A few miscellaneous events and announcements during the gifting season of 2024:

Manual glassware is featured in the MCA Chicago 2024 gift guide. It’s a continued honor to be featured in my town’s modern art museum gift shop. My advice is to skip work and head to Mies van der Rohe Way to take in an afternoon of art before 2024 is over.

Just off the 606 trail in the tasteful yet eclectic Kimball Arts Building — artists, designers, chefs, cheer. See you soon?

I’ll be taking part Sunday in a mini-maker-mart at Blu Dot—the nice folks making “Minneapolis Modern.”

The Slow Shop is a vintage-focused pop up shop in the front of the Manual studio storefront. Our final holiday hours:

⏳ Dec 12 • Thursday Evening Shop Hours • 4pm - 9pm
⏳ Dec 14 • Saturday Evening Market • 4pm - 9pm
⏳ Dec 15 • Sunday Afternoon Market • 11am - 5pm

Behind-the-scenes at Manual:

Earlier this Fall a group of established maker-driven micro-businesses got together in a rented duplex in Austin to have a bit of an “unconference”—a chance to discuss how we do the things we do, share some ideas and finally take our conversations from Discord to the real world. In the spirit of “gifting season” and supporting small businesses—perhaps you’d interested in what some of these folks are making:

CW&T – Inspiring tools that transform how we consider work, life, and time. They also consistently inspire me with their approaches to everything they do. Brooklyn.
Studio Neat – Thoughtfully-designed pens and accessories, Austin.
Ugmonk – Thoughtful desk organization and effortlessly tasteful home goods, Pennsylvania.
Distil Union – Magnetic wallets, key organizers, accessories, Alabama.

Freewrite – Distraction-free writing devices, Detroit.
Nomadix – Sport towels made from recycled materials. California.
Cotton Bureau – High-quality t-shirts and more from the best independent designers and creative communities. Pittsburgh.
Slimfold – Super slim, durable wallets, San Jose.
Brindille Twig — Patterns for kids (and adult) clothes, Atlanta.
Meticulous — Buzzworthy espresso machine, Mexico/Texas
Ind.Design — A US-made precision mechanical pencil in development
Supermechanical — Environmental sensor tool kit

Gifting Season