Posts filed under 'SHOPPER'S DIARY'
From Julie:
Last week in SoHo, Sarah and I spent an hour at Muji, admiring the genius design of mundane products such as nail clippers, tape dispensers, clothes drying racks. Muji “aspires to modesty and plainness” and the company’s mantra is: “Simplicity achieved through a complexity of thought and design.” Another Muji opens at noon today in NYC, in the Renzo Piano–designed New York Times building in Times Square. We confess we’re a bit envious; when will Muji come to the West Coast? Some products we covet:
Below: Wooden Soup Bowl.
Below: Striped Oven Mitt.
Below: Traditional White Donabe.
May 30th, 2008
Related posts:
- Muji Wire Clips
- Shopper’s Diary: Flair Comes to NYC
- Shopper’s Diary: Tom Dixon at ABC Carpet & Home
- Shopper’s Diary: Timorous Beasties
- Architect Visit: Rogers Marvel
From Julie and Francesca:
We forgot to mention the free-flowing champagne (Moet & Chandon) and the music (Nosi) at the ICFF opening day. Or the chefs simmering risotto on the Italian aisle, or the chocolate sculptures of chairs being passed out. Or the fact that we saw Parker Posey pawing through stacks of fabric samples. More interesting, actually, were the electronic innovations.
Below: From Vancouver–based Bocci, the 22 Series electrical plug, which is inset into the wall and skim-coated over, leaving just the circular plug area. No sketchy plastic cover required. Just pure plug-in. Available at Arkitektura in Situ in San Francisco.
Below: To give credit where credit is due, Materialicious first posted the Wall Cleat—”for mooring the many ropes of technology.” There it was at the ICFF, the outlet cover designed by Brooklyn-based Karl Zahn for OBoiler.
Below: Based in Baldwin Park, California, outside LA, the unassuming team behind Koncept lighting has come out with a line of stunning LED lighting; both the Z-Bar Desk Lamp
(below for $170) and the I-Tower High Power Floor Lamp ($200). Both at YLighting.
Below: There was a fair amount of buzz around the Geneva Lab booth. Available at Design Within Reach, the Piano-Lacquered Wooden Sound Boxes are available in red, white, and black and are outfitted with a CD player, FM tuner, and iPod dock. The large size is $849.
Below: We all fell hard for Nicolo Taliani’s lighting: the fabric cord retracts into the lamp at will. Available in white, black, red, and orange.
May 19th, 2008
Related posts:
- Lighting: Gus Designs Group Vintage Swing Arm Lamp
- Lighting: Wästberg
- Outdoors: Stockholm Fixture
- 10 Easy Pieces: Black Pendant Lights
- Artisan Visit: Paul Loebach
From Julie and Francesca:
A report of our first visit to the International Contemporary Furniture Fair, the annual design fest featuring exhibitors from all over the world, held in the not especially compelling Jacob Javits Center (despite the fact that it’s an I.M Pei project):
Alight from taxi in the drizzle, wander around a bit, getting our bearings. Transparent acrylic furniture from Kartell, some nice new pieces from Blu Dot, an encounter with a retro-styled Smeg refrigerator (we love Smeg). Gorgeous bath fixtures from Lefroy Brooks (inspect the Kafka series, currently only available for commercial applications, but soon to be available to all). Suddenly, we spot a rather amateurish table setup, with tiles strewn about (presided over by one Orlando Boyne) and recognize a Neisha Crosland beaded stripe pattern acid-etched on a square of limestone. Turns out British outfit De Ferranti is working with Crosland to produce a new line of subtly patterned tiles for floors and walls; another way to get more Crosland in your life, always a goal.
Below: Neisha Crosland tile by De Ferranti.
Below: Another Brit whose work we admire, Jocelyn Warner, showed a gorgeous array of Flora wallpaper: magnolias rendered in moody shades of dark gray and silver.
Below: Next, amid all the tiresomely arch and ironic damask wallpaper that seems to be the main UK export these days, we spot Kevin Dean’s unselfconscious watercolors, silkscreened on heavy paper, utterly artless and artful at the same time, depicting roses and bucolic country scenes.
As we approached the Lladro booth, we spotted a larger-than-life Marcel Wanders inspecting the Niagra chandelier and other objets (Lladro recently released a new line by Spanish wunderkind Jaime Hayon). Wanders is the famed Dutch designer behind Moooi; he designs for Capellini, Bisazza, B&B Italia, and more. We were transfixed by the spectacle of the 6-foot-4-inches Wanders, who was clad in a slim black suit, pink neon Pumas (see Wanders@Puma), and a chunky pearl choker with a single diamante bead.
Below L: Marcel Wanders. Below R: Knot Chair by Marcel Wanders at Unica Home.
Below: Wanders’ Alice wallpaper for British firm Graham & Brown.
Tomorrow: Parker Posey sighting, Nosi Music, and more design visits.
May 19th, 2008
Related posts:
- Windows, Floors, and Walls: Popham Design
- 10 Easy Pieces: Haunted House
- Fabrics & Linens: Lucy Rose
- Children’s Rooms: Celia Birtwell Fabric
- Slow Design: Recycled Metal Tiles
From Janet:
A perennial favorite, NYC-based textiles company Hable Construction, is hosting its annual spring sample sale from Wednesday, May 21 to Friday, May 23, from 11 am to 7 pm each day at their design studio at 195 Chrystie Street (between Stanton and Rivington) in New York. Their trademark totes, bedding, storage items, kids accessories, and pillows will be on offer for 40 to 70 percent off. Another bonus: trade-only fabrics will be available at a discount.
May 19th, 2008
Related posts:
- Hable Construction Fabric
- Shopper’s Diary: Les Indiennes Alert
- Shopper’s Diary: Scandinavian Details Sale
- Shopper’s Diary: Farrow & Ball in NY
- Shopper’s Diary: Atomic Garden
From Francesca:
Our friend Meredith over at Details sent us this link to Five Top Auction Houses, her piece on boutique outfits specializing in midcentury and modern furniture, where you can pick up well-priced pieces by Charlotte Perriand, Hans Wegner, and George Nakashima “minus the intimidation factor of Sotheby’s and Christie’s.” Below is a desk by Gio Ponti for Singer & Sons, offered by Sollo Rago Modern Auction in Lambertville, New Jersey.
May 14th, 2008
Related posts:
- Antiques & Vintage: Wright Now
- Shopper’s Diary: Gordon Watson
- Shopper’s Diary: Vintage Fixtures
- Shopper’s Diary: Kim Fiscus Antiques
- Antiques & Vintage: Obsolete Inc.
From Julie:
Founded in 2002 by Danish-born Lynne Jensen, Emeryville, CA-based Klassik by Lynne imports vintage Danish, Swedish, and other furniture from around the world. On Sunday, May 4, from 11 am to 4 pm, Klassik is hosting a warehouse-emptying sale to make room for a new shipment. Which raises the question: How is it possible there is any furniture left in Scandinavia?
Below: Illum Wikkelso white-painted ash rocking chair.
Below: Christian Dell. Kaiser desk lamp.
Below: Hans J. Wegner couch.
Below: More furniture on the way.
May 2nd, 2008
Related posts:
- Furniture: West Elm Chair
- Outdoors: Adirondack Roundup
- Shopper’s Diary: Les Indiennes Alert
- NY Shopper’s Alert: Hable Construction Sample Sale
- Shopper’s Diary: Kim Fiscus Antiques
From Francesca:
I first came across the Flair home design store in Florence (other locations include Milan and Capri), along the Arno River; a NY branch just opened in New York this week at 88 Broome Street. Owners Alessandra Tabacchi and Franco Mariotti mix new pieces with antiques to achieve “a rich yet sober aesthetic.” Among their wares are Plexiglass and chrome pieces from the fifties and seventies, Vietnamese lacquer, and Venetian white-opal glassware.
April 11th, 2008
Related posts:
- Shopper’s Diary: Kim Fiscus Antiques
- Best of ’07: Secret Source, French Enamel House Numbers
- Design Voyeur: Plinth Furniture
- Slow Design: Esque Studio
- Shopper’s Diary: West Elm Globe Pendant
From Julie:
Quite possibly the most perfect tape dispenser we’ve seen. Unless you live in Japan, however, it remains unattainable. Made of Nambu ironware; go to Jurgen Lehl.
April 11th, 2008
Related posts:
- Office: Accessories
- Work Week: Desk Essentials
- Storage: Shaker Broom Hook
- House Call: Amsterdam Office
- Architect Visit: Studio Atkinson
From Julie:
We couldn’t resist this story. Prince Charles has opened a shop in the ancient Cotswold town of Tetbury, selling organic items from his Duchy line, vegetables from his estate, and all manner of garden tools and accessories: pitchforks, flowerpots, sickles, saws, gardening string, and old galvanized watering cans. Also a range of specially designed Highgrove ceramics from Stoke on Kent Burleigh Pottery. (Diehard royalists take note: The Highgrove Shop is located in a “splendid 1790 listed building”—a former bank—that has been refurbished; the nine Counting House flats above the shop are currently for sale.)
Below: If you’re not planning a visit to Tetbury anytime soon, Stonewall Kitchens carries an excellent range of high-quality Burleigh pieces, including the Ironstone Breadbox ($289).
Below: Set of three Ironstone Batter Bowls; on sale for $49.97 (down from $98).
Below: A personal favorite of mine; Burleigh’s White Ironstone Soap Dish for $29.95.
Below: We feel certain that HRH Prince Charles would approve of Stonewall Kitchen’s stainless steel, oiled beech, and horsehair Dust Pan and Brush; $32.90 for the set.
April 8th, 2008
Related posts:
- Kitchen: White Accessories
- Shopper’s Diary: iittala London
- Steal This Look: White Kitchen
- White Enamelware
- Aga Saga
From Julie:
Sunday, April 6, Brownstoner and friends hold the first 2008 Brooklyn Fleamarket in Ft. Green, from 10 am to 5 pm, rain or shine, featuring a wide range of vendors; categories include vintage furniture and architectural salvage (Olde Good Things, Demolition Depot, and Reclaimed Home) as well as local furniture makers, craftspeople, and designers. Design*Sponge will be curating a section called Design*Sponge Collective, featuring artists such as Lena Corwin, Deadly Squire, Sian Keegan, and Wayne Pate. Go to Brownstoner for more information; the helpful Layout link provides a map to the vendors.
Below: Prague Kolektiv, which specializes in midcentury and modern Czech design, is among the vendors.
April 4th, 2008
Related posts:
- Antiques & Vintage: Chairloom
- Children’s Rooms: Toy Boxes
- Slow Design: Coté Pierre Sink
- Shopper’s Alert: Muji Opens in Times Square
- Lighting: Lindsey Adelman Lights
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