Coffee just tastes better in a handcrafted ceramic mug, doesn’t it? And there’s a deep satisfaction knowing that your daily dishware is one-of-a-kind and made fairly in NYC. This week, we launched a collaboration with the Setting, a passion project-turned-business by Amanda Shine. Amanda is a ceramicist and entrepreneur living and creating in Manhattan, and for our collaboration she’ll be hand-painting her ceramics pieces with custom dates, names, and La Colombe doves. We wanted to get a little deeper into the ethos behind her work, so we asked her about what makes her tick.
What motivates you to create your craft?
There is an extension to the farm to table movement among our generation and that is knowing where and how your food is plated. In my opinion, people are beginning to carry that idea of local, organic and fair trade over into their purchasing power for the living space, with tableware being at the forefront of that movement. I love being able to talk about my pieces being 100% made in New York City. I love the collaborative nature of my relationship with clients and a select few stores. I want what my customer wants, being additive to their personal environment is something I take seriously. There is only one of everything, that is the significance of something being handmade. Each piece is unique. Paring down the concept of mass production, focusing more on supporting artisanal, functional art, that is what my craft and company are about.
How early do you get up? What’s your morning routine like?
It varies! Usually between 6:30 and 8am. My dog wakes me up most mornings and we gear up for her walk which is a time of the day I love. Walking around, gathering my thoughts and creating a running to do list for the day. If it’s a weekend, I will sleep till 9 or 10am and wake up to make brunch followed by a long walk in TriBeCa with my boyfriend. No matter what day it is, I have my pour over Chemex coffee. The entire process helps me mentally set up the day. The morning is magical to me, it’s a time to start anew, when everything is possible.
What does it mean to be a maker? What do you hope to add to the world with your work?
More than anything, being a maker means being part of a mindful community. A growing group who appreciate the commitment and hard work that goes into building something tactile which you then put out into the world. I am conscious of supporting other makers and their work. That has shaped my entire approach of how I act as a consumer. I hope to add to the conversation about transparency when it comes to mass production and encouraging corporations to become more invested in their manufacturers as makers and not as an assembly line. There is no space more important than one’s home and the pieces which make that space your own, whether it’s your plates or your kitchen table, it’s nice to know that the people who worked to make those things were acknowledged for their craft.
