I just visited Rare Device’s on-line shop and I plan to make a trip up to the South Slope store (open Wednesday through Sunday) at 453 Seventh Avenue between 15th and 16th Streets. The web site looks fantabulous and I saw just the thing for a friend’s 40th birthday present: a gorgeous necklace designed by the shop’s owner, Rena Tom.

A razor blade necklace by Brooklyn-based Analogous Jewelry also jumped out at me. Here are some details about Rena and her very cool shop. And don’t forget to check out Rena’s blog. That’s how I found the shop in the first place.

What is Rare Device?

If you are an English major or an English teacher, you know that ‘Rare
Device’ is from Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s poem Kubla Khan. (If you are
a true bookworm, you know that Ray Bradbury took a stab at that phrase
too.)

Rare Device is, simply, good stuff for you and your home. Rena
Tom, the proprietress, has been designing jewelry on the West and East
coast for a couple of years, selling to stores and directly to happy
customers at shows. She was so inspired by all of the fabulous,
creative designers she met along the way, both in person and online,
that she decided she had to share her discoveries, and she opened Rare
Device in October 2005.

The studio/storefront is a place to promote these designers as well as
her own work. Every object in the store has its own story, and has been
chosen because it is either handmade, well-designed, useful, beautiful
or all of the above. The aesthetic is modern and quirky while remaining
warm and inviting.

Who’s in charge here?

Rena Tom has lived her entire life
in California until very recently. She has a background in both liberal
arts and engineering, not being put to very good use these days.
Previously, Rena was involved in the Internet world before deciding to
be crafty for a living. She used to own a ’67 Mustang Fastback and a
Kelsey printing press but has traded them in for snow boots and a
Metrocard. She loves fonts, ice cream, balls of yarn, broadband
wireless, grainy Holga photos, fancy chocolate bars, rickety
rollercoasters and abundant sunshine.

453 7th Avenue (between 15th and 16th Street)
Park Slope, Brooklyn, New York 11215
Hours: Wed – Sat, noon to 7pm; Sun, noon to 6pm