360 DEGREES Weblog

The difference between a good design and a great one is longevity — great design is timeless, but as such, it takes time to recognize. The OXO Anniversary Edition Uplift Tea Kettle ($70) was created to do exactly that — recognize ten years of the company’s classic kettle, with long-lasting stainless steel and zinc construction and handles made from natural cork. As an added bonus, you can pretty much guarantee it’ll look as cool in 2022 as it does today.

Aston Martin has impressed just about any style loving individual. Whether it was cars, Drive-Me Home furniture collection, Voyage 55 concept tender, or the Mobiado handsets, it seems the brand name and style quotient is rubbing off on everywhere. The latest product to bear the established brand name of the auto maestro is the luxury office collection furniture, created by the Formatalia Luxury Group. Meant for the premium range of office goers, who have an eye for sophistication combined with modern day sleekness in designs, this furniture brings in pretty much the same thing what the Aston Martin cars would, to its lucky buyers.

Though catering to the luxury segment, none of the characteristics ever actually lack the functionality that one would look from the furniture set. Add with that some premium fabrication and modern formations, and you have what the Formatalia Luxury Group has to offer for your office. Also, the best testimony of the Group prowess for its job is displayed in the elaborate list of premium level clients, one of them being Aston Martin itself. Hopefully, by the looks of it, they seem to have justice to their creations. In the collection, are included 4 main products mainly, including the PKU49 armchair, PKU29 Drawer cabinet, PKU08 drawer cabinet, PKU04 aluminum desk. Commonalities would include the use of carbon fiber or sanded aluminum for the basic skeleton, whereas the fabrication is done with drum dyed aniline leather, albeit with 2 color options; tan and black.

For the desks, there is the push button mechanism for opening and closing the drawers for the one that has them (PKU04). The body for this one is mainly aluminum with black leather (night) outer skin. On the other hand, the PKU08 is more simplistic design, with the curved glass top and aluminum frame beneath. The accompanying chair is of course selected matching the color of the table set and rest of the décor. Equally smooth finished on texture, light yet sturdy, these are virtually the must haves for each well-healed executive’s boardroom.

For people who like to keep things conventional or look at the regular stock of furniture for their everyday use, they might be in for plenty of surprises with the Hi-Macs Sleepbox. With a designer that’s bent on experimenting with shapes and formations, like in the case of the Horn iPod dock and Ora Ito seat, one can always hope for something unconventional or rather practically feasible for use, such as this one. For those who need to catch a short nap at semi-public areas such as airports or long duty hour jobs, it doesn’t get any more convenient than this Sleepbox.

From Estiluz comes this playful balloon shaped lamp!

In the modern day home, there is a new sort of competition; every kind of gadgetry and gizmo needs to stick to specifications of being able to multi-task, pertain to a certain level of quality, and be matching with the general aesthetics as well. In the range of ovens, who match up to this criterion, we had earlier seen the likes of Kalamazoo Artisan fire oven, the Kitchen Aid oven, and the electronically controlled iChef Gorenje module, but taking it to another level altogether, is the Fulgor Milano hidden oven, than not only performs multiple functions, but can also slide inside vertically into your kitchen countertop, paving way for extra space.

Would you like a work table for your laptop, but you don’t have room for a desk?  Or you’d like to use it while sitting on your sofa, without burning your legs?  The Room-for-My-Sidekick Table from Levenger will let you add a work table to any room.  It’s big enough to use with a laptop or your tablet, and there’s a storage drawer that conveniently opens from either side for easy access to your supplies.  The table glides easily over tiles, wood, or carpet, and the brushed-chrome base slides under your chair to position the table over your lap.  When you don’t need it, slide it beside the sofa or chair and use it as a side table.  It’s available in dark cherry, natural cherry, or walnut wood veneers.  It’s $239 for either cherry veneer or $299 for the walnut; special pricing ends January 22, 2012.

Peugeot isn’t all about lending its modern designs to automobiles alone. In the past, it has presented us with testimony like the Bell & Ross SR1 concept watch, which displayed the French brand’s creative streak. But making a comeback after the initial unveiling in the 1960’s, is the famous Peugeot Swilden’s desk, 3 samples which were placed at the foyer area, of the then newly created head office in Paris. French designer Furdees, is bringing alive the special piece of furniture all over again, with the help of the original designer, Ben Swildens for a limited edition production run of 8 desks. The reason why this piece of furniture became as iconic as it is today, was the innovation of bringing utility, abstract design, and the concept of creating a piece of furniture with no visible signs of welding on it. Made for receptionist at the head office in Paris, these desks were made from a single large chunk of stainless steel, which was then molded into this abstract shape. Even with the current batch of 8 desks, the same procedure has been followed to ensure, that the furniture comes alive exactly the way it did in the mid 1960’s. A lot of 3 units of this desk will be on sale from next year, with a price tag of $87,000 each, and the rest to be sold individually, later. If one manages to visit Brussels Antiques and Fine Arts Fair around January 19, 2012, then one can get a chance to see it in person, and perhaps even take a shot at buying it.

California based, Julien’s Auctions sold a contour prototype Coca-Cola bottle designed by Earl R. Dean for a whopping $240,000. While a sketch of that first bottle brought $228,000. Ever imagined eating fries and your burger without Coke? Makes you shudder right. Hence a tid-bit of interesting history about the empty Coca-Cola bottle will help sketch the entire picture for you. 96 years ago, Benjamin Thomas, co-founder of the Coca-Cola Bottling Company figured that they need to manufacture something that would stand out from competition designs.. Dean’s curvaceous design bagged the winning entry at the 1916 Bottlers Convention. Unfortunately it never made it to production due to some manufacturing issues. However, Dean redesigned the bottle to rectify the problem and that’s how the contour Coca-Cola bottle wrote its history.

Designer Shay Carmon came up with this fantastic concept for a Defibrillator Toaster “to revive your old bread.”

Looking to add an industrial touch to your home, office, or man cave? Start with Machine Shop Lighting ($650). Available in three styles, these handcrafted light fixtures are made using A36 raw steel that’s been precision machined and fitted, with 3/8″ thick Pyrex glass cones and stainless steel components. Order them online, or, if