Over 40 years after its launch, the Colombo desk lamp still looks ahead of its time.
As the name suggests, the lamp was designed by Joe Colombo, back in 1962. It fires out indirect light via a perspex diffuser, with a lacquered steel base keeping it in place (and adding a touch more style).
Probably too good to hide away in an office – especially when it retails for £1,237.
Find out more at the Panik Design website
Nothing quite says ‘I’m the boss’ like the Arne Jacobsen Oxford office chair.
This classic design was first produced by Jacobsen in 1962 for St Catherine’s College, Oxford, but is now in wider circulation via Fritz Hansen. The upholstered swivel chair has an upper section of moulded wood, with a base of satin polished aluminium. And like all good office chairs, there’s plenty of scope to rise up and down via a gaslift mechanism.
If a bonus or a big contract comes your way, it sells from £993.
Find out more at the Skandium website
London Transport Museum has found a use for its old rolls of hard-wearing Moquette fabric – creating the London Transport Museum’s Moquette furniture range.
Moquette was used on bus and tube seats from the 30s through to the 70s, a tough fabric able to take the wear and tear of constant daily use. But it wasn’t just functional – designers were constantly brought in to liven up the fabric, creating looks that are both stylish and very distinct to their eras.
An Eero Saarinen Tulip armchair will set you back around £900, which is no surprise – it is a design classic after all. But what if your budget doesn’t stretch to that in these torrid financial times? Simple – get the look from Dwell.
Yes, officially called the Curve padded chair, it’s essentially an almost (but not quite) replica of the 1956 classic, lacking the option to swivel, but offering a virtually identical polypropolene frame, with matching fabric seating for comfort.
Take your pick from black or white, available for £115 each.
A fairly modern design, but with a look rooted firmly in 1930s modernism – the Stelton Press coffee maker.
It’s the work of iconic designer Arne Jacobsen, stylish enough to show off, but functional too – press down that plunger to prepare your ground coffee, which is kept warmer for longer via the double-walled casing.
It holds a litre of your favoured brew, selling for £145.
Another lighting gem from the 1960s gets the reissue treatment – the Roberto Menghi Globo di Luci pendant light.
Designed back in 1968 and now available once more via Fontana Arte, this globe-shaped hanging light isn’t a million miles from the stuff Tom Dixon is currently producing – a blown glass globe in silver, gold or red with aluminium internal reflector and chrome plated ceiling rose.
Which all adds up to a timeless light with a lot of style and plenty of brightness. Three sizes available (small, medium and large), with prices starting at £211.
Find out more at the Panik Design website
