Tag: home

Posted in Home sparks, Sparky gifts

Home sweet home

Posted on by Cate

Sometimes, it’s the little things that make a house a real home. Those little touches that give you a real sense of the person or people that live there. As I look around my apartment at the various quirky bits and pieces that I have collected over the years and wonder what my home says about me. That I’m a little bit nuts, probably – and I can’t argue with that! Anyways, in case you’re looking for some statement pieces for your home, I have found some interesting things at Karma Kiss. I think they make a variety of statements – from, ‘I am trying my best to avoid acting like an adult’, to, ‘I am trying to scare you away, never to return’, to, ‘Yes, I really am too cool for school’.

Whether you have little people living in or visiting your home, or if you just want to level the playing field and watch as grownups try to sit down on a tiny (toad)stool, this could be the dining set for you. Apparently, it’s suitable for indoors and outdoors, so if you’ve ever dreamed of creating a fairy grotto in your backyard, this could be a great place to start.

Or perhaps you’re trying to create more of a hunting lodge feel. Or you have really competitive friends, who are always skiting about their success and telling tall tales about their achievements. Yeah, they might be impressive, but do any of them have the head of a ferocious dinosaur mounted on their wall? Didn’t think so.

And then there are these Raven Bookends. At least, they’re meant to be bookends. But I would rather set them up somewhere high, so they’re glaring down like a sort of winged home security system. I can also see their benefit at work – I could set them up on my desk and whenever someone comes to ask me something, turn to the ravens and say, “Hmmm…I don’t know…what do you guys think?” See, the fun you can have working in HR!

And I know this one isn’t really for your home, but this just seems like such a good idea to ensure adequate personal space when you’re in a crowd – or to put off other travellers from claiming your luggage on the carousel. They also sell backpacks in a very cool bubble design, similar to that amazing furniture I posted about a while back – kinda like carrying a science experiment on your back.

Oh, and one last thing in case you can’t get your hands on the thumb costumes from earlier this week. This product takes the thumb war to a whole new level. You’ve been warned.

If you’d like to check out these and other ‘unique gifts and novelties’, the Karma Kiss store is here.

Posted in Home sparks, Sparky gifts

Wax on, wax off

Posted on by Cate

A candle can make a lovely gift – but some people think they’re a little ho hum. Unless, of course, it’s a Man Candle. Or maybe one of these candles – something tells me you won’t find these in every homewares store in the village…

This ‘Thing’ hand candle is eerily life-like. Yes, yes, you can apparently ‘see every wrinkle and vein’, but even better (or worse, depending on your feelings about burning hands), as the candle burns, red wax oozes from the wrist. Uh huh. How’s that for a conversation stopper at your next dinner party? It’s made by JohnnyBWilde in the UK and you can check it out on etsy here.

And here’s another candle I don’t quite understand – it’s a wedding dress. Presumably, if you’ve had a lovely wedding day, you wouldn’t want to set fire to a pretty white wedding dress (even if it is made of wax)? Perhaps it’s for a runaway bride to light to celebrate her escape. Or for bachelors everywhere to send a subliminal message to their lady of the moment that there will be no trip down the aisle. It was featured in a candle post a while back on urlesque here.

I love this Lego candle best of all. It looks as though it’d be long-lasting, although in fairness I’m not sure about the scale. I love it,as long as the people can be removed before you light the eight wicks on the brick – I don’t fancy seeing those three little people melting down as they can’t handle the heat. That’s not right at all. This was shown on Smashing Lists here.

Last, but not least, is the candle range from Hotwicks. Made in the USA, the range includes delicate scents such as Beer, Campfire, Leather, Sawdust and Whiskey. Oh, and Stripper and Urinal Cake. Uh huh. Somewhat tame in comparison, but still just as baffling, here is the Bacon flavoured candle. You can check out the range here.

This collection of bizarro candles just proves my theory that there really is a market for everything. And with that, I’m off to make my own range of candles – That’s My Boy, a stinky aroma of socks, wet towels & other signature scents, to soothe empty nesters who are missing their sons; Dry July, a treat for anyone giving up alcohol, it releases vapours of vino into the air (after all, the rules don’t say anything about inhaling alcohol); and Kardashian, a sickly sweet candle, with a combination of over the top scents competing for your attention – a minute after lighting this, you’ll be forced to switch off reality tv, blow out the candle and get out into the real world for a breath of fresh air. If you’d like to contribute to the EverydaySparks Candle Collection, please get in touch to share your ideas…

Posted in Home sparks, Sparks at work

Pipe dreams

Posted on by Cate

I saw some of Kozo Lamp‘s amazing products on Fab.com and thought they were so cool that I went digging to find out more. Turns out that the company is based in Israel and is the brainchild of David & Anati Shefa – a genuine upcycled lighting brand, made by hand since 2008. The lamps are made from galvanized iron (‘old pipes’ to you and me), which apparently will only rust around the edges over time. They say that the bit of rust gives the lamp “an old era charm”. Here are some of my favourites…

Meet KozoMan. He is a desk lamp and he’s thoughtful – with magnetic hands to hold your keys and little padded feet so he doesn’t scratch your desk. And if you’re meant to be working or studying, I think he looks a little threatening, almost like he’s saying, “you think you’ve earned a break already, do you? DO YOU?” But you retain control, and can dim KozoMan’s light by turning the tap light switch.

And here’s Kozo 2, or KozoPup, as I prefer to call it. Granted, it’s a pup with only three legs, but it would make a cute little companion on your desk. And it won’t run away with your favourite pens. At least, I don’t think it will…

Perhaps you don’t have a very big desk space and you need something even smaller. If so, you might want to consider the Mono desk lamp. I can’t get past the fact that it looks sort of like a lamp being tortured or cramping over in pain. Though maybe that’s just me reading too much into an angled pipe attached to a low base. Maybe.

These are just three of the amazing Kozo Lamps (photos from Fab.com) and you can check out more of the range on the Kozo Lamps website here.

Posted in Home sparks, Sparky gifts

Living large

Posted on by Cate

I first came across Living Royal when they were on sale at Fab.com. Apparently, they started an online quirky gift shop in a Chicago basement and have now grown to sell clothes and other stuff (and they have moved out of the basement). Here are some of their wackier products, in case you are looking to add a little spark to your home or workplace, or you need a gift for a peculiar friend…

Love the smell of freshly toasted bread and wish you could take it everywhere with you? Well, you’re in luck – forget your old citrus or alpine scented air fresheners, here is one that smells like toast. Hang it up in your car, home or office and smell the toasty goodness. We all know it’s a fine line between ‘toasted’ and ‘burnt’, but I’m guessing the toast-chemicals in this product make it smell just right. Please note: EverydaySparks takes no responsibility for weight gain associated with the permanent state of hunger that you may encounter whilst smelling toast all day, every day.

Some people don’t like getting older or enjoying birthdays. Me, I say it’s infinitely better than the alternative (and by that, I mean either death or becoming Benjamin Button), so bring on the celebrations. But if someone in your life is sensitive to the number of candles on the cake, or wants to keep their age a bit more mysterious, or is a mad Latin scholar, then you might need these. Roman numeral birthday candles. Uh huh.

Cool kids made the phrase, “Talk to the hand’ popular a while ago – but what if the hand talked back? Sure, in this case it doesn’t say some witty retort like, “You ain’t all that” (is that even an appropriate response? It was in my memory bank somewhere from a Ricki Lake episode, I think). These hands just say YES or NO. Think of how much easier they could make your life – if you have children, or if you have annoying co-workers who keep interrupting, or if you have lost your voice, or if you need to subtly give direction in a meeting but you don’t want to speak up. If you’re cranky, you could just wear the NO glove and leave it at that. Or pick one at random as a social experiment to see how it shapes your day. Come to think of it, that’s not a bad idea – probably enough to get you a reality tv show, actually.

And this last one? Well, because it’s a unicorn mask, that’s why. And not even just a lame paper-fronted, elastic-tied kind of mask. This unicorn requires commitment, as you replace your human head with that of a mythical beast to delight your family and friends. The pose of the model in this pic makes me think of the fun you could have wearing this mask around town just doing everyday things – waiting in line at the supermarket, watching a football game, sitting at the bus stop, having a picnic in a park. And like those ‘experiments’ that the dodgy current affairs shows sometimes conduct (where they dress a foxy chick as a homeless person, or in a fat suit, or in dark glasses, to see if they get treated differently by passers-by), I wonder if people would be kind to UnicornMan?

Have you seen something here for yourself or someone you like? Or maybe something for someone you dislike? Whatever your motivation, you can find all this wacky goodness and more at the Living Royal online store here.

Posted in Home sparks, Sparky gifts

There’s a creature in my cup

Posted on by Cate

I first saw these Creature Cups, made by Yumi Yumi in Brooklyn, on etsy a few months ago. I wanted to write about them, because they are a little bit different to your standard mug. But then the etsy shop disappeared and I could find no trace of Yumi Yumi or her Creatures.

Until they appeared on sale recently at Fab.com and I realised that Yumi Yumi (I’ll keep using both Yumis as I’m not actually sure if it’s a person’s name or a shop) has become bigger than etsy (imagine that!) and started a website to share these cool mugs with the world.

Whether you need a unique housewarming gift, have a friend who’s a vet or a zookeeper, or just want to scare your visitors by serving their coffee in cups filled with creatures, this may be the collection for you. Featuring an alligator, octopus, sea otter and lobster, these Creature Cups are sure to liven up your morning coffee. And I’d keep my eye on that lobster – he looks like he’s planning an escape…

You can check out the Creature Cups here.