Sonos sound system
(2 rear Play:1’s, Sonos Playbar, Sonos Sub)
When I moved into my new place last year I was looking for a simple and powerful home theater speaker system. In the past, I had fiddled with wired and wireless rear satellites, amps and more, and it just all proved to be clunky and take up lots of space. Going with Sonos was an easy choice and their playbar is just as easy to wall-mount and conceal. Controlling everything with their desktop and mobile apps is definitely handy as well. I ended up hiding the Sonos Sub under my couch for some extra oomph while watching Interstellar. I’m still searching for the perfect media console to put under the TV/playbar to hide that one last power cable.
Buy Now$1796
Sony α7R II mirrorless camera
Photography is my passion and hobby (along with front-end dev as well as continually updating my site and photoblog). I make comprehensive photoset collections of my trips as a memento mainly for myself but they’ve started to get some attention recently. After spending a few years lugging around heavy Canon DSLR gear I ended up switching to Sony’s smaller mirrorless system. I started with the full-frame and tiny RX1R which I took to Japan and had a blast with but ended up moving to the interchangeable lens α7s and eventually to this α7R II for it’s 5-axis sensor stabilization and insane 42MP sensor. I’m now committed to the Sony system and have 5 lenses for it. The only downside is that I now travel with about a terabyte of SD cards to satisfy the storage needs of this thing on long trips.
Buy Now$3,200
mintia mints
I discovered these tiny yet extremely strong mints in Tokyo and brought some back with me. I found them to be the perfect complement to my slim wallet and have began importing them ever since. I carry a pack just about everywhere I go.
Buy Now$2Lonely Planet book collection
When I was confronted with an empty bookshelf I decided to add to the several Lonely Planet travel books I already had from past trips with the goal of eventually having the world represented. I’m kind of going for a travel/photography theme in my house. As you walk in, you see a bunch of my own framed photos from my adventures so I felt some travel books could add on to this.
Shop Now$15+
framed photos from levelframes
I always knew I wanted to frame a bunch of my photos throughout my house. I had heard about Levelframes and tried it out with one photo first. It was so easy to do that I ended up doing it with 5 more photos.
Shop Now$50+
Goruck GR2 (34 liter) backpack
I’ve only had the Goruck GR2 backpack for a year (I opted for the smaller 34 liter model) but it has quickly become my suitcase replacement for all my trips: from 3 day work trips to Seattle, NYC and Boston or for longer vacations like my recent 25 day roadtrip in New Zealand. It’s a durable backpack that can handle anything I dish out… except water, so I had to get a waterproof cover for it on my last trip. The only thing I don’t like is that you can’t fit a lock on the zippers. But then again the whole Goruck ethos is that this bag is on you at all times and you’d never be without it so a lock is unnecessary. Either way, this bag will be accompanying me on many more travels to come.
Buy Now$395
Twitter design team blocks
We have a nice little tradition on the Twitter design team where you get a special, different wooden block for various milestones and anniversaries during your Twitter career. You get one when you join, every year you’re with the team, et cetera. It’s a small gesture but one that everyone has come to love and cherish throughout the team.
Work Now$?
Allen Edmonds oxfords
I got these Allen Edmonds oxfords last minute before a trip to Paris with a friend. I just wanted something nice to wear in the evenings and had no idea I’d end up liking these so much. Easy way to make anything you wear with jeans look a bit better. I’ve now had them for a few years and they’ve grown a nice patina.
Shop Now$395
Heath mugs
When I first moved to San Francisco 6 years ago I lived across the street from a cafe and restaurant (Mission Beach Cafe) that had these amazing, generously-sized mugs. I’d get breakfast there quite often and grew accustomed to these nice and heavy ceramic mugs. They were Heath mugs. When it came time to stock my new kitchen I knew exactly where I wanted to go for my dish ware. They get used regularly every Saturday and Sunday when it comes time to brew myself a cup of coffee and relax a bit.
Buy Now$36
1967 yashica 24 camera
My dad got this Yashica 24 in Switzerland in 1967 and it has been in the family ever since. I remember playing with it when I was very young and it holds a special place in my heart. Maybe that’s why I grew up liking photography after all.
Shop Now$65+
Manfrotto Pixi tripod
The Manfrotto Pixi tripod is the workhorse of my entire photo setup. I’ve had this for 3 years and it accompanies me on all my trips. It’s a super sturdy and portable tripod that has a million uses while traveling from holding a GoPro for time-lapses to letting me hold it sideways against a light pole while I capture a vertical long-exposure. It’s small enough to put in your coat pocket or hang out of your back pocket so there’s no reason to not have one handy when you’re toting your camera.
Buy Now$25
Iittala vase
After I had finished moving into my new place I realized it lacked some greenery. I got a Neon Pothos plant and this lovely geometric smoked grey Iittala Ruutu vase. It’s just the right touch to an otherwise empty kitchen counter.
Buy Now$195
amazon echo + insteon devices
My friend Noah Kagan gifted me this Amazon Echo last year. I was a bit skeptical about how it could be useful but fell in love with the thing after a just a few days. When I wake up I ask Alexa what’s up to hear the latest news, I have it set timers when I come back from work and want to take a quick nap on the couch or when I’m cooking something. I have it run a 7 minute workout app and most recently I started using it to control some lights in my house. I changed a few light switches with Insteon wall switches that Alexa can communicate with. It can do so much more and always gets new “skills” so it’s always fun to tinker with new capabilities.
Buy Now$180Room & Board Walnut Humanscale Float adjustable height desk
I’m very picky when it comes to desks. I spent a good several weekends trying to find the perfect desk for me. I needed one with adjustable height, which led me away from my previous favorite: the now-discontinued Herman Miller Airia. While I use my desk in standing position about 30% of the time, the need for adjustable height was more about getting a good ergonomic sitting position and not being tied to whatever the default height might have been. Sometimes I also use it with a stool instead of my regular desk chair to mix it up, but I digress. I wanted a smaller desk which is surprisingly hard to find when you’re looking at these sit/stand desks. Everything out there tends to be 60 or 72″ wide and I only wanted one 48″ wide. I need space for my 5K iMac and that’s it. I also didn’t want a desk that looked like it belonged in the office so it needed to have a nice wood top. I ended up finding the Humanscale Float desk, but sold by Room & Board which puts their own nice walnut top on it. Definitely pricey but I couldn’t be happier with this desk.
Buy Now$2,500
Eames lounge chair and ottoman
I don’t think this one needs much explanation. I’ve had my eye on this Eames lounge chair and ottoman ever since learning about all things Eames in an industrial design class in college about a decade ago. There are numerous Eames lounge chair variations now but I opted for walnut and vincenza leather. While I tend to prefer to grain style of palisander, it varies considerably between chairs and you could end up with one that looks pretty much solid brown with no visible grain.
Buy Now$5,000
