design – Page 8 – everydaysparks

Geek Chic

Posted on April 17, 2012 by Cate

I first saw a version of these amazing Keyboard Slippers on the Inventor Spot site and thought they were pretty cool. Well, cool mightn’t be quite the right word. The original slippers are made by Kito in Thailand and you can get lots of different coloured foot straps: black, yellow, red, orange, brown or dark blue (depending on which of your geek chic outfits you want to match). Launched early last year, the Kito originals cost about $30 and are shipped worldwide from Thailand.

But, as with most good ideas, there is another version of keyboard sandals that are, no surprise, made in China (by a company with a very cool name: A-Yaya). They are priced at under $2 per pair. Which I guess might mean that the Enter key will stick and Ctrl-Alt-Delete won’t actually work. But I’m sure that you can still lose crumbs and eyelashes and cups of coffee between the keys, just like the real thing.

I don’t know your politics on global markets, so whether you want to check out the pricier (but original and brighter coloured) Kito shoes or the Chinese knock-offs, I’m sure that both types will massage your feet as you walk around. Which is more than you can say for your keyboard at work. If you are after the perfect gift for the nerd in your life (especially if that nerd is you), the Kito retailer is here.

Arty sparks, Home sparks, WWWhat?

Help! My Lounge is Mutating!

Posted on April 16, 2012 by Cate

I first saw these amazing pieces of furniturart (ok, so I just made that word up) on the fantastic My Modern Met website (and they had sourced them from the very cool peeps at Design Boom) under the heading Mutating Furniture Made of Bubbles. Yes please! You don’t get that at Ikea.

And I was not to be disappointed – like a Miss Teen USA contestant, these are at once beautiful and kinda creepy. I’m not sure how comfortable they would be, but as soon as you contemplate that thought, you know you’re not really worthy of the furniturart. Same goes for wondering how you’d keep them clean of dog fur and childrens’ handprints. Or how they’d look next to your teak coffee table. But we can still look, can’t we?

Belgian designer Maarten De Ceulaer’s Mutation Series will be presented this year during Milan Design Week. Each piece is unique, made from foam spheres covered in “a durable rubber or velvet-like finish”. According to My Modern Met, Maarten says “I want to use my work to tell stories, to stir people’s emotions, to tickle their imagination or to make them wonder.” The Willy Wonka of the furniture (furniturart) world, I guess.

And, like Mr Wonka before him, Maarten’s creativity knows no limits. Apparently he said, “Maybe one day we will be able to grow a piece of furniture like we breed or clone an animal, and manipulate it’s shape like a bonsai tree.” Yes, Maarten, maybe we will. I kinda like the idea of a naturally grown, fully furnished tree house. Add a glass elevator, chocolate river and an everlasting gobstopper and I’m sold!

More info in the My Modern Met post here.

Food sparks, Home sparks

The Cult of Nespresso

Posted on April 15, 2012 by Cate

Mostly, I blame George Clooney – that slick advertising campaign, the giant photo of his beautiful face in the Nespresso store. I also blame the designers – the pretty and clever machines, the gorgeous coloured pods of coffee. And I blame the friends at work that took me into the store and whispered about the life-changing impact of these coffee makers and the world of Nespresso. You’ll never buy another cup of coffee again. Even the decaf tastes nice. Look how easy it is, you poor simple. Here, try a sample of the coffee. And I was hooked.

I think I am a bit late in jumping on this particular bandwagon, but I can be easily influenced when it comes to gadgets. I love them and never stop admiring the clever design and engineering (probably to the point of being a wee bit annoying). And now that I’m part of the cult of Nespresso, I appreciate my little Pixie every time I make a cup of coffee. She is a stunning bright indigo colour, which was another thing that sucked me in. And the milk frother (which I like to think looks sort of like a glossy black beehive) is separate so as not to take up too much precious bench space.

Water here, coffee pod there, pull the lever and the aromatic energy boost is dripping into your cup. Quicker than you can make a cup of instant coffee, surely. Now, I am not trying to pass myself off as a sophisticated barista, or even someone who can recognise the difference between floral and refreshing or fruity and balanced. I like coffee, but am definitely not a connoisseur. (Just as I love wine, but am not a connisseur. When it comes to chocolate however, I am surely a world-leading aficionado.)

Anyways, this cult has its own secret language (which would sound even more romantic if you imagine it whispered by George Clooney): intenso, lungo, vivalto, finezzo, arpeggio. People speak in code, “I’m an 8, my husband’s a 6” – not in terms of attractiveness, I discovered, but in terms of coffee strength (how the cult classifies the different capsules). And you can only get your fix (of coffee capsules) from the Nespresso dealer (online or in ’boutique’). They produce a newsletter that looks like the coffee maker equivalent of Vogue and regularly sell out their limited edition special flavours, with some people hoarding them to re-sell at an extortionate price on ebay. I confess to having recently sold a kidney to buy some limited edition ranges on ebay (no longer on sale in the boutique) – Cherry; Almond; Vanilla Blossom; and Dark Chocolate (to keep world-leading aficionado status).

The capsules (or as we cult members know them, hermetically sealed capsules – by hermits?) are made of aluminium and Nespresso have organised a recycling program (they call it Ecolaboration). Or, you could always turn them into brightly coloured metallic bugs, like this upcycled collection from Switzerland-based artist Alex Aebi (thanks buzzaurus.com).

It could be your subtle sign to visitors that they are entering a home that belongs to the cult of Nespresso. But I’m sure they’ll already know, when you answer the door all a-jitter, saying “Vivalto! Fortissio Lungo!” (cult speak for “Welcome! Come in!”) and introduce your children, Roma Espresso, Decaffeinato and Ristretto. Then it might just be time for an intervention and some herbal tea.

Fashion Sparks, Sparks in the wild, WWWhat?

Foul Weather Friend

Posted on April 11, 2012 by Cate

I am lucky to work with Jo, a lovely lass who shares my interest in all things wacky. Last week, we were talking about the amazing Samurai Sword umbrella that I wrote about here recently. And Jo started reminiscing about a special sort of umbrella that she had seen somewhere. I listened politely, thinking that it surely couldn’t be as good as the Samurai Sword. Then Jo sent me a website link. And I was momentarily speechless. IT’S A HANDS FREE UMBRELLA.

Nubrella Inc. is a New York company that has patented this space-age looking ‘weather protection device’, which they claim takes over where the traditional umbrella stops! And there are more exclamations where that came from: Nubrella blocks windchill! A far safer and more reliable product! Can be used completely hands free! All supported by fantastic photos of the Nubrella in action – in the snow, in gale-force winds, in torrential rain: look ma, I can talk on my mobile phone AND wave to a passerby AND stay dry all at once!

Although we all know that nothing this great comes easily – there are tutorials on how to open your Nubrella and how to close your Nubrella. And the man in the photos does appear to be concentrating quite hard as he sorts out his weather protection device.

But once your Nubrella has popped open, you just drop it over your head and adjust the shoulder straps and supports. It’s transparent, so you can just walk straight away and see where you are walking all of the time. And according to a slightly bizarre comparison on the website: The result is an eye catching new aerodynamic design that many are saying is simply a better “mousetrap”.

A better mousetrap it may be, but I think it’s so much more. Wouldn’t the world be a better place – a funnier place, at the very least – if your neighbourhood was full of Nubrella People? At around $50 per device, it’s a bargain: umbrella, hat, stylish personal-space-preserving-bubble and mousetrap in one. If you’re tempted, the dream starts here at Nubrella HQ.

Fashion Sparks, Sparks in the wild, WWWhat?

Hats off, dogs

Posted on April 9, 2012 by Cate

Look, I’m no Dr Doolittle or Cesar Milan (I think that is the Dog Whisperer guy’s name), and yes, my own dog Goldie is in fact made of synthetic fibres. But even I can work out what the pug dog in this picture is saying. He is saying SAVE ME. This ‘custom snuggly dog hat’ is knitted by a lady in America, who has a shop on etsy dedicated to dog hats of various styles, colours and levels of humiliation.

From the mildly disturbing football-fan look on the left to the Parisienne style modelled on the right, this shop has a fabulous collection of photos that are just waiting to be made into a coffee table book. (Honestly, I found it hard to choose the pics for this post – there is an aviator hat complete with knitted goggles, a piglet hat and a flower child hat, to name just a few.) I know that people love their dogs (or ‘fur children’ as they are sometimes called), but I’m not sure that this is the way to show your affection for your pooch. Although maybe I’m totally wrong and there are fierce walk-offs at dog parks all over the world, with fashionista pups strutting down the (ahem) catwalks, vying for the attention and approval of other dogs and their ‘fur-less parents’. Maybe dogs love fashion as much as some humans and maybe they also like to look glamorous while keeping their heads warm. Maybe.

But I suggest that the Punk Rock Mohawk Hat is a step too far. Although, I shouldn’t judge – maybe dogs love robbing banks and starting fires and punching on in riots as much as some humans. In which case, when you stock up on this balaclava-esque hat for your fur child, you might want to check out the range of doggie suits for the Court date that surely awaits…

Jessica’s knitted hats for pugs (how’s that for a niche market?!) are on etsy and her shop is definitely worth a look. Even if you don’t have a (real) dog.