London based designer Paul Cocksedge, well known for his bold space installations, came up with an object of a smaller scale, but just as impressive as his other works. Invisible Bookend is a visual illusion, allowing you to display books without any additional support. A slightly tilted stack is all we see. He never reveals the trick, making our curiosity another selling point. “I wanted to discover if other people would enjoy as much as I do seeing books displayed without any other object to distract attention from them. This is a design which is not about appearance, only function. That’s the beauty of it,” – says the designer. A great gift for all the book lovers on your list…
Wallpockets are clever cardboard storage clusters, designed by Cincinnati based studio Ampersand. Inspired by barnacles and simple geometric shapes, the pieces look like wall decorations. They beautifully occupy any underused wall space and thanks to their ingenious shape store a large variety of items inside. Perfect for worksplaces, Wallpockets can also be used in an entryway, living room, kitchen and other areas of the house. The product ships flat and comes in six reversible colors. It’s currently on sale at Fab.
Holiday season is in full swing, which requires a lot of gift-giving and serving of food. These Pantone trays will help you to execute these two activities in style. Both the 4-piece and the 11-piece sets work well for a variety of foods and occasions. Sushi or tapas, brunch or cocktails, these modular trays can be used in many different combinations. And the neutral design will make them a thoughtful and universally appropriate gift. I especially like the fact that the pieces interlock perfectly for compact storage. The 4-piece set comes in Indian Teal, Tangerine Tango, and Tea colors, and the 11-piece – in elegant Anthracite and Blanc de Blanc. Available for purchase here.
Holidays are fun. What’s not fun is storing away holiday paraphernalia in a small apartment. Luckily, there are solutions today that allow to combine holiday spirit with urban practicality. Portable menorahs from Israel-based company Agayof are a great example of such combination. The pieces are creatively made to ease the storing process. Each menorah either disappears into another item entirely, adding off-holiday usage to its list of duties. Or it folds so compactly – every space can accomodate it. The items are made of lightweight anodized aluminum, which makes the colors permanent and the finish very durable. Cleaning is easily done by pouring boiling water over the pieces or placing them in the dishwasher. They made a great gift too. Available for purchase here. (more…)
I believe in the virtue of flatpack design. And these beautiful plywood accessories have made me very happy. Japanese company Flat Packables specializes on practical and simple objects that can bring some eye-candy to our homes without bring any clutter. Here is how Yu Ito, the designer behind the brand, describes his vision: “As laser-cutting technology became increasingly accessible, I started to see a lot of poorly designed laser-cut products. That inspired me to introduce unique designs that are original in not only appearance but in how they interlock together.” Each piece is laser-cut from plywood, hand-sanded and finished with beeswax. Beautifully packaged too. Flat Packables products are available on Etsy.
