330 Homes Fall 2022

s p a c e l i f t | d r e a m h o u s e | f r e s h d e s i g n | s m a r t t e c h

by LONDON GREEN and photos provided by DA'SHIKA A. STREET

GL OB A L LY I NSP I R E D Decor by Da’Shika A. Street tells cultural stories.

D a’Shika A. Street was seeking a way to help during the pan demic, and she was drawn to her sewing machine. She started Project Sew United in 2020 and then recruited other Black women displaced from work to make Centers for Disease Control and Prevention-approved face masks and partnered with Summit County Public Health and Project Ujima to distribute them. Street remotely taught women sewing and fell in love with teaching sewing and crafting. That prompted her to launch Da’Shika Street, an eponymous home goods company fea turing her sewn items and to open Street Craftery in downtown Akron in 2022 to host workshops that teach people how to hand craft art (see sidebar). Her home line combines different cultures she was exposed to while living around the world in places like Germany and New York. In a quiet, meditative space, she allows her creativ ity to flow in response to her surroundings, creating internation ally influenced pillows,

ge t t h e look

Da'Shika A. Street

blankets, aprons, ves sels, candles and more. “A lot of what I’ve made lately stems from a space of appreciation, spe cifically appreciating the Earth,” Street says. She prioritizes sustain able practices in her cre ative process, like using

spare materials to make new pieces. She also sources her fabrics inter nationally, often using Ankara fabrics, which are traditional African wax print fabrics. The vibrant, bold patterns tell stories of history and culture. “I try to infuse glob ally inspired or globally

derived fabrics into the products I make as a means of sparking conver sations and bringing cul tures together,” she says. “They really stand out and

bring focus to them.” Here are a few items that can add stories to your home.

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