WORKING HANDS: Nancy Wu

As a stationery brand, we are always curious how and what people use our stationery goods for. With this blog series, focusing on the hands at "work" and beyond, we ask five questions about the usage and meaning of the stationery tools to our friends in Los Angeles.

For our seventh post, we visited a LA based designer, Nancy Wu at her house in Mt. Washington neighborhood. 
Low-angle view across a wooden desk as a hand in a knit sweater writes with a marker, black pouch nearby.


Q1. What do you do with Sikigu Pad Notebook and POSCA markers? What do you like about these stationeries?

 

I like the A4 format of the notepad and also the perfect binding, it's a really elegant notepad! I'm drawn to the POSCA markers because they have an opaque, paint-like quality when the ink dries. The boldness of the marker tip forces me to be a bit more confident when drawing--no hesitation! 

Black Posca marker resting on an A4 plain Pad Note pad, with pens and sunlight on a wooden desk.
Hands holding a khaki Posca marker while drawing a dog among plants on a plain A4 notepad.
Nancy is drawing with a Posca marker, Medium PC-5M in khaki on a Pad Notebook in A4, plain. 



Q2. In our technology driven world, what does it mean to make things by your hand to you?



Making things with my hands keeps me grounded and reminds me that not everything comes instantaneously. I enjoy the process of constructing a little note, wrapping a present with intention, or making a simple meal for a friend. Making is a type of love language for me that can't be replaced by email or text messages :).


Hand holding a fountain pen over a blank sheet of paper on a wooden table, seen from above.
Hand in a knit sweater resting on a wooden table beside a card printed with a green leaf design.
Hand-cut sticker reading "Are you... OK?" on a wooden table with a paint marker, scissors and a mug.
She uses Penco large scissors in ivory. 



Q3. Pencils or Mechanical Pencils?



Pencils because I enjoy feeling line weights fluctuate with more or less pressure. And also the very satisfying process of sharpening them.



Q4. What’s in your pen case/pouch? If you don’t use a designated stationery case, how do you store your stationeries? 



To hold pens and pencils, I use a miniature wax canvas tote bag made by my friend Kazumi Takigawa. The scale of the bag gives me so much joy, which is an exciting way to feel when you're picking your tools. I also use a Building Block brick doppler to store miscellaneous stationery such as post-its, utility knife, measuring tapes, loose change and random bits.



Nancy Wu reaching into a small waxed canvas tote filled with pens at a wooden desk with drawings.
A Building Block brick doppler in the rear and a Kazumi Takigawa's miniature waxed canvas tote bag.


Canvas paper-bag style caddy on a wood desk, filled with pens, pencils and scissors, person working behind.Everyday carry items on a wooden desk: Sharpie markers, a Stanley tape measure, red tape dispenser, seed packet and dog tag.
In the brick doppler, she keeps plant seeds, memo pads, her dog's name tag, sharpies, two tape measures, a lip balm and a matchbook from local businesses. 



Q5. What is your most favorite stationery?



I like keeping things low key and am happiest with a HB pencil and some simple paper. 



Pencil sketches of a curled-up sleeping dog on a sketchbook page, with a red pencil resting on the paper.

____

Nancy Wu is a LA based designer. She is the co-founder of Building Block, a design studio where she and her sister create functional and fun-spirited accessories + objects as a means to compliment life. On her down time, she loves to dote on her dog and garden.

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