The Evolution of Sunside & Co

During the summer of 2015 I took a glassblowing class where I went to school at Massachusetts College of Art & Design. The course only lasted a week but it was one of the most memorable learning experiences I’ve ever had. One of my teachers was Alix Defabbia-Kane, founder of AED. Our interaction was brief but the impression was lasting. We never really saw each other after the class ended. Thanks to instagram I remained an avid fan of the work she continued to produce.

Fast forward to 2020 when we realized that we’re practically neighbors in one of the smallest towns in Queens. Also thanks to instagram, Alix noticed the exact location of where I was posting pictures. The pandemic had found both of us at a pretty unfortunate time of questioning (in my case doubting) the next step in our careers. We met from time to time, loosely spit balling ideas of what the hell we were both going to do. As a florist, I always need a vase. As a sculptor, Alix builds just that. In an effort to redirect my path in floristry away from mass-produced/imported vases, toward a more sustainable means of designing, we worked together to design a line of ‘florist-ready’ vessels.

Pleased with the result of the ceramics production and in the true fashion of creatives- we were ready for more. Alix is a professional in the glass blowing industry and invited me to assist her in the hot-shop. I was rusty but fortunately for me Alix is an absolute NATURAL as an educator, and her skills as a gaffer are astounding. We messed around with different shapes and sizes, ultimately landing on a delightful bubble-shaped bud vase.

If you were to tell us a few months ago that we would be where we are now, we would have burst into laughter. But here we are; in the studio at Brooklyn glass every week working on our own line of handmade glass vases. We established the Bliss St. collection (named after our stop on the 7 train) with the intent of offering a small-batch of holiday gifts. We soon found ourselves overwhelmed with support and decided to take the work in a more professional direction. That’s when Sunside & Co was established.

Our glass is currently stocked in multiple stores across the 50 states and even Italy. We pop up in both trade and retail shows as often as we can. We’ve had the pleasure of working with some incredible designers to fabricate their creative direction in glass. The vessels I use for weddings, events, and deliveries are exclusively made by Sunside & Co. I always used to dream about a 1005 handmade table, and thanks to Alix that dream is now a reality.

It has been nothing short of an honor to work along side Alix in this endeavor. I feel incredibly fortunate to have the opportunity not only to do what I love, but to create with someone I genuinely admire as an artist and a person. The fact that we are neighbors also satisfies my childhood dreams of being neighbors with a friend. To anyone who has ordered from us or supported us by any means along the way, we offer our endless thanks. We look forward to the future creating more together, so stay tuned.