Designer Profiles Features

ALYSON O’CONNOR
Rust Belt Love
@rustbeltlove

Aesthetic of the Line? We elevate the everyday by connecting people through heart-centered letterpress stationery and gifts. Our timeless, heirloom creations create quiet moments. In a fast-paced, technology-driven world, we remind people of the beauty of slow living.

Current Bestseller? This card, part of our original 2020 launch, continues to be our bestseller to date!

Personal Favorite? This card, mostly because Father’s Day doesn’t usually get much love! But also because male Emperor penguins look after their babies, so it’s perfect for dads.

Surprise Hit? Sympathy and empathy cards comprise much of our line, but this is our all-time, second bestseller. The sentiment is universal, so anyone who’s experienced loss connects with it.

Iconic Selection? Our new heirloom gifts! One is a “line a day” memory book, the other, a family recipe box. Both forever capture the handwriting of a loved one.

Favorite Color? A deep, dark green. One of the more dramatic colors we feature, I never get sick of it.

Current Design Obsession? The idea of modern heirlooms — and how that translates to our corner of the design world. Traditionally, heirlooms are furniture or jewelry, but what if we. started simple? What if it’s a card with your mother’s handwriting, your grandmother’s box of family recipes, or daily memories of the first five years of your child’s life, handwritten in a beautiful journal — and gifted to them when they become a parent? Keepsakes that fit in a drawer, that endure for generations and provide a tangible connection to who and where we come from — that’s something you can’t replicate digitally.

Favorite Flower? Buffalo has a VERY brief peony season in May, but it’s my favorite part of spring! There’s just something so joyous and hopeful about a giant flower that grows on a bush, often too big and heavy to hold itself up. It’s like they’re saying, please take me inside and put me in a vase, I don’t belong out here. I can appreciate that!

Favorite Indulgence? Fancy restaurants, but probably for all the wrong reasons. Like, small plates, the more pretentious the better, and please serve me something I can’t recognize. Once, in Austin, a waiter spent a solid six minutes explaining how the roasted beets had been buried under smoldering coals overnight. I can’t remember how they tasted, but my brother and I talk about it to this day. I love the whole ambiance, theater and experience of it.