Category: Design and Interiors

Categories / Design and Interiors, Music

W2’s Jimi Hendrix Blue Plaque mug

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Hendrixweb Up and down the country, English Heritage has slapped a Blue Plaque on just about anywhere anyone famous has lived – or indeed done something interesting. And in a bizarre bit of merchandising, English Heritage has teamed up with W2 to merchandise these plaques – with the end product typified by this Jimi Hendrix Blue Plaque mug.

There isn’t just Jimi Hendrix in the range and there aren’t just mugs – you can get tea towels too, along with a whole of famous names, from Freud and Karl Marx through to John Lennon and Oscar Wilde, each with their plaque’s details replicated.

Not a bad purchase if you happen to be a fan of the person concerned, probably a bit niche for the rest of us. The fine bone china mugs sell for £10, tea towels for £6.

Find out more at the W2 website

Categories / Design and Interiors

Eames reissued Eiffel DSR chair

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Eames_dsr Another timeless Eames design – the Eames Eiffel DSR chair.

Dating back to 1956 (which amazingly means this is now over 50 years old), the DSR was a clean and simple design, using fibreglass-reinforced plastic, with a welded chrome base (presumably based on the Eiffel Tower) and rubber shock mounts to connect the seat and base. This reissue is more from recyclable polypropylene, but look exactly like the original.

You can pick one up from the Conran Shop, priced at £174.

Find out more at the Conran Shop website

Categories / Cars and Bikes, Design and Interiors

Lamponi’s vintage Vespa headlight lamps

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Vespa_lamp

Thanks to Steve for pointing me in the direction of the Lamponi’s Lamps website – allowing me to discover these truly stunning Lamponi’s vintage Vespa headlight lamps.

There’s a range of classic Vespa lights available, as well as the odd Lambretta, all using original handlebars or fittings, completely restored off vintage machines. The lamps are aluminium castings, turned, polished or painted, whatever you require and every single one is made to order to your specification. Which means each piece is a genuine one off (it also means you’ll have to wait around 25 days for Mr Maurizio Lamponi Leopardi to make it).

Great design, individually made – you know it isn’t going to be cheap. The lamps actually retail for between 1300 and 1500 Euros (around £882 – £1,017).

Browse the full range at the Lamponi’s Lamps website

Categories / Design and Interiors

Missy Broome Howdy dolls

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Howdy

Keyrings, dolls or purses? Well, these Howdy dolls from Missy Broome are probably all three.

Odd-looking, they’re made from vinyl and vintage oddments and buttons to give them their distinctive looks. Indeed. they have also individual names, which are, from left to right, ‘Two Sloops’, ‘Captain Shivers’, ‘Howdi-Culture’, ‘Howd-oui’ and ‘Roadie Howdy’.

All have a keyring attachment and all have zipped mouths for storing some bits and pieces. They retail for $30 (around £15) each.

Find out more at the Missy Broome website

Categories / Design and Interiors, Food and Drink, Homeware

Türlitoaster – 50s-style kitchen classic

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Turlitoaster
I’ve had to rely on Google Translate to get the full details on the Türlitoaster  – but I can tell you for sure that this is a stunning piece of design from 1959 – and you can still buy one today.

Originally made in Switzerland in the late 50s, this a mechanical toaster that pre-dates the pop-up toaster. Stick in your bread, toast one side, then use the flip mechanism to toast the other side (without burning your fingers). The downside is that you need to use our judgement to decide if it’s toasted – automation only went so far in the 50s.

Yes, it mans more work but I think you’ll struggle to find a cooler toaster in any kitchen. Available online for 49 Euros (around £34).

Find out more at the Manufactum website