The Giving Tree

Mike and I decided before Owen's first birthday that every year we would buy him one special present and then make a donation in his name. We have decided that we like this idea so much it is being carried over into Christmas as well. Because Owen is still too young to choose where he would like the donation made, we chose for him. Just like his birthday, where we donated money to one of our friend's organizations, Camp of Dreams of whom I had also designed the main office area, we wanted to pick something that has to do with our lives now.

Every month at Design Within Reach we have a major design event. This month we hosted The Giving Tree alongside the opening party for Providence Art Windows. The Giving Tree is a tree that is full of cards that I had decorated by Mike's students and other students from CVS Highlander. Inside each card is a child's name that is living with AIDS and what he or she needs, for example diapers or a gift card to Target. This is a very good cause and a wonderful project that is head up by Aids Care Ocean State, (ACOS), Rhode Island’s largest provider of services to persons affected by HIV and AIDS. People pick one of the cards off the tree to keep and then bring back the gift listed inside to our studio, which we then donate to ACOS. So, Mike's students decorated the cards, my studio hosted the event, and then we picked a card for Owen's donation. It was a very successful event and everyone had a great time. Even Santa and the Mayor made an appearance.

We had plenty of good food, wine, hot chocolate, and live entertainment.



If you are wondering what Owen's special gift is it is a collector's edition of Lincoln Logs.

Lincoln Logs (1916) are familiar to most of us, but what you may not know is that they were designed by John Lloyd Wright, son of the architect Frank Lloyd Wright. It’s rumored that the younger Wright’s inspiration came from the foundation of Tokyo’s Imperial Hotel, which was designed by his father. While touring the site in Japan, John was intrigued with the interlocking wood construction used by the Japanese. The simple solution sparked an idea and more than 90 years later, Lincoln Logs are still here. This Commemorative Set brings back the original all-wood construction, it’s true to the traditional Lincoln Logs scale and there are no plastic parts. The simplicity of this set appeals to the inner-architect in all of us, no matter what our age.