June 29, 2025, Stockholm
What makes a tool the best for the job?

Is it the one you enjoy most? The one that provides the most feedback? The one that's always within reach?

Should a tool offer preset knobs to tune? Or wires to assemble the tool yourself? Should a tool be uncompromising or modular? What balance is best suited to which tasks?

Can we make tools that do it all? [1]

How much time should a tool take to learn? When is a tool worth investing time in? How many tools should you own? Should you own tools for life?

Why did we start making tools? When does a task deserve a tool? Why are some tasks not worth tooling? How large should the audience for a tool be? How large should the tool be? How much should it cost?

Does a tool have to be the best?
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Every item we use is a tool. The apartments we live in, the clothes we wear, the phones we scroll with, the bikes we ride [2], the wrenches we crank, the tables we eat at, the chairs we sit in, the cutlery we use.

I've spent the past five (ten?) years of my life trying to find the best tools - investigating the works and practices of musicians, type theorists, architects, and governors - and I've ended up back where I started: thinking about what belongs in my bag every day, figuring out what I need most.

I want to understand what makes certain tools so ubiquitous, so infectious, so powerful and, along the way, make memorable tools of my own - for friends, for strangers, for mom, for you.
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If you're interested, let's chat. Text me.
Find me on are.na or Instagram otherwise.
Best,

Jake Chvatal
  1. The electric guitar brilliantly accomplishes all three. The strings - the wires - are infinitely expressive; given loose structure by the frets, but open to any method of playing or tuning. The circuitry of the guitar exposes knobs, quick settings for gain and tone. The effect chain allows the player to design a guitar's sound, processing the audio signal with the purchase of pre-made circuits (more knobs) or developing their own.
    The user of an electric guitar, then, has many directions - knobs or wires - to expand their self-expression. ↩
  2. Bikes - single-speeds in particular - are some of our most refined tools. They improve your commute and structure motion into both exercise and entertainment. They're simple to repair, tune, and customize with 50 years of standardized parts. They're faster and more effective than subways or cars in most cities with effective public transportation.
    Bike to pick up your own delivery food, by the way. Don't pay more to deprive yourself of exercise. ↩