Antique Shopping

A lil pit stop on my home. Checking out the vintage finds at 1313 Warehouse in Long Beach and came across this guy. Note to self…old is new again.

X Marks The Spot – X Mark Mouse Slim

Canon's X Mark Mouse Slim - it's a wireless mouse, calculator and keypad!

White looks great with an apple keyboard, if you want to keep things...white.

By way of Designboom, Canon is now taking pre-orders for its X Mark Mouse Slim, a three-in-one business tool for your computer. The wireless mouse, calculator/keypad is a great example of streamlined innovation. I love the simplicity and efficiency of this. It makes perfect sense, right? Offered in black or white, the X Mark is a lightweight companion that should be a staple for your office. Check it out here. $60 USD [available in August 2011]

TIMBER! Reclaimed Timber Desk Caddy

Reclaimed Timber Desk Caddy by Jonathan January

I’m sitting in a session at BlogHer in San Diego and the discussion is ridiculous. I’ll spare you the details. It’s providing the perfect time to tackle a few task items, including a long passed due entry here on The Desctop. This came way of Uncrate recently and I thought to myself, “how beautiful to have some raw materials sitting on your desk.” This desk caddy is made from reclaimed fir timber and treated with a non-toxic durable finish. It’s a stunning piece for the desk for showcasing all of those items like pens, pencils, letter opener, scissor, etc. I’m all about the old with the new, so this can be quite special looking if sitting on a nice stark modern table. The caddy measures 11”L x 4”h x 3”W and sells for $45 USD on Jonathan January’s Etsy site.

Happy 2011

Some of you may have noticed (and many of you did not realize) that I have been out of touch these past few months. Aside from increased responsibilities with my real job, holiday traveling, family matters and a new weekend home renovation in Palm Springs, I am a bit stretched at the moment. However, with the close of the year comes new resolutions to help us reflect, rejuvenate and re-energize ourselves for the next 12 months. It will definitely be a busy year and one that I hope to share with you. My goal is to be inspired with countless hours of online research (shopping) mixed with some personal inspirations from worka and life. Check back or sign up for the e-newsletter feed. I’d love to hear your thoughts and make for an actual exchange of ideas.

And just to tease…here’s a pic of the next post.

Your new journal.

Be safe celebrating and ringing in the new year. I’ll be back on Monday with new things to share.

Best,

Michael

Storylines for your office (wall)

Frederik Roije's Storylines book shelf

Available in four colors, dark and light grey, white and blue.

Last month, I introduced you to Frederik Roije and his Guidelines wall-mount magazine rack. Now witness another great find from his Amsterdam-based studio – Storylines is a book shelf with the outline of an architectural skyline. If in the search for something interesting for your office that goes beyond the conventional, look no further. What I enjoy most about Roije’s work is the combination of architecture, design and functionality. True to the modern creed of “form follows function,” there’s nothing better than a true testament of authentic design that fuses all of these great aspirations. Made of powder-coated folding metal, Storylines is available in dark grey, light grey, blue, and white and is available for 199 Euros.

Meet petite Vika Veine – IKEA

Affordable and space saving Vika Veine desk by IKEA.

Available in Brown-Black or White.

Convenient access to cables and plugs.

I get excited when mass manufacturers decide to provide accessible, clean design to the public. Grant it, IKEA is a rare breed with Swedish roots, which can hardly be coined as a “mass player.” But, considering it’s sheer volume of products and mass appeal, I appreciate their consideration of space-challenged dwellers living in urban neighborhoods. So if you’re in New York, or just happen to have a rather tight space, take note. The Vika Veine desk is a small workspace (measures 39″ wide by 24″ deep) that opens up to provide access to a felt board full of pockets and space for paperwork. Thanks to the mechanism of the pop-up hood, a channel opening provides access to power outlets and for hiding those messy cables. It’s a smart feature and one that is rarely seen with such minimal flair. You can be working and easily hide everything by closing the top. Furthermore, you have a clean worksurface in a split second.

The best part, the price is only $99 USD (not including the legs).

Workflow of the future – Workflow Concept

Workflow desk concept by O4i.

The new cubicle for the stale office.

Here’s something to dream about. Swedish design firm O4i has proposed a new concept for the modern office that makes the stale cubicle a rather interesting place to work. Led by designers Henrik Kjellberg and Jon Lindstrom, the Workflow concept is an all-in-one workplace that provides a standard height work desk, a transaction counter for standing room work, and a built-in lounger for those impromptu relaxed brainstorming sessions or…well, naps in the office. Who needs a sofa in the office, right? It’s not like we’re Mad Men drinking during the middle of the day and needing a horizontal surface to lay. Well…come to think of it, this has been a requisite in the past due to some crazy lunches, but we’ll discuss that later.

The concept first grabbed my attention on the design blog community, ChicTip. Thank you contributor Lauren Proctor for posting the info. The O4i site includes several other product designs as well as a brief introduction to the award-winning designers. Not for production or sale, yet, but if we keep our fingers crossed, perhaps our dreams will come true.

Guidelines for your Life (and other mags)

Frederik Roije's folding medal Guidelines for wall mounted magazines.

Something about Frederik Roije‘s Guidelines design is very fashionable for your office wall. “Fashionable”… perhaps I’m channeling Anna Wintour because of today’s Fashion Night Out. But if you agree or not, his simplistic design is quite practical for displaying a few magazines that can pose as art. A little Bauhaus mixed with a Mondrian twist, the Amsterdam-based designer has created something unique with folded metal that is coated and available in white or dark gray. If you’ve been reading The Desctop for awhile, you will know that I have a love affair with print magazines. I’m especially excited about Roije’s creation because it is now easy to frame your favorite three covers without going through the trouble of placing them inside a frame. Furthermore, you can switch out the covers with ease for a quick update. For anyone looking to add a bit of fashion to their office space, simply add Guidelines to your wall. Available directly from Frederik Roije’s studio for 169 Euros.

Write Wall – IdeaPaint

IdeaPaint turns your wall into a dry erase board!

Available in a solvent or water-base paint

Ever get in trouble for writing on the walls as a kid? I did. Perhaps it was a degenerate gene that connected me to my graffiti-making cousins or it was an artistic need to exert some creative expression. Whatever it was, I masked my bedroom walls long before it was popular to do so in conference rooms for the business world. Now, thanks to the wonders of science, you have another option besides chalkboard paint for similar applications. IdeaPaint, founded by three Babson College graduates, creates a high-performance solvent-base and a home-friendly water-base paint that transforms your walls into an effective dry erase board. For commercial and corporate needs, 50 sf of surface paint is available in an array of neutral colors starting at $175 USD. For smaller home projects, the water-based solution is available for 20 sf of coverage for $30. Keep in mind, 20 sf will yield an area that is 5′ x 4′. If opting for this option, I suggest buying cheap molding to create a frame effect for the designated area. The last thing you want is to go outside “the lines” and truly ruin your traditional walls. Consider this a lesson learned from my youth.

Visit IdeaPaint for their great site full of…well, ideas.

Set within a color backdrop, a small amount goes a long way.

A StudioDesk For You

Tight quarters? The StudioDesk should do the trick.

It’s a compact desk for the home that does not sacrifice on efficiency or clever design. Bluelounge has created an affordable desk that merges traditional Scandanavian design with modern convenience. The faux leather blotter slides to unveil storage for your power chords and cables, making for a clutter free environment. Pile in all of your power chords and connect to a surge protector that exits the desk to connect to your wall source. White laminate surface is balanced by natural mahogany legs. The simple desk is perfect for those tiny apartments and spare guest rooms. Just under 4 feet in length and a little more than 2 feet in depth, the StudioDesk is a reliable solution for those of you “space challenged.” Retailing for $600, you can order directly through Bluelounge.