Indigi Designs

South African design reconceived in a native's debut furniture line

For a country whose design aesthetic regularly gets lumped in with Kente cloth-swathed visions of Africa, furniture designer Natalie du Toit’s work boldly redefines South African style. Applying her native land’s strong sense of color and pattern to finely-crafted wood and metal furniture, a process of refining humble materials, du Toit’s designs create a striking effect without overpowering a room. While this deft touch was …

JM Ferrero

Playful minimalism in the work of a well-rounded Spanish designer

Spanish designer JM Ferrero recently sat down during ICFF to discuss his singular vision in the areas of lighting, furniture, interior design and textiles. With a miniature version of his first lamp pinned to his sweater, I quickly learned that Ferrero (who’s helmed his own studio since 2003) might be serious about his work but he always adds a touch of underlying humor. His thoughtful …

Middle West Spirits

Ohio's only artisinal micro-distillery turns out small-batch spirits using local ingredients

You may know that a few big brands (The Limited and Abercrombie & Fitch) call Columbus, Ohio home, but more recently small-batch operations (Jeni’s Splendid Ice Cream and Homage) have been helping get the Midwest some of the recognition it deserves. A new creatively-minded business, Middle West Spirits, is the latest to join the movement. Ohio’s first and only grain-to-bottle micro-distillery, the upstart brews their …