NANAI

NANAI designs and furnishes homes that support connection to people, the planet and ourselves. We believe that a rich inner life is a life well-lived.

Home goods + good homes.

09/01/2026

The first six months of NANAI have changed our lives.

Our apartment office is lined with shelves and packaging material. Dinner takes longer than usual because I’m painstakingly taking photos of greda with my limited camera skils. We learned how to file sales taxes.

It’s changed the shape of our days. We’re on the phone with artisans, daily. We’re out in the community meeting with collaborators and sharing our wildest ideas out loud because, as we say, “dreaming is free.”

So much care goes into this little business, from the artisans in Chile, the friends and family who help pack shipments, and from Felipe and me, who are continuing to dream and design for the future. Thank you for being here with us.

X Cass

08/21/2026

Greda, à la Mode (a haiku)
Sultry late summer
A creamy, frozen reprieve
Cradled cold in clay.

Our greda pottery is oven- and flame-proof – and it also keeps things cold. We just added bundled bowls to the shop, making it a little easier to start your own stack.

08/05/2026

Past is present — and future — in this adaptive reuse project.
Geodesic domes may visually read as futuristic, but they actually take a page from history here Western North Carolina. At Black Mountain College in the 1940s, architect Buckminster Fuller developed and refined the dome concept as part of his vision for “doing more with less” to solve global housing and resource crises.
That spirit of retrofuturism, of looking back to look forward, is the inspiration to our approach for the redesign of this property in the heart of downtown Old Fort. The existing structure, an old brick house, will become the main building of a boutique lodging experience, with a lobby, lounge spaces, and sauna.
We’re now entering the next stage of design, translating ideas into layouts, materials, and artistic details. More to come as the project takes shape.

07/22/2026

Artisanal craft has the power to change the way we see the world.

Because once you understand what craft is, you begin to see the life in everything.

07/13/2026

This moodboard is for the primary bedroom at Casa Catalpa. It’s the most personal example we have of how we design interiors.

We wanted to recreate the places and moments that felt sacred: cenotes in the Yucatán, incense curling through a room, moss underfoot, light moving across a courtyard in Barrio Italia. Then we let the feeling choose the objects, starting with the ones we already own. Great grandmother’s brass candlesticks. A handwoven textile from our travels.

Our process with clients always starts the same way. We ask how they want to live and feel in their space, what they love, what places live in their memory. The abstract — the feeling — is what shapes the interiors we pull together.

We want your space to feel unmistakably yours. Trends come and go. Belonging doesn’t.

07/06/2026

In a world that rewards speed and mass production, slow-made can sometimes feel radical.

Nibaldo, one of our artisan partners, shows us the process of making the redondo baker, before it even goes into the kiln for firing.

The tools are simple — a bottle for forming handles and a river stone for polishing. Hands, guided by generations of knowledge, do the rest.

06/29/2026

Our hearts are with Venezuela.

Like many of you, we’ve been following the devastating earthquake in Venezuela. Felipe and I have close friends from the country, and we’ve both experienced what it means to lose a home.

Through the end of July, NANAI will donate 20% of our profits to World Central Kitchen, whose teams provide fresh meals to communities affected by disasters. They were among the first aid workers to arrive when Hurricane Helene hit Western North Carolina.

We’ve also included several credible organizations providing relief on the ground, if you’d like to help directly. We’ve set up a Venmo for easy payments — just let us know where you wish to route your donation. We’ll report back, with receipts, in early August.

Illustration by Gabriela Acosta

06/22/2026

Just added: New table runners for your summer hosting. NANAI co-designed these gorgeous textiles our artisan partner, Cristina Blanco. They’re part of an exclusive, one-of-a-kind collection — so each one is a unique work of art, made to last. Get yours before it’s gone.

06/09/2026

Arrival is part of the story we wanted to emphasize in the design of this modern cabin. A cypress wood boardwalk leading to the entrance makes the approach an intentional moment.

The three-bedroom cabin rests lightly on the land. It’s elevated on wood posts, giving the sensation that it’s nearly floating above the forest floor. The structure settles into the landscape, allowing the terrain to remain the main character.

Swipe through for the renderings, floor plans, and hand sketches.

In process. Sandy Mush, NC.

06/07/2026

Nanai means comfort.
//
“Cuando el niño se sacó la chuch@, su mamá le hizo un nanai en la rodilla.”

Address

Asheville, NC
28801-06, 28810, 28813-16

Website

http://www.nanaihome.com/

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