Ed Ngai
Ed Ngai is a creative focused on making products and content that evoke a sense of belonging at home. Based in Brooklyn, NY, he recently founded a new venture, Nigh Collective.
Last year, we sent a small Elio lamp to Ed Ngai's beautifully layered, Brooklyn loft and have since enjoyed following the lamp as it travels through different nooks in the home. Ed's Instagram hosts videos of his space, often featuring him with a mic and soft reassuring voice, offering insightful commentary on his home, furniture and objects, full of real learnable and actionable ideas. He presents an interesting overlap of our time - as creative and creator, navigating media and audience, all through the lens of decorating. We asked Ed about his home, life and practice and he answers, as in his videos, with matter-of-fact honesty and relatable, inspiring thought.
“I find a lot of joy in experiencing life as it is, imperfections and all”
Utharaa: Would you rather be in bad architecture with great, personalized decor OR in great architecture with terribly bland decor?
Ed: It’s always a delicate balance but I’d choose bad architecture, with personalized decor. Looking back at the places I’ve called home in the past, I have rarely had the chance to prioritize architecture, but have always been able to make spaces feel cozy. Even if that means a small dorm room shared with two others. I also view 'amazing architecture' as something that’s relatively inaccessible, but haven’t felt that it’s been a barrier to making a place a home. Though I’d love to have an Eichler home or build my own house one day, I think decor makes all the difference.
“I think decor makes all the difference.”
Utharaa: Tell us about your creative practice, was it harder to start than sustain it? Is it your work or your art?
Ed: Starting is definitely harder in my opinion. It requires a lot of mental effort to start not only viewing yourself as a “creator”, but to present yourself as such to the public, which can be a pretty scary experience. There’s a lot of little hurdles to climb like self-doubt and getting comfortable with failing in public.
Once I got past those, it became really rewarding from a creative standpoint. Sustaining and growing an audience of course comes with its own challenges, but having a consistent feedback loop can lead to some cool output as a creator. At this point it’s a lot of balancing what the audience wants to see and what I want to express organically. In that sense, it feels like a bit of work and art at the same time.
Utharaa: What do you most look for in the objects you chose?
Ed: I think I’m first drawn by the object itself, as is. Whether I’m scrolling on Instagram or walking by it in a store, there needs to be enough substance upfront - Sort of like the cover of a book. Past that, the story or design thinking that goes behind it is what really engages me and makes me appreciate objects.
“I’d say it’s semi-soft”
Utharaa: Would you say you are soft? Is your home soft?
Ed: I’d consider myself soft in that I enjoy slowness and value empathy in daily life. I find a lot of joy in experiencing life as it is, imperfections and all. In terms of my home, I’d say it’s semi-soft. As someone who sort of struggles to express certain feelings through words, I find that my home has been an avenue for some of that. As a result, it can feel a bit loud at times.
Utharaa: What do you wish was different?
Ed: I wish that it’d be easier to rest. It feels like activeness is the default state of life these days, to the point where I have to actively prioritize rest.
