Karen Gilbert and Paul Pavlak founded the lighting and accessories company SkLO 10 years ago with design partner Pavel Hanousek.
The trio have a new trade showroom in Healdsburg, and their designs are produced at a glassblowing facility in the Czech Republic. As with Gilbert and Pavlak’s home in Sebastopol, the focus of the company’s designs is on subtlety and process, paring back shapes to their essence while layering in vibrant color.
Handblown pendant lights and sconces, jewel-colored vases and vessels, and elaborate glass-beaded wall art installations (a nod to Gilbert’s background in jewelry design) are staples of the SkLO lineup. The trio’s designs, with their deep Sonoma County roots, are now found in high-end restaurants and hotels around the world.
Early on, the three founders felt compelled to put every dollar they made straight back into each next project. But as they found their design footing, the company expanded.
This year the designers introduced beautiful fluting and frosted options into the line. They soon will add new designs for furniture and tabletop accessories.
“I feel like we’re finally making what we want to make, versus what we had to make,” Gilbert said. “You go through a phase in design where you’re just trying to put the pieces of the puzzle together and make something that people want. And then, once you start to learn the language, you can create combinations of beautiful thoughts and processes together. I think we’re finally at that phase where we have a language we can speak in.
707-385-2101, sklo.com
Peek inside the home of SkLO owners Karen Gilbert and Paul Pavlak in this article.