Building Block Etc., a New Standout Design Shop in LA

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“In recent years, we’ve seen retail drift into a sort of sameness,” write Nancy and Kimberly Wu. “Building Block Etc. is our way back to meaning—a space for connection, where relationships happen face-to-face, and where you might hold something in your hands before choosing to make it part of your life.” The sisters are both industrial designers who studied at the ArtCenter College of Design in Pasadena and had impressive corporate careers before teaming up. Kim was a car concept designer for Honda in Tokyo and Nancy worked on performance footwear for Nike in Portland. They’re first generation Taiwanese-Americans, raised in Southern California—their father is an engineer—and after moonlighting long distance on their own designs, they returned home to their parents’ house in Orange County to launch Building Block.

That was back in 2011—the sisters were 25 and 27—and the brand started as a collection of five geometric handbags that attracted a cult following. It led to a successful shop and workshop in LA’s Chinatown, where the line expanded to include housewares. In 2023, Kimberly and Nancy transitioned their business into a creative consultancy, Studio Building Block, offering industrial design solutions. And more recently, they opened Building Block Etc., a shop showcasing a tightly edited array of their own designs and work by fellow maker friends. Explains Nancy, “we’re drawn to pieces that have clarity in material and form, a sense of utility, and the ability to reveal more over time.”

Photography courtesy of Building Block Etc. (@buildingblock).

the store is part of a former auto body shop enclave with a shared courtyard sh 17 — Above: The store is part of a former auto body shop enclave with a shared courtyard shaded by sycamore trees. The custom doorknob is shaped like a hole punch, a reference to the Building Block Etc. business card that the sisters hand punch themselves (see below).

nancy hammered the sign that signifies building block&#8\2\17;s new incarna 18 — Above: Nancy hammered the sign that signifies Building Block’s new incarnation. “We’re all about the human touch, an appreciation for process, and honest materials, so it all connects,” she says. “Plus the nails cast a cool shadow in the sun.”

the shop is furnished with enzo mari&#8\2\17;s designs—from his \1974 diy 19 — Above: The shop is furnished with Enzo Mari’s designs—from his 1974 DIY design manual, *Autoprogettazione.* The pieces are typically made using scrap pine, but to give them an elevated look, Nancy and Kim had LA furniture maker Mark Morones build them out of vertical-grained Douglas fir. The hanging light is a fiberglas design available to order by Minjae Kim, an artist who shows at Marta, the gallery next door—they’re the ones who invited Kim and Nancy to be their neighbors.

the space was originally a welding station and wood shop—&#8\2\2\1;it was 20 — Above: The space was originally a welding station and wood shop—”it was essentially a shed,” says Nancy. The sisters pulled up the vinyl floor and polished the existing concrete. The walls are painted Camouflage, a beguiling pale sage from Benjamin Moore that everyone asks about. The leather bags hanging on the peg rail are Building Block designs. Upstairs is a storage mezzanine.

the shop&#8\2\17;s hand punched business cards sit on an enzo mari diy tabl 21 — Above: The shop’s hand-punched business cards sit on an Enzo Mari DIY table of Douglas Fir. The vintage Japanese glass vase holds buckwheat flowers from the courtyard displayed on antique Japanese fabric.

artist kazumi takigawa hand sews her paper bag inspired waxed canvas totes in h 22 — Above: Artist Kazumi Takigawa hand sews her paper bag-inspired waxed canvas totes in her Kyoto home studio. The cotton canvas is colored using organic, plant-based dyes, such as coffee, tea, and traditional mordants like aluminum and iron. Styles include Mini Funagata Bags,$75, Short Super Market Bags, $175, and XL Funagata Bags, $275. Mini Square Canvas Pillows are $115. For more, go to Object of Desire. Above: You won’t find the Wu sisters’ selections everywhere. Shelves display the locally made Iko Iko Tissue Box Dress of black silk taffeta, $80; Building Block’s own vegetable-tanned Leather Canisters, $110 and $125; and the Japanese Cube Kettle designed by Masataka Sugiyama; $80—it’s shaped to boil fast and has a built-in strainer for making coffee and tea in the pot.

artist kazumi takigawa hand sews her paper bag inspired waxed canvas totes in h 23 — Above: Artist Kazumi Takigawa hand sews her paper bag-inspired waxed canvas totes in her Kyoto home studio. The cotton canvas is colored using organic, plant-based dyes, such as coffee, tea, and traditional mordants like aluminum and iron. Styles include Mini Funagata Bags,$75, Short Super Market Bags, $175, and XL Funagata Bags, $275. Mini Square Canvas Pillows are $115. For more, go to Object of Desire. Above: You won’t find the Wu sisters’ selections everywhere. Shelves display the locally made Iko Iko Tissue Box Dress of black silk taffeta, $80; Building Block’s own vegetable-tanned Leather Canisters, $110 and $125; and the Japanese Cube Kettle designed by Masataka Sugiyama; $80—it’s shaped to boil fast and has a built-in strainer for making coffee and tea in the pot.

A Few More Things We’re Eyeing

the stainless steel crescent soap dish, \$\105.00, is another in house design w 24 — Above: The stainless steel Crescent Soap Dish, $105.00, is another in-house design with a thoughtfully detailed base: it can be positioned to collect excess water for countertop use and to drain water on a shower shelf. “We make cylindrical soaps with Life Research Lab, who are my neighbors,” says Nancy. Made from LA plant materials, they come in three scents, such as Makrut Lime and Clary Sage; $18.

building block&#8\2\17;s signature biscuit coasters, \$\18 \$35, are vegeta 25 — Above: Building Block’s signature Biscuit Coasters, $18-$35, are vegetable-tanned leather fabricated in the sisters’ Taipei workshop by the same craftsman who makes their handbags. The leather, they note, “patinas in a lovely way” with age and use.

for hanging &#8\2\20;keys, a necklace, hand towel, or good luck charm,& 26 — Above: For hanging “keys, a necklace, hand towel, or good luck charm,” Building Block Etc.’s Clover Hooks, $150, are hand sculpted and cast in aluminum by Antonia Pinter, a local artist who goes by A History of Frogs.

japanese potter takeshi omura&#8\2\17;s small scalloped plates, \$48, have 27 — Above: Japanese potter Takeshi Omura’s small Scalloped Plates, $48, have hand-cut edges and are finished with a food safe iron oxide glaze. “They’re thin and lightweight and almost feel like metal,” notes Nancy.

nancy and kim are proud to offer english artist dean edmunds&#8\2\17;s one 28 — Above: Nancy and Kim are proud to offer English artist Dean Edmunds’s one-of-a-kind welded metal pitchers, such as this Jug, $450. Made of stainless steel tubing that’s “manipulated through cutting and pressing, the forms are guided by the parts themselves,” they write. This one is show with Building Block Etc.’s own BB Short Tumbler, $48, part of a small collection hand-blown for them in North Carolina.

a collaboration between kasumi takigawa and building block, the woven canvas an 29 — Above: A collaboration between Kasumi Takigawa and Building Block, the Woven Canvas and Leather Basket, $495, works as a catchall at home or a large handbag.

Building Block Etc. is at 3021 Rowena Ave. in Silver Lake; it’s open Wed.–Sun., 11-5.

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Building Block Etc.: Exceptional, Under-the-Radar Goods for the Home in LA’s Silver Lake

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