It was a beautiful weekend in Dumbo, and we’re sad to see Brooklyn Designs go. While it’s certainly the smallest trade event of our season (amongst Salone, ICFF and NeoCon) BKLYN DESIGNS is home to true innovation and tremendous local talent. We made many new friends this weekend, and learned of a number of exciting, original, and fresh products in architecture and design.

Locally grown, internationally known. It’s a powerful tag line for this event and drives home a sense of pride we all feel knowing Brooklyn is home to works being received all across the globe. Let’s take a moment to review some of our favorites with the Bklyn Designs Wrap Up, 2008.

Joseph wrote At Bklyn Designs: Sami Hayek's Raven on May 5, 2008. I’m a big fan of Mexican beauty Salma Hayek whose starred in a number of motion pictures, and now I’m additionally a big fan of brother Sami. When I buy my first jet, I hope it’s designed by Sami Hayek (in collaboration with Bentley). If you’re wondering what that might look like, read this article.

Tanya wrote At Bklyn Designs: McCullah Designs on May 5, 2008. I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again, I love products that draw upon multiple inspirations – modern, traditional, classical – and love them even more when they push material boundaries. That said, the Empire table and Realm table from McCullah Designs are not to be missed.

Empire Table. Designed by McCullah Designs.

Candace wrote At Bklyn Designs: dViders on May 6, 2008. I am going to say something I am sure everyone knows: New York City real estate is excessively expensive. One might say through the roof. So it’s no surprise that local designers have explored varying techniques to save space. Check out these space dividers from dVider. I wonder where they came up with that name…

Lora wrote At Bklyn Designs: I Love I Beam on May 6, 2008. I am going to go out on a limb here, but I just have to say it: Jason Horvath and Bill Hilgendorf are two cools dudes. I mean it. I had a lot of fun learning about Uhuru Design this past weekend at Brooklyn Designs. Tons of energy, tons of talent, and tons of humor. And I am not the only one whose taken back by their charms. Read about Lora’s love affair with the #1020 Beam Coffee Table.

Bill Hilgendorf (left) and Jason Horvath (right), founders of Uhuru Design.

Tanya wrote At Bklyn Designs: Charliedoes Lamps on May 7, 2008. Check out print lamp-shades by Charlie Brokate, whom transposes simple imageries from everyday life onto a collection of lamp-shades. In particular, I really like the Boy lamp.

Joseph wrote At Bklyn Designs: A Purple Heart on May 7, 2008. Yes, it is purple! It’s additionally crafted from reclaimed walnut wood, so it includes sustainable ambition as well.

Franki wrote At Bklyn Designs: Aviva Stanoff on May 8, 2008. This is actually an interview, so a bit more of an intimate framing of Aviva’s work than a simple article. Accordingly, here’s some insight: her handmade textiles and home decor goods are inspired by the subtle palette of nature, the deliberate minimalism of her tradition, and the city sunset she sees every night from her design studio window.

Alicita wrote At Bklyn Designs: Eric Johnston Wall Sculptures on May 8, 2008. Imagine my delight whilst walking the BKLYN DESIGNS floor, when low and behold I see a piece of art on the wall that looks strangely familiar. Eric Johnston’s sculptural art is constructed entirely of reclaimed wood, retrieved from local demolition sites. His work is inspired by repeated compositions that he observes in everyday urban life: "shipping pallets, bar codes, a broken wall or a peeling billboard." Eric confided in me that a set-designer from Gossip Girl, whom had attended this weekends show, is now considering using one of his pieces for a wall on the set. I’ll be interested to see which side of the river it gravitates towards… whether it will be Williamsburg in Brooklyn or the Upper East Side of Manhattan.

Me (Jacob Slevin), in front of my favorite Eric Johnston wall sculpture.

Joseph wrote At Bklyn Designs: Upholstery and Wood Together at Last! on May 9, 2008. As you might sense from this article’s title, Joseph explores the work of Jonah Zuckerman of City Joinery, whose work involves the integration of wood with other materials some might consider contrary – aluminum, bronze, steel, glass, and upholstery. Honestly, I was a bit skeptical of this article myself as I somewhat think wood and upholstery go together like peanut butter and jelly, but I was extraordinarily impressed by the depth of Jonah’s work. I trust you (our readers) will be impressed as well.

Tanya wrote At Bklyn Designs: Wonder Collection by Argington on May 9, 2008. What parent doesn’t want an ambitious, smart, cultured child? Argington makes this easy with their Wonders Collection, a group of children’s furniture inspired by the listed wonders of the world – the Pyramids of Giza, the Taj Mahal, and more. I didn’t know of these worldly landmarks until reaching architecture school, but it seems today’s youth will be more culturally informed than I was.

Candace wrote At Bklyn Designs: Vexell's Corbel on May 9, 2008. This new wood seating collection, designed and built by Marc Vecchiarelli of Vexell, is very bold, regal, and handsome. It speaks to a more rigid and linear aesthetic, and so I suppose it deserves attributes like simple. But at the same time, it’s tremendously deliberate and well crafted (not to mention deceptively comfortable).

PN/C chair. Designed and manufactured by Vexell.

Alicita wrote At Bklyn Designs: TwistTogether Lamp on May 10, 2008. The TwistTogether Lamp is half toy and half design artifact, but moreover, it’s a fun, interactive, lighting element to serve a variety of applications. Leftee loosee, rightee tightee – you’ll want to remember that.

Joseph wrote At Bklyn Designs: Robert Martin Designs' Office Desk on May 10, 2008. This office/desk is truly an object that adapts to any aesthetic or environment, whether it be modern white walls and a 24in Imac, or an 80’s motif wallpaper and a typewriter. Read this article to learn more about custom work station solutions designed by Robert Martin Designs.

Tanya wrote At Bklyn Designs: Standard41 Collection on May 11, 2008. This father-son duo builds furniture that might be described as "green reinterpretations of mid-century Scandinavian and American designs – with a sculptural twist." While the furniture is very beautiful, for me, it’s an added bonus to hear of a local family design shop to survive generation to generation.

Lora wrote At Bklyn Designs: A Table with No Name on May 11, 2008. Why anyone might write about a product with no name was a bit surprising to me, but after seeing Palo Samko’s unnamed masterpiece, it all became very clear. This coffee table is crafted from reclaimed cherry and white oak. It also features cylindrical drawers and a suspended box within its tabletop. Perhaps after reading this article we can help suggest some names to Palo.

‘A Table with No Name,’ coffee table. Designed by Palo Samko.

Joseph wrote At Bklyn Designs: Studio 1000's Eminence Collection on May 12, 2008. Nothing thrills me more than seeing student work at these trade events. It tends to often be the most provocative and thought-provoking. Kenzan Tsutakawa-Chinn was one of the participants to represent Pratt’s industrial design master’s program, and we love his Eminence Collection, constructed of cool white and warm white 5 mm LEDs embedded in acrylic casting resin.

Sophie wrote At Bklyn Designs: Re-surface Design on May 12, 2008. I am not surprised to see our hip-hop queen write about a pendant light embedded in a microphone. If you’re a musician this is for you. Or if you just like to look hip and feel cool, this is for you also. We should forward this product to Kanye who, believe it or not, is a big design freak.

I wrote At Bklyn Designs: Wud Presents Pb-R on May 13, 2008. This is a unique product created by local Brooklyn designer, Corey Springer. Pb-R is a material process that involves encasing lead in a clear, smooth epoxy resin. I am crushing on this product; it probably wins most innovative material of the week.

I wrote At Bklyn Designs: Childhood Memories on May 13, 2008. This product collection, by Rui Docouto, is fun, smart, and a bit wacky. That’s all I am going to say, as I think the photograph below speaks volumes.

Nephila lamp, from the Childhood Memories collection. Designed by Rui Docouto. Manufactured by Site Specific Design.

To end our Brooklyn Designs journey, I solicited some help from my good friends Sarah Tihany and Jonah Green to create At Bklyn Designs: Video Blog. This will hopefully be our first of many video blog posts here at 3rings. It’s a refreshing change of pace from written articles, plus a whole lot of fun to create. Please let us know what you think.

Me (Jacob Slevin), sipping my Starbucks coffee in front of the Brooklyn Bridge, outside BKLYN DESIGNS.

That’s all for the BKLYN DESIGNS Wrap Up 2008. ICFF begins tomorrow. You keep reading and doing your part; we promise to write true and write hard.