Unexpected things happen. Having travelled across the world viewing architecture and design projects of all scale and impossibilities, a friend turned me on to Christopher Boots lighting.

“That’s it!” I shouted, as if I was J. Peterman having scoured the interior of the congo for months looking for just that right indigo dye.

Boots’ work is at once elegant and refined, yet bold, fresh, and industrial. It’s the most exciting addition to the interior lighting market I’ve seen in some time. I immediately fired off an email, and a few months later the New Black is the first
to introduce the line to North America.

Who places quartz crystal fragments inside a ring of LEDs? Brilliant.
And it just gets better and better…….

All fixtures available at the NWBLK in a variety of sizes and finishes
For inquiries contact [email protected] / Tear sheets on request
For more images see the Pinterest page
Visit us at 1999 Bryant Street / San Francisco / Call us at 415.621.2344

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Excerpts from an interview with Christopher reprinted from the blog You Have Been Here Sometime ;

People occasionally ask about the energetic properties of crystals, magnets and light being all placed together and powered up. I guess that the result speaks for itself- a glowing manifestation of the crystalline structures of minerals. Essentially, they retain any information that is programmed into them energetically.

What are rare earth magnets?
Rare earth magnets earth’s are classified as rare since they use minerals such as neodymium that keep their magnetism permanently. They are adhered to the crystals, and thus magnetized to the frames made from steel (iron+carbon) very strongly, allowing them to be re-arranged and removed for cleaning (perhaps cleansing out in the full moon as required if that’s your thing) and aesthetic purposes. This kind of interaction engages and personalizes the product experience

What makes a light interesting?
Thats a good question! And very open to interpretation. Personally, it needs to speak to me in a language that is not cut and paste, that has an effect that is gentle to the eye (think ambiance and the effect on the face and perception of the space) and allows one to ponder how it all came together, without being too busy or fussy. And it has to be easy to clean and maintain. Longevity is critical in a product, it must look as good or better in 10 or 20 years time as it does today. Materials you are interested in working with, or are currently working with? Bronze- love it- amazing textures can be created by hand in the wax molds, beautiful colors, warmth and timeless classicism. Quartz- forever amazing, a manifestation of pure earth energy, clear as ice and each and every one has its own character and individuality, just like people all the same yet different. Gold - never tarnishes, always keeps its sheen, is antimicrobial (crazy huh!) and in small quantities is never ostentatious. I like to use it in interior surfaces where only a glimpse may be had- so as to create a surprise.

Read more about Christopher Boot’s process and studio

Yaffe Mays: The NWBLK Interview from The NWBLK on Vimeo.

The NWBLK is a retail environment, workshop and design HQ in San Francsico, CA.

Mitch and Bob drove the 175 miles up to Fort Bragg early one Saturday morning to talk to Laura Mays, heir apparent to James Krenov and the California wood craft movement, and her partner Rebecca Yaffe.

Yaffe Mays contributed a refined and compelling edit of their seating, case pieces, and lighting, for purchase at the NWBLK, and are available for custom projects.

They shared about their design process, influences, travel, life and work in Ireland, and ideas behind the unique work shown at the NWBLK.

It got late. They drove back.

For more info [email protected]

Reprinted with the kind permission of Handful of Salt
By Anna Hoeschen and Regina Connell.

It’s so terribly modern to talk about globalization, but when it comes down to it, it’s our sense of place, of terroir, that defines us. Place inspires us and informs the way we view the world, and our place in it. We tune into it, connect to it and in many ways, become it.

Laura Mays, master woodworker and furniture designer, grew up in Ireland, maintained a studio on the rugged west coast of Ireland and now calls Northern California home. It seems that throughout her life, she’s maintained an acute sense of place, an appreciation for her home and her roots…and the residual effects of that are breathtaking.

Her roots come to life in the charm and captivating simplicity of her work. You can almost see surly green landscape, cliffs eroded by weather and time, jagged coastline and grey sea. But you can also see the sophistication of her architectural training. Even her material, wood, is relative to the locale she creates in.

Laura is one part of the duo Yaffe Mays. Super smart, charmingly self-assured and wonderfully articulate, she talked shop with us on the details of her designs, and, true to form, kept it pure and simple.

Tell us your story: Laura, “Well, there are many versions of it; I’ll work backwards for now. I’m teaching for the fine woodworking program at College of the Redwoods. I was here as a student in 2001 through 2003. I had read books by James Krenov, who founded the College of the Redwoods Fine Woodworking School. I came here because of his books; the philosophy went to the heart of it all. I was here as a student and went back to Ireland to teach. I grew up in the suburbs of Dublin, and spent the last eight years on the west coast of Ireland in a distinct region called Connemara. Between Connemara and coming here as a student, I maintained my workshop in Ireland. When I was in California, I met my partner, Rebecca Yaffe. She’s the Yaffe part of Yaffe Mays. We have worked together the past eight years.”

What made you decide to begin working with wood? “Straight out of high school, I studied architecture in Dublin. I was unhappy in the world of architecture, where you are telling people what to do and you yourself never know quite what to do. Telling people, “you should do this” or “you should do that” but you’re never actually getting to interact with the material in any way. I went on a cycling holiday in Galway, and I saw a furniture design school, Letterfrack. I went in and, two years later, decided to apply. I studied there from 1995-1997. I hadn’t done any woodworking before that.”

What appeals most to you about working with wood? “It’s various and temperamental. It’s never stable. You’re always kind of dealing with it, and totally used by it. When everything’s going well, it’s nice to interact with.”

Why certain materials? “Sometimes a series of circumstances might mean working with something else. Wood has a certain temperature, and I love the smell.”

(Read more from Handful of Salt)

The NWBLK Opening from The NWBLK on Vimeo.

In the ramp up to launch we interviewed a handful of the designers responsible for the lighting, furniture, fashion, and objects at the New Black. These are the people actively inhabiting and making things in our facility in San Francisco, an American Can building from 1951.

We’ve transformed the facility into a new retail environment with an applied arts gallery, functioning design offices, and a fabrication workshop to build prototypes, fixtures, and displays.

What you’re viewing is a teaser to the Interview series we’re releasing to social in the coming weeks.
The NWBLK is about the people and process behind the things that make us tick.

Full interviews of each of the designers to come.

Ian Hannula, N.I.C.E. COLLECTIVE
Gordon Burwell Sr., Burwell & Sons (Hi-Fi Loudspeakers)
Basil Racuk, Fine Leather Goods
Laura Mayes, Yaffe Mays

Opening Events:
Thursday and Friday, September 13/14 from 630-1030pm.
1999 Bryant Street, SF, [email protected] 415.621.2344
Open M-S 10-6pm, Starting September 18th