Categories / Gadgets and Tech, Music

The cassette mix tape goes USB

Mixtape_usb

Once there could be no greater sign of your love or friendship than creating and passing on your favourite tunes on an old cassette tape. But cassettes have died away, so what should you do? You could send a USB Mix Tape from Suck UK.

Yes, this is a cassette for the digital age. Instead of loading a tape, you can add your digital tunes to the USB stick included. And it comes in a cassette-style box, so you can even add the handwritten tracklisting to the outside, as well as adding your own message to the stick.

Nice idea, but as yet there isn’t a price for it. But we’ll know more when it goes on sale in September.

Find out more at the Suck UK website

Via Technabob

Categories / Books

101 Antiques of the Future by Michael Hogben

100_antiques
The secret of investing in antiques and collectables is to pick up what’s up and coming instead of the here and now. And 101 Antiques of the Future by Michael Hogben claims to be able to point you in the right direction.

Hogben is an auctioneer (with his own TV show – Auction Man), so he should know what he’s talking about.  The book picks out 101 items to keep an eye on and prices to pay – everything from 1950s utility furniture to early digital watches and mobile phones through to punk rock paraphenalia. There’s also advice on hiw to spot the fakes and how to maintain the items to keep their value.

And best of all, you can pick it up fairly cheap right now, with Amazon selling the book for half its original price – £6.49 for the hardback.

Find out more about the book at Amazon.co.uk

Categories / Men's Fashion, Sportswear

Rene Lacoste 1963 trainers

Lacoste_1963
Another archive reissue, this time the Rene Lacoste trainers from the sixties.

These are based on the original 1963 model, with a canvas upper, cushion lining and rubber sole. And there’s two colour combinations – the navy featured here and a natural (cream) version.

You can pick them up from Stuarts of London, priced at £49.

Find out more at the Stuarts of London website

Categories / Design and Interiors

InModern’s G-Plan-style mid-century Rekindle coffee table

Rekindle
Once very common round the junk shops, but less so now, is the classic G-Plan coffee table with the intertwining wooden legs. But you can pick up that mid-century-style design new – with this InModern Rekindle coffee table.

There are two big differences – this one doesn’t have a glass top like the G-Plan table, but as a positive, it comes flat-packed, separating for easy storage when you no longer need it too.

Made from renewable wood, this is available in both a natural or steel-coloured finish, both retailing for $200 (around £100). If that sounds a bit rich, keep checking those house clearance places for vintage, which should be half the price.

Find out more at the Design Public website

Categories / Men's Fashion

Baracuta polo shirts

Baracuta_polos

The name Baracuta is pretty much the first name to think of when it comes to the classic Harrington jacket, but it seems have started a spot of diversification, introducing new lines like Baracuta polo shirts.

And they’re pretty much what you expect, a three-button polo with contrasting collar trim and made from 100 per cent cotton. And there’s the Baracuta logo on the chest.

I have to be honest and say they look a little bland to me, but they’re sure to be decent quality and retail for a reasonable £40, which is in line with the average Fred Perry.

Find out more at the End Clothing website

Categories / Books, Music

Julian Cope’s Japrocksampler

Japrocksampler
All the muso types amongst you are probably aware of Julian Cope’s Krautrocksampler book from a few years back – a detailed and fascinating history of the weird and wonderful music produced in Germany in the late 60s and 70s. Well, he’s now doing the same thing for Japanese music with the Japrocksampler from Julian Cope.

An altogether heftier book than the German one, Japrocksampler is a more detailed look at the Japanese scene, with plenty of background leading into the book proper and the 1960s, before focusing on the key artists and collector’s favourites – and their bizarre stories, including everything from violence to plane hijacking.

And if you fancy buying some of the material mentioned here, there’s a top 50 Japrock chart to keep your wallet busy.

The book is published on 3rd September, available for around £10.

Find out more at the Amazon website