Maker | Upstate Stock

These winters seem to go on and on! Why not stock up and prepare with these handmade goods by Upstate Stock! Every piece is designed and made in the great state of New York. We couldn't pass up sitting down with Upstate Stock to learn about what they're making and how they're keeping production in the U.S.

Why are you a maker? 

Upstate Stock works with a factory in Upstate NY that has been manufacturing knit accessories since 1946. All of our candles and apothecary are made here in Brooklyn, very close to our Greenpoint offices.

Who are you?

 Upstate Stock was born out of simple fact that American manufacturing of the highest quality is still out there, the same manufacturing from decades ago that is both at a standard that very few countries can match, but also affordable.

What do you make? 

We make 100% NY State made knit accessories and lifestyle goods. Why support makers: Contemporary "makers" are the backbone of the new social economy and are reviving trades and manufacturing across America.

Why keep Main Street alive?

Because there's no town without Main Street.

FOR  MORE + SHOPPING CLICK HERE

Maker | Happy Arsenal

He has a necklace inspired by The Goonies. That is all you need to know to fall in love with the Happy Arsenal. We recently sat down with Chris Jones, the maker behind the brand to learn about his business and why he supports the maker movement! 

Who are you?

Happy Arsenal is Chris Jones. I create unique earrings and necklaces by
etching designs into copper and brass. I'm often asked where the name Happy
Arsenal comes from. I feel that a woman's best arsenal is the accessories
that she chooses, it's those little things that make anyone feel more
special and unique than they already are. What I do is a craft that has
many variables, and almost every time I'm surprised by the end result. I
guess that's why my tagline is "Perfectly Imperfect Jewelry." It's
impossible to create the exact same piece twice. When you consider how
brass and copper patina based on the individual who is handling it and
wearing it, it's hard to say every piece isn't as individual as the person
who is wearing it. I love how brass and copper can feel 100-years-old in a
matter of months. It's like that favorite pair of broken in leather boots.

 

Why be a maker?

I've always worked for myself. When I was in college in the early 1990s, I
made crazy hats and sold them at nightclubs, as well as wholesale, to
various shops around the country. Once I earned my degree in Graphic
Design, I decided to start my own company instead of working for someone
else. This eventually lead to my current design firm, which I've owned for
the past 15 years: Popcorn Initiative. Spending most of my day in front of
a computer and on the phone eventually spawned a desire to want to work
with my hands again. One thing lead to another, and the next thing I knew I
was creating designs and figuring out how to etch them into copper and
brass. The process is involved and detailed, but it's exactly the break my
mind needs from my day job. I think everyone is creative in some way and
it's important to express that - whether you decide to express it privately
or put yourself out there and let the world see what you do. For me the
reward of making one small piece of jewelry and seeing someone personally
connect to it is priceless.

 

Why should we support makers?

The obvious answer is because we are all makers. We all are making
something, it may not be tangible, it may be working for someone else, and
it may seem trivial, but at the end of the day, I think we all want to feel
the reward of making something for ourselves or someone else. Most of us to
want to be a maker. This is the exact reason to support makers. It's an
amazing thing to be able to connect with the actual people who are creating
the products you are buying. It doesn't matter if it's in person or through
social media or email. The provenance of a piece you own is something that
you don't get by shopping at a mall or a big box retailer. Makers connect
us all in ways that most people don't realize.

 

Why is it important to keep Main Street alive?

I think the main reason is that sense of community and locality that you
can't get through any other manner. One of the main reasons my wife and I
chose to relocate to Greenville, South Carolina, is the amazing feeling of
community and the support the community provides for the makers and artists
of the region. It's the type of place you walk down the street and people
you don't know say "Hello." I think that's an uncommon occurence these days
and without the communities that are built and being revived around those
"Main Street" ideals, we would be destined to be a boring, nondescript
society. Main street breeds individuality and creative thinking.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE + TO SHOP

Maker | Facture Goods

I love wooden goods. Maybe it is the Ron Swanson in me, but I love the diversity in goods that can be produced with wood. I love the rawness of it and the integrity of wood. With each piece that is crafted from wood we hold in our hands hundreds of years of growth, human history, the history of our planet, and the story of us all. Wood—trees—the fibers of it all have been around for decades, and in the hands of the right craftsman the goods produced from simple wood will continue on for generations. When I met Aron Fischer I knew he had a bit of Ron Swanson in him, and was a maker I wanted to get to know. 

Who are you? Aron Fischer - Maker at Facture Goods

What do you make? Facture Goods is a provisions line that focuses on handmade utensils and home goods in wood, metal and clay.

Why do you make? Because it not only allows me to be my own boss . . . but it challenges me to be as creative as I can with my material choices.

Why support makers? I grew up in a family of tinkers, engineers and craftspeople who were always creating, growing food or working with their hands.  This is the language that I know. Making gives so many of us absolute freedom to speak when we can't find the words. It provides a balance to the mass produced - to the homogenized.

Why keep Main Street alive -  I feel that our generation has the chance to address the idea of "Main Street" as a cultural phenomenon in a way that it hasn't before because of social media.  We are no longer reliant on taste makers to tell us what we want....instead we are able to share our work with the masses in a way that is thoughtful and honest.

More: facturegoods.com 

Maker | Red House

Red House - A Portrait from Brittany Witt on Vimeo.

MEET RED HOUSE

Who are you?

My name is Britt and I am the maker behind Red House.

Why be a maker?

Becoming a Maker was never the plan but always our future.  Upon moving our small family to the green mountains of Vermont, we set out to live a more simple, handmade life. Making things was what it was all about. I dove into the art of bread making, pickle jarring, granola baking which carried into the sewing of wood fetchers, storage bins, and market totes. for a good long while, If we needed something we made it. It was not until a dear friend suggested that I make for others did I decide to do so. Now that I have discovered the Maker world, there is nothing I would rather be doing. No industry I would rather engage. No career path I would rather travel. Simply, I love it.

Why should we support makers?

The modern maker is helping redefine what we as a culture find value in. Their inspiring efforts are creating a renaissance of lost craftsmanship that have gone to the wayside, while big box stores and factory assembly lines have dominated the marketplace. We should support the makers as an effort to move away from that modality and begin to place our value on things that embody intention and genuineness. It is in this support,  believe,  that people will shift into a world that places more value on people than it does on things.

Why is it important to keep Main Street alive?*

When we support our Main Streets we are supporting our community, our neighbors, our schools, our people. Spending locally is a continuous and effective way to support a local economy.  In America, the maker movement is returning us to the fundamental grounds on which our society was originally built. At the same time, there is Global Main Street emerging, fueled by individuals seeking to create their own independence thru their craft. It is important that we also support this Main Street, for that community is comprised of our kindred folk.

SHOP NOW: redhouseinc.com

Maker | Peg + Awl

For Margaux and Walter Kent, the desire to create unique upcycled items started with their love of creating items for their home that they saw a need or space for. Walter jokes, " From the moment that we met we have been making things together, the first being our first boy Soren." The two are the artistic minds behind Peg and Awl, a leather and repurposed goods business that makes creative solutions for households and one-of-a-kind treasures out of vintage and upcycled materials. 

BY: HEATH STILTNER

Walter and Margaux started Peg and Awl after Walter returned home after serving a year in Iraq. It was their way of continuing to collaborate with their designs. Margaux says that the products they created came out of a need and want for beautiful and well-made things that they could use everyday. "When we discover a need for something in our home or studios we design a simple, useful and beautiful product to fill that space.We began making these things for ourselves and now we make them for everyone." 

Both Margaux and Walter have been creators of one thing or another since they were children. "When we first met, Margaux sat me down and showed off the very first book she made, Going to the Cirsis (Circus)," recalls Walter. "It was full of childhood sketches and hand-bound - she was about 6 when she made it." Margaux wrote her next classic at the age of nine. After writing and illustrating it, Margaux bound Going to the Zoo. 

"I have always kept a journal and covered my first leather bound book in scraps," Margaux explains. After filling that journal halfway, she was robbed in Amsterdam, the book being amongst the missing items. Desperate for a place to hide her thoughts, Margaux began searching for a book bindery. She found a fantastic shop but had no desire to purchase a new and stinky hide. After gathering paper, needles, and thread and the discovery of a few dusty and wonderfully-worn pieces of leather from chairs from the 1800s a few doors down she created a new journal. "It initiated a new path in my life and a new way for me to connect my love for worn and story-filled materials with my desire to document the current adventures and ideas in my life." 

Not only did this rediscovery of bookbinding allow Margaux and Walter to have unique places to store their thoughts, but it also inspired them to start selling them to others who may share their love of writing and vintage materials. "We love history and what time does to objects and materials and we love incorporating and searching for materials with a story," says Margaux. Their love for treasure hunting, history, and making things, as well as the want to support themselves through their work, begat Peg and Awl. 

"Our products are a salute to days long gone but are always considerate of modern usefulness. We celebrate the marks and wear of years of use and sometimes neglect in each material by giving it new life, turning it into something useful and beautiful," Margaux explains of Peg and Awl's uniquely distressed creations. It is always a scavenger hunt, an adventure. Margaux and Walter travel the world scouring flea markets, antique stores, and abandoned houses looking for leather, wood, or other forgotten materials to turn into something else and continue their story. "Sometimes we pick the materials, and other times the materials pick us." 

Their ability to practice so many trades comes from the passion Margaux and Walter share in learning new kinds of craft; The two designers are self-taught for the most part. Both say that a little coaching by friends here and there have helped them hone their skills in certain crafts. Their creativity and ingenuity arise from a need through living and working. When there is a void without a product to fill it they begin developing that new product. "Sometimes we find an object or material at a flea market or from somewhere scavenged that begs to be transformed," says Walter. For instance, a pile of pipe organs from old churches they found at a local shop were transformed into functional knife racks for their kitchen. 

Walter and Margaux use most of the objects they make in their everyday lives. Since both are avid writers, Walter uses the iPad easel often while Margaux uses handmade journals. Their customers also love their unique solutions such as tub caddies, tree swings, and chalk tablets. "People love the book necklaces and the stories behind each one - where the leather came from, how old it is and what it was before we turned it into a miniature wearable treasure," says Margaux, "The waxed canvas bags are also adored!" 

There are many new things in store for Peg and Awl. Walter and Margaux have been hard at work finishing a new waxed canvas bag, a weekender/duffel. "We are working on a messenger bag and have a shell of a library in our house begging to be finished," laughs Walter, "I trust some unforeseen objects emerging during the process!"

Margaux and Walter Kent

www.pegandawl.etsy.com

www.pegandawlbuilt.com

www.ediblebackyards.com 

Authentic Lives | Daniel Burke

Alex Meets Blake Michaels in Malibu

The Art of Cheese Making

SPROUT CREEK FARM

BY: RIKKI SNYDER

It’s always encouraging when you meet someone who has found their passion. For Colin McGrath, he was at the right place at the right time when he found his. Growing up on the west coast, Colin was always getting himself into some sort of trouble when he was younger. At the age of 14 he was given a rather large amount of community service and he decided to do his time working at a church nearby that had a small cafe. Ever since, he was enthralled with the world of food and started working at restaurants. By the time he was 18, Colin made the decision to pack his bags and move across the country to attend the prestigious Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, NY. 

    The Culinary offers a vigorous program and is surely the best place to be if you want to go into the food industry. Being very familiar with the school, as my father once attended it, I have a pretty good knowledge of what goes on there. So when I met Colin I had to stop myself from bluntly asking, “How in the world did you end up at Sprout Creek Farm making cheese?!”. And after we got to talking I realized that wow, he really was just in the right place at the right time. 

    Sprout Creek Farm in Poughkeepsie, NY is a charming little working farm nestled away in the heart of the Hudson Valley. It’s less than a mile down the road from where I grew up and because of the close proximity we would walk to the farm for field trips in grade school. So much of the farm and staff is dedicated to educating children about the natural world, community and agriculture. I have fond memories of spending days there, cooking vegetable soup in the kitchen with my classmates and standing out in the barns with the goats as they nibbled on my KEDS. 

    In the more recent years, Sprout Creek Farm has expanded into the world of artisan cheese and is now one of the go to weekend getaway places in the Hudson Valley for those living in the city. It’s just a short train ride away and hey, who doesn’t want to spend the day at a beautiful farm eating delicious hand crafted cheese? They have won 3, 2nd place awards in the American Cheese Society Competition and are also on the list of Wine Spectator’s 100 Best Cheeses. So this brings me back to my question at hand, how did Colin end up at Sprout Creek Farm making cheese? 

    With Sprout Creek only being a short 20 minute ride from the Culinary, Colin was first introduced to the farm as a student. “By chance I knocked on their door at the right minute and was able to land a spot in the creamery,” he says. Simple as that. He quickly became captivated with cheese and everything that goes into the process of making it. “It is something that is always on my mind, even when I don’t want it to be,” Colin says. After working here for many years, Colin is just as much in love with his job as he was the first day he started. He works with a wonderful group of people that all share his same love and passion for cheese and is constantly experimenting and producing new products. 

    After being behind the scenes where the cheese is made and watching it happen first hand, my whole perspective on the art of cheese making has changed. As I was observing Colin at work, I started to realize just how much goes into making a batch of cheese that I had absolutely no knowledge of. It was almost as if I was watching a mad scientist in his laboratory. Colin would look at the clock and jot something down on his charts, he had different colorful bottles of liquids and would mix something in a small cup then leave the room to go put it in the fridge to only take it out minutes later. 

    All of it is so intriguing and to my surprise, the better half of Colin’s day is spent not making the cheese, but cleaning and making sure everything is sterilized in between batches. They get the milk for their cheese fresh from the cows and goats they have at the farm. It is then turned into curds that will eventually be turned into wheels of cheese and only takes a few hours to complete. In that time, 2 ingredients are added and multiple steps are taken to separate the solids from the milk, get them into wheel form and then get them set up with the right components in order for them to ripen effectively. The range of age in their cheeses is anywhere from 2 days to 2 years. Each one requires a different length of time based on many different factors that control the ripening rate. And based on that age there will be different characteristics in texture and taste. Not only this, but weather, feed, stage of location, health and mood of the animal will all alter the composition of the milk and overall taste of each cheese. However, as Colin points out, you can’t forget the most important step to the cheese making process, adding love. 

    Sprout Creek farm distributes their cheese throughout the Northeast with a large emphasis on New York City. Their cheeses can be purchased at any Whole Foods store in this region as well as online at sproutcreekfarm.org. Grab a glass of wine or beer and be ready to sample some of the finest, local made, artisan cheese there is.  

Inside Leyden Glen Sheep Farm

 Kristin Nicholas came out from her charming farmhouse to greet us and I was first introduced to the incredible woman who calls this place home. Kristin is a true and talented artist best known for her knitting and stitching patterns. But it doesn’t stop there, her tremendous talents include knitting, crochet, embroidery, dyeing, painting, decorative and interior painting and pottery. She lives in this picturesque 1751 Antique Cape Cod farmhouse with her husband Mark and their darling daughter, Julia. Together they run their Leyden Glen Sheep Farm which now consists of over 300 sheep, 20 chickens, 10 cats, 3 border collies who work the sheep, 1 Great Pyrenees Guard Dog, a Guard Donkey and a Guard Llama.

A look inside her home.... By: Rikki Snyder

Leyden Glen Sheep Farm

Tucked away in the rolling hills of western Massachusetts is a place so unique and beautiful that it seems like it was pulled straight from a fairytale. I remember the very first time I drove down the windy and desolate dirt roads leading up to the Leyden Glen Sheep Farm.  Spring was in full bloom and my good friend Sarah was behind the wheel. I kept thinking to myself, where is she taking me? Talk about the middle of nowhere! 

STORY & PHOTOGRAPHY: RIKKI SNYDER

When we finally pulled up to the farmhouse we were greeted by eager sheep dogs, so full of energy and ready to play. Sarah had told me how beautiful this place was and as soon as I got out of the car I fell in love with everything. The wooden swing tied to a tree in the front yard, tufts of wool covering the ground in certain spots, grass greener than any I’d seen before and sheep by the hundreds feeding on it with enormous, tree covered hills as their backdrop. 

    Kristin Nicholas came out from her charming farmhouse to greet us and I was first introduced to the incredible woman who calls this place home. Kristin is a true and talented artist best known for her knitting and stitching patterns. But it doesn’t stop there, her tremendous talents include knitting, crochet, embroidery, dyeing, painting, decorative and interior painting and pottery. She lives in this picturesque 1751 Antique Cape Cod farmhouse with her husband Mark and their darling daughter, Julia. Together they run their Leyden Glen Sheep Farm which now consists of over 300 sheep, 20 chickens, 10 cats, 3 border collies who work the sheep, 1 Great Pyrenees Guard Dog, a Guard Donkey and a Guard Llama. Kristin explains how when you live on a real working farm, the farm becomes your life. The animals are in need of constant attention, food, water and are always being moved around from field to field. “I talk to animals more than I talk to people!” she says.

    The reality of Kristin and Mark’s unique lifestyle as sheep farmers is this: long days and intense labor. The lambing begins in January and lasts through March. During this time lamb upon lamb is born and in need of constant care. March is the mud season which Kristin describes as pretty awful! “No one is happy- humans or lambs.” The grass starts to grow in April and weaning lambs starts when the pastures are dry and ready. When May rolls around different flocks of sheep are moved to different pastures and are continually moved throughout the grazing season. Sometimes the sheep are moved by truck but sometimes Kristin and Mark move them many miles by foot depending on the location and traffic on the roads. Harvesting hay soon begins in June and lasts until October when the grass stops growing. Mark cuts and bales all of the hay that their sheep eat during the winter. In November, after the harvest, the sheep are ready to be moved back to their winter quarters where they are kept in a couple barns for cover. And then...it starts all over again.

    Kristin and Mark sell their lamb meat all year long at local Famers Markets as well as the vegetables from Kristin’s garden in the summertime. The sheep’s wool also proves to be invaluable as Kristin uses it to make yarn. She learned how to hand spin wool at a night class during her time in college at the Oregon State University where her and Mark first met. They both grew up on the east coast, Kristin being from the suburbs of New Jersey and Mark, ironically enough, grew up on a dairy farm only 5 miles from where they now live. They bought their first 4 Romney sheep in 1980 before they were married. As Kristin’s mom said, “Some people get engaged; Mark and Kristin bought sheep!”. 

    Just before their daughter Julia was born, they found their current farmhouse. It was love at first sight; they gave a full price offer and it was accepted in a matter of 5 hours! Kristin started telecommuting instead of going into her job at the time, as the Creative Director of Classic Elite Yarns. “It was a chance for us to build our farm and our family,” she says. In 1998, their daughter Julia was born with a life threatening condition, hydrocephalus. Kristin became the primary caretaker and in her words she, “..decided to ditch the full time gig and go freelance.” She started writing knitting books, then stitching books and was even asked to illustrate a couple of knitting books. She used gouache, a technique of painting with opaque watercolors and soon realized that she could draw or paint anything. 

    Since then, Kristin has taken her art to a new level. Her home is a blank canvas that she has transformed into a work of art with her numerous free-form wall murals that she hand paints. The mural in the dining room is dressed with chickens, birds, flowers, leaves, guinea hens and peacocks. A second one can be found in their TV room that Kristin created by cutting shapes out of FedEx boxes, layering these shapes on top of each other and hand painting each one. Her beautiful oil paintings can be found hung throughout the house as well as other handmade items such as her colorful pillows that are displayed on the window bed between the kitchen and living room. 

    “I think every art or craft I learn adds to the others I know,” Kristin says, “They all ‘inform’ each other. The common thread of my work has always been color. I love color! Working with color, mixing color together when I paint or dye, and then combining colors in a canvas or on a piece of fabric or in a knit wear design is such fun and joyful.” Kristin has also taken inspiration from her grandmother who was from Germany. She was always making something with her hands which fascinated Kristin and when she was 9, her grandmother taught her how to crochet. After that, she never looked back. Ten books later, Kristin is still going strong with her artwork and is constantly creating. She also writes a blog called “Getting Stitched on the Farm”, which is a way for her to communicate and connect with the outside world. It allows her readers to enter into her crazy yet captivating lifestyle that is always satisfying and never boring and shows a little slice of what it’s like living on a working sheep farm. 

    It’s been two years since that first day I stumbled upon the Leyden Glen Sheep Farm and after many visits back, through each season, I have fallen in love with this place even more. The beauty of it all continues to amaze me as does Kristin’s artwork. Never have I found such inspiration with color and pattern as I do when I’m in Kristin’s home. I’ve had the pleasure of sitting down with her for lunch on those colorful chairs with her paper lanterns swaying above our heads and the view of the pastures outside the windows where subtle baa’s can be heard from the grazing sheep. They’ve become some of my most memorable days and I always look forward to my next trip back where I travel off the map and step into their unique world once more. 

Leyden Glen Website http://leydenglenlamb.com

Kristin’s Blog http://getting-stitched-on-the-farm.blogspot.com

Kristin’s Website http://www.kristinnicholas.com

Cinnamon Hot Chocolate

Before we go any further there is one thing that I must confess, I have a huge sweet tooth. And I mean huge. However, if there was one flavor that I could ever love more than chocolate it would be cinnamon. And so, you can imagine my excitement when the two are combined. This hot cocoa is nothing short of delightful and is a great drink to sip on a cold winter evening. It will warm your bones, and liven your taste buds. 

Cinnamon Hot Chocolate

BY: RIKKI SNYDER

3 ounces semisweet chocolate

1 Tablespoon sugar

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

2 cups milk

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

A few drops of almond extract

Whipped cream, chocolate shavings and cinnamon sticks for garnish.

Cut chocolate into pieces and place in blender or food processor. Add sugar and cinnamon. Cover and blend or process until finely ground. Cook and stir chocolate mixture and milk in a large saucepan over low heat about 10 minutes or until chocolate melts. Remove saucepan from heat; stir in vanilla and almond extract. Beat with a rotary beater until very frothy. Serve in mugs. Top with whipped cream, chocolate shavings and cinnamon sticks if desired. Makes about 4 (8-ounce) servings.

Tastemaker | "Sweet" Paul Lowe

Sitting in a teahouse in New York City, Paul Lowe shares the story of his childhood while mulling over his cup of rooibos. Paul tells each story of his youth with a mix of candor and humor, recalling experiences he had with his animated and loving family. Paul was raised Paul Lowe Einlyng in Oslo, Norway by two little old ladies, his great aunt, Auntie Gunnvor and his grandmother, who he lovingly referred to as Mormor — Norwegian for grandmother. Paul is the Editor-in-Chief of Sweet Paul magazine—we'll get to that name later—a magazine devoted to the beauty of cooking, crafting, and entertaining. Today, though, we are getting to know the man behind that magazine, and the little boy from Oslo.

Paul remembers being in a kitchen or crafting constantly as a child. "Ever since I was small, I’ve been obsessed with cooking, crafting and decorating. It’s in my blood. Both my grandmother and great aunt were excellent cooks and crafters with impeccable taste," he recalls. Hearing the loving way Paul describes his family and his time spent with them, it's no surprise that he would carry that creativity and tenacity for design and cooking into his adulthood. When asked about the kind of things that made with Auntie Gunnvor and his grandmother, Paul jokes, "They were not perfectionists. Their cakes tended to be a little lopsided and their craft projects definitely weren’t up to Martha's standards."

The one thing that Paul does recall about the projects was that they were always fun. "I’ve adopted my grandmother’s motto, 'fullkommenhet er kjedelig' which means 'perfection is boring,'" says Paul, "I have incorporated it and her sheer joy of creating into everything I do." In October of 2007, Paul was living in New York City as “Paul,” a successful craft and food stylist. "I unwittingly transformed myself into Sweet Paul when I chose the name for a little blog that I started to highlight some work I was producing for my clients," says Paul. "My godmother named me 'Sweet Paul', she had lived in the US for years and when she moved back to Norway she kind of looked like Peg Bundy. She had a large chest and wore tight clothes, she always called me Sweet Paul, maybe becuase of my Shirley Temple blond curls," he laughs. In order to carve out his own niche online, Paul expanded his blog posts to include new content featuring what he loved, food and crafts filtered through the lens of his seasoned stylist’s eye. Paul used his inspiration from his grandmother to form the magazine and blog, using the ideas of simple recipes and presentation. "I did not intend the blog to garner 200,000 hits a month or give rise to an online magazine," says Paul, "it has become something of a phenomenon."

By 2009, Paul's friends and colleagues in the magazine industry were lauding his work and asking if they could contribute to the blog. Paul created his own magazine, naming it the only thing that made sense, Sweet Paul. Incorporating his own years of experience, and showcasing the work of his talented food-geek, photography-obsessed, and craft-genius friends, Paul created the lifestyle magazine that illustrated the life he lives as an expert in the field. "I wanted Sweet Paul magazine to be an anticipated quarterly that readers could use to sweeten their everyday life. I strive to put out a magazine that is as creative and visually stunning as mass-marketed lifestyle magazines but without being weighed-down with impossible recipes and projects developed for expert chefs and crafters," explains Paul.

Sweet Paul magazine is the source people all over the world turn to for inspiration in easy and beautiful crafts, simple yet elegant recipes, and entertaining ideas for any crowd. "When I’m on a shoot with a client, I always seem to have several people pull me aside to tell me how much they love my Sweet Paul magazine for its creativity, beautiful photography and unexpected ideas," says Paul. In Spring 2012, the first print edition of the magazine was launched in Anthropologie stores nationwide. Paul is now working on distribution in Anthropologie UK and specialty stock lists worldwide. Like the magazine’s tagline, Paul is continually “chasing the sweet things in life.”

From the timeless recipes and crafts, to the charming and simple entertaining ideas it is easy to see the passion and history Paul has in each area of Sweet Paul Magazine. Paul is committed to keeping his family traditions and heritage alive through the pages of the magazine. Taking another drink of tea, Paul begins another story about his days spent in his grandmother's kitchen, the place where all of his passions are rooted. "Even if she passed away years ago, I feel that my grandmother is with me everyday."

To learn more about 'Sweet' Paul Lowe and Sweet Paul Magazine, check out his website at http://www.sweetpaulmag.com/.

Portrait: Rikki Snyder. Photos: www.sweetpaulmag,com

Authentic Lives | Dusty St. Amand + Eric Pietrangolare

I have followed Dusty and Eric for some time. I absolutely love each of their photography styles and I was beyond excited when I found out these two New York based photographers are a couple. Recently I sat down with them to ask each of them about being photographers, being a couple, their dream cameras, and about their dream shoots. Lets begin with Eric...

Photograph by Eric Pietrangolare

Ben: Eric good afternoon! Tell us a little about yourself, what you do, and who are you.

Eric: I’m Eric, I’m 26 years old, originally from Queens, New York – I work in HR/Legal and I love Sailor Moon, photographing handsome men, gymnastics and being a hermit in our apartment.

Photograph by Eric Pietrangolare

Ben: Where do you and Dusty live?

Eric: We live in Bronx, New York.

Ben: How long have you been doing photography?

Eric: I started shooting my sophomore year of college in 2007 for my Art Education degree.

Photograph by Eric Pietrangolare

Ben: How long have you two been together and how did you meet?

Eric: 1 year as of February 17, 2015 – we met on a photo shoot of mine. Dusty, was modeling for this magazine feature I had gotten. Dusty was the kindest person I had met in such a long time and he just grabbed my attention as soon as I met him.

Photograph by Eric Pietrangolare

Ben: What is your photography "specialty"?

Eric: For me it’s more commercial/fashion. I consider my work marketable for brands and everyday people. I have always been more business minded and geared toward agency style work.

Ben: Who inspires you?

Eric: Before photography I was a fine artist and I have always liked pop-art. I don’t care for studio photography as much as I do for outdoors. A big open sunny space on the streets of NYC is the most inspiring thing for me, getting out in the elements is always a fun way to change it up and get a lot of character and story in your image.

Ben: What is your favorite shoot that you have done?

Eric: My favorite shoot was my shoot with Alex Minsky – He was someone I said I was going to shoot when he started to model a few years ago and randomly it just fell into place when I was out in California with some friends. It was also my first photo shoot outside of New York and to shoot such an amazing person with a great background story made me feel very accomplished.

Photograph by Eric Pietrangolare

Ben: What limitations or advantages are there with both of you being photographers?

Eric: Wardrobe! We both like to style our shoots in simple ways and Dusty always steals my clothes before I can use them! The advantage is having someone who has a completely different style/eye then my own to give me a new perspective or idea on what my ‘best’ shot is. Sometimes you get into a rut and keep shooting the same thing and picking the same style of image out of safety – it’s nice to have someone tell you something you wouldn't normally like or pick is actually your greatest shot.

Ben: What do each of you shoot with?

Eric: Cannon 60D – we share the camera!

Ben: What is your dream shoot:

Eric: Dream shoot would be to photograph an episode of America’s Next Top Model! ANTM was one of the first times I ever saw photography as an art-form in such a large perspective and I just loved seeing all these crazy styled photo shoots with some reality TV in the mix. I've seen every season, photographed some contestants and I also just love Tyra Banks.

Ben: What is your dream camera?

Eric: The technology isn't what's important to me. I like keeping it simple, the more advanced the camera is and the more buttons you fiddle with the less you tend to focus on your subject – you lose the connection if you’re too involved with your lights and cameras sometimes. There are tons of famous photographers who use point-and-shoots to make beautiful work because they are focusing on the moment and the special person they chose to work with.

A peak into Eric's photography is below. For more of his work visit his website.

Photo by: Dusty St. Amand

I then asked Dusty the same series of questions.

Ben: Dusty how long have you been doing photography?

Dusty: About a year.

Ben: Wow you are quite accomplished for just having a year under your belt!

Photo by: Dusty St. Amand

Ben: What is your specialty?

Dusty: I focus on sensual, male portraiture.

Ben: Who inspires you?

Dusty: I’m inspired by the voyeurism of social media. When we see the mundane or private moments of people across the planet, it helps us to feel like we’re not alone in our quirkiness.
 

Photo by: Dusty St. Amand

Ben: What is your favorite shoot you've done?

Dusty: Since it’s what motivated me to start this venture into photography, capturing Eric at my old apartment in New Jersey would have to be my favorite. He’s such a sexy little thing.

Ben: What limitations or advantages are there with both of you being photographers?

Dusty: We use the same camera!

Ben: What is your dream shoot?  

Dusty: I aspire to capture really motivational and progressive leaders in their homes. Less for the photos and more so I can just pick their brains and watch them be human.
 

Photo by: Dusty St. Amand

Ben: What is your dream camera?

Dusty: One that can retouch, email clients, and massage my neck. A few additional shots from Dusty are below. To see more of his work visit his website. 

Maker | Amos Brand

Authentic Lives | Michael Newsted

Authentic Lives | Loree Rowland

Megan Robinson Photography + Soil & Stems Florals

Nicholas Mrnarevic

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Photography by Nicholas Mrnarevic

Daniel Micah Cox

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Self portraits by Daniel Micah Cox. @danielmicahcox

Madden Gilhooly

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"Being in the ocean makes me feel the closest to God."

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I'm Madden. Living in Noosa, Queensland, Australia. This was taken at Alexandria Bay, Noosa National Park.
Instagram: @maddenyo