Category: Design and Interiors

Just spotted this Clear Globe 70s-style table lamp online – and I’ll happily admit I know nothing about it, but like it very much.

The design is pure 70s (not unlike a vintage floor lamp we picked up some time ago from a junk shop) , with the stainless steel base and circular clear glass shade, which means you get to see the bulb and inner workings.

The price also indicates it isn’t designer – a bargain £59. And if anyone asks you about it, just say it’s a rare collector’s piece – no-one will know.

Find out more from the Dwell website

There’s quite a story behind these Cmielow sixties animal ceramics.

These sculptures were originally created over forty years ago by Polish artists working in the famous porcelain factory at Cmielow in south eastern Poland – a town where porcelain has been manufactured since 1790. The unusual designs were inspired by the art of Henry Moore and Picasso and featured animals as well as females in the fashions of the day.

All that came to an end in the sixties, when a fire destroyed much of the factory. But here’s the good news. Recently, many of the moulds have been recovered, most needing only minor repairs, allowing the designs to go back into production.

You can now buy some of the animal designs online, including the fox pictured here. Prices start at £29.

Find out more at the Twentytwentyone website

Yet another practical classic that doesn’t cost a fortune – the Eames LTR occasional table, originally introduced in 1950.

It’s both practical and simple, a laminate top (in black or white) with a wire undercarriage support. Use it as a side or occasional table, or buy a few (if the budget can stretch a bit) and use them in a row or piled on top of each other as a storage unit.

Now remade by Vitra, you can pick one up for £150.

Find out more from the Utility Design website

Doormats aren’t everyone’s cup of tea, least of all designers, as you rarely see any other than the square ones with "welcome" in bold lettering. But look around and there are some interesting ones, like this Hare Mat by Droog.

It’s based on a 1920s pictogram by Gerd Arntz, the well-respected German modernist artist. Even if it didn’t have the heritage, it’s still a very eye-catching addition to your hallway. Sized at 195cm x 90cm, you can pick one up for £72.

Find out more at the Twentytwentyone website

Quirky design isn’t something that appeared in the last 20 years – it’s been around as long as design itself. In fact, it doesn’t get much quirkier than the Sella bicycle seat stool, dating back to 1957 and designed by Achille and Pier Giacomo Castiglioni (who you may remember from the recently-featured Taccia lamp).

It’s a simple design with a very simple use – a black racing saddle with a pink lacquered steel column sits on a cast iron rocking base. The design was a practical one from Achille Castiglioni’s point of view – he wanted a comfortable seat that could be used in a phone box, where he liked “to move around” and “to sit, but not completely”.

If you can find a use for the design in your home, you can buy one for £520.

Find out more at the Places And Spaces website

If you don’t go in for keeping your personal contacts on your phone and PC, preferring instead to do it the old-fashioned way, you might be interested in these Paperchase retro address books.

Available instore or online via Amazon, the books offer plenty of room to keep the address details of friends or associates, along with some nice retro packaging – the glamorous vintage lady or the 60s new-build housing estate (which we actually prefer in truth).

Available now, yours for £5.75 each.

Find out more at the Amazon website