Taking It with You
Perhaps you have seen the headlines about New York City’s new status as a tech startup wonderland. And it is true: NYC is home to Foursquare, Tumblr, Etsy and AppNexus, among others.
But there is another type of startup even more pervasive here in the city: the Artisan. Whether making chocolate or handbags or jewelry, there is a vibrant DIY scene alive in New York. Some of these producers have a retail presence, but others sell only online; thus, if you are a visitor to the city, you may access a bit of NYC from the convenience of your own home. Below, our favorite artisanal offerings.
Wrap It Up
Lucy Sisman is the genius designer behind MiddleBlue. Lucy founded Paper Magazine, and she designed brands for companies like DKNY, Boots, Victoria’s Secret and Diesel. With MiddleBlue, she is designing “everyday things,” and we particularly like her far-from-everyday multi-purpose sari wraps.
These gigantic wraps, made from beautiful recycled saris, make great throws, skirts, shawls, or table covers, and we like to layer one over the end of a bed for a little punch of color.
Lucy runs MiddleBlue from the Garment District. The sari wraps are $120 each, come in a variety of hues, and support a small community of seamstresses in India.
MiddleBlue
www.middleblue.com
Cuddly and Studly
It is a truism of busy lives that you can never have too many tote bags. Why, you may wonder, are we still carrying so much stuff when the world has shifted to digital? We don’t know. We just keep buying tote bags.
Yet another genius designer (there are a few of them in New York, it turns out), Soho-based Andrew Kibble, has created a new line of tote bags that are practical but also pack a little surprise. While the exterior of the “Stud” bag (pictured) is pragmatically rugged, the interior has a cute print.
The Stud is $64 and other totes range up to $98. All the totes are 100% cotton canvas.
Cuddly Monkey
www.cuddlymonkey.org
Think Ink
Kids need tattoos too. And not the dorky kind you get as party favors for birthdays – NYC kids are way too cool for that. Tina Roth Eisenberg, founder of the popular design blog Swissmiss, has created Tattly, a website where kids, with help from their parents, can order temporary tattoos that don’t embarrass anyone. We liked the ferris wheel (pictured, $5 for a set of two), and there a lot of cool animal tats, too, that reflect Tina’s Brooklyn vibe.
Tattly
www.tattly.com