Amy on Design Evolution TODAY!

[UPDATE: If you missed the show, you can listen online or download the mp3 right here. I'm on at around the 30-minute mark, though the whole thing is worth listening to.]

Tune in to the VoiceAmerica Talk Radio Network today at 1:00 EST for Design Evolution with host Naomi Pearson.

Click here to listen to the live broadcast online!

I'll be the second guest on the hour-long program, following Monica Becker who has spent the last 20 years as an eco-consultant to companies and government agencies.

If you miss the live broadcast, you can listen to it later -- the archive is full of all Naomi's past shows, all available to hear for free.

The multi-talented Naomi is an environmental graphic designer who also executed the amazing wall drawings for the Searchlight Artists Exhibition back in February.

Looking forward to a good interview, and thanks again, Naomi, for asking me on your show!

Posted by Amy Shaw for Greenjeans.

Apartment Therapy's Coverage of the Furniture Festival

HUGE thanks to Miss Amy at Apartment Therapy for covering all four weeks of the Greenjeans Fall Furniture Festival at the Brooklyn Flea!

She posted about Week 4 today.

If you missed the Furn Fest or the coverage, here's the complete list of the Apartment Therapy links:

Week 1 (Oct. 5)
Week 2 (Oct. 12)
Week 3 (Oct. 19)
Week 4 (Oct. 26)

The furniture makers, the Brooklyn Flea, and I all greatly appreciate your time and attention to come back each week and report on our show, Amy. You totally rock!

Posted by Amy Shaw for Greenjeans.
Image by Amy A. at Apartment Therapy, sourced here.

Greenjeans Blog in The Crafts Report

Thanks to The Crafts Report for including us in their February 2008 issue!

For this month's "Web Works" section on the back page, the magazine chose to reprint a blog post I wrote back in October titled "Finding Relief from Design Overload." They also printed information about Greenjeans culled from our website. Nice!

The mag arrived at a good time for us since we're starting to plan our outdoor booth for the Brooklyn Flea. I'm new to the outdoor market format and can use all the tips I can get about how to create an effective display, and this issue seems to have a lot of information about that. So double-thanks, Crafts Report!

Posted by Amy Shaw. Image sourced here.

Watch Greenjeans on the CBS Early Show Online

What a trip it was to see ourselves on TV yesterday morning! Thanks to everyone who tuned in to watch and who sent us comments. And thanks again to Amy Kean for approaching us for the piece!



Greenjeans on the CBS Early Show (better quality) from AesBklyn on Vimeo.

(Thanks to my old friend Dag and Early Show producer Joe Long for sending me the clips!)

Enjoy!

We're Gonna be on TV!

Tune in to the The Early Show on CBS on August 29th to catch a relationship piece about husband-and-wife business partners featuring me and Jae!

It all happened very quickly, and quite out of the blue, (and no we don't have a publicist!). Last week, we got an email from a woman named Amy Kean asking if we are a couple in business together with the words "CBS Early Show" in the subject line. Thinking it might be spam, I replied "Yes!" and figured that was it. But within minutes Amy called the shop and talked to a very surprised Jae, whom I hadn't told about the email yet. It all sounded legit and kinda fun, and the next thing we knew, we had made a date for CBS to come to our very not-unpacked-yet apartment (we moved a couple weeks ago) for an interview!

Amy had found out about us by googling "brooklyn entrepreneur husband and wife" and finding Shawn Liu's recent interview with us for his small business blog, Hear, Hear. She said that she'd considered asking some higher-profile husbands and wives in business, but decided she'd rather go with someone who hadn't had as much publicity yet. How lucky is that?!

The interview took place this past Friday morning, with the producer, cameraman, sound guy, and Amy arriving at 9:30am sharp. They were all very nice people and we had good fun with the shoot. We'd spent time the night before trying to make our box-filled apartment look somewhat less like a disaster area, and researching online what to wear for TV. (Ok, it was mostly me concerned about that one!) By the time they arrived, we had our hair nicely groomed and noses powdered, and were ready to roll. Amy asked lots of great questions and we did our best to be honest and charming.

After a couple hours in the apartment, we went down to Brooklyn Bridge Park where they filmed us casually strolling along the river. It's not that easy to stroll casually on command, but we did our best.

Finally, we came up to the shop where they filmed us helping some (very patient and understanding) customers and just "doing what we do" in the shop.

In all, the taping took about 4 1/2 hours, and by the end we were completely exhausted. But later in the day, Amy and Joe Long (the producer) told us we'd done a great job and had given them excellent material to work with. Yay!

It was a totally strange yet wonderful experience to be movie (ok, television) stars for half a day, and we're very very grateful to Joe and Amy for selecting us for their piece! It'll be interesting to see how they boil all the footage down into a 3-5 minute piece. Guess we'll see on the 29th! (And I'll be sure to post it on the blog if I can get a digital copy...)

Photo: I didn't think to take any pix during the shoot (rats!) but found this one of the Mike Teavee scene in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory here.

Posted by Amy Shaw

Greenjeans on Stylehive

Thanks to "julie3jax" for posting items from Greenjeans Online on Stylehive today! She liked this fused glass Spring Leaves Bowl by Renato Foti on our site. And she also posted a bunch of jewelry by Janice Ho whom we represent. (Click here to see pieces by Janice currently available on our website, and note that there's much more in our Brooklyn shop.) Must be how she found out about us...

A few months ago, we had another hit on Stylehive -- Chelle Kraus' ginko leaf earrings -- from "purldrop," who is the lovely Erin of Williamsburg's Sodafine.

Looks like Wendy Stevens' handbags are getting some attention on Stylehive, too. We have others of her fabulous hand-tooled stainless steel bags both online and in the shop. The three new bags that JUST arrived will be up on the site hopefully later this week...

Stylehive seems to be an open-access blog for members to post the things (design products, Etsy items, etc.) they like. (You don't have to register to browse.) It's a great idea, and a great way to get a taste of what craft, design, fashion, and art objects people are looking at online! Cool!

Greenjeans in E Magazine!

We received a copy of the new issue of E Magazine ("The Environmental Magazine") yesterday with a very nice spot about Greenjeans written by Brita Belli! Here's the text from "Tools for Green Giving" (and I've added some links):

"You don’t have to live in Brooklyn to have access to handcrafted, environmentally conscious crafts able to turn your apartment, your birthday gift or your outfit into a conversation piece. You just have to log on to www.greenjeansbrooklyn.com, the online home of Greenjeans, a little Brooklyn shop that specializes in handcrafted arts from around the U.S. and abroad. With an emphasis on sustainability, Greenjeans features natural-edge wooden cutting boards from Pennsylvania, fused glass platters from Canada and animal-faced finger puppets from Japan. A line of jewelry from Brooklyn artist Alison Mackey involves botanical photos under resin in big, bold shapes, set into sterling silver.

"To understand the philosophy behind the company, owned by Amy Shaw and Jae Kim, it helps to visit a sister site, www.greenjeansbrooklyn.blogspot.com, where there are entries on how the ‘70s have fueled a new craft movement, the intersection of craft and art and pushing the limits of what craft means. It’s an alternative shopping experience for the alternative-minded."

Luckily our website version 1.0 is supposed to go up early next week (fingers crossed so tight it's really hard to type), so the timing is great!

Thank you, E!

Greenjeans in the Press

Greenjeans has enjoyed some nice press mentions recently and today we wanted to share the love with you.

:: Brooklyn Record goes batty for Greenjeans

:: Rosen Group's Market Insider newsletter highlights Greenjeans in their November Blog Spotlight

:: Not For Tourists Guide to Brooklyn lists Greenjeans among the fabulous shops of 7th Avenue in Park Slope

:: Time Out New York Kids features Greenjeans among the kid-related shops in Brooklyn's burgeoning South Slope.

From Time Out (pictured right):
The Good is in the Wood
The antique chair and table that stand in place of a cash register counter, plus the collection of folksy furniture, glassware and toys, make Greenjeans seem more like a workshop than a store. Co-owner Amy Shaw says wooden toys by Frank Ridley are big sellers ($7.50-$125). While kids might not appreciate it on an aesthetic level, the tiger maple rocking chair by Shaker-furniture maker Brian Braskie ($560) is a functional work of art. (Tracy Perez, photo by Alexander Milligan)

Many thanks to everyone who gave us a shout-out!

And congratulations to the runners of today's New York City Marathon!

Dispatches from Japan

Yesterday we received an exciting package from Japan: the new issue of Baby Life, a very beautifully produced lifestyle magazine for Japanese parents, with Greenjeans featured on page 9! (Also enclosed were some beautiful little paper ornaments with origami geisha and flowering trees on them -- amazing!) The Baby Life piece is by a woman named Yuri Numata who happened into the shop several weeks ago and fell in love with the handmade toys by Frank Ridley, turned wood rattles by Tom Dubois, and the silver spoons by Tamar Kern that we have here. Turns out she was working on a piece about kid-oriented shops in NYC, and she asked if she could feature us! I have no idea what the article actually says, (I hung it in the window anyway), but we are very excited for our first international exposure. Thank you, Yuri!!

Speaking of Japan, I read a piece in New York Magazine this week about something called the Peace Boat. For around $11,000 you can book passage for a three-month cruise during which you'll attend lectures and seminars on peace-related topics, visit countries ravaged by war and poverty in order to lend a hand rebuilding, and meet like-minded people for fun, education, and romance. It sounds like a great way for Japanese college kids and 20-somethings to spend their summer (and a serious wad of cash). There is talk of starting an American version, too. Says the cruise organizer, “We want to become successful in the cruise industry as well as the peace industry." The peace industry? Is that really happening? (See my earlier post about Branding Peace for more on this concept.) Hmmm.

Also from Japan, today I happened upon this frankly inspiring website for an organization called Japan for Sustainability. They write:

"After the Kyoto Conference on climate change in 1997, activities to address global environmental problems gained momentum in Japan and expanded across many sectors. Today one can see many initiatives by the central and local governments, industry, research institutes, universities, non-governmental organizations and individual citizens. We feel that every country has something positive to contribute, and that people in other parts of the world may find useful ideas from Japan, in some of its advanced technologies, systems and partnerships, approaches to information disclosure, and other developments.

"There may also be lessons from the past before the modern day Japan had a tradition of sustainability. The Edo Period, lasting about 300 years, from the early 17th to late 19th century, appears from today's perspective to have been one model of a sustainable society. During that period Japan was self-sufficient in food and energy, had low population growth and recycled almost all materials. One may find clues for a new type of sustainability in the wisdom, craftsmanship and lifestyles of the past."

That last sentence nails it as far as we're concerned.

In unrelated news, tonight we're going out for dinner with our good friend Amy at The Grocery, a Smith Street institution that somehow we've never been to. My mouth is already watering for farmer's market fresh ingredients and a nice bottle of wine...

Until later, arigato gozaimasu!

Technorati tags:
Japan for Sustainability
Peace Boat
Baby Life

Greenjeans in Metropolis Magazine II

As I reported here on Feb. 11th, Greenjeans is featured in the March issue of Metropolis magazine, in Paul Makovsky's "Productsphere" piece about indie retail and curated shopping.

Click here to go to the online version. Scroll down until you see the handsome Shaker chairs!

We're on p. 109 in the print version.

And click here to read the original entry I posted on the 11th.

The popular blog Boing-Boing mentions this piece in a recent post, as well.

Thanks again, Metropolis!

Technorati tags:
design
craft
Shaker

Greenjeans in Metropolis Magazine

I am very excited to report that we have been featured in the March 2006 issue of the smart and fabulous Metropolis magazine (p. 109, on newsstands soon)!

In his regular section "Productsphere," Paul Makovsky writes this month about "indie retail" and "curated shopping," profiling a handful of shops from coast to coast who "offer shoppers unique items in an age of mass production" and "promise to be retail tastemakers." He writes, "Unlike the pop-up retail trend -- low-maintenance stores that appear temporarily in urban areas -- boutiques that mix local and global designs are in it for the long haul, acting as incubators for lesser-known talents with bright futures." Yes indeedy.

Greenjeans is one of the three New York "indie retailers" featured (and actually we're all in Brooklyn), along with The Future Perfect in Williamsburg and Matter on 5th Ave. in Park Slope. It is good company to keep.

About us, Makovsky writes: "Inspired by the Arts and Crafts movement, the Mingei movement of Japan, and the Shakers, Amy Shaw and Jae Kim opened this shop last year to promote craftsmanship, sustainability, and conscientious living in the urban market. Greenjeans carries the work of independent artisans such as Brian Braskie, whose Canterbury Rocker (pictured) is made in the Shaker tradition and is available in cherry or curly maple with a woven cotton-tape seat that comes in four patterns and 14 colors."

We are thrilled to be in Metropolis and are grateful to Makovsky for the recognition. It is an honor.

Technorati tags:
Shaker
design
Brooklyn

Greenjeans in the Press!

Greenjeans artisan Tom Dubois' yew wood vase is a "Fresh Find" in the latest issue of Natural Home and Garden magazine!

"Woodturner Tom Dubois imagines that 'the spirit of the tree is found and released in a new form' in each wooden vessel he creates. Dubois' pieces are extraordinary for their variegated coloring and smooth texture. Yew wood-bark vase: $80. (718) 907-5835; greenjeansbrooklyn.com."

See page 15 of the January/February 2006 issue to see it in person.

Wow, press kits really work!

Congratulations, Tom! And thanks, Natural Home and Garden!