Mums the Word

Just putting it out there that perhaps your mum deserves something a little bit more special than PJ’s and fluffy slippers this Mothers Day…

so here is my Mother’s Day edit of cool gifts all under $100… hint, hint!

1. A Skulk of Foxes Timber Vessels starting from $89.00 – 8 styles available

2. Dinosaur Designs Liquid Servers – $100

3. String of Pearls Plant is my new favourite plant (available at any good garden centre for about $15) shown here in Angus and Celeste Nasturtium Hanging Planter – $69.00

4. Uashmama Paper Bags range in price from $10 upward and are available in a huge range of colours and can be used for just about anything!

5. Avalon Je T’Adore Green Tea Massage Oil – $39.95 and Organic Coconut and Lime Body Scrub – $54.95 because all Mums love to be pampered 😉

6. Throw Glitter in Today’s Face limited edition print by Laura Blythman / available through Lark – $75.00

Magic Mobiles

I was walking through The Rocks Markets in Sydney on the weekend and stumbled across a little stall selling these amazing stainless steel mobiles. They were so beautiful to watch as they turned in the breeze, catching and reflecting light and seemingly changing in size as they did so. Quite hard to explain the effect really, I wish I had a video to show you but trust me, they were seriously hypnotising!

I discovered The Geo Mobiles are made in Australia by Botten & Bouwman. There are three designs and sizes in the range, all made with marine grade stainless steel so they can be used indoor or out and when they require a clean you can just pop them in the dishy! How great is that!

 

Rugged and Exotic

Although we are heading into the cooler season here I am grasping onto the summer lifestyle and loving the thought of picnics, relaxing outdoors with plenty of nibbles (and wine!) and the company of some good friends.

And who better to invite to the party than the Fatboy Picnic Lounge! This huge oversized picnic rug looks more like an expensive Persian Rug and is guaranteed to up the ante at your next picnic. It is a generous size of 82 x 107 inches and has a couple very handy features. A carry strap for easy transportation, four big red pins to anchor the rug in place and the Fatboy label is in fact a handy pocket to stash your keys, phone or valuables and keep them safe and secure! How brilliant is that?!

The picnic rug is made from polyester, which isn’t a bad thing as it allows the rug to be durable, easy to clean and weather resistant. It also comes with a little brush so you can sweep away any sand or crumbs!

The Fatboy Picnic Lounge retails for $249.00 and is available in Australia through Design Public (International shipping is also available!)

Intelligent Speaker

See this stylish little cone? Well this is one clever little contraption too!

Cone is the first design created by start-up company Aether. Based in San Francisco, Aether is a software and hardware company that decided your speakers should not only look and sound amazing, but needed to be more intelligent too. A software program allows this wireless wi-fi speaker to choose the music you like, learning as it is used to create an archive of what style of music you like to listen to even noting your change in taste depending on your location! If you don’t like a song that cone has selected for you, turn the dial face to select another or press the centre button to request a song. These actions will also help the device narrow down your style consistently improving its selections to suit your taste.

The speaker has access to an impressive range of music, streaming from an online library of 20 million tracks, podcasts and internet radio stations or via access to your personal music collection on your Mac or iPhone using Airplay (An Android system is also in the works.) It is a fully portable design which will provide you with a cracking 8 hours of tunes thanks to a built-in rechargeable lithium battery.

Cone will be available in late 2014 at a retail price of US$399. Initially they will only be available in the black and copper finish, a white and silver edition will follow by the end of the year. Join the reservation list to be first in line!

Smile on my Dial

The hose reel. Something found at every home, highly visible on the exterior of the house but generally looked upon as an item of necessity not beauty. That is until now!

Brand new from Design By Them is the Dial Hose Hanger by Nicholas Karlovasitis and Sarah Gibson. This graphic, over-sized dial is made from powder coated zinc plated steel which disguises a 30 meter garden hose whilst adding a fun punch of colour to your home. What a brilliant idea to transform this common item into a design savvy feature! Love it, need it!

Pre-order now at a price of $165.00 to receive yours when stock hits the floor at the end of Feb.

Mega Mini

You might remember the stunning Megaphone by en&is which Hermit featured a while back, well check out the new addition to the family, Megaphonemini!

A smaller, more compact version of the original, Megaphonemini is designed as a portable version of the initial design. It features the same gorgeous horn shape in ceramic, but is a fraction of the size making it perfect for bedside or outdoor adventures. As it requires no batteries or electrical supply, the Megaphonemini can be easily moved from here to there, wherever and whenever you need a little music to get down to.

The Megaphone mini is compatible to use with iPhone 2G, iPhone 3G/3GS, iPhone 4/4S iPhone 5/5C/5S and the iPod Touch, and is available for purchase now in Italy! Can’t wait for these to hit Australian shores, now I want both designs!