Categories / Design and Interiors

V&A runs silent auction for Eero Aarnio Globe Chair and Peter Ghyczy Egg Chairs

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Want to get some design classics in your home for (possibly) a fraction of the cost at retail? You can if you get involved with the V&A's silent auction on 15th July 2009 for an Eero Aarnio Globe Chair and some Peter Ghyczy Egg Chairs.

What's a silent auction you ask? Well, rather than all that arm waving and hammer bashing, a silent auction simply requires you to fill in the price you're willing to pay on a sheet of paper. If you bid the highest, you get it. And with reserve prices of £1,000 for the Globe Chair (usually £6,000) and between £400 and £600 for the Egg Chairs (usually £1,250), that could be a significant saving.

All proceeds of the auction go towards supporting the V&A's work, all items are sold as seen and bids (on the official sheets) must be handed in on the day of faxed. if you want a form, email [email protected] with the title ‘Bidding Slip Request’.

V&A Shop website

Categories / Bags

Nike Heritage Travel Bag

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We have featured a couple of old school Adidas bags of late, so here's one from arguably its biggest competitor – the Nike Heritage Travel Bag.

Available in a dark blue or black, the bag has a great retro look, but a very modern use – as either a weekend bag or with its built-in padded sleeve, as a rather cool laptop bag.

Aside from that, there's a dual zip main compartment and an adjustable strap, wth the bag selling for £45.

Find out more at the End Clothing website

Categories / Food and Drink, Homeware

New additions to New House Textiles’ vintage print tea towel range

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New House Textiles have recently made some attractive new additions to their range of tea towels utilising rediscovered designs. The image shows a detail from one of the designs: Louise Fougstedt's Cook's Favourites which originates from the 1950s. It features illustrations of kitchen ingredients alongside their plant source and name in Swedish. Useful for learning a bit of botany and Swedish as well as drying dishes! 

They've also introduced another fascinating design from the fifties, Brit Bredström's Lazy Lunch. This illustrates things such as fish on platters and delicacies on sticks, as if presented for your consumption. Both tea towels cost £8.50 each. 

See them online
Categories / Art and Photography, Kids

Belle & Boo kids illustrations

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The style and feel of the Belle & Boo illustrations made me think it was a lost childhood series that I'd somehow missed out on while growing up. In fact they are a modern creation, drawn by Mandy Sutcliffe. Her style deliberately references old children's illustrations portraying very innocent, timeless snapshots of the world. 

The illustrations are available across a wide range of products, from greeting cards to children's clothing. Pictured is Autumn from the My Favourite Place set, typical of the Belle & Boo style. Each print in the set shows the retro-dressed girl sitting contemplatively in a tree from a different season of the year. The set of four framed costs £140 and would be a charming addition to any kids room.  

Buy it online
Categories / Architecture, Property

For sale: 1960s-designed East Lane house in Bawdsey, Suffolk

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A house by a noted modernist designer overlooking the sea for under £300,000? That's what you get with the 1960s-designed East Lane house in Bawdsey, Suffolk.

it is one of six just a short walk from the coast, the work of Swiss-born architect Rudy Mock, a modernist designer in the 1930s and associate of two of the biggest names in 20th century architecture – Louis Kahn and Frank Lloyd Wright. He moved to London in the 40s, creating these houses in the 1960s – including one for his own use. Such was the buzz about the houses at the time that all sold for well over the going local rate. They're still rated today, with English Heritage considering listing the properties.

Read more

Categories / Homeware

Morph Bookends from Urban Outfitters

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Children's TV shows are a favourite medium for designers plundering the past for retro inspiration. If you grew up the UK, you can't fail to recognise the figure above. Before Wallace and Gromit were even heard of, Morph and his mate Chas were the most famous plasticine characters on UK telly.

Immortalised here in plastic, these bookends are a fantastic pair. Perfect for a gift or to get admiring coos from guests in your own home, this set of 2 polyresin bookends is 15 cms high. A little bit bigger than the original appeared, perhaps, but equally charming.

Get yours from Urban Outfitters now for £24.

Find out more from the website