When I am developing a design for a lamp it is usually is a fairly lengthy process. The piece starts out as an idea in a sketchbook, rattles around the back of my brain for a while, eventually is committed as a scale drawing or CAD rendering until eventually the first prototype is made. About a month ago, I had an idea for a new piece and decided that I was just going to roll the dice, blow through the development stage and start working. I...

Apparently, I am a internationally recognized designer who has won countless prestigious awards and worked with a variety of global companies. At least that’s what the auctioneers said about me during the Furniture Society’s 2011 Live Auction this past weekend. Of course, they had confused my bio with someone else’s… My wife and I ventured into Manhattan on Saturday evening to attend the Furniture Society’s...

One of the things that I really like about this design is that it lends itself to countless variations. Change the spacing between the rings, the number of rings, the degree of rotation between the rings... or if we want to get really funky, angle the rings on the vertical axis so that there not all in the same plane, or use contrasting woods for different segments or for the splines. The same shade can be used on a tall base for a floor lamp, or a shorter table lamp base and at this point I've made one of each.

This past week has been very busy. I’ve been putting the finish touches on this new web site and the first new lamp of 2011 is  finished. Also, I was notified this past weekend that the Sydney Lamp will be featured in the Furniture Society’s 2011 silent auction being held at the Architectural Digest Home Design Show in NYC. The show runs from March 17-20 at Pier 94, 55th Street at West Side highway, and the auction itself is...

I use the White Silk paper on these lamps because the embedded Kozo threads are thicker and packed more densely which creates a dramatic texture. They really 'pop' when the lamp is turned on and shoji is backlit.

Holding the narrow ribs in order to shape them is a bit tricky. I found that hand screws padded with cork and clamped to the bench seems to offer the best solution.