The humble corkscrew; an essential item in any kitchen, but as something that has not changed much over the decades, it is perhaps hard to find one that looks noticeably retro.
However, I think the Chianti Bamboo Corkscrew by Legnoart has a retro look to it on account of its use of wood. The body is made from bamboo whilst the rest is stainless steel so it still functions as any normal corkscrew would.
Perfect to open the wine at your fondue evenings, it costs £39.25 from Forma House.
Design for Delight currently have this Top of the Pops Bag in their stock, for sale or to hire (should you ever need to rent such a thing).
Measuring 33cm x 33cm x 10cm, it is made from transparent plastic with a vintage record sleeve inserted on both sides. The record sleeve is for a Top of the Pops album. The woman pictured on the sleeve looks rather like Kate Moss, but is obviously some earlier incarnation as the estimated date is put somewhere between 1960 and 1970
It costs just over Euros 20 (plus taxes) to buy from Design for Delight.
Running until the 27th September at the Rocket Gallery on Shoreditch High Street, is an exhibition of the work by Danish designer Poul Kjaerholm.
Like many Danish designers, Kjaerholm’s work is typified by clean lines and understated elegance, but where he differed from many of his contemporaries is in his preference for steel frames over traditional wood. The exhibition comprises of a dozen separate pieces, including furniture, original prints and original catalogues from the 1950s and 1960s. The gallery also has a number of books on the work of Kjaerholm.
Visit the Rocket Gallery website for further information and opening times.
The V&A’s Cold War Modern exhibition doesn’t start for a while yet, but already we are excited by the accompanying merchandise. Available to pre-order is a small selection of posters, my favourite being this “Victory at the Bay of Pigs” poster.
Printed especially for this exhibition, the poster was originally commissioned in 1971 by Instituto Cubano del Arte e Industrias Cinematográfico to celebrate the tenth anniversary of the victory. It was designed by Cuban born Niko Antonio Pérez, who is famous for his political posters during the 60s and 70s.
The A2 sized poster costs £16 and will be delivered in September. Visit the V&A shop to order now.
One of the UK’s leading interior designers, Andrew Martin has produced a range of crockery entitled “Grand Hotel” for John Lewis, surely one of the UK’s leading department stores. The range includes his signature elephant design, Jumbo, which can be found on these pop art style mugs.
The mugs are made from porcelain and feature the Jumbo design in white against candy coloured backgrounds. A set of four mugs costs £30. There are also various sized plates, teacups and coffee cups available in the same style.
Buy online from the John Lewis website.
Although you wouldn’t know it from the cloudy sky today, it is technically still summer, and as such there is some small justification for showing American Apparel’s Vintage Sunglasses range.
The sunglasses, as the retailer is at pains to point out, are not produced by American Apparel, but have been sourced from various places included “remote factories in the Valley and out-of-business optometrists in Montreal”. Most of the range is unisex with prices between £24 and £44.
Visit the American Apparel website to view the whole collection.
