Custodian
Trained as a sculptor at Rice University, Brooklyn-based designer Erin Rouse came to see the formal potential of one of the humblest of objects in our homes: the broom. She first studied broom-making while working in the studio of lighting designer Lindsey Adelman, who sponsors extra-curricular coursework for her employees. Rouse sought out an esteemed traditional broom-maker, who taught her the basics. Now, using centuries-old broom-making techniques, natural fibers, and natural dyes, Rouse creates quotidian works of singular beauty — that will also get rid of your dust bunnies. “They’re wonderfully low technology,” says Rouse, a self-identified Luddite. “Broom technology hasn't evolved much since the 1800s. But they’re endlessly interesting.” Rouse says she generally refrains from offering her clients advice on how to sweep best, but does offer one idiom — variously attributed to Shakers and other sensible cultures around the world: “A new broom sweeps clean,” she says, ”but an old broom knows the corners.” Our take: A new Custodian broom, made in the old way, will do best.
Meet all our makers