Meet Ovryn Design, Your New Favorite Hawai‘i Furniture Line

I loathe to admit that the Mainland has one up on Hawai‘i in any area. But I have to concede that it’s the clear winner when it comes to its wide assortment of furniture brands.

That makes it all the more special when I do come across a great Hawai‘i-based furniture label, such as Ovryn Design, with its simple, timeless aesthetic and dedication to detail and fine materials.

Furniture designer Danny Ovryn, Photo: Aaron K. Yoshino

Now, don’t get it twisted: Kapolei furniture maker Danny Ovryn is no rookie. The New York-transplant has been steadily handcrafting gorgeous pieces for his other furniture design company, Rust & Root, since 2016. He actually got his start in the industry as an apprentice for Martin & MacArthur master craftsman Doug Gordon.

In 2019, he launched Ovryn Design as a creative outlet. Most of his Rust & Root work had been custom orders that could take a month or more before they reached customers. With his younger label, he wanted to keep a consistent inventory of items in stock, ready for immediate delivery, so he carved out some time and built up an inventory focused around three key pieces.

Photos: Aaron K. Yoshino

The full-length Portal Mirror, available in white oak, monkeypod or koa, is a wall-leaning style with a sculptural feel. “I gave it a deep frame that mimics a door jamb. It looks like you can walk right through,” says Ovryn.

Crafted out of walnut with mango drawer fronts, the handsome Isle of Dresser takes cues from midcentury modern giant “George Nelson’s thin-edge line of cabinets.” And as for the crossed-leg Pedestal style, “influenced by a lamp sketch by Pennsylvania woodworker George Nakashima,” it can work as a slender side table or a display or plant stand.

Photo: Aaron K. Yoshino

Shop all three at Ovryn Design’s pop-up, happening this weekend at Kaiao Space, the Sig on Smith gallery in Chinatown. Ovryn will also be offering a variety of special, one-of-a-kind pieces, including live-edge monkeypod tables and desks, small cabinets and sculptures, available for purchase via online auction.

You can even snap up some chic jewelry from Keiko Akamine, Ovryn’s partner and designer-owner of local label YuMono.

Kaiao Space, 1020 Smith St. Pop-up shop hours: Friday, Sept. 16 through Saturday, Sept. 17, 10 a.m. to 10 p.m., Sunday, Sept. 18, noon to 6 p.m. ovryndesign.com, @ovryndesign