Category: Design and Interiors

Most people go for a fairly basic radio/alarm clock to get them out of bed in a morning, but if you want something a bit more stylish, you might want to check out the Newgate Quad mini alarm clock.

We have featured Newgate previously, a company specialising in new clock with vintage looks. And the Quad is no different. It’s a square chrome-framed clock with a glass lens, metal hands and a vintage-style display that screams the 1930s.

It is just a clock though – so expect a bell to wake you up rather than your morning DJ of choice. If you can deal with that, the Quad retails for £30.

Find out more at the House of Fraser website

When something has been in production for 50 years, I think we can safely say it’s become a design classic. And that’s the case with the Alessi classic Wire Bowl.

A fairly unassuming design, but one that’s been around since 1948. In fact, those plain looks are probably the reason why it’s been a continued seller for all those years. Made of stainless steel, it’s ideal for your fruit or indeed for somewhere to throw your keys and assorted bits and pieces that clutter up the room.

Two sizes available, with prices starting at £42.

Find out more at the Richmond Cookshop website

Some time ago we featured the Clarissa Hulse-upholstered Race Chair, a made to order reissue of the British classic with a made to order price. Well, this British classic has now had a wider reissue by Retrouvius as the Race Rocker in Vintage Fabric.

This is still very much the classic piece of mid-century British design, faithful to Ernest Race’s original 1948 specifications and manufactured exclusively for Retrouvius by Race Furniture. And just to boost the period feel, the chairs have been upholstered in specially sourced post-war vintage fabric (a choice is available).

The chair retails for £465 plus VAT, with a more basic linen version available for £395 plus VAT.

Find out more at the Retrouvius website

We featured the Hara Chair some time back, a modern chair by Giorgio Gurioli based very much on the 60s space age ethic. The original wasn’t cheap by any standards at £950, but the limited edition Hara Chair by Based Upon could warrant a chat with the bank manager.

The original was chosen by GQ Magazine as one of the ‘100 best things in the world’. They might get even more excited about the new version as there’s just 10 being made, each one ditching the plastic for metal – an ‘antique silver’ finish that’s actually a unique and complex alloy of five different metals.

And that exclusivity costs – the Based Upon Hara Chair retails for £4,995.

FInd out more at the 20ltd website

We’re big fans of Umpen Editions’ retro-inspired greetings cards, so its always a pleasure to see new ones arrive – the latest of which is Magnificent Men & Notable Gentlewomen and Beast Wishes.

Above are just two examples of the new designs. To the left is a card from the Magnificent Men & Notable Gentlewomen range, Victoriana designs with a nod to Monty Python’s pop surrealism. And to the right is a card from the Beast Wishes range, inspired by the work of Bawden and Ravilious and featuring a lion, a dog, little foxes, monkeys, a bird of paradise and the pig pictured here.

You can’t buy directly online, but if you go to the Umpen Editions website, there’s an extensive list of stockists.

Find out more at the Umpen Editions website