From product design to Zen gardens, simplicity is a time honored tradition. As a designer at Pig and Fish, I can appreciate the drive toward simplicity, but also the challenges. "Simple" is not the same as "rudimentary" or "easy" as it takes a trained eye and disciplined creativity to pair down a design to the most basic elements. It takes patience to continue to work on a design until it embodies the clean lines you're looking for while still holding the balance of function. For Christmas this year, I received four thoughtful gifts from my friend Amber of Red Tile Studio, one of which was a vase from Pigeon Toe Ceramics located in Portland, Oregon. I have long admired Lisa's business not only for her beautiful ceramic products which embrace the very design aesthetics mentioned above, but also for the marketing of her handmade business. Lisa elevates handmade to an artform, a heirloom to be cherished and passed down. Her copy is not heavy with descriptive wording, but is in fact straight to the heart of what her business is about - she keeps it simple. To own one of her pieces is a true joy and an important reminder for me as I head into 2013. It's easy to make life complicated and oh-not-so-simple, to get stressed over the extra wording of life and then the true meaning of the moment gets obscured. In these last few months of 2012, I've discovered that life too can be simple - but it's an active choice. A choice that is sometimes difficult to make, but a choice nonetheless. I can run away on a big adventure of labeling and describing all my experiences or I can relax my body and mind for short moments when I naturally remember and step aside to let the true simplicity of life shine through. As we prepare to roll back the last calendar page of 2012 and jump into 2013, my most important resolution for the new year is this - "keep it simple".
Happy New Year everyone and tell me what your plans are for keeping it simple in 2013!
