Handbag Designer
The Ultimate Coworker
Barbara Materna
Katherine Gomez
Barbara Materna has always loved fiber, fashion and color. “It really has been a lifelong love affair,” she says. After a 20-year career as a technical writer Barbara followed her passion and started BABS, an artisan handbag collection. “It started as a hobby to balance my long work hours with my creative side,” Barbara says. Having discovered felted handbags at a local supplies store, she was inspired to construct her own creation. “I started with a pattern, wool and needles. When I was done with my first project, I knew it was more than a hobby. A passion was born,” she says. For the last six years, Barbara has been designing and creating handbags, one bag at a time. Her studio, located at the dynamic Hope Artiste Village, doubles as a retail boutique that features her awardwinning handbags. Ranging from colorful and eclectic to sophisticated and fun, BABS handbags combine fine structured details with unique fabrics such as felted wool and hand-painted canvas. A Foundry Artist board member, she has collaborated with Gail Solomon on the Jack + Cookie line and with Barbara Ottmar on Color POP. “I love the energy in our Creative Capital. It’s so rewarding to be inspired by it, and to contribute to it,” she says. 1005 Main Street, Pawtucket (Hope Artiste Village). 331-2301, BABSetc.com
Co-working – the idea of sharing office space – is popular in bigger cities, but it’s relatively new in Rhode Island. Red DWG Library is raising the bar. Katherine Gomez and her husband David recently moved from New York, and are innovating the idea locally. Red DWG provides shared working space where you can concentrate in peace and quiet, but thrive off the creative atmosphere. “It’s definitely not an office. It’s an art-filled lounge that is inspiring and focused,” she says. Think of it partly as a serene space to think and work, partly as a chic private club – but membership is more affordable than it sounds. Membership starts at just $75, and they also offer private rooms for companies with a small staff or organizations looking for a meeting space. “We wanted to raise the standard of co-working to a more focused, motivating and engaging atmosphere,” Kathy says. “We created this space with a high level of hospitality in mind.” Red DWG has a self-pay kitchen offering healthy food and tea at 2:30pm every afternoon. The most exciting part of this new project is, “meeting people with different backgrounds, interests and areas of expertise, and finding similarities and connections,” Kathy says. Their motto is ‘Purpose and Commitment.’ “We’re helping entrepreneurs and startups fulfill their goals and aspirations.” 413 Central Avenue, Suite 300, Pawtucket. 229-9526, RedDWGLibrary.com
all female Periodontal team Dr. Denise Shapiro & Dr. Danika Crabtree
“Periodontics is a combination of science and art,” says Denise Shapiro, D.D.S.,“and I was always interested in both.” A leading East Side periodontist for over 30 years, Dr. Shapiro was the first female periodontist in Rhode Island. “I have had the pleasure of mentoring dozens of female dentists,” she says. Dr. Shapiro helps patients repair their gums and save their teeth, even in cases that are difficult to diagnose. She is especially well known in Rhode Island and Massachusetts for her gum recontouring and connective tissue grafting. “I love interacting with patients,” she says, “and doing esthetic procedures that change their lives.” Dr. Shapiro has volunteered her services to orphan children in Bolivia, Cambodia and Vietnam. Staying at the top of her field means staying informed on dental innovations. “I’m always continuing to learn new surgical techniques to bring back to my patients,” Dr. Shapiro says. “We go the extra mile for them.” An important part of the stellar team that Dr. Shapiro has built is Danika Crabtree, D.M.D. Dr. Crabtree has been with the practice for three years. She has extensive training in dental implants, specializing in the esthetics of those procedures, as well as osteotome and lateral wall sinus lifts. As a periodontist, she brings her esthetic eye to the placement of implants, especially in the upper anterior area, which is the most difficult area to treat. Dr. Crabtree also performs extractions, including third molars, and
Denise Shapiro, D.D.S.
Danika Crabtree, D.M.D.
other non-surgical and surgical periodontal therapies. She and Dr. Shapiro also offer Botox and dermal fillers. “We’re a team dedicated to excellence,” Dr. Crabtree says. She is proud of the fact that she can invest so much in caring for her patients, and raise one-year-old twins with her husband at the same time. As she says, “We love helping and caring for people to be healthier and happier.” 40 Elmgrove Avenue, Providence. 401-421-1717, DeniseShapiroDDS.com
March 2017 East Side Monthly
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