Can someone please explain to me how it's already Wednesday? I'm having a really work-y week and time is just whizzing by, which is why I'm super glad Jenn Hannotte's *that one great thing* pick popped up in my inbox, since she's always such a smartypants whilst I am - right now at least - feeling awfully fuzzy in the brain department. And yes, before anyone says anything, I know Jenn is slightly cheating by picking 2 things, but that's just how she rolls...
Jenn Hannotte: My One Great Thing is actually Two Great Things, but their stories are the same and I didn't want to leave either one out! When I was living in Winnipeg (holla!), I was working as an art director for a specialty advertising company. I was 20 years old, and while I cared a great deal about how my various apartments looked, I didn't really *know* anything about the history of industrial/furniture design. In a corner of the office sat these two chairs, stacked and dusty. I thought they looked cool and asked the boss if I could buy them, but he generously (it turns out!) gave them to me. This was my first experience exploring the history of an object; I turned over the chairs and discovered they were Fritz Hansen chairs and went to eBay (pretty much the only source at the time!) and learned their worth. From there, armed with a little more information I soon found myself hooked on learning about the history of design. I consider the discovery of these chairs the fuel for my passion for design, and on the downside, the impetus to my chair addiction! They always make an empty corner pop, and they've always worked with whatever look I'm loving. Here's round-up of their recent history of resting places in my various homes as an homage.
