d'Espresso

New coffee bar the d’Espresso Cafe in New York based it’s design on the interior of a library. Never a dull moment in this library; to make sure heads would turn, the interior was spun around, shifting each part 90 degrees. The floor was shifted to the rear wall, the library stacks were shifed to the floor, ceiling and outer walls, and the library ceiling became the back of the bar. Great place to enjoy coffee over a good book.

The twist of the interior design by Nema Workshop reminds me a lot of the Viktor & Rolf store in Milan, which unfortunately had to close it’s doors in 2008. In the Viktor & Rolf, by Dutch interior architect and art historian Siebe Tettero, literally everything was turned upside down. The rug was on the ceiling and the chandeliers were on the floor. Even the names of the designers were upside down on the shop window. Those were the days...

Homemade is best

Ikea's new cookbook 'Homemade is Best' presents ingredients in a visually stunning original and graphical way. Instead of focusing on the end product, Ikea takes the concept of ‘food that looks great’ to a completely other level and focuses on the ingredients. The presentation makes you respect and understand better what end products are made off, focusing on the real, good and simple.

To top it off with, Ikea also launched the Kondis iPhone app where food, fit and fun are brought together. The app tells you what you need to do to burn those calories off and can indulge guilt-free afterwards.

Butter licking good goes 2.0!

Baked objects

I was pleasantly surprised to see the beautiful and pure work of Italian Andrea Trimarchi and Simone Farresin of Formafantasma, who just graduated from the Design Academy. The collection includes objects made of flour, coffee, spinach and other foodstuffs, and is part of an exhibition called ‘Getting Lost’ at the 4 Apostelen church in Eindhoven during Dutch Design Week.

It’s motivating to see how they interpret the theme ‘Getting Lost’, and looked back at their design memorabilia; ideas, pictures and techniques they left behind, taking their inspiration from a Sicilian custom where architectural objects are baked as festive decorations.