What's Your Tech Setup? The Dye Lab

By Kate Pruitt (from Design Sponge) on November 1, 2011

Last summer Grace, Amy, and I decided to create a Design*Sponge newspaper as a fun spur-of-the-moment project. We worked with some amazing freelancers, and two people we can't thank enough are Alanna MacGowan and Tonya Douraghy of The Dye Lab. Based in New York and Seattle, respectively, Tonya and Alanna collaborate cross-country from one another, but they manage to work together seamlessly to produce awesome looking designs for print and web . Today their sharing their at-home work setups and the tech gear they use to stay connected, creative, and efficient. They've got some great advice on hardware and software for designers, and it's such a treat to see their desks side by side. Thanks for sharing, ladies!

Tonya and Alanna both pick their sewing machines as a beloved piece of hardware. What's your favorite non-computer related hardware?

Where do you live and what do you do for work?

Alanna: I'm a designer and educator based in Seattle, Washington. I'm lucky enough to co-direct The Dye Lab with my best friend and esteemed colleague, Tonya Douraghy. I have a fun job.

Tonya: I'm a visual communication designer based in New York. I spend my days working in magazine design; nights and weekends in Brooklyn collaborating at The Dye Lab, the design studio I co-direct with Alanna MacGowan.

What hardware/software do you use regularly?
Alanna: Hardware: My 17" MacBook Pro is my go-to workhorse. I joined the iPhone camp a little late in the game, but now I'm shamelessly hooked. I wear my Suunto watch religiously. And I'd be remiss not to mention my Canon T1i, LaCie external hard drives (2tb + 500gb x2), Wacom tablet, magic mouse and Native Union Pop Phone Handset. Man, I love that thing. Software, in no particular order: Mac OSX, Adobe CS, Lightroom, Text Edit, Chrome, Coda, Font ExplorerX, Dropbox. And all things google.

Tonya: Hardware: MacBook Pro, iPhone 4, LaCie hard drives, Wacom tablet, Singer sewing machine, Etymotic earphones, sketchbook + pens, and my glasses and watch. Software: Adobe CS, Dropbox, Mac OSX, Coda, FontExplorer X.

What's your favorite piece of hardware/software?
Alanna: Hardware: It's a toss-up between my Husqvarna Viking sewing machine (this thing is all about levers and knobs -- no fancy digital bells and whistles) and my watch. Software: Alan Oliver. Hands down. For his magical technological genius.

Tonya: Hardware: My analog record player. It's older than I am and still works (almost) perfectly, which doesn't hold true for most digital tech products. Software: Coda, for completely turning around my web design and coding workflow.

Alanna's well organized desk above; Tonya's laptop and inspiration-filled workspace below.

What do you take with you when you travel?

Alanna: When I travel home to visit my family in California, I usually take work with me, so: My Macbook Pro, iPhone, Canon T1i, a hard drive or two, Etymotic noise-canceling earphones, a sketchbook, my grey Le Pen and my Suunto watch. If it's a proper holiday, I try my best to unplug, which for me means: iPhone, Canon T1i, Etymotic noise-canceling earphones, a sketchbook, my grey Le Pen and my Suunto watch.

Tonya: My iPhone and Etymotic noise-canceling earphones. Sketchbook and pen. It's all I need, really. I don't like to work when I travel, so I pack like a minimalist.

What's on your tech wishlist?

Alanna:

27" apple thunderbolt display -- For its color accuracy, its beauty and because every other display pales in comparison
iPad 2 (or whatever version is available when this wish is granted), for its incredible convenience and so I can Skype with my nephew without squinting.
Wacom Inkling, for streamlining the process of going from paper to pixel.
Canon 5D MkIII, an upgrade from what I have now. It's not available yet, but it'll be the one to beat.
Playbutton, because buttons are great, but buttons that play music are better. And because it harkens back to my childhood love of the Pocket Rocker, which taught me classic hits like: Walk Like an Egyptian and La Bamba. I'd like to get my hands on a Pocket Rocker.

Tonya:

Wacom Inkling. A simple yet seductive solution for how to work seamlessly between paper and pixel.
iPad 2, for portability and accessibility.
iPad 2 book jacket from A.P.C. Nice raw denim material and clever design.
iPhone case, with a lovely crystal pattern designed by RoAndCo, one of my favorite studios.
Nikon D700 with a set of Nikkor lenses and a carbon fiber tripod, and while we're at it, a vertical grip for the D700. I've been hunting for a great digital SLR for ages and this is it.
Fuji Feather Bicycle. This might be stretching the definition of tech a bit much, but I'm so taken with this light-weight bit of functional gorgeousness.

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Design*Sponge is a daily website dedicated to home and product design run by Brooklyn-based writer, Grace Bonney. Launched in August of 2004, Design*Sponge features store and product reviews, sale and contest announcements, new designer profiles, trend forecasting and store/studio tours. In addition, Design*Sponge features a unique section dedicated to covering student design, national and international design shows. The site is updated constantly throughout the day (with an average of 6-10 posts a day), and attracts a core group of devoted readers. Design*Sponge currently has over 60,000 daily readers. As a Contributing Editor at Design Sponge, artist Kate Pruitt shares DIY projects each Wednesday. Kate lives in Oakland, California and has a background in art/art history and recently left her job creating window displays to pursue her own work full time. Growing up in New Hampshire, Kate spent a lot of time building machines out of paper and scotch tape, and thus discovered her first DIY impulses.

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