Reggie

Reggie in certified local tassie oak and dyed black FSC eucalyptus

hypnotised this past month by the textural giddy-up of my new drum pendant light, Reggie, I missed whispering howdy to the outside world. so a booming happy wednesday and without ado here's...drumroll...rrrrReggie, dedicated to Tasmania's tallest growing hardwood Eucalyptus Regnans. or good ol' Tassie Oak as we botanically challenged like to say.

Reggies inside chevrons laid flat

natural lighting

French financial paper, Les Échos, warmed the euro winter with a botanical theme in last weekend's mag. leafing through perfectly manicured pages Parisians stopping to admire George Clooney sipping beans also got the 'pure pleasure' of other odes to nature...including our Pod Luxe. Voila!

interior design magazine

cucumbers and bananas feature in my morning smoothies (a tropical phase) and are also handy bookmarks for New York design tabloid Interior Design Magazine's fall issue...where the Pod Luxe hangs with a bunch of light-minded designs. tis the season for lame metaphors. isn't it?

street light

with all the recent focus on our luxe leather, we couldn't resist grabbing a moment to tinker with some timber - to get back to our roots (tassie oak, to be precise) and see what materialises.  a flurry of slicing, folding, weaving and questionable origami interpretations ensued…  and from it 'Street Light' emerged.

a nod to our incredibly public-spirited pal, Caitlin Street, this little number is our most personable yet.  customisable in shape, size, interior colour… as a stand alone lamp or simply as a shade.  so grab a ruler and a swatch book and tell us - what does your street look like?

profiled and postable

it's the news we hope all you lighting enthusiasts have awaited…  Pod Luxe is only 3 - 7 working days from a power point near you!  that's right, our luxurious leather pendants have joined the collection of unique homewares to dot the delightful shelves at hardtofind, and are ready to 'add to cart' pronto.

in honour of the new arrival, hardtofind have also given us our very own cyber spread.  so, after you've bagged yourself a couple of pendants (who can say no to free shipping?!), jump to their blog and peer into the grey matter that conjures these luminous creations.

photos: Chris Crerar

WORKSHOPPED 13

"how can design be future proofed for a disposable society?"

it's the question that's seen fifty home-grown bright sparks weild hammer and pixel to bring you fifty innovative responses at Workshopped13.  honoured to be asked for our input, we saw no better time to debut our new 'mod tech meets ancient craft' pendant - Pod Luxe.

emulating the success of the designers they foster, Workshopped kicked off in 2001 as a hobby, with 5 designers and an opening night figure of 400.  ok, so thats not a bad crowd, but...  zip forward to o-twelve and we have the single largest event on the australian product design calendar, with a history of 200 designers, and over half million names on the visitors book.

Workshopped13 is free (yep, save your coins for all the goods you'll soon be adding to your wish lists), and runs from august 15 - 25 at sydneys supa centa moore park.

photo: chris crerar

the new black

thanks to the wonders of modern technology, and good taste, we welcome our boldest timber yet - eucalypt in liquid amber.

fine slices of sustainably managed, FSC endorsed eucalyptus, penetrated with a deep black (liquid amber) dye. the result? a veneer which embodies all the bewitching boldness and versatility of an eco resin in a sensuous, tactile timber light.

but enough with the pitch - Chris Crerar captures the essence perfectly with this moody black baroque.  the only question now is - which style will you choose?

stacked, folded, done, dusted.

the final installment of flat.stack.fold 2013 was delivered at full-tilt this week.  two fruitful, brisbane-based workshops, devoured by nine extraordinary tasmanian designers, culminating in the completion of nine extraordinary, new tasmanian designs.
loading our precious protos in the dodge (l-r) master craftsman Jye Edwards, Street & Garden Furniture Co. director David Shaw, and Design Tas GM Rye Dunsmuir

noteworthy highlights?  our mentor, David Shaw, delivering us to Brand + Slater Architects in his fabulous ex-Vegas dodge… enlightened moments behind-the-scenes at metal fabricator, Rockpress… a beer-fuelled presentation (at west ends über cool watering hole, Depo) to haled designers from Luxx Box, Derlot,and the curators from Artisan… and, of course, the buoyant feedback received for our newest luminaire - a flat-pack version of pod luxe - 'bolb'!  

watch this space for details on the official unveiling of our future-friendly creations in september.

euro-meets-wildlife watering hole, Depo - co-founded by director of award winning design studio, Derlot, Alexander Lotersztain.  the mans prolific!  

latitude love

this stunning transformation of the classic cage light is credit to the innovative disposition and modernist propensity of perth designer Flynn Talbot.  an industrial decorators dream, 'Latitude' perhaps takes its name from it's ability to direct the light in whichever angle you wish - indirect uplighting, downlighting, spotlighting… options endless. ourselves? we plan on moonlighting with a sleek teal number, post haste.

flat.stack.fold

Q. how do you stuff a grand, incandescent bovine into a humble envelope?

good question!  and perhaps a tad ambitious.  but we are eager to to explore the possibilities when Design Tasmania kicks off the second edition of their flat.stack.fold (FSF13) workshops next month.  acknowledging our conundrum (large leather pendant seeks petite packaging for future-friendly travel), Design Tas selected us to take part in their four day, bi-state intensive, alongside seven other forward-thinking furniture designers.  expertly guided by Street & Garden Furniture Co. director, David Shaw, our flat-packed, stacked and folded creations will be unveiled for public scrutiny in september.

finnish light carving

sculpting shadows in milano last month was multifaceted, nordic designer Mari Isopahkala and her de stijl inspired batons of waxed birch wood.  in possession of a skill set spanning product, furniture, textile, jewellery, light, exhibition and interior design, it would appear versatility is key for this prolific creator.  it's a sentiment reflected in her Sculpted Light collection which features primary hued, rotating rods with the cunning 'ability to direct light where most needed'.  needless to say, Mari's website houses a generous trove of inspiration - cast your eyes thisaway…

launch love

2:15 to spare?  encapsulated in this two minute reel are the sensory highlights of Design Tasmania's Autumn Launch Party.  of course, you can skip to 1:17 for a gander at the luminous pod luxe pendants, but we highly recommend a full viewing so as to appreciate the splendid sampling of local artistry, and rather awe-inspiring craftsmanship of wood turner, Brad Moss.  better yet… pop over to The Design Tasmania Centre and soak up this superb showcase in person.

whimsical science

fresh flowers, food colouring, chocolate… not this weekends shopping list, but the possible contents of the Maria S.C. Lamp.  okay, so perhaps a pendulous, incandescent fondue set still delves a little more into the fantastical, but it also demonstrates that imagination is the only limiting factor when it comes to this charming little chandelier. looking to fellow Pole (think pierogis not posts) and nobel prize winning chemist, Marie Curie as her inspiration, Magda Jurek crafts her pendants by suspending ninety six test tubes from two plywood hoops…  the rest is up to you! 

pod luxe

long enamoured by natures ingenious design and the 'slow' crafts of our forefathers, we've literally returned to our roots to draw inspiration for our new range.  INDUSTRY OF NATURE is the irresistible convergence of the natural world and ancient crafts.  POD LUXE, the radiant debut from the collection, borrows its form from the reticulated tunic of the corm (not horticulturally versed? ...the bulbous encasing of irises, gladiolus, et al), and has been sculpted through the time honoured tradition of cuir bouilli (non parlez-vous français? ...the boiling and taming of leather).

our tactile little beauty beckons for a closer inspection, doesn't it?  be amongst the first at tonights Autumn Design Launch Party in launceston (though, p'haps enjoy the gourmet snags after fondling the hide).  or catch Objects in Place by the water in hobart 'til the twentieth…

ten days of cuir bouilli

with all the fuss made over tassies gourmet nosh, we thought we'd step into the kitchen and see if we could infuse our pendants with some of that culinary magic. intrigued? on the boil since 2012, our new lumières are set for their big reveal next month, at australias only state-wide international arts fest, Ten Days on the Island...

first, circle march 14 - 20.  DOTs interactive Objects in Place, at hobarts waterside pavilion, explores the design of public spaces and features new works from a shortlist of fifteen very fine jewellers, ceramicists, furniture makers, lighting designers (ahem!) and more.

next, head north to launcestons Design Centre Tasmania, for a behind-the-scenes peek at how technology shapes the process and informs the final product of some of tassies top designers.  Think.Make.Change.  runs from march 8 to may 26, but if you like your design with a side of food, wine and music (err… anyone who didn't put their hand up?), then make sure you're there on march 15 for their autumn launch party.

of course, our bitty selection's not all that's on offer (we're just a little biased) - so grab your festival planner here and go exploring!

vivid memories

globophobes aside, there cannot be a soul that's not up uplifted by these cheerful balloon lights.  resplendent recollections of childhood celebrations and high school soirees are made tangible by czech designer Boris Klimek, in his 'Memory' wall and ceiling lights.  each lumière is flawlessly formed from opal glass and operated via it's own 'string' pull cord.  three sizes and a multitude of colours mean thematic possibilities are limited only by imagination. you can snag yourself a bunch here and enhance your shopping experience here.

merry, bright and green

arranged with a discerning touch, there is something undeniably magical about the lighting at this time of year.  next year, however, I think we'll shuck the house of it's glittery fairy lights and swathe it in Stephen Johnsons striking, oversized gift bows.  crafted from semi-transparent PET, these surreal lumières tick all the festive boxes - merry, bright and 'green'.  "light can be used to create an array of wonderful emotions to experience, beyond just enabling us to see"...  we concur Stephen.  so here's wishing all of our friends, fans and loved ones a bright festive and luminescent twenty thirteen.