Categories / Design and Interiors

Vitra La Fonda Armchair by Alexander Girard

Lafonda
Dating back to 1961, but now available as a reissue, is this Vitra La Fonda Armchair by Alexander Girard.

Girard was a friend of Charles and Ray Eames and was commissioned to create a restaurant interior in the Time-Life Building in New York. To furnish the dining area, he wanted chairs whose bases would fit with the rest of the interior, with the height of the backrests the same as the height of the tables.

And this is the result, developed by Eames Office as a padded plastic shell mounted on a two-piece cast aluminium base. The lining is available in a choice of colours – dark grey, black and orange covered Hopsak. And if you want one to furnish your interior, it retails for £636.

Find out more at the Utility Design website

Categories / Architecture, Design and Interiors, Pets

Raumhochrosen offers modernist houses for birds

Architectural_birdhouses

Never mind some bread and nuts, if you really want to treat the birds in your garden, get them the ultimate in stylish living – scaled replicas of great architectural homes for birds.

That’s what German design company Raumhochrosen is now offering. There’s a range of homes available, most notably some modernist-styled housing from the 1960s like Gunter Wratzfeld’s House Watzenegg in Dornbirn (1963) and Rudolf Wäger’s Dice House in Götzis (1965), along with more contemporary (but equally cool) designs like the Futterhaus SU-SI (1998) and the Futterhaus Haus R. (1999).

All are wooden replicas to a 1:33 scale and all are for sale online, with prices starting at 149 Euros, plus an additional 49 Euros for the stand.

Find out more at the Raumhochrosen website

Via Switched On Set

Categories / Design and Interiors

Mondaine Swiss Railways desk clock

Mondaine_desk
We featured the Mondaine Swiss Railway watch back in 2006 – it’s a watch based on the clocks used in every Swiss railway station since the 1940s. Indeed, it was actually designed by one of the employees, a man called Hans Hilfiker.

It’s been used in a variety of domestic watch and clock variations since, but the newly-introduced Mondaine Swiss Railways desk clock is the most eye-catching variation I’ve seen. It keeps exactly the same face, packs in a Ronda 530 quartz movement and comes in that bold 70s-style orange casing.

If you want one on your desk, it retails for £91.08.

Find out more at the Questo Design website

Categories / Design and Interiors

Space age Felt Chair by Marc Newson

Feltchair
An 80s chair with a distinctly 60s feel – the Felt Chair by Marc Newson.

Yes, this is actually from 1989, but let’s be honest, this is 60s space age in all but name. The Felt Chair is constructed of reinforced fibreglass with a polished natural aluminum back leg and a choice of polished lacquer colours.

Not the most comfortable chair you’ll ever sit in, but certainly an attention grabber. Yours for £2,100.

Find out more at the DesignShop UK website

Categories / Design and Interiors, Film and TV

Wizard of Oz alarm clock

Wizard_alarm_10
We’ll take a moment away from the high-brow fashion and design to go distinctly low-brow and kitsch – with this Wizard of Oz alarm clock.

Can an alarm clock get any cheesier? Unlikely when it has to compete with this stylised image of the characters on the face, not to mention the ‘Judy-style’ gingham print on the side. Oh yes – and it tells the time and gets you out of bed with loud ringing from those bells.

If all of that suits your beside, it’s available for £13.99.

Find out more at the Pussy Boutique website

Categories / Design and Interiors, Homeware

Hara Chair by Giorgio Gurioli for Kundalini

KuharaThe Hara Chair by Giorgio Gurioli for Kundalini is another one of those products that looks as if it has come from the Sixties but is in fact a much more recent creation.

Designed in 2002, it is described as “a bio-energetic seat handmade in lacquered fibreglass”. It has also been treated for outdoor use to protect against ultra violet rays and be resistant to temperature changes. But all that aside, it looks pretty good and was included in GQ magazine’s list of 100 Best Things in the World!

Not a cheap chair by anyone’s standards, Nest are currently selling it at a 10% reduction, bringing the price down to just under £950.