Plastic ice buckets are fun and kitsch, but if you are looking for barware with more sophistication then The Conran Shop’s Art Deco Barware range certainly provides it.
Taking its inspiration from the 1920s, the range has (excuse the pun) buckets of glamour. The series consists of an ice bucket (priced £110), a wine cooler (£95) and a cocktail shaker (£75). Each piece is silver-plated (10 micron) and double-walled for insulation.
Visit The Conran Shop to buy.
An alternative to Cath Kidston’s dominance of the retro picnic market (if such a niche exists!) is the Blyton Retro Hamper.
Harking back to the 1950s, it is a cream metal tin containing a wicker tray, flask, cutlery, crockery, cotton napkins and a cruet set. Everything you need to dine outdoors in a civilised way.
This set is designed for two people and costs £82 from John Lewis.
The latest product from Joseph Joseph, makers of those fine worktop savers, is a retro patterned Serving Platter and Dip Bowl.
The green pattern is very much in the style of Orla Kiely or ISAK, but has been designed by the Stockholm based illustrator Bo Lundberg. It is printed on a hygienic and food safe glass platter, which comes with a separate glass dip bowl, which isn’t shown in the photograph.
Available to buy online from Iggloo, it costs £22.50.
Sir Peter Blake is over 75 and shows no sign of slowing down. In fact, his output seems to be ever-increasing, with this limited edition bottle for Cains Finest Lager his latest work.
It's all about the European Capital of Culture – Cains is a Liverpool brewery and sponsor of the Capital of Culture, with Blake designing the bottle as part of the brewery's activities. The lager is available for the whole of 2008, with Blake-designed limited edition posters also available to promote the beer.
If you local supermarket doesn't have it, you can buy the beer online for £24.99 (16 bottle pack). Which is probably the cheapest bit of art you'll see this year.
Earlier, we mentioned that you usually have to pay a hefty price for a design classic, but that’s not always the case. Indeed, we’re going to kick off a new series of everyday design classics with one that should cost you under £1.
The Orangina glass bottle has been around since 1951, an iconic design by Jean-Claude Beton to visually represent an orange, complete with that pebbly texture, reminiscent of the orange’s peel. It became as famous as the drink, yet amazingly, the bottle was eventually phased out in the UK for more supermarket-friendly packaging.
But now it’s back in the original 250ml glass bulby bottle to the UK – and should now have filtered onto the supermarket shelves. It’s priced at 95p for a single bottle, with a four-pack selling for £2.19. Is there a cheaper design classic? Let us know.
Even though the sweets taste like sugared chalk, I’m guessing we have all had a Pez dispenser at one time or other in our lives. But perhaps not one as cool as these Star Wars-themed Pez dispensers.
Take your pick from a Darth Vader, Death Star or Stormtooper, all 12 inches tall and packed with enough sweets to keep you hyperactive for hours. And not only that – they also light up and play the Star Wars theme.
Expect the three models here to be followed by C-3PO, Chewbacca, R2-D2 and Yoda, all selling for around the equivalent of £10 each.
Find out more at the Bulk Candy Store website
Via Technabob
