I'm the Featured Designer of the Week over at London's Deck Studios! Check out the interview I did with their founders, Ed & Sin.
They put together a really beautiful montage of photos for the piece -- a nice mix of product photography and behind-the-scenes process shots. Below is a screen capture, but head over to the article to read the full interview!
“My color palette can be described as ‘fifty shades of gray’ — I pretty much only use silver, gray, and black.”
I recently wrapped up a commission piece for a wonderful couple, Michael and Salma. They were so much fun to work with, and I’m really happy with how the piece turned out!
Michael Wornick in front of two Orozco pieces from his collection.
I met Michael at Renegade Craft Fair in April — he came by my booth and struck up a conversation. We chatted about art and design. He's an art collector who owns a number of sketches by Mexican muralist José Clemente Orozco. He and his partner had just bought a beautiful home in Sonoma, California, and they were looking for something bold (and fairly heat-resistant) to hang over their fireplace.
During our conversation about what kinds of imagery he’s drawn to, he mentioned that he loved the kinds of patterns found in Islamic art. He also said that he liked my aesthetic, and didn’t want to give me too many restrictions or guidelines — he wanted to see what I’d come up with (#dreamclient).
We explored a couple different design directions together. The clear favorite was a pattern of tessellating diamonds. The inspiration for this design was a photo I’d found of a carved stone screen from a temple in Jaipur called Chandra Mahal. (I only later figured out that I had actually visited that very temple a few years ago with my family!)
Below are some process photos: the reference image I started with, some sketches in my notebook, a CAD drawing, the lasercut steel parts, an array of parts in various stages of sanding, staining, and waxing, and finally, the assembly.
Interested in a custom piece of your own? Fill out this form and let's discuss!
Exciting news: Two of my pieces are now on display at Harmonic Brewing in San Francisco! Harmonic is a fantastic craft brewery in the Dogpatch that makes 10+ interesting and seasonal beers. Their taproom is open to the public five nights a week, and it's become my favorite place to unwind after a long day in the metal shop.
I've gotten to know Harmonic's founders, Eddie Gobbo, Jon Verna, and Eric Tisch, over the last few months because we're neighbors -- we all share a roof over at ShopFloor Design (hence my new happy hour habit). If you're on this side of town, come by for a drink, some cheesy popcorn, and a peek at these two wall hangings!
Harmonic Brewing is located at 1050 26th Street in San Francisco, and their taproom is open Wednesday through Sunday. Fun fact: You can bring your kids, your dog, and outside food into the taproom. So round up your crew and make an evening out of it! Check out their website for hours and more info.
And if you're interested in purchasing either of these two pieces, email me at zai@elektrasteel.com. Cheers!
My favorite notebook brand, Field Notes, gave me a sweet little shoutout on their blog! Check it out:
I just finished up a custom piece with an extra special backstory: Two of my mom's colleagues hired me to make an anniversary gift for my own parents -- as a surprise!
My mother, Diana Divecha, next to the piece I made for her and my dad
My mom, Diana Divecha, is a developmental psychologist who works with the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence. She and her colleagues, Robin Stern and Marc Brackett, publish editorials, speak at conferences, and educate experts about how social and emotional learning programs benefit kids and teens. When Robin and Marc came to me with the idea for a custom piece for my parents, their only request was that I create a representation of the Mood Meter.
The Mood Meter is one of the central tools in RULER, the emotional intelligence curriculum developed at the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence. It's a graph that helps people identify and articulate their emotions. The x-axis plots how positive or negative the emotion is, while the y-axis plots energy level. This results in four distinct quadrants:
Robin and Marc gave me tons of creative freedom with regard to the style, aesthetic, and materials, which was such a treat for me! I ended up creating a large, square mosaic made out of sheet steel. I took the graph and tipped it on a corner -- diamonds felt more dynamic than squares. If you've seen my work before, you probably know that my color palette is pretty subdued (both my portfolio and my closet could be described as "Fifty Shades of Gray"). I used a variety of finishing techniques -- staining, sanding, sandblasting, waxing -- to create tones in the steel ranging from bright silver to a dark slate gray. There's a subtle ombré from bottom to top: The lower half of the piece is a bit darker, to reflect lower-energy emotions, while the upper half has brighter, shinier steel tones, to symbolize higher-energy emotions. Robin requested small splashes of color as a nod to the Mood Meter, so I painted four small triangles with the original quadrant colors. Lastly, I welded a simple frame out of steel flatbar to give the piece a polished edge.
Needless to say, my parents were pretty stunned when they saw the piece -- they couldn't believe that Robin, Marc, and I had managed to keep this project a secret from them for months! It wasn't easy, though. I'm very close to my parents, and there were many times when I was tempted to gush to them about what I was working on. But I kept my lips zipped, and they loved the surprise!
"That you were able to create a piece of art that expresses our love and appreciation for you and your family brings great joy and satisfaction to us," wrote Marc. "It’s a gorgeous piece of art with a subtle reminder that each day thousands of children and adults are learning the skills they need to become talented and caring people."
Want your own custom wall hanging like this? Email me and let's discuss!
Renegade Craft Fair is one of my all-time favorite fairs in San Francisco -- the work is beautiful, the space at Fort Mason is stunning, and the vibe is fun. And for the very first time, I got to participate as a seller rather than as a shopper!
At the show, I debuted my collection of steel mosaic wall hangings. I had no idea how it would go -- it was pretty different from the faceted vessels I'd making previously -- and I wasn't sure what to expect. But people loved them! They were drawn to the bold shapes and patterns, and many had questions for me about how I'd made them.
I'm currently working on several large commission jobs in this style, but with more complex patterns and tones. I'm really loving this current direction, and I'm excited to keep exploring this path in my work!
This June, I'll be participating in AIDS/LifeCycle, which is a seven-day, 545-mile bike ride from SF to LA. It's a massive fundraiser that supports the San Francisco AIDS Foundation and the Los Angeles LGBT Center, two organizations that are doing crucial, life-saving work to curb the AIDS epidemic in California. Over the next month, I'm planning to raise $3,000 for the San Francisco AIDS Foundation. To make this fun for everyone, I'm hosting an art raffle: I'll be giving away six unique, handcrafted prizes! Three of them were made by yours truly, and the other three were made -- and generously donated! -- by my insanely talented friends Nicole Sweeney, Jasmin Pamukcu, and Jeff Goodwin from Krakatoa Design.
For every $20 that you donate toward my fundraising, you'll earn one ticket in the raffle. I'm going to divide up the drawing into six individual rounds. After I sell 25 tickets, I'll randomly draw a winner and raffle off the first prize. Once I sell the the next 25 tickets, I'll raffle off the second prize. I'll keep going like this until I've sold a total of 150 tickets and raffled off all six prizes. Take a peek at my scoreboard spreadsheet if you're having a hard time visualizing the structure of this contest.
The fun part: All tickets will stay in the pool for subsequent rounds! So if you buy a few tickets in the first round, they'll stay in the pool for Rounds 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6! (Winning tickets, however, will be removed from the pool for subsequent rounds.) If you want to maximize your odds of winning a prize, make sure to donate sooner rather than later!
Donate online with a credit card here. I'd recommend donating in increments of $20, as $20 equals one raffle ticket. So for example, if you donate $200, you'll earn 10 tickets in the raffle.
You can check the scoreboard at any time to see where we are in the raffle, and who's won so far!
Prize #1: Tall Prism Stand by Elektra Steel
This is a teeny little stand that I designed and welded from blackened steel bar and stainless sheet steel. At only 7" high, it's perfect for displaying your tiniest treasures: air plants, jewelry, or maybe a votive candle. It normally retails for $60.
Prize #2: Amaterasu Omikami by Jasmin Pamukcu
My best friend Jasmin Pamukcu generously contributed this beautiful, framed ink drawing of Amaterasu Omikami, the Shinto goddess of the sun. Earlier this spring, she raised money for a service trip to Cambodia by creating a coloring book featuring powerful goddesses from around the world. Enter the contest to win this original drawing of Amaterasu Omikami, which is worth $150. And if you want to learn more about her Global Goddesses Coloring Book project, you can read about it here!
Prize #3: Black & Tan Triangle by Nicole Sweeney
Remember those nesting triangular tables I made with my kickass woodworker friend a few months ago? Well, that kickass woodworker was Nicole Sweeney, and I was over the moon when she told me that she'd contribute one of her bold triangular wall hangings for my raffle! This striking piece is 24" wide, and she'd normally sell it for $150. If you don't end up winning this piece in the raffle, you can always head over to her online shop and see what's for sale!
Prize #4: San Francisco City Map by Krakatoa Design
My very good friend Jeff Goodwin (the mastermind behind Krakatoa Design) makes all kinds of things out of both wood and metal -- benches, display cases, crazy wood-and-leather bags, cutting boards, spoons, you name it! This particular piece has become one of his signature items in the last few years. Part bulletin board, part cartographic wall art, these cork maps offer a new way to show off your 'hood. Mark out your favorite haunts, or plot all the places you've been meaning to check out. This map of San Francisco has been laser etched into a thick cork sheet, and is suspended between solid walnut hanging bars. The map is 24"x24" (slightly larger with the frame), and it normally sells for $160. Enter the raffle to win this beauty! And if you can't wait until the drawing, check out Krakatoa Design's online store!
Prize #5: Marble Prism Stand by Elektra Steel
This elegant tabletop stand features a slab of reclaimed marble with raw edges. The asymmetrical steel base was welded together, blackened with a dark patina, and then sealed with a deep blue metal oil to protect the finish. The Marble Prism Stand can serve as a standalone art object, or it can be used to showcase small treasures on one's vanity, kitchen counter, or desk. It's roughly 13" long x 8" wide x 5" high, and normally sells for $250.
Prize #6: Steel Diamond by Elektra Steel
This bold wall hanging was made from a mix of bright stainless steel and blackened mild steel. The parts were lasercut and carefully finished, sanded, and sealed by hand, and then mounted to a wood backing. A welded steel flatbar frame gives it a solid heft. This piece is 1'x1', and it includes a z-clip for mounting. This piece retails for $250.
I participate in AIDS/LifeCycle every year for a number of reasons. I first got involved because the focus of my master's thesis research was HIV/AIDS, STIs, and sexual and reproductive health, and I wanted to find ways to support the cause outside of academia. I fell in love with AIDS/LifeCycle, and I kept coming back for more. This will be my fifth year in a row participating in AIDS/LifeCycle.
I ride because I have friends who have have been touched by HIV or AIDS, and I see that the fight isn't over. I ride because the federal government still refuses to fund effective harm-reduction programs like clean needle exchanges -- which means that we rely on private donations to keep these services afloat. I ride because I love the AIDS/LifeCycle community -- including everyone who has ever donated! -- and what we can accomplish together.
I did a pop-up shop at the Bay Street West Elm in Emeryville, CA, on April 9th and 10th! I had some great conversations, and sold a handful of pieces, including a few Geo Bowls. Best of all, I got encouraging feedback on the large wall hanging -- people seemed really drawn to it! Check out the slideshow to check out my set-up.
Check it out -- I'm in one of my all-time favorite design blogs, Design*Sponge! They put together a nice little shop tour that features me, my dog Simi, and my favorite metal shop tools. Come take a peek inside my studio!
Major thanks to Sabrina Smelko from Design*Sponge for this lovely write-up!
I designed and fabricated these three Marble Prism Stands for La Bijouterie, my favorite jeweler in San Francisco. I met Set, the owner, because he designed and made my beautiful engagement ring. A few months later, he hired me to make these stands for his window displays!
In case you're curious to see the piece that Set made for me, here's a photo of me rocking my gorgeous new ring in the metal shop:
Photo by Ellen Wildhagen and Zachary Domes for The New Americans
Over the last few months, I've noticed a really wonderful trend: Customers have started sending me photos of how they're using their purchases! It fills my heart with joy to see my pieces being used and loved and integrated into people's daily lives. So, I'm starting a new blog series to show off Elektra Steel pieces in their new homes!
I'm kicking off the series with family friends Mary and Rob, who are some of my favorite repeat customers. Rob was my middle school math teacher, and their son was classmates with my little sister -- our families have known each other for a long time! Mary and Rob now have four Elektra Steel pieces: three Hex Votives and a Geo Planter. I love the way they've chosen to display and use these pieces! They're outside on a deck, surrounded by plants, flowers, beautiful votive candles, and, apparently, a glass of wine (#lifegoals, am I right?!).
Thank you, Mary and Rob, for supporting my craft and my business from the very beginning, and for being such wonderful, loving people! And thank you for sending me these beautiful photos!
Do you own an Elektra Steel piece? Send me some photos of it in its new home, and you could see them on the blog!
I hosted my very first pop-up shop yesterday! The wonderful folks at the Palo Alto West Elm invited me to set up shop for a day -- I got to take over an entire dining table of theirs and sell my work!
As you can see in the photos, it gave me an opportunity to debut my newest piece, a large 2D steel wall hanging. Almost everyone who walked by stopped to comment on it! It was validating to hear that people like this new direction -- I'm hoping to do a whole series of pieces like this.
I have two more West Elm pop-ups on the books for this spring! I'll be at the Bay Street / Emeryville location April 9-10 and May 21-22. Check out my upcoming events for the full list of opportunities to shop Elektra Steel in person!
Photographers Elle Wildhagen and Zachary Domes put together this beautiful piece about me for their project, The New Americans. It features 20 people across the U.S. with completely different lives and stories -- each one is poignant and thoughtful its own way. In my story, I talk about welding, impostor syndrome, and "mansplaining" in the metal shop.
It's clear that Elle and Zach are master storytellers, in addition to being skilled photographers. I loved talking with them, and showing them around the shop. I felt like they really "got" me -- It felt so good to be seen and heard and understood. What a gift. See the other stories on Vimeo.
Check out February's newsletter for some new marble + steel pieces and details on Elektra Steel's first flash giveaway! Want to get the newsletter delivered to your inbox? Sign up here!
UPDATE 2/18: Contest is now closed! The winner of this little welded sculpture is Instagram user @transitgal -- congratulations! (If you're curious about the drawing methodology, I recorded a screen-capture video of me using a random number generator to select the winner.) I will definitely be doing more giveaways in the future, so make sure to follow @elektrasteel on Instagram!
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FLASH GIVEAWAY!! Head over to Instagram to enter to win this little welded sculpture! Contest closes tomorrow, February 18th, at 12pm PST. See Instagram post for details and rules!
Whether you're setting up a shop or doing online dating, you probably already know that it's important to have good photos. I was vaguely aware of this the first time I picked up a DSLR camera about a year ago. But now that I've gone through a few different rounds of product photography, I'm blown away by just how much of a difference it makes! My photos have improved dramatically over the last year, and I'm actually starting to enjoy the whole process!
My most recent shoot was extra fun because I had some help from interior designer Noz Nozawa! She and I met a few months ago through Makeshift Society, which is a coworking space and community for Bay Area creatives. We bonded quickly over our shared background: Ivy League educations, tech marketing jobs, and finally, venturing out on our own.
Noz's whole portfolio is beautiful, but her own home in Hayes Valley is insane -- charcoal walls, marble surfaces, and quirky accents and art. I'd been drooling over it ever since it was featured on Curbed last fall. So when Noz offered to let me photograph some of my pieces in her gorgeous apartment, I jumped at the chance!
I packed up my camera gear and my latest pieces in a couple suitcases, and headed over to her place. She made me feel at home, and let me rearrange pretty much anything I wanted so that I could get beautiful, clean shots.
After experimenting a bit, I eventually got in the zone and played around with different ways of styling each piece. I even got some new ideas for how my pieces could be used! For instance, I'd always imagined the Marble Strip Stand as part of a vanity arrangement. But when I saw Noz's extensive (and beautiful!) whiskey collection, I realized the stand would make for a nice bar accessory!
Check out the photos from the shoot below. And if you like anything you see, head over to the shop to purchase it! (I finally set up a fully-functional e-commerce shop, yay!)
Huge thank-you to Noz for her encouragement, inspiration, and for sharing her space with me!
Nicole Sweeney and I had a blast at the FUTURES: RAW Artists Showcase on Wednesday night! It was a multi-modal art show hosted at the San Francisco nightclub 1015 Folsom, and it featured 60+ artists, including visual artists, live music, pole dancing, aerial performances, and poetry. Nicole and I teamed up on a joint wood+metal booth, which came out pretty well, if I do say so myself!
A few days before the show, we decided to join forces on a booth, rather than doing separate, side-by-side booths. I think it came together really beautifully! Nicole had her gorgeous wood wall hangings up on the white walls she built herself (in her small, SF apartment, no less!), and I had my steel stuff out on the table. We strung up some cozy lights, unrolled a rug, and set up the nesting tables we designed and made together. Preparing for the show was truly a team effort, with both of our partners and Nicole's family helping out in the days leading up to the show. So much more fun than doing a solo booth!
Most of the pieces are still available, so contact me if you're interested in buying anything you see!
This set of triangular nesting tables was a fun collaboration with woodworker Nicole Sweeney, and I think it might actually be the coolest thing I've ever made. Nicole and I designed the piece together, she made the rad geometric tops out of wood, and I welded steel bases for each of the three tables. We'll be debuting it tonight at the FUTURES show at 1015 Folsom in SF! And if you love it as much as I do, it can be yours!
Nicole and I actually only met a month ago, which seems crazy, given how close we've become since then! We were both selected to show our work at the FUTURES show, and we met at the walk-through for the event in mid-December. We struck up a conversation, took a quick look at each other's Instagrams (see here and here), and fell in love. As we were leaving, Nicole casually asked, "Hey, wanna collaborate on a project sometime?"
Over the next few weeks, we texted ideas and sketches back and forth. Nicole's specialty is making beautiful, geometric wall hangings out of wood, and we thought it would be fun to turn her signature triangular pieces into a set of nesting tables. She came up with a striking pattern for the table tops, and I designed a simple set of bases that would complement the bold tops.
Working with Nicole was magical. Not only did we work well together, but we also became fast friends -- we shared meals and coffees, met each other's partners, and discovered that we had a lot of the same passions (road biking, camping, yoga).
We're also in similar stages in our careers. It's been so helpful to talk through business and creative challenges together. Turning one's art into a business is an emotional roller coaster, and having someone who both inspires and coaches you is such a gift! My studio mate Jeff from Krakatoa Design has played this role in my life for the last year, and I'm so grateful to now have two buddies who are going through the same things that I am! The three of us are already fantasizing about the kickass metal and wood shop we're going to share one day...
Come see our Nesting Tables in person tonight at the FUTURES show! We'll be at 1015 Folsom in SF from 7-11pm tonight. Tickets are $20 in advance; $25 at the door. And if you'd like to buy the set of tables, we're selling it for $1500!
Let me know what you think of our nesting tables! I have a feeling that this won't be the last Elektra Steel x Nicole Sweeney collab, so if you have ideas for what we should make next, leave me a note in the comments section!
Elektra Steel is kicking off 2016 with an artist showcase at a nightclub, a pop-up shop at West Elm, and a wood+metal collaboration with Nicole Sweeney! Check out today's newsletter for more. Want to get the newsletter delivered to your inbox? Sign up here!
UPDATE 1/19/16: Raffle is now closed! You can still buy tickets to attend the show, but the drawing for the vase is over.
I've got some fun announcements to kick off the new year: details on my next show, a special friends-and-family raffle, and an upcoming collaboration with woodworker Nicole Sweeney!
I'm doing a show in a few weeks called FUTURES, and it's going to be one hell of an evening: There will be visual arts, live music, dance performances, poetry, comedy, and a fashion runway show. It's at 7 pm on Wednesday, January 27th, at 1015 Folsom (nightclub in SOMA). Come by after work for an hour or two after work!
Tickets are $20 each, and I'm doing a special for Elektra Steel friends and family! For every FUTURES ticket you buy in the next two weeks, you'll get one raffle ticket to win a large Wedge Vase (worth $85). I'm capping the contest at 20 entries, so get your ticket ASAP! Use this link to buy tickets -- it's the only way I can track which Elektra Steel friends and family are entered to win the Wedge Vase. May the odds be ever in your favor!
I'm also excited to announce that I'll be debuting a new collaboration with woodworker Nicole Sweeney! Nicole is a kickass artist and maker who's based in SF, and I'm obsessed with her work. If you like her style, make sure to buy a ticket to the show -- you'll get first dibs on our upcoming wood + metal collab pieces!
