Baskets and Jewelry by Philadelphia’s Karen Gayle Tinney

For us, Karen Gayle Tinney was one of those surprises that you’re shocked to find lurking in your own backyard — the artist and designer lives in Philadelphia, where for the past year she’s been making elaborate woven baskets, planters, and necklaces for stores like Vagabond and Brooklyn’s People of 2morrow. Having grown up in the Poconos, where her family owned a furniture business, she went to Parsons for furniture design, staying in New York for 8 years before making the move to Philly. But a longtime obsession with the material properties of fiber propelled her to start her current line, in which she combines cotton or sisal rope with ceramics and soft puffs of wool. “I try to keep each piece pure and essential by creating a balance between the mix of wonky, organic ceramic or tactile elements and the meticulous basket stitches,” Tinney explains. Her works, which are also available in her online shop, are ridiculously affordable for being totally handmade — we suggest you grab something now before her reputation, along with her prices, inevitably grow.