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During my last trip to LA, Casey invited me to an Eames exhibition at Pacific Standard Time; I was unable to go because my flight back to NYC left that same evening. I am disappointed to have missed it because I would have gotten the chance to see these promotional posters in person. PST tapped the one and only Ice Cube to share his appreciation for Charles and Ray Eames and how their work has inspired and influenced him. I like what PST has done in partnering with an unexpected modern cultural icon to help expose art and design to new audiences. When else would you see Eames mentioned on a hip hop blog  (or Ice Cube on a design site)? Initiatives like this break down barriers and make art and design more accessible, so I am all for it.

Plus – without a project like this, I never would have known that Ice cube studied architecture prior to joining NWA. If I ever had the chance to meet Ice Cube one day, I think it would be awesome to know that he would be just as stoked to chat about mid-century design as he would rap music.

The primary reason for my visit to Portland last weekend was to spend time with Tanner Goods. While sampling some of the best coffee in the country, visiting factories, and attending my first soccer game were all experiences I enjoyed, the highlight was definitely my last day that was spent in the Tanner Goods workshop. They moved a few months ago into this brand new space that functions as a centralized location for design, sampling, manufacturing and shipping.

Throughout the day, I got to see the entire process of manufacturing a belt. Sam receives and inspects every single hide that is purchased; anything that isn’t up to par is sent back to be exchanged. He then marks each piece of leather out to minimize waste.

I was shocked to learn how little usable space there is on a hide. Cow hides are organic shapes, whereas belts come in straight line shapes. Plus, only a select part of the hide is consistent enough to be utilized for belts. Some remnants can be cut into bracelets and keychains, but the rest of the pieces are tossed into a pile to be brought over to the Tanner Goods flagship store. They sell these scraps by the pound to aspiring designers who might want to try their hand at making something themselves.

In this new workshop, the team has every tool necessary to make anything in their product range. This setup didn’t come together overnight; over the years, they’ve been able to acquire both equipment and knowledge from older leather artisans who helped guide them along. I could tell how grateful they were to have everything in one place – it certainly helps with efficiency.

One  thing I admired about the Tanner Goods team was their versatility. Everyone has his specialty but is able to work multiple stations as needs arise.

While there, I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to try my hand at making some of the items that Tanner Goods produces for us. Sam gave me a scrap piece of black chromexcel leather to strap out some bracelets.

I also got to use the hot stamping machine to create a few leather 3sixteen patches that go on our jeans. It’s a process that takes time to dial in, as there are heat, pressure and cycle time variables on the machine. I definitely developed a deeper appreciation for all the work that goes into the products they make for us and for their own range.

My good friends Wilson and Carol returned from their honeymoon recently with this generous gift for Logan. It’s a child-sized replica of the walnut Eames LCW that already resides in our living room… as soon as they saw it, they knew it’d be perfect for us.

There are a few design adjustments to make it more kid-friendly… most notably, the angle of the seat itself: the child-sized chair doesn’t angle down as much to promote better posture. It also doesn’t use rubber shock mounts on the seat or the backing, which results in the seat having less give. Otherwise, the construction and shape look to be just as nice as our existing one.

While it’ll still be at least a year or two before Logan is able to sit in this chair comfortably, it’s such a nice looking addition to our living room that I’m happy to leave it out until he’s ready for it.

We had this bench made up for the shop last week. I’ve since taken two meetings on it, so it’s already come in handy. With the warmer weather, it’s good to find any excuse to get outdoors every day (even if it’s just for a little bit) so I am looking forward to putting it to good use: lunch breaks, afternoon smokes…

The bench is made of reclaimed barn rafters from upstate NY. The wood was planed down and refinished with a protective wax, hence the lighter color.

It’s been less than a week and indigo stains are already starting to show. You kind of have to expect that when you’re putting a bench outside a raw denim shop. By the end of summer, I’m guessing it will look completely different.