Gwen Weinberg: Head Designer and owner of Three by Three Seattle

Gwen Weinberg is Head Designer and owner of Three by Three Seattle, a  design manufacturing company specializing in modern organizational products. Gwen believes that useful objects should be equally  functional and pleasing to the eye, and  incorporates bold colors and minimalist shapes into her product designs. First trained in  bookbinding and jewelry making in the early 90s, Gwen merged her two skills into what would become a nationally recognized line, consisting of metal-clad books and bookmarks. Three by Three Seattle evolved from there, with metal a consistent material throughout, and innovative material applications a consistent theme.

Best known for powder coated magnetic products, including the first Magnetic Strip Bulletin Board, Three by Three Seattle is now broadening its line with a wide range of wall-mounted and desktop dry erase boards. Continuing the theme of innovation in material application, the company has recently developed a patent pending  bamboo dry erase surface, offering a beautiful and eco-friendly alternative to whiteboards.

Keeping with the same rules that I applied to the other interviews in this series, I asked Gwen to tell us about three of her favorite office supplies, with the caveat that only one could be a product that her own company makes and/or sells.  Gwen was very generous with her time and supplied some great pictures and background into her love of office supplies and the specific products that she really enjoys.  Lets take a look at the office supplies that Gwen picked as her favorites.

Gwen’s desk, complete with her favorite office supplies, and maybe her one of her favorite websites on the computer there?

1. My current personal fave product in our line is our bamboo desktop To-Do Board; I have two on my desk at work and one in my home office. The board has a dry erase surface, so it allows you to write and rewrite lists and notes, jot ideas, numbers. etc. It’s eco-friendly not only because it’s made with bamboo, but it decreases the need for paper notepads as well. I love it too because now I never lose my list of things to do beneath other piles of paper! I have one dedicated to short terms tasks, which also serves as my quick-idea jotting spot, and another with my ongoing long-term list. It was very easy to integrate them into my personal organizational system; now I can’t imagine not having them. We’ve recently introduced another product, a big brother to the To-Do board called the Tablet – it’s about twice the size of the To-Do, and is great for making drawings and diagrams.

2. I am on my laptop most of the day, and very much appreciate my laptop stand, not only holds my computer in a good position for typing and working, but also allows nice airflow beneath it so keeps it cool. I had been looking for one that was not bulky and could be portable, and finally found one that works really well for me: Targus Notebook Cooling Mobile X Notebook Stand.

3. I also really love my Swingline Soft Grip Hand Stapler with 20 sheet capacity.  This might seem funny, but it took me a long while to find a stapler I like! I was particularly picky about it bc I have a pet peeve about staplers that stick and don’t work well. I wanted a hand held one so I was a bit limited in my search… I also refuse to have anything that I look at every day all day be at all ugly, so mine had to have a nice design! (believe me, my search for the perfect stapler was laughed at here!) There are plenty of well designed and classic regular staplers, but for some reason, most of the hand held ones are u-g-l-y or made with materials I don’t like.   Love the one I found, works well, never sticks, I see it every day sitting on my desk and I never tire of its clean simple design.

Again, another big thanks to Gwen for participating in this series, and as she pointed out to me after seeing some of the other industry expert picks, staplers seem to be a very popular item that people focus on.  I can also tell you that based on the other people that I have spoken with, there are more staplers in our future, so be sure to come back next Tuesday to see what industry expert we will feature, and what essential office supplies they rely on every day.  Also, don’t forget to check out Three by Three Seattle on Facebook and on Twitter @3by3seattle.

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