Just across the bridge lies a goldmine of raw (or, more appropriately, live edge) furniture making talent. Brewing since the early aughts (around the inception of Bklyn Designs annual show), design-centric shops like The Future Perfect and STEWART/STAND® opened to showcase the abundance of home wares by local artisans. In recent years, more and more talk about design has shifted outside of proper Manhattan to embrace Brooklyn as a real breeding ground for makers. Check out a round-up of 14 makers our designers love to work with and you need to know about.
Uhuru Tree Trunk Table
Uhuru uses a mix of reclaimed and specially sourced woods and metals (with sustainability at its core brand message) to create one-of-a-kind pieces like laser-cut powder-coated steel chaise lounges and the Hono stool, which is hand charred using an ancient Japanese torching technique called Shou Sugi Ban.
Lindsay Adelman Bubble Chandelier
Working closely with glass artist Michiko Sakano and local metal engineers, Adelman creates airy and structurally sound lighting pieces, namely the Branching Bubble, her studio’s first breakthrough piece.
Workstead Chandelier
Workstead’s offering is comprised of leather sling chairs, minimalistic, Mouille-inspired lighting and chain metal jewelry. The real magic, however, is in the public spaces they design in metropolitan cities and the installation works for major brands.
Asher Israelow Brass and Wood Tables
Inlaid brass, locally sourced materials and a self-proclaimed ‘touch of conceit’ comprise Brooklyn-based Israelow’s tell-tale pieces.
We met Asher at ICFF over the summer and had a really fun talk about brass inlay and Brooklyn. We first called the RISD graduates’ work ephemeral and we’re sticking to it. We were especially enamored with his astrally-charged pieces like the Star Map Table.
Apparatus Wall Sconce
Stylized sculptural lighting fit for a high fashion editorial. Executing modern concepts from luxe materials and a penchant for collaborations make the studio ripe for future successes.
Roll and Hill Excel Chandelier
With a roster including Paul Loebach, Lindsey Adelman and Rich Brilliant Willing, this on-demand production studio has a deep hand in the Brooklyn lighting scene.
Sentient Furniture
Boasting a robust live edge collection, Sentient fears not when incorporating unexpected materials into design. Just look at their Long Wool Sofa, which pairs long Icelandic lamb wool and reclaimed oak.
Well-known for championing live edge, this Brooklyn workshop isn’t afraid to mix it up. With materials, that is. Pairing long haired wool with oak boards never looked so good. A cool collaboration with Nersi Nasseri resulted in a piece called Orbit.
Sentient Secretary
Clean lines and light oak set this maker apart. A strong Asian influence is also extremely apparent.
Token Table
Using standard materials like press formed sheet metal, fabricated steel, TOKEN produces art-deco inspired, handcrafted pieces.
Samko Furniture
With an eye for the unusual and a pension for the surreal, Palo Samko’s line features carved clocks, dining tables with hidden compartments and expert joinery technique and leather-clad seating.
Samko rejoices in finding treasures where others see disrepair. In a Cool Hunting interview, Samko “claim[es] joists and structural beams from old demolished buildings is a great and underused resource.” Czechoslovakian-born and Brooklyn hazed, his pieces speak to structure as well as play, embracing aesthetic imperfections and capitalizing on them, making them beautiful. His line is definitely all his own and can be recognized by his expert craftsmanship and attention to detail, but each piece is its own gift, quite like a well written poem among a book of poetry. Secret embellishments and homages to his influencers (like Dali) play a key role in what makes the brand so special.
Egg Collective Console
Sharp yet feminine design featuring bright polished brass punches make Egg Collective special. Each piece is simple with graphic detailing, ensuring, according to their site, ‘heirloom-quality contemporary furniture.
Bec Britain LED Chandelier
A charmed take on industrial lighting, Bec Britain creates modular chandeliers from LED tubes and brushed brass. Incorporating hand-blown glass, mirror and marble to create visual delight and balance, her products continue to surprise.
Aaron Poritz Wooden Coffee Table
Aaron Poritz’s passion for furniture making is rooted in Hurricane felled woods and Nicaraguan plantation trees, creating transparency in his geometrically-driven pieces.
Jason Miller Furniture Designs
Maybe the woodsiest of the crew, Jason Miller could easily furnish Snow White’s found cabin hideout. If the fact that his mirrors already reflect heavily wooden scenes and he has a lighting line called Antlers (based on the antler shape) isn’t enough to prove it, here’s this: once, when asked to shop for someone else (for a Frankfurt art exhibition), he picked a Gnome.
CITY JOINERY
Jonah Zuckerman creates thoughtful concept pieces like the Gathering Table have an all-in-one feel. Yet another RISD grad, Zuckerman uses his New York roots to solve problems faced in the city. His travels to Nepal furthered his interest in multiple-functioned furnishings, proving Joinery to be an apt name for the brand. The interesting approach to all-encompassing pieces act like a one-man-band in a space. See the pieces below for a better idea of how that is achieved. And although City Joinery has moved from BK to MA where the rent is (scantily) less, he still has Brooklyn heritage and still makes our list.
