Team Larabee’s Quintessential Tools
Oftentimes, immersive learning for actions and skills cannot happen without tools. The more proficient you become, the more those tools become an extension of who you are.
Our team came together to discuss what products and tools we have come to depend on most — the things we feel sorely without when they’re not readily accessible. These range from physical objects to digital platforms that either enable us to maximize certain aspects of our daily lives or just bring us so much joy. What they share is quintessence: to us, they are the platonic ideal of what that thing should be. Nothing more, nothing less.
Grace
Interests: Cooking, Parenting, Piano, Flute, Yoga, Swimming
Victorinox Paring Knives: Growing up, my Dad would go to Switzerland a few times a year for work and would always bring back three things: cocoa dusted chocolate truffles, florentine cookies, and Victorinox serrated paring knives. My parents were constantly giving them away to friends, and would always have to stock up on more. I keep a stack of six at home that I use throughout the day. I also travel with one if I’m going on a long trip or vacation, and buy sets of them as gifts for friends and family (who are all converts). In Korean culture, you’re never supposed to give a knife as a gift, because it symbolizes cutting off ties, so if the recipient is Korean I ask them to give me a penny as “payment.”
Stila Eyeliner. This has been my go-to eyeliner for fifteen years. I much prefer liquid to pencil because it doesn’t tug on the skin, which is so important. Eyelid skin is 4X thinner than facial skin, so you have to be as gentle as possible with it. Also, Stila eyeliner doesn’t budge. I had it on when I was delivering my first child through a 3-hour marathon, and at the end of it all it hadn’t moved a bit, whereas I was a totally different person.
Kindle Reader: I have a very basic reader that’s over ten years old. It has limited features and is encased in a blue binding that’s as frayed at the edges as my most loved book. I love being able to read late at night in the dark, next to one of my sleeping kids. If I lost it, I would replace it in a day, which is something I can’t say for any other product I own that’s over $20.
Chopsticks: When I’m cooking or eating, I’m rarely without a set. Aside from steak, there’s almost nothing I’d rather use a fork for when I could be using chopsticks, including salad and pasta dishes. The interesting thing is that different Asian cultures have strong opinions about each other’s chopstick shapes (i.e. the slender, pointier Japanese chopsticks versus the longer Chinese chopsticks with blunt ends), but all my non-Korean friends seem to universally dislike Korean metal chopsticks. I get it: they’re slippery and harder to use, but they have their own elegance and utility.
Dexter Russel Diamond Sharpener: When it comes to sharpening chef knives and parallel parking a sedan, I can confidently say, “Put me in, Coach!” In culinary school, I learned that if you were to put a chef’s knife under a microscope, you’d see that the edge of the blade has teeth like a saw. A honing steel might align those teeth, but in order to sharpen a dull blade you have to remove some of the metal to create a new edge. A proper chef will whip out a whetstone and sharpen a knife with exaction. I am not a proper chef and also inherently lazy with tools, but I will insist on a sharp knife in my kitchen. This is why I have relied on my Dexter-Russel for years, as it both hones and sharpens.
Maarten
Interests: Epidemiology and virology, coding, cooking
Gaming Laptop. I currently use an MSI, but Razer also makes solid products that I’ve used in the past. I love it because it can handle anything I throw at it. It’s lightweight but still has the amount of horsepower you’d expect from a work station. All of the AI work we do nowadays requires gaming graphics cards.
Seaco Espresso Coffee Machine. I have had insomnia for years, so I rely on really good coffee. Saeco is exactly what it’s supposed to be. You put coffee beans in, you tell it what you want the drink to be, and it does it for you. Simple and easy. I also splurge on good beans from Hawaii.
Photoshop. What can I say that hasn’t already been said about Photoshop? There are always going to be little graphics changes you need to make when you’re building something. I use Photoshop all the time.
VS Code. This is an open source IDE made by Microsoft. It’s fast and it works really well. It’s a notepad on steroids.
Kindle. I have an older Kindle that I haven’t seen any reason to upgrade. I love it because it has the same feel for my eyes as a normal book, and if I’m traveling I don’t need a separate suitcase to hold all my books. I generally read a bunch of books at once. Right now I’m reading Accelerando, Black Summoner, The Art of War, Why I Am Not a Christian, Glass House, and Halting State.
Shara
Interests: Parenting, Travel, Cooking, Pilates
Apple iPhone: I know it sounds like a bit of a no-brainer, but the iPhone plays a supporting role in almost everything I do. With three kids, the family calendar tells me where everyone needs to be, and until Larabee launches it’s consumer-facing platform I am always using Google Chrome to search and save recipes. It’s the ultimate assistant.
Yeti Water Bottle: After I had my first child 13 years ago, I was trying to get back to a place of health and wellness. One of the small changes I made was to drink 8 cups of water per day, and it’s stuck ever since. I’m never without this water bottle, and I never leave home without it. I love the way it feels in my hand and how it keeps my water cold. And look at that color!
Dyson AirWrap: What I love about this product is that it gives me a put-together look that’s on par with what a professional blowout would do, but with speed and convenience. I depend on it daily, but will be the first to admit that the learning curve was steep and arduous. My sister-in-law first told me about the Dyson Airwrap when it came out, and that it was worth the investment in terms of time and the energy it saves. I pulled the trigger, and can happily say that after watching dozens of Youtube and TikTok videos I got to a place where I could use it with ease. But this is one of those things where I think, “You need Larabee.”
King Arthur Bread Flour: I identify as a person who loves cooking and baking, but in truth the only thing I bake is challah, which I do every Friday for Shabbat dinner. I use a recipe that has been passed down from generation to generation, and it’s been modified to include both all purpose and bread flour, but it’s mostly bread flour. I’ve tried other brands in a pinch, but King Arthur’s brand produces the most reliably good end result, and plus I just love the company.
Alastin Tinted Moisturizer: Everything in my life has to be optimized for speed and simplicity, but that doesn’t mean I’m going to leave the house looking like I’m fleeing the country. This moisturizer is the only makeup I wear on a day-to-day basis. It’s hydrating, it has SPF in it, it evens my skintone, and it’s lightweight so it never feels like I’m wearing anything at all. What more do you need?
Chris
Interests: Designing and Building Things, Cooking, History, Science, Philosophy, Theology, Biblical Studies, Writing Science Fiction (see Divide By Zero)
Balsamiq Wireframes: While I can be productive in Figma and other tools, I can imagine something new without friction in Balsamiq. Lack of features be damned! I just love doodling. I designed my Cabin in Maine using this tool and just as easily designed two mobile apps and supporting strategy just in the last six months. It's my thinking tool!
Weber Grill with Lump Charcoal: Don't be fooled by another BBQ kettle! You can do it all on this baby. It only fails you at scale. That's why you might need to borrow several for a big smoke. I also throw apple wood chips directly onto the lump charcoal for a sweet bark. Spending hours at the Weber just invites time with friends and family. No one hardly notices the added aroma of a Nicaraguan cigar adding to the fragrance of properly smoked meat. Gas grilling is for veggies, so it has its place.
MacBook Air: I once had a MacBook Pro for nine years! It's only drawback? Weight. Happy to say that problem was solved with my latest MacBook Air. Plenty of punch and does everything I want. I don't even think about it.
Asana: Need to properly run your company, department, teams or projects? No more Jira! We can collaborate and track a lot of stuff that needs transparency and accountability. Adding custom fields and automation is just gravy! The must have tooling for any leader!
Milwaukee Cordless Tools: I left a battery outside to endure a Maine winter (actually in the toolbox of my utility trailer). In the Spring, it still had enough charge for a day of activity! That's crazy. We couldn't get power to our cabin build last year but never required a generator until the very end. Still, by far, the most amazing power tools I have used. Very light, powerful and fairly quiet.
There is a lot you can tell about a person by what products they defer to the most. What are the five quintessential tools you would not want to live without? Next time you’re with friends or family, as them the same question.
