Two Trees Studios’ Allison Samuels Shares Her Favorite Handmade Home Items

Allison Samuels is a minimalist, both when it comes to her woodwork and how she outfits her Brooklyn apartment. The furniture pieces she custom makes as Two Trees Studios, constructed from locally-sourced lumber, have a way of anchoring and rooting her living space. "I grew up in New York, a little upstate in the woods and in between two rivers, so that feels pretty core to who I am, highlighting a natural beauty that I see and trying to bring the outside in and doing it in a way that is functional," says Samuels. "Not just like putting a tree in your living room, but thinking about ergonomics and transport ability and the longevity of living with well-made pieces." 

Her made-to-order Two Trees Studios items range from a dining table with a matching bench fashioned from white oak, a totally collapsible maple shelving unit finished with natural oils and waxes, and a platform daybed that can shape shift as place to snooze or as a generously sized bench for seating guests. 

And because the Two Trees Studios aesthetic leans so natural and of-the-earth, it’s no surprise that Samuels’s furniture lend themselves perfectly to being punctuated by various decor, be it textured ceramic dishes or fragrant dragon’s blood sage or hand-dipped beeswax candles. "I live with pieces that either I have made or are made by people I know — friends or acquaintances in the small business world — and predominantly they are queer people, they are women, they are people of color," says Samuels. "It’s important to me because I also identify with two of those groups and I want to put money back into communities and with people who are more underrepresented as a small business owner." 

For Samuels, it means that the objects she brings into her home are all carefully considered. She’s researched the people behind the brand, she likes to know their processes and the materials used, and in many cases she has already reached out and connected with these makers, either virtually or in person, so she can "keep the money flowing" within the community. 

"My home feels a bit of a sacred, quiet space that I want to protect the energy of because I don't spend that much time there, but when I do, I want it to be for resting and for recharging. So I like to surround myself with products that are cared for, that I have a connection with. It feels really different when you're living with things that you know somebody else has created with their hands, that have been touched, that are the only one of," she says of her favorite small-batch items that she recommends ahead. "It has a very different quality to it."

"The Nova Shelving unit and the Pink Moon Credenza are separate pieces that I designed to function together but you buy them separately. The door pulls on the credenza are made by my friend Anne Carnevale, who is a ceramicist. The shelving unit is fully collapsible so it flat packs. I've designed it to be lightweight and to be able to come apart and put back together as many times as you wish.  It was important to me to design something well made, lightweight, and could be both highly functional and beautiful."

"Alysia Mazzella uses 100% pure beeswax. She also has a recycling program around beeswax. She is a Black queer woman upstate, a single person operation. Everything is hand dipped and poured and the candle burns so slowly, so smooth. And she has little intentions that she sends with the candles. I feel like you can really feel the light that she brings to it. Beautiful product."

"Every one of these is handmade and unique so Anne only has a few design options on her website. It's wonderful as a trinket dish, as a sponge holder, as I use it, as a candle holder, or a jewelry tray. She and I originally connected over our shared love for Noguchi, the designer. So I think this one, in particular, she thinks of as an ode to Noguchi."

"Julianne Ahn is one of those ceramicists who crosses between art and design. I use this soap dish in every room in my apartment as various things — a soap dish, a utensil holder. Gorgeous. Beautiful on any surface."

"Naima Green is a queer photographer based in Brooklyn who made this deck of playing cards out of a series of 52 portraits that she made, predominantly featuring Black queer folks but not entirely. It’s a beautiful celebration of queerness. I love to keep it around to like play with and it reminds me closely of her work."

"Ancient Blends is a small business in Bed Stuy (my former neighborhood) that I frequent. If you've never smelled blood sage before, it's on a whole other level. I highly recommend it to cleanse a room."

"The 1050 Colectivo is a cooperative based in Oaxaca, Mexico, that supports I think eight to a dozen member studios that are all in Oaxaca State. I have visited a few of the studios that are part of this collective, and they're all small family operations. All of the money, when you are purchasing from this cooperative, goes directly to those families and a small fee goes to the cooperative to help it keep running."

"2Note makes fragrances and they’re owned and operated by a queer couple who are also musicians. They make perfumes, hand soaps, shower gels, candles, and all of the fragrances are mixed in small batches and mixed to order for the most part. They’re such lovely subtle fragrances, all allergen-free and free of additives." 

"Katie James is behind Good Connection. Everything is of course handmade and she uses a slap rolling technique. Not only are all of her pieces highly durable, they’re some of my everyday ceramics. I think because of her background in styling, she also chooses glazes that photograph well, that are textured, and are dishwasher and microwave safe."

"Steve Théberge lives in Northampton, Massachusetts and all of his work is wood-fired so each piece is completely unique.  He was trained within a Japanese monastery in his former life so in his work he does a lot of repetitive forms. There’s a beautiful meditative quality to holding and using his pieces."

"I make chopsticks and use a few different kinds of wood: maple, beech, and walnut. Every piece is completely hand-carved. I think it's quite lovely. If you have never used chopsticks or utensils that are made by a person, I would highly recommend giving it a try one day. It feels different to hold. There's a different weight to it."

"En Tsao is a trained herbalist so all of her products are blends of herbs and completely natural. No additives, no preservatives, and everything is small batch. Your skin gets a nice smooth finish. They make a lovely gift for almost any occasion and I've given these to so many people." 

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