Filed under: producer, product | Tags: clock, clocks, Contemporary Design, Cuckoo Clock, Design, designer, designer furniture, designers, Home, household, interior, interiors, pascal tarabay, products
Back in August we started a post with the words…. “If we’re honest we never, ever thought that we would write a post in praise of the cuckoo clock.”
And now we’re about to do it again.
Madness.
Italian clock manufacturer Diamantini & Domeniconi have a range of modern interpretations of the very much maligned and misunderstood cuckoo clock.
Our favourite is the absurdly kitsch Cucú by Pascal Tarabay – a wonderful interpretation of pastoral floral imagery.
We don’t own a cuckoo clock.
Cucú by Pascal Tarabay
may change that…..
Cucú by Pascal Tarabay (plus a wonderful Eames RAR)
Filed under: designer, producer | Tags: Contemporary Design, Design, designer, designers, dutch design, Home, Hoog en Droog, household, interior, interior design, interiors, Jephte Francissen, kitchen, plywood, product, products, storage, students, wood, wooden furniture
If there’s one thing that gets our goat – as in really gets our goat – it’s designers who create something fantastic, but then fail to properly tell the world.
The latest example is Hoog en Droog by Jephte Francissen
All we know is what MoCo loco and designspotter have on their sites.
And that is basically nothing.
Jephte Francissen it appears, has no web page, has no portfolio page, has never exhibited anywhere, was never at a college and is not on facebook.
Ergo- doesn’t exist.
We are enraptured by Hoog en Droog.
Only – what does it help when MoCo loco say “…the system features an ingenious hoist system…” How does it work, what do I need, what are the limitations etc, etc, etc… Harry we need to know.
Hoog en Droog by Jephte Francissen
is without doubt genius … just we can’t prove it 
But we will …. guaranteed 
Hoog en Droog by Jephte Francissen (photo via mocoloco.com)
Filed under: designer, producer, product | Tags: Chair, Contemporary Design, Design, designer, designer furniture, designers, droog, dutch design, furniture, Home, household, interior, interiors, kitchen, myhouseismycastle, product, products, Rag Chair, recycling, reuse, students, Tejo Remy, welsh students
One of the lesser known biospheres in Europe is the former inner-German border between Bavaria and Thüringen.
Affectionately known as the “Strip of Death”, the border area was a 1,400 Km long and 50 -200m wide forest and shrub landscape which for 40 years lay untroubled by human intervention.
And so within this strip of no-mans land between the East and West German barbed wire, a habitat developed that is unique on the European continent.
Something similar is happening in the back left corner of our bedroom.
A long, long time ago freshly laundered clothes were “stored” there until such time as we got round to properly placing them in the wardrobe. That day has never come, and so the clothes remain, untroubled by human intervention and quietly evolving in their own, natural way.
If we were clever we would turn them into furniture by now.
But we’re not .
Tejo Remy is.
And his Rag Chair for droog is simply brilliant.
A monument to the art of procrastination, each Rag Chair is uniquely assembled from 15 bags of treated rags held together by metal straps.
And of course you can also “personalise” your Rag Chair through the inclusion of your own, discarded textiles.
OK, we predict a few problem if, for example, you spill your beer on it … but don’t spill your beer on it. Then there’s no problems.
In terms of form Rag Chair is reminiscent of Amoebe by Verner Panton or Monopd by Jasper Morrison and provides just as comfortable a seat as both of those masterpieces. Perfect for watching telly in, socializing or simply relaxing with a beer – without spilling it!! – or whatever else the Dutch enjoy getting up to. Rag Chair is a wonderful,softening, addition to any room.
And unlike the pile of clothes in our bedroom, wont develop into a unique biosphere.
Rag Chair by Tejo Remy. droog, nuff said.
Rag Chair by Tejo Remy
by droog
The Dutch ... unstoppable
Filed under: designer, producer, product | Tags: Benjamin Hopf, Contemporary Design, Design, designer, designer furniture, designers, Don Camillo, Formagenda, furniture, german design, Home, household, interior, interior design, interiors, Lamp, lighting, lighting design. monks, myhouseismycastle, office furniture, product, products
As we all know, aside from Eritrean slaves and Greek mariners there was nothing the lions of ancient Rome enjoyed more to play with – and devour – than a monk.
On account of their ecclesiastic and industrious lifestyle the quality of the meat on your average monk is simply astounding.
And despite their reputations, lions are connoisseurs – sure they eat the odd raw gazelle, but only when there is nothing better on offer.
We don’t know if Benjamin Hopf likes monks, but we like his Don Camillo table lamp. A lot.
The current lighting market is awash, literally overflowed and drowning, in oh so intricate, oh so filigree designs that are meant to reflect on nature or bring a feeling of cohesion with our emotions into a room.
We just want something that works, doesn’t gather too much dust and is adjustable.
That Don Camillo does all these things – and looks good, passes wonderfully onto any desk is an absolute joy to behold.
In equal measure, we must question the sense and value of the wall and hanging varieties. Formagenda have such a good range of hanging and wall lamps, we really can’t see why they feel the need to go with the Don Camillo.
But the table version….
Don Camillo by Benjamin Hopf for Formagenda.
Brilliant.
Don Camillo by Benjamin Hopf for Formagenda...
... practical ...
... and wonderfully large...
Filed under: designer, producer, product, retailer | Tags: Design, Home, Lamp, product, products, designers, office furniture, designer, lighting, interior, interior design, interiors, Contemporary Design, household, Tulip.MGX, Peter Jansen, .MGX, 3d printing, magics, table lamp
The vast majority of us who buy and enjoy designer furniture probably can’t imagine the processes and technologies that often stand behind apparently simple objects.
Principally because we lack the technical competence to understand what is being done.
Once such process is 3D printing – and no that isn’t the same as double-sided printing
According to the Profs at wikipedia – and who are we to doubt them – “3D printing is a form of additive manufacturing technology where a three dimensional object is created by successive layers of material.” For the layman this means that a 3D image is “printed” using lasers fired at the material.
In terms of industrial and product design this means that extremely complicated pieces can be created as one piece without joints and seams and without needing to create moulds or joining different pieces together.
It’s quite simply a refined production method for specific products.
Tulip.MGX by Peter Jansen is part of the .MGX E-volution range, and is created by 3D printing.
Essentially an advertising range for Materialise and for all for their CAD software Magics (.mgx is the file extension for Magics), the .MGX E-volution range nonetheless does contain some highly attractive items.
The one that caught our eye was Tulip.
Not least because through the application of the 3D printing technology to create a copy of a natural product one creates not only something that looks like a tulip, but also which in its structure is just as delicate yet robust.
It resembles not only in form, but in structure.
Available in a range of colours and with either a woven or perforated flower, Tulip.MGX is a wonderful table lamp for any occasion.
Tulip.MGX by Peter Jansen for .MGX 3D printing lighting genius.
Tulip.MGX by Peter Jansen for .MGX
Filed under: designer, producer, product, retailer | Tags: british design, coat hook, coat rack, Contemporary Design, Design, designer, designer furniture, designers, furniture, Headspring, Home, household, interior, interior design, interiors, kitchen, london, london design, office furniture, product, products, Ribbon, storage
Somewhat inspired by yesterdays Sprout post – still lovin’ it – we spent most of yesterday evening searching out other new and interesting ways to hang coats, bags, scarves etc…
And ended up at Lovely Rita by Ron Arad for Kartell.
Sorry at Ribbon by London based design studio Headsprung.
And we mean that in positive way.
Lovely Rita is one of the most innovative and novel book racks on the market and Ribbon follows beautifully in this tradition.
And perhaps most importantly, as a handmade product, no two Ribbon units are identical.
Which of course passes perfectly to the artistic concept behind the realisation; namely a ribbon blowing in the wind.
Produced from powder coated mild steel and available in a choice of 5 colours, Ribbons can be wonderfully used in ahome or business location and is robust and hard wearing enough to survive regular daily use.
Ribbon by Headspring. Gorgeous.
More details and ordering information can be found at www.headsprung.co.uk
Ribbon by Headspring
... brilliant
Filed under: designer, producer, product | Tags: .03, bathroom, belgian design, belgium, Chair, Contemporary Design, Design, designer, designer furniture, designers, furniture, Home, household, interior, interior design, interiors, kitchen, Maarten Van Severen, office furniture, product, products, Vitra
If we’re honest the majority of the chairs currently being presented bore us … a lot.
Too much cleverness and not enough ingenuity.
Unfortunately.
And so every so often we scurry back into our comfort den which we have kitted out with wonders such as .03 by Maarten Van Severen for Vitra.
According to Vitra “The aesthetic trademark of .03 is its clear simple lines – the quintessence of the concept “less is more”. And we couldn’t agree more. Nor with their belief that only once one sits in the chair can one fully appreciate just how comfortable it is.
For what the .03 lacks in extravagant decoration it more than makes up for with it’s clever and well-concieved structure.
With it’s integrated triple layer leaf spring back support and durable, flexible integral foam seat the .03 is a comfortable and user-friendly chair for dining room, living room, office, bedroom, garage. Anywhere.
Maybe a few of today’s oh so clever chair designers should take a page out of Van Severn’s book and concentrate a little more on the function and a little less on the form.
And as we all know, the one follows the other anyway.
As the .03 beautifully shows.
.03 by Maarten Van Severn for Vitra
.03 by Maarten Van Severn - multi-purpose stools at their best.
Filed under: designer, producer, product | Tags: bathroom, BOSKKE, Design, designer, designer furniture, designers, gardening, herbs, Home, household, interior design, interiors, kitchen, orchids, Patrick Morris, plants, product, products, Sky Planter
Plants. They’re great, we love ‘em … but they get in the way.
Not in Auckland, New Zealand.
For there, London Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design graduate Patrick Morris has created Sky Planter – and so in New Zealand the plants hang from the ceiling and so fulfill every schoolboy stereotype about life in the antipodes.
We are just so taken with Sky Planter.
And as the text on the website says:
A revolutionary reservoir system feeds water gradually to the plant’s roots. This conserves water and saves you time.
A simple locking disc holds the plant and soil in place allowing you to use your SKY PLANTER indoors, leaving your surfaces mess-free.
You can hang the SKY PLANTER from the ceiling or a wall-mount, freeing up precious floor-space.
Sky Planter by Patrick Morris for BOSKKE. Ceiling lamps were yesterday.
And for a great view of how simple it all is: watch the video.
Sky Planter by Patrick Morris for BOSKKE
.. brilliant. Just brilliant.
Filed under: producer, product | Tags: children, Contemporary Design, Design, designer, designers, development, dutch design, holland, lighting, My Reading Light, myhouseismycastle, Philips, product, products
Every now and again we read such self-gratifying rubbish from designers about why they design and what for them the role of design is that one really has to step back and ask why they waste their talent.
Yes design is art, but it in comparison to painting or sculpting it is an art that can genuinely help us all live more comfortable and rewarding lives.
We’ll not name the guilty paryt on this occasion, but rather show here how the project “My Reading Light” from Dutch multi-national conglomerate Philips shows what can be achieved.
Now, we’re not going to pretend for a minute that we believe the images of poor and needy schoolchildren in underprivileged regions moved the executives at Philips so that they felt the need to do something for the needy.
It’s clearly all about profit here.
But our interest is the design.
Reminiscent of a magnifying glass our granny used to have, “My Reading Light” is a rechargeable, solar powered reading light. The advantages are clear, allowing as it does users to individually read and work independent of electricity supply and location.
The design is thoughtful and attractive and Philips know that if it can be shown to be effective and is readily accepted then development organisations will buy thousands if not millions of units.
The designers at Philips have once again achieved a small technological breakthrough, those who chances in life are hindered by the infrastructure on which they rely have a possibility to get on, philips boosts its profits and the environment can breath just a touch easier.
OK no multi-millionaire designer receives another fat cheque.
But that is not what it is all about.
Lecture over… new design follows.
My Reading Light by Philips ...
... in action
Filed under: designer, producer, product | Tags: bench, Chair, Contemporary Design, Design, designer, designer furniture, designers, dutch design, furniture, garden, garden furniture, Home, household, interior, interior design, interiors, myhouseismycastle, Nils Holger Moormann, product, products, Rogier Martens, Weltevree, Wheelbench, wood, wooden furniture
Much as we love well considered, functional furniture – we must also admit to a weakness for the ingeniously daft.
Pieces such as the Bookinist or Easy Reader by Nils Holger Moormann, for example, always inspire us to take the rest of the day off and just enjoy life.
Wheelbench by Dutch designer Rogier Martens passes into just such a category.
What could be more simple, more fun and yet remain a genuine design work.
Wheelbench by Rogier Martens for Weltevree wont change the world. But will make it just a little brighter.
Wheelbench by Rogier Martens for Weltevree ...
... just great
