Christina Boy Design is named for its sole proprietor, who lives in the foothills of Virginia’s Blue Ridge. Her designs are modern – hard angles, ingenious swoops – but she’s connected to the land, using local and salvaged wood. The Reconciliation Rocker features a dash of whimsy: a pair of lime-green seats atop a long, balance-challenging curve. 

Liz Woll, the San Francisco artist behind Woll Jewelry, draws inspiration for her handmade acrylic pieces from vintage design. Her creations – mostly earrings, with some necklaces and rings – combine cheeky forms and splashy hues. They come in motifs of desert sunsets, fern fronds, and various morsels such as these strawberry earrings.

Michelle Stangl thinks that jewelry should do more than please the eye. Her Twin Cities company, My Naptime Jewelry, specializes in pieces that diffuse essential oils for on-the-go aromatherapy. The white and black lava stone beads in the Balance bracelet absorb oils readily, for a daylong olfactory pick-me-up. 

In 2011, Joanna Buyert quit her job and moved to the Wisconsin woods with one goal: to become a potter. Now she lives in St. Paul, Minnesota, and runs the online shop Fringe & Fettle Ceramics, selling her handmade serving platters, garlic plates, bowls, vases, and mortar-and-pestle sets. Though her wares feature subtle innovations, such as bowl handles designed with a handy thumb loop, the real draw is their clean elegance and quiet purity of form. 

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