Design Duo Handcrafts 3 Lighting Brands in Philadelphia 

Antiquing wasn’t the only passion Natalie Page of NPage Studio and Robert True Ogden of RTO Lighting had in common when they met by chance at the Golden Nugget Antique Flea Market in Lambertville, N.J. They are both accomplished artists; Page’s medium is ceramics (bowls and lighting) while Ogden’s specialty is metalworking and the ability to transform found vintage industrial objects into functional lighting.

At the time they met, Page owned a retail gallery specializing in hand-crafted items and enjoyed making ceramic vases, bowls, and other decorative pieces in her studio. Ogden had experience as a menswear designer as well as a product designer for the home décor company PHD Design.

While each continues to maintain their separate studios and product lines, they formed a joint venture – Lostine (pronounced loss-steen) – in 2011. Back then, PHD Design was closing its doors and the couple – who had since married – decided to pick up where PHD left off, but with a key difference. While PHD Design sourced its product line from eight countries – which required a lot of travel visiting the factories to check on production – Ogden and Page wanted to utilize handcraftsmanship from artisans closer to home. In short, their goal was to create a product assortment that could be manufactured domestically.

First stop: Pennsylvania’s ample lumber supply. They started Lostine with a line of kitchen cutting boards utilizing scrap wood from furniture factories. While Page and Ogden didn’t have the manufacturing capacity to produce every facet of their products themselves, they were acquainted with other local artisans who could help. They would then travel around the state to collect those component parts and then create their own designs in Philadelphia.

Soon the Lostine line expanded to include serving sets, salt and pepper mills, bar stools, and mirrors — all utilizing regional lumber. These days, Lostine has added pillows, blankets, hardware, artwork, accessories, and sculpture to its mix, along with lighting that is made by both Page and Ogden.

As the Lostine product assortment  grew – along with the demand for products from NPage and RTO – Page and Ogden needed a larger workshop, and to add employees.    

Currently Lostine, RTO and NPage share a workshop, warehouse, showroom and studio inside the Arena Arts and Design building in Philadelphia. Out of the 100,000-square-foot building, half is devoted to the production of NPage Studio, RTO Lighting and Lostine products; the remaining 50,000 square feet is where the companies’ 60 artists can work on their own projects.   

And while Made in America products have garnered a lot of attention over the past several months due to tariffs, Page noted that from the very start, having their product made domestically was their founding principle. Textiles are sourced in the U.S., the leather comes from Pennsylvania, and the glass is blown in Pennsylvania and West Virginia. Having as much as possible produced locally has another benefit: “Our quality control is pretty tight here,” she added. 

The client list for NPage and RTO Lighting ranges from high-end residential and interior designers to custom work and hospitality projects.  For example, RTO was commissioned to create lighting fixtures measuring 40 feet diameter for American fashion brand Ralph Lauren’s runway shows.

Lostine’s customer base includes designers as well as consumers, who can shop online on the brand’s website.