For lovers of ‘Good Wood’.

For those of us growing up with the amazing football skills of the brazilians, Carlos Alberto is something of a legend in his field.

It seems that there is another legendary Carlos Alberto in his own field that I didn’t know about. I was recently sent some examples of his work, expecting something else – I won’t fill you in on the whole conversation, but needless to say it wasn’t leading up to this.

The pictures above are photographs of a Vespa Scooter, which is made from wood by the brilliant Portuguese carpenter, Carlos Alberto. The really cool thing is that this thing actually works and on his website you can see someone zipping around town in one of the photos.

Classic scooters are cool, that is taken for granted, but the way that this one stands out from all the rest is extraordinary and even cooler than those ‘Mod’ scooters doing the rounds in the 60’s in England. As a carpenter his work is great, the usual doors and cabinets are perfectly made, but check out his motorbikes and other items.

Everybody says good work fella but wonders if it is available in a range of metallic Varnishes like more modern scooters are?

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SELK BAG

You might have noticed recently, there has been the odd day when it’s got really cold, this winter especially. We found a great way to get away from that creeping cold though… one which doesn’t involved fire and brandy.

These “sleeping bags with arms and legs” are intended as just that, sleeping bags but I can see us wrapped up nice and snug in the evening watching television and doing all the things you normally do. See, unlike most sleeping bags, these give you the ability to use your hands without exposing the top half of your body, something which always annoyed me. They are intended for those hard code campers who need to sleep out in the wilds, but they are more than likely going to be used for raves or by people just wanting to stay snuggly warm in the house. (No, I’m not talking about my wife.)

These are, again a simple solution to a simple problem that no one bother to solve until now. The picture above takes you to a Dutch distributor where you can buy these wonder bags.

Everybody says… Genius and thanks for keeping us warm, and making us look like ‘teletubbies’.

File under: Why-didn’t-I-Think-of-that?”

As with all design, the simple and obvious solutions are often over looked for a more “clever” solution. I’ve bought clips, clamps, cut holes in tables and generally tried to be too clever to hide my cables, but I was never this inventive. Meet Flexicord.

It’s a range of cables like, USB, HDMI, Composite and Ethernet which hold their shape, thus meaning you can place them behind the printer and not have them stretch, tangled up around everything on your desk. (Honestly, you should see the number of cables I use). You can stretch them to the position or shape need, or coil them up and they won’t unravel.

Flexicords rock. Everybody says well done for thinking of such a simple thing (even if we say it with a hint of jealousy).

Concentric Light from Blankblank

Hello again, it’s been a while – not gonna make any apologies, we’ve been busy which is a great thing. Anyway, first post for a long time, we wanted to show you another example of something in a long line of lighting design posts on our blog.

This is a great piece which is just as beautiful when switched off, as it is when it is actually on. The light, called “Concentric” – for obvious reasons is designed in by Rob Zinn, for the “Blankblank” company and is made from powder coated aluminium and brass. We’ll let Blankblank tell you about the design.

When off, this satin white fixture has a subtle glow of color that washes its planes. But when turned on, the hidden colors illuminate, becoming vivid and mesmerizing. Aluminum, steel and brass construction enable this fixture to achieve scales up to 48” in diameter, making a bold, durable, artistic statement in commercial and residential applications. Fabricated by the makers of a 100 year old lighting line, this fixture is made with quality and care.

Everybody certainly recommends a good look around the Blankblank site for some great interiors inspiration. Take a good look at the work that Rob Zinn has produced for them in various guises, from seating to lighting you can see why this designer has achieved many awards in his career.

Everybody says well done Rob, and we really want a couple of these on the wall in the office to light the gloomy Rotterdam afternoons we seem to be experiencing recently.