Alex Matisse

Hint, Hint: Gift Picks from Team East Fork

We asked everyone on Team East Fork to choose their favorite objects in the store and tell us a little about why they think it'd make a great gift.

Now that our store shelves are super stocked with the most thoughtfully-curated collection of top-notch gifts from makers I feel excited to support, I'm overwhelmed with options for even my toughest-to-shop-for relatives. During lulls at the store on Wednesday, I found myself deliberating between two perfect gift ideas for my soon-to-be-engineer cousin in his last semester of college - a problem I never expected to have.

We asked everyone on Team East Fork to choose their favorite objects in the store and tell us a little about why they think it'd make a great gift. Use these EF gift picks as sweet little insights into each of our personalities, inspiration for your own gift shopping, or mega-strong hints for what to buy your beloved who happens to work at East Fork.

SAVANNAH'S PICKS

Savannah says: These are my gift ideas for the Grandfather who already has everything. An extra small Potter's Bowl provides an "in-limbo" surface for an Earl Grey tea bag that's about to get steeped again, while waxed cotton food wraps stop the Ziplock bulk buys. I'd give him brass bookends for holding up all the gifted books of past Christmases and a Kaweco brass pen - because Mont Blanc is over, Pops! The graphic printed notecard is a good go-to; sometimes the best gift is telling someone how much you love them.

KYLE'S PICKS

Beyond his work as East Fork's glaze chemist, Kyle is a true renaissance-person, with equally impressive talents beyond ceramics in metals and textiles. His gift picks reflect his varied interests and tastes, as well as the fact that, in Connie's words, "he's dark and stormy...but he's also in a pop punk band." Kyle's the coolest.

sarah's picks

Sarah says: Salad for President is for my sister and her husband who went vegetarian a couple of months ago after watching some documentary on Netflix. This cookbook isn't totally vegetarian but has tons of inspiration! The rolling pin is for my other sister who just bought her first house. I got her an Andy McFate cutting board last year and she loved it. I feel this gift is in a similar vein; it'll be with her for years, the real deal. I'd get the Hiba Dog spray for my parents' dogs, who are kind of like my babies. They're the cutest Dachshund and beagle.

The square comb is for a friend. I'm obsessed with these combs! They're the prettiest and feel so good in your hand. Then, the pair of Latte Cups in Harvest Moon are for my other dear friend. He - almost comically - savors good coffee and has been borderline obsessed with this mustardy color for several years now.

Salad for President by Julia Sherman
Stinky Dog Mist
Square Horn Comb
Maple Wave Rolling Pin
East Fork Latte Cups in Harvest Moon (pictured here in Wine Dark Sea)

THOMAS'S PICKS

Thomas, East Fork's bookkeeper, says: I began baking sourdough a few months ago, using a bowl that was not quite large enough and would frustratingly go through yards of plastic wrap to cover the dough as it rested/fermented. So I upped my bread game with a go-to bowl and now save an endless amount of plastic wrap - by not using it. I'd give this to anyone who bakes bread or to someone who wants to start baking bread.

Potter's Mixing Bowl in Harvest Moon (pictured here in Soapstone)
Very Good Wrap

ESTEBAN'S PICKS

Esteban Says: "Cast irons' incredible flavor only improve the more you cook with them - and used that same amount of attention in cleaning them properly. There is a palatable history and process in them. They truly depend on human nurturing, love, & care. I don't know that I truly understood cooking nor eating until I got my first cast iron."

The way Esteban waxes poetic about cast iron reflects the care, attention, and commitment he shows in his own refined-yet-playful artwork as well as his East Fork graphic design work. If cooking like an artist/printmaker/designer means using really beautiful, really well-made cast iron, then I wanna cook like Esteban.

CONNIE'S PICKS

Connie says: I was scrolling through Instagram while nursing and I saw this woman wearing clothes covered in pots and thought "Oh my gosh. We have a pottery store. We need to sell pottery clothes!". I ordered it that moment. I think I might have snagged the last pair of these gorgeous, asymmetrical earrings from Knobbly Studio in silver, but they're still in stock in gold and well, you need them. I stopped putting soap on my face in April and switched exclusively to this Sparrow for Everyone oil and be careful if you ask me more about it because if you do, I WILL NOT STOP TALKING.

PO-EM Jug Print Top
Knobbly Abstract Nude Earrings in Silver
Sparrow For Everyone True Essential Oil
Bunnytail Grass Sola Cube
Japanese Candlesticks

The walking billboard look isn't cute - fortunately, the wearables we sell at East Fork are distinct yet versatile enough that we can all obsess over the same jewelry and makers without looking like clones of each other (hopefully?). This is a good glimpse into Connie's daily Brand Director/never-not-working/never-not-repping/resident-oil-cleansing-evangelist look, with a couple sweet objects for her desk to boot.

COREY'S PICKS

Corey says: I grouped these together because I love waking up early - I try to wake up at 5am every morning so I can have a cup of tea and make some breakfast for myself. Lots of times I will listen to a podcast, NPR, or read a book. I feel like I am always most calm and can think most clearly in the morning. If you are around me and I am in a rotten mood it is probably because I woke up late and felt rushed in the morning. Also, since Savannah and I have been married, I have tried to bring her breakfast in bed and it is when I feel the most like a husband every day.

The egg cup and mug are part of my everyday routine now."

As East Fork's new Operations Manager, Corey's been lovingly pushing us to organize and streamline the (perhaps surprisingly) complex process of turning hunks of clay into ballin' place settings for your dinner party. His gift picks show just the kind of meditative pre-dawn pump-up he prefers for each new day as EF's new strategist, helpfulness expert, co-resident model newlywed, and Chief Overlord.