A design showroom with an eye on L.A.
From a corner of Santa Fe Avenue and East 3rd Street, interior designers Kristan Cunningham and Scott Jarrell have had a special vantage point from which to observe the drastic changes happening in the downtown Arts District since they opened Hammer and Spear in March 2013.
Nearly two years later, Cunningham and Jarrell took the leap from occupying 1,500 to 6,000 square feet on the ground floor of a historic brick-clad building opposite SCI-Arc and the newly completed mixeduse One Santa Fe development. Hammer and Spear reopened in March with room to accommodate broader inventory along with offices for their busy interior design firm.
“The more time we spent here and met more amazing people,” Cunningham explained, the showroom “became more representative of L.A.-based designers” and less about being vintage-focused. “We want to help support all these artists we believe in,” she noted. That includes Arts District resident Jonn Coolidge, who once mentioned he makes ceramics when he can find time between his professional photography assignments. Cunningham and Jarrell work closely with local makers such as (Wh)ore Haüs Studios by Meyghan Hill, a model-turned-welder. Designer Sabin Ousey’s Sabin furniture is another favorite, with many of his pieces integrated into the shop’s intensely neutral palette.
The store’s antique display surfaces and new shelving are stocked with an array of otherwise hardto-find apothecary items, stationery, barware and edible goods. Some constants remain as Hammer and Spear continues to expand, however. Whether it’s finding a new home for 1980s Gae Aulenti sofas and chairs, stocking a line of grooming products, or championing work by emerging local talents, “We take the storytelling seriously,” Cunningham said.