14 Household Objects That Are Both Beautiful and Useful

When gearing up for a design fair, the West Coast collective of designer-makers known as JOIN typically starts with a theme. For last year’s Sight Unseen OFFSITE, it was Reflect; for IDS Vancouver late last year, it was Tools for Sitting. At ICFF last month, the group partnered up with Rejuvenation, a Portland-based company rooted in making everyday products for the American home, for an exhibition entitled Make Use. The resulting collection was created by 14 West Coast studios with the idea of celebrating a few key combinations: materiality and process, craft and purpose, form and function. Curated by Sallyann Corn and Joe Kent of Fruitsuper and Melanie Abrantes, the wares were often a perfect marriage of beauty and utility, from a leather and glass mirror from Materials & Process to a copper and ash mailbox by Alice Tachney to a charcoal cork birdfeeder by Abrantes. Check out our favorites below.

PHOTOS BY CHARLIE SCHUCK

Arch Mirror_Materials + Process

Arch Mirror by Materials + Process

Attune Lamp_Rejuvenation Design Team

Attune Lamp by Rejuvenation Design Team

Mailbox_Alice Tacheny 2

Mailbox by Alice Tacheny

Bookshelf_Silvia Song

Bookshelf by Silvia Song

Birdfeeder_Melanie Abrantes Designs

Birdfeeder by Melanie Abrantes Design

Brushes_Pigeon Toe

Brushes by Pigeon Toe Ceramics

Wedge Weight_fruitsuper 3

Wedge Weight by Fruitsuper

Make Use group 3