Featured

Five of the best retro sports holdalls

Five of the best retro sports holdalls

Pro-Ject unveils Charlie Brown-themed Peanuts T1 BT turntable

Pro-Ject unveils Charlie Brown-themed Peanuts T1 BT turntable

Keith Haring Dancing Figures Lego set

Keith Haring Dancing Figures Lego set

Categories / Cars and Bikes, Travel

Retro Retreat: Isle of Wight VW Camper Van holidays

Posted on | Leave a comment

Vw_isleofwight
We haven’t done a Retro Retreat for a while, but with summer approaching, we thought it was time to do something involving the great outdoors – like these Isle of Wight VW Camper Van holidays.

It’s your chance to tour round the idyllic Isle of Wight in your own time and in a 1970s VW Camper Van. It’s kitted out with everything you need for life on the move – cooker, fridge, sink, double bed and two pop top bunks, camping equipment, fresh linen, towels and a hamper of Isle of Wight products (including homemade cake) to start you off on your holiday.

The vans are fully insured and supplied with a full tank of petrol. And if you don’t want to take your own car (you can get a train over), Isle of Wight Campers will even pick you up with your van on arrival.

Tariffs start at £275 for the week (Monday to Friday) or a long weekend, rising depending on the season.

Find out more at the Isle of Wight Campers website

Categories / Gadgets and Tech

Alcatel Elle N°3 GlamPhone – retro space age mobile phone?

Posted on | 1 Comment

Alcatel_elle

It’s rare to see the word ‘retro’ associated with a mobile phone – apart from the sadly-missed Samsung P300 calculator phone. But today it was used again to promote the Alcatel Elle N°3 GlamPhone, which is claimed to be influenced by the plastic space age design of the late 60s.

I can’t say I’m entirely convinced, but I can see where they’re coming from, with the curved shape and white plastic exterior. But this handset, a collaboration between Alcatel and fashion magazine Elle, is much more modern than vintage. If you like the look of it, the GlamPhone will be available in a choice of colours, each with a colour screen, MP3 player, 1.3 megapixel camera and a matching Bluetooth headset.

No news of price as yet, but it’s likely to be fairly cheap when it arrives in June.

Find out more at the GlamPhone website

Categories / Design and Interiors

Ikea Skruvsta retro-styled swivel chair

Posted on | Leave a comment

Ikea_skruvsta
A mix of the old and the new with this latest seating from Ikea – the Skruvsta retro-styled swivel chair.

In some ways, it’s a very modern piece – a height-adjustable chair with a steel and plastic base that would be ideal as an occasional office chair. But the actual seat has a 60s-style shape and a 100 per cent cotton fabric covering that wouldn’t have looked out of place in the 70s.

And best of all, with it being an Ikea piece, it’s cheap. You can pick this up at your local store for just £69.90. Or you can have it delivered now that Ikea offers online shopping.

Find out more at the Ikea website

Categories / Men's Fashion

Paul Smith retro paisley dressing gown

Posted on | 1 Comment

Ps_dressinggown
Is there a less fashionable garment than a dressing gown? Most of have one, but they either look like a cheap martial arts suit or an oversized towel – both complete with toothpaste stains. Well, Paul Smith has something with a little more character – this men’s archive paisley dressing gown.

It’s a 100 per cotton garment, made from what’s described as an archive sky blue paisley cloth, which I presume means its a vintage design re-discovered and re-made.

Traditional in looks with two pockets and tie fastening and available in a range of sizes, it retails for £80.

Find out more at the Paul Smith website

Categories / Cars and Bikes, Gadgets and Tech

Zumreed VW Camper Van radios

Posted on | 2 Comments

Zumreed_vw_minibus

Novelty radios always impress us – and this VW Camper Van radio from Zumreed is the best we’ve seen for some time.

It’s an AM/FM radio, with the added bonus of looking like a vintage VW. There’s another hidden bonus too – it’s also got an LCD alarm clock on the rear. And you can use it as a speaker for your MP3 player via the headphone slot.

It measures around seven inches x three inches, comes in a choice of colours and is powered by mains, battery or USB. You can pick one up for the equivalent of £35 from Japanese online retailer Abide.

Find out more from the Abide website

Via Technabob

Categories / Design and Interiors, Gadgets and Tech

Toasty – retro toaster like a cassette deck

Posted on | 2 Comments

Toasty

Toasters are pretty standard in design – a set number of slots in the top, a catch to push down and a pop-up when it’s ready. But all that could change with Toasty.

Toasty is a new way of toasting your bread products, mixing 80s technology with 50s styling. Open it up like a cassette deck, pop in your bread and close. When it’s ready, the door pops open and your ready to butter. If only it printed a cassette pattern on the bread, this would be pretty much perfect.

It might yet happen, because this is a concept courtesy of designer Arthur Wu, not quite ready to go into production. When it does, we’ll be at the front of the queue.

Find out more at the Arthur Wu website