About Us
Where the makers are the story.
Empyrean Roots,
is a shoppable editorial platform and curated marketplace for designers and makers across the diaspora. We tell the story behind the work: who made it, how, and why it matters. Then we make it easy to bring home.
Too much good work stays hard to find. It lands in beautiful rooms without the maker’s name, or never reaches the people who would love it most. ER exists to change that. Every piece here is chosen for its craft, its point of view, and the person behind it.
Read. Maker stories, studio visits, and ideas about living with good design, in On Craft and Culture and NOTES.
Shop. Some pieces are sold by us, and many are sold directly by the makers and studios we feature. Every listing tells you who you’re buying from.
Come back. New pieces, rooms, and makers arrive with each season.
Image Courtesy of Mickalene Thomas | Raquel with Les Trois Femmes, 2018
Our Mission
We built the home destination we always wished existed.
A shoppable meeting place where craftsmanship, culture and everyday function come together – curated entirely from Black makers and designers, for your space.
We have always poured deeply into our spaces, yet for too long, finding a wallpaper, a lamp, or a piece that truly reflects our culture meant waiting on a lucky magazine spread or a random scroll.
We decided to change that, by bringing every home category together in one place.
Our Founder
Empyrean Roots was founded by Ashleigh McKenzie, a designer and collage artist shaped by interiors, culture, and a lifelong pull toward thoughtful living. Raised with an appreciation for home as both foundation and expression, her work is grounded in creating spaces that feel layered, personal, and fully lived in.
With a background in design and a sharp eye for material and composition, Ashleigh approaches interiors as an exercise in balance -bringing together craft, story, and function in a way that feels both elevated and accessible.
What began as a personal shift toward more intentional environments has grown into Empyrean Roots: a living archive and marketplace for the home.
Join the Notes Set
A quarterly publication that gives a deeper dive on the Creatives we spotlight. A mix of the best sculpture, furniture, textiles, lighting and more from our community to your inbox. Available as a digital and physical journal.
Subscribe to the Newsletter
A selection of what has our eye and pockets stressed. Occasional opinions and commentary mixed in with what we are watching, eating and visiting. Not consistent with the timing so think of them as inbox surprises.
