Thanks, Veuve Clicquot, our Milano Design Week sponsor! We adore their new origami inspired ice bucket, Clicq’up.

Air Vases by Torafu Architects got an update this year at Canon’s Neoreal Wonder exhibition in Milan ~ these delicately cut paper vases that “seem to wrap air” ~ were made from print outs of their favorite pictures on Canon cameras, printed on Canon printers, then cut into beautiful Air Vases! The display in the corner with them floating like jellyfish, and sitting on a mirrored base that created an infinite world of floating Air Vases was beautiful!

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Tags: milan - paper - salone

Thanks, Veuve Clicquot, our Milano Design Week sponsor! We adore their new origami inspired ice bucket, Clicq’up.

On simple things that amuse and delight ~ De Vorm had a little plastic toy camera out ~ the single object on one of their tables they were displaying… of course we couldn’t resist picking it up… when a man emerged from behind a panel (while on the phone!) and said “Take it”… hesitating, he encouraged us further… then offered us another! How could we say no? And how could i not wear it? So in Milan Design Week seriousness… i totally wore this silly little toy camera alongside my real one… and inside it? Viewmaster catalog/press kit of sorts! Delightfully fun idea… so simple, so fun, definitely put a smile on my face. The camera is made by Plastiskop - “The Plastiskop models were patented from 1953 in Germany and turned out as the classic souvenir in the 50’s and 60’s, as with the upcoming mass tourism the Plastiscopes became the memory machine of a whole generation. As well in modern times our series for souvenir, animals, fairy tales keep up as a part of the german cultural landscape. Meanwhile the orignal models in their historical moulds are produced in third generation in north bavaria - hand made and almost in the same way as the first plastiscopes were done.” Amazing, right? See pictures of the camera, the press kit materials, and other Plasticopes on the next page!

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Tags: camera - gifts - milan - packaging - press kit - salone

It’s hard not to be drawn in glass bubblers, plants, and large canisters mysteriously hooked up… spotted out in Ventura Lambrate in Milan, this is the Compost Distiller by Lisa Johansson from the Royal College of Art. The unit is no ordinary compost bin. The beautiful system turns plant-based waste into biofuel, soil nutrients and compost. Unlike your typical composter, the unit includes subsections for both fermentation and distillation processes between the bin and garden composter, allowing you to harness more energy and nutrients in the waste before it becomes soil. See more about how this contraption works as well as close ups on the next page!

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Tags: gardens - green - milan - salone

Through a courtyard in Milan… following some mysterious arrows… a few turns, and into a mysterious doorway… we weren’t sure quite what we were in for… then somehow ended up inside Stone Island’s gorgeous room showcasing their Autumn/Winter 2011 collection “The Moon_ The Ultimate Rock of Stone” (Yes, insert giggling fit here) ~ but the room and display were gorgeous, life size vertical displays of models wearing the new collection flipping through… floating perfectly lit panels showing the actual goods… and a gorgeous HUGE moon, so close, yet so far, reflected into the dark space… See more pics of the lovely space on the next page. I’d love a magical moon room ~ something so otherworldly, maybe feeling like you’re floating in space?!?!?!

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Tags: fashion - milan - space

Thanks, Veuve Clicquot, our Milano Design Week sponsor! We adore their new origami inspired ice bucket, Clicq’up.

Justine spotted the beautiful lamp (Gice) and chair (Moon) from The Dutch Standard while running around Milan. Mesmerizingly sci-fi, these reflective, woody spheres can’t help but draw you in… take a peek at the next page to see how the Gice light and Moon chair look!

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Tags: chair - furniture - lighting - milan - salone

Thanks, Veuve Clicquot, our Milano Design Week sponsor! We adore their new origami inspired ice bucket, Clicq’up.

More fun Milan discoveries! Hard to ignore this fascinating multipurpose MolenKitchen, part barbecue, firebasket with spit, and smoker, all in one. The wheeled unit means you can cook on the go. The unit was created as a project for Zaandam, Holland by Studio Molen. The unit moves like a wheelbarrow and works both vertically and horizontally. The barrow handles turn into 2m long chimney when upright, or spits horizontally. It comes with beautiful grilling accessories too, allowing you to brand your creations. This could make for some fun customizations since you can come up with your own designs for both the grilling brands and the grilling surface! Also noteworthy? Their awesome graphic design and photoshoot with corrugated cardboard food and more! See more pics of the MolenKitchen in action on the next page!

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Tags: cooking - grill - kitchen - milan - salone

Thanks, Veuve Clicquot, our Milano Design Week sponsor! We adore their new origami inspired ice bucket, Clicq’up.

Spotted in Milan, the mesmerizing Flylight, by Lonneke Gordijn and Ralph Nauta (Studio DRIFT) in collaboration with engineers Klaas van der Molen and Luuk van Laake. It is a beautiful light installation composed of 160 glass tubes. The tubes light up and respond to the viewer and was inspired by the movements of a flock of birds. Each light is programmed with digital DNA and responds individually to the presence of viewers. Ultrasonic sensors detect the distance between viewers and installation, causing the ‘flock’ to react differently as visitors come closer or approach the installation in different configurations. To make sense of it fully you have to check out the video and pics on the next page!

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Tags: art - birds - installation - lighting - milan - salone - technology

Thanks, Veuve Clicquot, our Milano Design Week sponsor! We adore their new origami inspired ice bucket, Clicq’up.

Who doesn’t love brains and microchips? Especially extra large as coffee tables and ottoman like objects? And it was hard to resist a display with large brain scans mesmerizingly projected above the objects… These are the limited edition Brain and Microchips by Daniel Rohr! See more pictures of them (and a pic of them next to a person for some scale!) on the next page…

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Tags: brain - furniture - home - milan - salone - table - technology

Thanks, Veuve Clicquot, our Milano Design Week sponsor! We adore their new origami inspired ice bucket, Clicq’up.

Spotted at the awesome VIA Design: Les Aides a La Creation exhibition were some beautiful, modular pieces ~ like the Pentagon system, which is a series of tables and stools from Itamar Burstein. The pieces are constructed from five identical parts that have the shape of an upside down U (you can kind of peek at this behind the table up there ~ sorry i was distracted and forgot to get a good pic of the pieces taken apart!). These interlock during assembly to form a secure structure and support a table top in the case of the table piece, or for a fun stool in the smaller unit. See more pics on the next page!

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Tags: home - milan - salone - table - wood

Thanks, Veuve Clicquot, our Milano Design Week sponsor! We adore their new origami inspired ice bucket, Clicq’up.

Definitely my favorite find of the day. I clearly have a thing for swings and for unique woody products that show off their original tree edges… well the Swedish No Picnic’s ALMA series of ‘social swings’ combine just that! They also remind me of the Loyal Loot Log Bowls! They feel like rough logs that were sliced to make a bench, then milled out and lacquered for a seat/seats in bold colors. Strung up with thick black rope, they are tied in clusters to the beams high above. Though a bit slippery, they certainly are gorgeous and fun to swing in! Apparently these are “meant to represent the soul of Sweden. As Leonardo Salzedo says, ‘As teamwork is needed to enjoy the swing, so in our everyday life a conjoint effort is important to reach a common goal’.” Gorgeous, fun, and in so many colors and sizes, they were a delight to swing in… take a peek at many pics of them on the next page ~ as well as some making of photos!

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Tags: home - kids - milan - salone - wood

Thanks, Veuve Clicquot, our Milano Design Week sponsor! We adore their new origami inspired ice bucket, Clicq’up.

We love living walls (and the many options available!) ~ found a gorgeous entry way of easily DIYable felt pouches housing strawberries and herbs at Ortofabbrica in Zona Tortona today! Gorgeous and simple, you can sew your own pocket panels with two sheets of felt, make grids across them… and slit them and pop your plants in! See the full installation on the next page!

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Tags: diy - gardens - green - home - milan - plants - salone

Thanks, Veuve Clicquot, for sponsoring our Milano Design Week coverage! That cute little icon up there is their new Clicq’up.

Hard to miss, yet so adorably cute ~ this cluster of crane suspended Mini Coopers are hanging out in Milan! And for whatever reason, i’ve been having far too many conversations about hoisting cars up on to roofs and what not with cranes, so had to share this display! See more pics from other angles on the next page!

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Tags: cars - milan - sponsored

I couldn’t resist. I was totally that girl in the tiny supermarket in the huge line buying 4 jars of Nutella tonight. I mean, these limited edition Nutella Esperienza Italia 150 glasses were cute when they came up on NOTCOT.org, but renders are one thing. These are even more awesome in person! Fun glasses for just about anything… filled with nutella… celebrating Italian unity - specifically DESIGN, Arts, Landscapes & Architecture, and History! On fun design week souveniers, the design themed €1.79 glass of nutella is pretty sweet (even AFTER you eat the nutella)… The story? “Nutella wanted to celebrate the 150th Anniversary of italian Unity together with millions of Italian families and asked ARC’s. to interpretate the project in four themes: Arts, Design, Landscapes & Architecture, Historical topics. Through the “Esperienza Italia 150” limited edition collection, Nutella ideally embraces all italians, from the South to the North, as a sole big family.” Above is a render of the 4 glasses in the set from ARC’s… but on the next page, take a peek at close ups of them all!

p.s. Don’t mind the bizarre hotel/motel feel of the photos… it’s how it feels in here!

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Tags: chocolate - food - gifts - glass - illustration - italy - milan - shopping - travel

On fun design spotted in real life ~ just noticed the new Alfredo Haberli Carafe for Georg Jensen at La Rinascente in the design supermarket… and it seems to be half the price of what i’m seeing online (though i can’t find it for the life of me on the Georg Jensen site)! While we saw the preview on NOTCOT.org of the new collection from Alfredo Haberli, in person, it drew me in with the wooden spinning top of a stopper of course (remember these and these?) ~ AND, you can even buy just the top over at Unica. Take a peek at it up close on the next page!

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Tags: drinks - gifts - glass - kitchen - milan - salone - shopping - toys - water - wood

We’ve always been big fans of how much our friends at Veuve support design! And we love origami! This year at the Salone del Mobile, during Veuve Clicquot’s Milan Yellow Week, the company will debut their latest design collaboration, Clicq’Up, an origami inspired design object by Belgian designer Mathias van de Walle.

Clicq’Up is the first foldable Champagne bucket and is based on a concept of origami on ice, marrying form and function to create a contemporary, reusable design object that can be folded for easy transportation, set up, and storage. Ultimately, van de Walle’s design creates a playful home for the iconic sleek Yellow Label bottle. See how it unfolds on the next page!

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Tags: champagne - drinks - milan - origami - paper - salone - veuve clicquot

I just went literally around the world in 4 days! And for all who agreed it sounded both awesome and horrifying all at once… Mercedes-Benz managed to make it impressively painless, luxuriously comfortable even ~ i actually may have both seen more and slept far more than usual ~ as i was catapulted between time zones so quickly, my body had yet to completely notice before ending up right back here in LA! So forgive me for going quiet the last few days… i honestly can’t recall the last time i’ve actually had so little internet (and barely enough time to even panic about it!) I’ve just touched back down to LA, though currently in Laguna Beach for a bit before LA Auto Week kicks off. The gist of the trip is “Timeless Design” where we visit 4 of Mercedes’ six global design studios, one after the other! So on weds night i left LA, ended up in Stuttgart Thurs night (via Munich) to see the Sindelfingen studio on Friday, then quickly to a private jet to Milan, where we drive to see the Como studio - spend the night in Milan (next to the duomo!) - saturday morning we take the jet to Frankfurt to hop on the beautiful A380 to Tokyo - pop into the Tokyo hotel for and hour and a half to freshen up before heading to the Tokyo studio - and then hop on another jumbo jet right back to LA… and here i am in Laguna Beach SUNDAY AFTERNOON! …with an hour before the meeting with the futurist, a million pictures to sort out… and we’ve yet to visit the Carlsbad studio, or play with the cars, or see the auto show. So, here’s some quick NotVentures/Operation Window Seating literally around the world on the next page to inspire you… the globe has never felt quite so small or diverse as it does right now, my head is still spinning trying to keep track of all the places we’ve been and things we’ve seen in such a tiny amount of time… surreal to say the least! While this is certainly not everything, and a bunch of flights were in the dark… see some of the most inspiring views i found!

p.s. As for the actual design inspiration and incredible studio peeks… coming soon. Somewhere between catching up on all the pics and making sense of a bigger story as the trip comes to a close!

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Tags: airplane - germany - italy - japan - laguna beach - los angeles - luxury - Mercedes-Benz - milan - Operation Window Seat - photography - stuttgart - tokyo - travel

Yes, i’m cleaning up a bit ~ my house, my closets, my computers… and a few posts i’ve been dying to post that fell through the cracks as i went a little travel crazed the last few months! This exhibition still blows my mind looking back on the pictures i just found!

A tribute to an unfamiliar side of Achille Castiglioni. “Effetto Castiglioni”, an exhibition at the e De Padova showroom for Milan Design Week, presented for the first time the models of exhibit designs and architectural projects by this great master. Twenty-three models stored until today at the Studio Museo Achille Castiglioni of the Triennale Design Museum leave their cardboard boxes to narrate the expertise of Castiglioni, in a path that extends from the 1950s to 2000. Projects documented precisely at the crucial moment of the creative idea: the model. They are unbelievably detailed and playfully creative for their time (actually, even for NOW!) ~ you have to see the one made of cheese, the one that feels like a kaleidoscope, and more… see the pics on the next page!

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Tags: architecture - milan - salone

Still working my way through lots of milan pics, and had to share this one ~ aren’t they lovely? Sam Baron, the current Art Director of Fabrica (Benetton Group) has created the beautiful Philippe I coffee table for Casamania, made of lime-wood, MDF and walnut finished in white lacquer with transparent glass top/black lacquer with mirrored glass top. Sweet and reminiscent of Jaime Hayon’s style legacy at Fabrica…. take a peek at more pics on the next page!

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Tags: furniture - milan - salone - table

Spotted across the street when we were in Milan ~ Fritz Hansen had an incredible display not only showcasing the new NAP chair by Kasper Salto… but the whole process, from inspiration boards to prototypes to failed tests and more! It’s an inspiring way to see how much work and testing goes into a product that ends up so simple, functional, and beautiful. See the full walk through on the next page!

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Tags: chair - furniture - gifts - milan - prototype - salone - shopping

This post is a sponsored series that takes a fun peek at the gorgeous details of modern life. The irresistible design details that enhance our lives… Gillette is the sponsor… but, as always, the post and ideas are 100% NOTCOT.

Found at Agape’s showroom at this year’s Salone was a interesting combination between modern rustic and stylized high tech, Patricia Urquiola’s 2008 design “Vieques” bathtub and Gwenael Nicolas’s recent addition to his “Sen” faucet program created also in 2008 for the Italian company, which will be finally opening an Agape store in NY May 17th during design week! It’s absolutely breathtaking the way the faucet functions… and would be a perfect match with the matte black japanese “tools for men” featured earlier… even though first out in 2008, seeing it in person just made me want it that much more… take a peek at close up images of this beautiful line on the next page!

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Tags: bathroom - bathtub - faucet - gifts - gillette - home - milan - salone - shopping

While wandering the fiera during Milan design week ~ there were a LOT of chairs. And tables. And objects calling for your attention. Few booths made me feel ready to curl up in to bed, kick back on the couch… and just move in. LEMA did that. I walked in through the chaos, and even packed, it was a relaxing breathe of fresh air (and their flowers made it SMELL nicer than convention center too)… and then i fell in love with the bed. And the side table. and the desk. Take a peek at some of my favorite picks of their collection…

p.s. also noteworthy, they had an augmented reality aspect to their press materials! Check it out here: LEMA T030 Augmented Reality ~ you can print it and spin it around yourself even!

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Tags: augmented reality - furniture - milan - salone

While at 10 Corso Como ~ i really wish i had a pack of color pencils to take to the walls of Maison Martin Margiela’s pop up shoppable installation space that is covered in black and white color by number surfaces! All non-fashion lines of the Maison are displayed: home objects (line 13), fragrances (line 3), sunglasses (line 8) and jewellery pieces (line 12). Also memorable ~ the jewelry are all in safes behind paintings… which are all open! And of course, the creepy dolls eyes behind each pair of sunglasses… see lots of pics of the single room on the next page!

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Tags: events - installation - milan - salone

While exploring Ventura Lambrate during the Milan Salone 2010 ~ in the dreary weather, we stumble into a run down garage looking space… and get pointed to enter a dark curtain across the lot… like sheep, we follow. It’s DARK in there! But then, quickly i get distracted by these shiny objects… radiators… that remind me of 50’s cars… seriously, its something about those metallic paint jobs with the chrome… it just draws you right in!

These were part of Autofficina (a Dutch Still Life Composition), an assembly of products shown during Salone in the Lambrate area featuring the works of a group of prominent Dutch designers. The exhibitors were looking for international producers, retailers or galleries. All items are either in production or ready to be produced. The space heaters are part of the series, “I am furniture”, designed by dutch design Studio Vraay. See more info, and lots more pics of the radiators as well as the Autofficina exhibition on the next page!

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Tags: home - milan - radiators - salone

Hope. After a night of endless events, too many people, and walking all over the city… i must admit walking into a room of HOPE lamps really did make me light up… i was just giddy at the sight of them all together! And then i had to go directly under one to see how it looked from below… Luce Plan’s light designed by Francisco Gomez Paz and Paolo RIzzato, and winner of the 2010 red dot design award, Hope was born in 2009 as a modern reinterpretation of classic chandeliers. The design is a combination of a steel structure with polycarbonate arms and plastic Fresnel lenses to create a refraction effect equivalent to that of glass.

There is something so versatile and enamoring about this lamp, in person they just draw you right in… fun to see the way the family has grown and evolved from the original modular design. This year Luceplan proposed four new versions capable of satisfying a variety of demands.The large suspension lamp with 105 pairs of illuminating lenses can be enlarged upon request for special projects. This is the perfect solution for public spaces where a sparkling and joyful effect is desired. The wall model is smaller, with three pairs of lenses, while the ceiling model has 12 pairs of lenses. Finally, the floor version completes the Hope family: polished stainless steel tripod supports 18 pairs of illuminating lenses. See more pictures from the Luce Plan event as well as all the new Hope family on the next page!

p.s. also walking past the dark lobby of a beautiful old milanese office building, i stopped dead in my tracks when i saw a large hope pendant in the center… it looked stunning!

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Tags: furniture - gifts - lighting - milan - salone - shopping

Zanotta Zum Expansion Table by Emaf Progetti… Sure it looks like a sleek simple table, but you have to see HOW it expands! We made the guy open it again just so i could make a video to show you ~ because you really need to see it in action to appreciate how awesome it is! See close ups and video on the next page!

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Tags: furniture - home - milan - salone - table