Virginia Sin of SIN

In 2006, multidisciplinary designer Virginia Sin left Los Angeles and its “way better tacos” to make a name for herself in New York. With her collections of overalls, small rocks, and medium-sized succulents in tow, the founder of SIN set up a ceramic studio in Greenpoint and developed her first line, the Gluttony Collection of porcelain tableware, which is now in the permanent collection of the New-York Historical Society.

Continually working to broaden her design horizons, Sin has more recently focused her attention on redefining ceramic coils, translating graphic designs into weave structures, and challenging the limitations of clay in the lighting industry. Below, she shares some of her formative moments and current work.

As a kid, what did you answer when asked, “What do you want to be when you grow up?”
When I was 4 or 5, my mantra was “You are not the boss of me.” My dream job at the time was to be an ice cream scooper, because I thought serving ice cream would be the same thing as delivering pure joy and happiness.

Who are three designers you follow on Instagram?
Axel Vervoordt, Kelly Wearstler, and Jeremiah Brent

What is your design philosophy?
Our mission at SIN is to spread warmth and happiness by infusing delight and function into everything we create.

Give us some context about where you live: How long you’ve been there and how does it influence your work?
I’ve been in the Williamsburg neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York, for 17+ years, living through the various transformations.

Was there a moment when you realized you wanted to be a designer? 
I was probably 5 or 6 years old. I had no idea what graphic design, let along typography design, was, but I distinctly remember a page in my sketch book where I had sketched out what I titled “The A’s of the World.” LOL. It was definitely a child’s exploration into designing typefaces, and I’m pretty sure I have this artifact laying around somewhere. It’s funny because I ended up majoring in graphic design in design school.

What’s now?
I just returned from a 10-day trip to the magical land of Japan. It was incredibly inspiring, and I can’t wait to see how that impacts my future collections.

What’s next?
My short-term goal is to design a hotel located in a warm or desert environment. The hotel would be my way of expressing what I imagine the World of SIN to look like.