Manual At Home

Hi there, I’m Craighton Berman—the person behind Manual. Just like most of the US in Spring 2020, I’m sheltering in place in Chicago. Since we’re all stuck at home, I wanted to share snapshots of how we use Manual products around our house.

Here I am in my living room with some early prototypes of the Framework plant stands (BTW the Kickstarter is 100% funded!) To my right is Norman the dog. Taking the photo is my wife Emily (a furloughed personal chef who’s now temporarily a homeschool teacher) Just out of frame are my two sons going wild (Chicago public schools are cancelled for the year).

A corner of our dining room where we have a Danish-ish mid century modern shelving unit (made in Yugoslavia) featuring an assortment of miscellaneous ceramic and glass pieces including @laundryday.co @haydesign @tordboontje for @artecnica @cktcceramics @darahartmanceramics and of course @m_a_n_u_a_l

A corner of the office I’ve been working out of for 6 weeks, while the new studio/shop sits empty, sadly. Featuring @karlzahn for @areaware @alika_cooper @itsreuben @pamelabarsky and of course @m_a_n_u_a_l

Most of our spirits hide out in the cabinet below, but on deck is our infinity bottle of bourbon (always topped up with everyday selections), a bottle of mezcal I picked up in Mexico a few months ago at my brother’s bachelor party, an amaro our friends at @nourishingnotes gifted me for my birthday last year, a Japanese whisky (which reminds me I want to find rice whisky—I had some at @insheepsclothinghifi a few months back and I can’t stop thinking about it), a little bottle of @drinkhaus (an interesting aperitif subscription service a friend gifted me) and finally a decanter of gin (because ramp gibsons).

A Sunday morning brew of home roasted Guatemalan coffee (from @burmancoffeetraders, roasted on a @behmor in my garage). If you’ve never home roasted before, take a look at some of the info out there (especially @sweetmarias) it’s surprisingly easy, and makes you feel incredibly self-sufficient. Plus you get the freshest coffee possible—from garage to table.

One of my favorite spots in our 1938 Art Moderne style house is the stairwell with the round window. Depending on the time of year, the light passes through the leaded glass and casts an oval on different walls of the space in different shades and intensities. Like a slow moving clock, the changing shapes and locations are rooted in the seasons—and it’s one of those small details that I love noticing as the years go by. Maybe being stuck at home isn’t so bad.

Stay safe out there.