Monday, September 29, 2008

Useful Or Not?

I saw this at Labour and Wait and thought it's the coolest looking tea cosy ever. Their web shop says that it really keeps the tea hot, hmmm. I'm really into hand-knitted things that are not matronly but rather masculine, this tea cosy looks like a vintage wool hat with a giant pom pom, doesn't it?!
photo: labour and wait

Best Block For His & Her Shopping

We live just minutes away from the East Village and we frequently shop at Odin (11th betw/ 1 & 2 Aves). I'm SO psyched that the Odin guys opened up Pas de Deux right next to Odin for us ladies, so no more wandering in the back of Odin and looking at the colognes and candles while your man is shopping! The store is teensy, but it's precious like a very beautifully curated jewel box with great pieces from Alexander Wang, Phillip Lim, Shipley and Halmos, Rag & Bone, etc. I instantly loved the vibe there, the sales ladies were very helpful and adorable that it took a lot of will power to resist their charm and walked away from the store empty-handed. photos: Refinery 29

All Saints Faves

Last week I mentioned how much I love All Saints from London, here are my favorite pieces from the Fall/Winter collection. I know it's a lotta black but I can't help it, it's comforting to wear black and I accessorize with bright colors and metallics!
images: All Saints

Friday, September 26, 2008

Fun London Snaps

I've been a blogging fiend these couple of days, it's fun and a great way to remember all the things I find inspiring from the London trip. Here are some snaps taken by me and Chad, I'm sure I'll have more to share with you next week, until then, have a great weekend!

Habitat

I've been a huge fan of Habitat's for years now and when I visited the store on Regent St., I saw this really comfy and beautiful chair that is designed by Naoko Kanehira who's won the Habitat New Designer Award. I love that the chair is made of a bunch of cushions and the usage of patterns and bright colors makes it a very fun piece of furniture for your home.
I must confess that I was not blown away by the store at all, but here are some of the products from the catalog that caught my eye:

Heal's

Heal's is another furniture store that I knew very little about and thought was stuffy and boring. I just discovered through Elle Decorations (once again, the October issue is insanely good!) that I was so wrong about Heal's, it kinda rocks. It has been around since the 1800's as a famous bed-maker, in the recent years Heal's has collaborated with innovative designers creating affordable products that are exclusive to Heal's. Here some pieces from its latest collection, the credenza below is designed by Orla Kiely!photos: Heal's

Toast

I never realized how cool Toast was until I saw their products in Elle Decorations. Wish I knew while I was there, everything looks so beautifully made and comfortable. The mouse rug for cats is just toooo cute, and the felt embroidered slippers are perfect for the stormy fall weather that we have in New York right now!
photos: Toast.co.uk

TEN+TwentyTwentyone

Another highlight at 100% Design was the TEN+TwentyTwentyone booth. TwentyTwentyone is an influential furniture store in London, they collaborated with TEN design group and produced these simple, humorous and functional products, all made of wood. My favorite is the Do Not Loose Me door tag key holder. You can see the rest of the collection here.photos: TEN+twentytwentyone

Thursday, September 25, 2008

The Shoreditch House

To continue with my Tom Dixon Craze, I need to mention his recent project, the Shoreditch House. An extension to the successful member's only club the Soho House in London and New York, the Shoreditch House is designed by Dixon. You can see that most of the rooms are furnished by Dixon's ultra-cool and innovative designs, he transformed a warehouse in London's hottest and edgiest neighborhood into an eclectic and luxurious private club featuring a bowling alley and game room, old-fashioned fun!photos: Shoreditch House

Tom Dixon Craze

Visited the very busy Tom Dixon booth at 100% Design and I noticed these 2 lovelies: "Lean" table light (above). It's made of solid cast iron, it's compact, perfect as a bed light or a small desk, it has a little hollow base for holding pencils, glasses, etc. It comes in red, white and black.
"Blow" light pendant. This sculptured polycarbonate pendant's design is inspired by a light bulb, it is intended to accommodate an energy saving florescent light bulb.
These "Beat" pendants are not brand new but I am absolutely in love with the sexy hand-beaten brass and gold interior of the pendants.
sources: Elle Decorations, Tom Dixon

100% Futures

I went to 100% Design at Earl's Court and some of the most exciting things of the show are from 100% Futures that showcased works by emerging designers.
Stephen Johnson is one of my faves, his porcelain and brass figurines (top 2 pics) remind me of Barnaby Barford's, whimsical, nostalgic and humorous.
Benjamin Hubert's clean designs and bold colors were definitely the crowd's favorites. How clever is the umbrella fruit bowl?!!!
It made me smile when I saw the Hong Kong Polytechnic University School of Design booth. The designs derived from everyday object that were ubiquitous in Hong Kong in the 70's, like the folding stools made into an elongated stool, the funny "Red A" plastic tub and plungers made into a chair, and coffee table made of bamboo dim sum steamers!
I love when people incorporate knitting and embroidery into product design, like this logs seat by Lee Borthwick.

Designers Block

Designers Block is an annual show in London that features up-and-coming designers from all over the world. Following are some of the products that caught my eye. Studio Roam's beautiful and sumptuous blankets are made of the softest Scottish wool, all of the detailed designs are knitted and made-to-order. The cashmere baby blankets can be customized with your kid's name and birth date!Kyeok Kim's soap rings. After washing your hands with the ring, it disappears and leaves a scent to your hands like a drop of perfume. Young a Kim and Yoo kyung Shin's adhesive t-shirt pockets. They come in different designs, perfect when you need a pocket on your shirt! Louise Graham's Victorian porcelain pieces are so charming. You can attach the little knob to an empty butter tub, turn it upside down you can re-use it as a butter dish, beautify a boring jug of milk with the floral spout, make use of an empty egg carton by adding a stand and make an egg cup.
photos: Wonting, Chad, Louise Graham, Roam.