since we debut our work at the NYIGF last year...the year went by super fast and we don't really remember what really happened...but all I can say is that this whole experience of having our own studio so far has been more than amazing, and it's been reassuring for us that we can actually make it work! 
...and in finding the need to give ourselves a little pat on our backs, we decided to celebrate a little by getting a cake!
Man...how I love that I can write off things like this as an business expense!

We even used the cake to shoot along with our new items that we'll be bring to the NYIGF this August: New pastel Superior server colors, Vintage Superior cake servers, ceramic Salt & Pepper Pawz, and Terracotta Piggy banks!

So yeah...It's been a crazy year where it felt like so much has happened yet I can barely remember it all.  Does that make sense?....and is that normal?
I think perhaps it's the fact that we're still learning the art of juggling everything and learning how to be our own bosses...and do everything else...to be a designer, product developer, maker, blogger, photographer, sales rep,  accountant, PR, creative director, packer, shipper and dishwasher...
Less assure you that i'm NOT trying to brag....seriously... :P

But all and all we feel...and I'm gonna get a little stupid sappy here...sniff sniff......we feel super lucky and grateful for all the wonderful supports we've been getting from friends, family, press and all of our customers this whole year since we launched our own designs!!  And we feel extra fortunate to be part of such a wonderful group of designers from the Pacific Northwest and to be part of JOIN!

So we're totally psyched for this August NYIGF where 8 of us design studios under JOIN will  be next to other talented peeps from American Design Club and “A+: The Young Designers’ Platform.” We'll all going to join forces to showcase our work outside the entrance to Accent on Design in the lobby area.  

Yes...nothing like partying in the lobby at the Javits Convention Center!! Woot woot!

Check out what everyone gots to bring!

 

New print from  R&L goods.

 

Hex Opener by Iacoli & McAllister 

 

Hung by Grain 

 

Canoe Canvas Pack by Blk Pine Workshop. 

Bows Scarf by PlainMADE

 

2012 Naturalist Almanac by Free Time Industries 

 

SBiR Rings by friutsuper design 

More info on NYIGF: Visit www.nyigf.com

The New York International Gift Fair is located at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center, 655 W 34th Street in New York, and will be open 9:00 am - 6:00 pm August 14 - August 17, 2011 and Noon - 6:00 pm August 18, 2011.

L&G Chalk Piggies at Crewcuts!!

So....we had to keep this hush hush until recently...and we can't wait to share this exciting news!! Our Chalk Piggies are available on Crewcuts online HERE for all the stylish & adorable kids! Like this lil' adorable girl!We've been excited about this ever since one of the buyer from J.Crew first contacted us after purchasing a piggy after the holidays!This is our first time working with a big company such as J.Crew and we were more than happy that everything went as planned and now they're actually in one of the Crewcut store in NY and online! This is totally what I envisioned where the piggies would end up... to be with stylish kids & parents and be part of both of their worlds!

I think I'll be visiting our piggies at the Crewcut store when I head to NY this coming August!
Can't wait!

L&G presents: Cane & Able

We're debuting Cane & Able at a satellite exhibit, USE ME, in conjunction with ICFF.
A simple whitened pine stool truncated by a vintage cane. A multi-purpose supportive, mobile, and hangable stool. While they typically act as a person's 3rd leg, its now acting as the 4th leg...or even 6th leg if you decide to use to take it out for a walk.

Two of em hanging out...
Detail of dowel leg construction:
Visit Cane & Able in person during ICFF week at the American Design Club's USE ME show.

USE ME show: OPENS TODAY!

We got our pieces in the show!! Woo Hoo!
This will be our first time participating in a design show in NY!! We're stoked!! But sad that we won't be able to be part of the excitement in person.. bum bums....
It's gonna be a pretty amazing group of designers and I'm 101% sure there will be pretty amazing stuff, there, too!
...but here's our crazy shipping mess & packaged items before shipping them out to NY...which took me all night to makeshift a custom sized box from scratch.....who does that??
I think I ended up using every types of packing material possible for this box.
It was seriously a total piece of work in itself. :P
...but i think the people at AmDC will probably forever hate me because it's probably going to be a total hassle to unwrap it.....saaaaawweeeee~!!

We'll reveal the pieces under all those mysterious foam, bubble wraps, and cardboard pieces soon!!


USE ME show: May 13-May 16 During ICFF

For its sixth show since its founding in 2008, the American Design Club presents “Use Me”: an exhibition by 45 young American designers of unapologetically functional objects, each of which exhibits a strong sense of purpose, intelligent use of materials, and the ability to do one thing extremely well.

Location/Time/Date:

The American Design Building at Great Jones Lumber, 45 Great Jones Street
Friday May 13 – Monday May 16, 12PM to 7PM

The show’s participants include:
Real Ok Design (above), Alex Chatham, The Fawn Conspiracy, Alexandra Snook, Free Time Industries, Biodidactic Design, Andrew O. Hughes, Annie Lenon + Valerie Gnaedig, Bec Brittain, B. Light Design, Benjamin Harrison Bryant, Brendan Keim, Brendan Ravenhill, C McKeough Unlimited, Grain, Chuck Routhier, Colleen & Eric, Conor Klein, Craighton Berman Design, Daniel Michalik Furniture Design, David Tsai, Debra Folz Design, Ladies & Gentlemen Studio, Emily Rothschild, sit n damico, Fort Standard, Iacoli & Mcallister, Isaac Yu Chen, Jen Turner, Jess Fügler, Jill Peterson, Joey Roth, Kyle Daevel Design, studioooij, Swinton, Michelle Weinberg surface design, nonlinear Studio, Patrick Townsend, Peter J Pless Design, Reed Wilson, Raven & Boar / Hivemindesign, Steph Mantis Design, T M V Design, Tim Liles, Thomas Im, and Formed and Found.

Some ideas brewing...

....for AmDC's upcoming "USE ME" show for ICFF.

Made our submissions and is crossing our fingers...hope we make it in!