We here at Lil’Stones pay our respects to the Boon Wurrung people, the traditional custodians of the land we live, work and play on.
How did Lil’Stones come to be?
Very slowly! About eight years ago we started to imagine a small, self-standing stone frame. We didn’t take it too seriously, mainly because the early results didn’t land well. It needed to be a meaningful canvas, or as someone said along the way—a considered way of presenting us with a memory of the world unbroken.
Why so little?
Small isn’t as easily embraced as big; In the size-wars BIG generally comes across as the appealing option in goods and services. Even in jewels it’s the bigger versions that attract the attention.
Without attempting to challenge this natural bias our plan for making a small frame was self-serving. Lil’Stones are not here to impress others they’re for self; Small little grounding stones that feed personal interests, loves and quirks. Owning a totem that speaks only to you, catching your eye as the world moves by – These are selfish little pyramids of wonder.
Bringing Lil’s to life.
Experimentation is one of the most challenging parts, for it can lead to something great, or nowhere. With leaps forward and steps back, slowly, a form was beginning to emerge. The standard format of a frame around a canvas didn’t translate well in smaller form—they looked trivial or maybe just out of balance. We kept tweaking, knowing stone held the answer. After running OnStone, the original stone printing business (onstone.com.au) for over 10 years we knew the lil’ moments in life needed a place to stand. Eventually, we found the right aesthetic and materiality. We baked them. We sanded them. We left them in a temperature-controlled room for a week. We sealed them, and finally, we printed on them.
Lil’Stones are simple, respectful and humble in their refined small statues. The slight angle has them smiling up with open faces for maximised viewing pleasure. The shape is called a frustum, or for the more visual – a flipped miniature Mayan Pyramid.
Along the way we’ve discovered that a thought comes to life through love, persistence, wonder and a heap of belief. Weirdly, every now and then we question our Lil’Stones place in the world—‘something else to fill the shelves,’ ‘more crud,’ but Lil’Stones have a job to do, a role to play in our lives. They’re the custodians of ‘nearly’ lost moments. They are for the individual, a small anchor of relevance in the ebb and flow of noise and fluff.
Ingredients: stone + ink = LIL’STONES
