Domino, June 2022

June 2022

| 3 min read

BROOKLYN — NY

In her new Brooklyn Navy Yard headquarters, ceramist Virginia Sin sets a serene backdrop for her tubular designs with the help of olive green walls and soothing Spotify playlists.

Photography by SHARON RADISCH Reporting by JULIA STEVENS Styling by NAOMI DEMAÑANA and JULIET SABELLA

Makeup by Anna Kurihara, Hair by Satoshi Ikeda

Visiting a person’s workspace is like taking a peek inside their brain. Whether it’s at home or in an art studio, Nice Work explores where creative people do all of their, well, creating.

NAME:

Virginia Sin

OCCUPATION:

Owner, CEO, and creative director of Sin.

WHERE I WORK:

Brooklyn Navy Yard, in an office I co-designed with West Elm Business to Business.

TIME I START:

9 a.m.

TIME I CLOCK OUT:

7 p.m. It’s true that when you love what you do, it doesn’t feel like work.

Greenpoint Desk and Steelcase Think HA Armed Task Chair, West Elm; Open Weave Baskets, Hawkins New York; Custom Plant Stand and Prong Fruit Bowl, Sin; Lack Wall Shelves, IKEA; Penthouse Paint, Clare.

HOW I GET TO WORK:

I drive. I know...you can’t take the L.A. out of me.

From left:: Greenpoint Bookshelves, Anton Solid Wood Dining Table, and Hunter Shaped Wood Stacking Chairs, West Elm; Equinox Pendant Lamp, Sin; Timeless Paint, Clare. Greenpoint Storage Credenza, Arched Floor Mirrors, and Fluted Nightstands, West Elm; Trio Coatracks, Sin.

THREE WORDS THAT DESCRIBE MY SPACE:

Energetic, happy, open.

MOST IMPORTANT THING IN MY STUDIO:

Good light.

WHAT’S ON THE WALLS:

I’m obsessed with my freshly painted Roman Clay wall by Portola Paints & Glazes in Highland. It’s a deep, mossy olive green that’s adjacent to two paler, more muted gray-green walls.

CURRENT CREATIVE FUEL:

Since travel has been limited due to COVID, I rely on my day-to-day interactions. I love people and think we can all learn and be inspired by others.

WHAT I TURN TO WHEN I’M STUCK:

I turn inward and try to reflect and meditate.

From top: On Sin: Outfit, Caron Callahan. Belle Double Seat Cloud Sofa, Maisie Side Table, Monti Side Table, and Monti Coffee Table, West Elm; Lunar Sconce, Sin; Cabinet Fronts, Semihandmade; Grayish Paint, Clare; Brick Tile in Elk, Fireclay; Lunar Pendant Lamps, Custom Cabinet Hardware, Flora Oil Cruet, and Bora Berry Bowl, Sin; Organic Cutting Boards, Hawkins New York.

HOW I STAY ORGANIZED:

Because I wear many hats, I’m big on list making. I bucket my lists in categories, then prioritize tasks. When my physical space is well maintained, I’m able to think with more clarity. Physical and mental spaces go hand in hand.

FAVORITE PEN:

Pentel SignPen Fiber-Tipped Pen in blue. I like to write in our brand color the majority of the time, but if I need a secondary color, I resort to Pilot Precise V5 Rolling Ball, Extra Fine in Green.

BEST NOTEBOOK:

For ideas and note taking, I use Muji’s Notebook Type Grid Loose Leaf (30 holes, perfect for its A4 Binder). It’s nothing glamorous, because I go through at least one per quarter. The notebook has a perfect bound seam, so you can tear off pages easily like a giant Post-it and file them in the binder. For to-do lists, I use a Task Pad Notebook in Mint.

From left: Greenpoint Work From Home Desk and Steelcase Think HA Armed Task Chair, West Elm; Reservoir Table Planter, Sin; Prints by Block Shop, DWR; Crescent Swivel Chair and Maisie Side Table, West Elm; Cenote Hanging Planter, Sin; Roman Clay in Highland, Portola Paints; Raj Mandir Pillows, Block Shop; Simple Linen Pillow, Hawkins New York.Framed Photograph by Jessica Haye and Clark Hsiao, The Collaborationist.

TECHNOLOGY I CAN’T LIVE WITHOUT:

My MacBook Pro and my 4K monitor! I like to see everything big—perfect for when I’m retouching an image, but also when I’m crunching numbers on a spreadsheet.

DESK CHAIR THAT I COULD (AND DO) SPEND HOURS IN:

Steelcase Think Office Chair.

PREFERRED SOUNDTRACK:

My current Spotify playlist, This is Khruangbin.

HOW I FIGHT THE 3 P.M. SLUMP:

I think I have a lot of energy naturally, so when I feel exhausted, it’s usually because I am just dehydrated. I’ll chug some water and then I’m good to go again. An (actually cute) Day Bottle with water hydration tracking helps.