Neon Lights of Broadway Calling

When I was in my 20's they would have been luring me to the stage. I would have been glammered by the call to adoring audiences. Today they draw me to... well, sometimes its easier to say with pictures...

and...

Unfortunately we didn't get inside, we checked in to the hotel and got back out on the street after midnight. Though Broadway was still overflowing with people, most of the shops had closed at the witching hour. Pfffft. And I thought this was the city that never sleeps.

And now, with very little sleep ourselves, we're off to a different kind of show...

Playthings

As a collector of artist/designer vinyl toys I am always drawn to whimsical playthings.  While visiting Dwell magazine's online site the other day I noticed a recurring theme.  Okay.  Maybe I only imagined a 'theme' - so attracted am I, like a fish to a shiny lure, to cutesy and/or macabre whatnots.

Robots.  Robots on prints.  Robot toys.  Futuristic robotic looking housewares.

This adorable little guy is a MoMA exclusive.  Created, using reclaimed wood, by Brazilian designer Alberto Pretel this is one little guy who will be coming home with me from New York.  

3Fish Studios artist Eric Rewitzer not only creates super cool retro style robot linocuts.... he also creates modern furniture prints.  And, as if that isn't enough, the best of both worlds can be had with his limited edition "Better Together" series.  At $35 a pop, how can you choose only one?

Visit 3 Fish Studios to acquire and see more... Take Me There!

Our Children's Gorilla is a collective of in house, and select freelance, designers.  Their designs are primarily geared toward children (and big kids like me).  Quirky and irresistible, I see more than one thing I'd be delighted to make space for in my collection.   At the top of the page we feature Albert - strong (laser cut sheet metal), eco friendly (the metal is recycled!) little robot buddy to hang your what nots from.

And then, there's Gary.  Sturdy little natural wood and hemp robo friend.  A friend to last through the ages.  To tell secrets to and to pass down to the next generation of robot lovers. And if one is good, then two is even better!  Just keep him out of reach of the dog.

See more by Our Children's Gorilla... Take Me There!

Real robot themed goods from a virtual world?  Until last year, the Museum of Robots could only be found in a virtual world known as Second Life.  Now, they can be found two places online - as a Second Life museum dedicated to robot appreciation and as an online store.  Think robot housewares might be weird?  Think again.  

Flying Saucer Bowl

To see the full line of products and learn more about the Museum of Robots...  Take Me There!    

I don't presently have any robots living at my place.  But I think that's about to change.  I am, after all, going to be in New York next week.  My vinyl guys are going to have to make a little room for some new companions.

Objects of Desire

From the moment I started blogging for and about ChiChi, I wanted to ensure we had a wide variety of content.  Pitching products is one thing, and something we really need to do as we are a business, after all.  But all work and no play makes for a dull read, even if we do have really great merchandise.

I love to search the web for great new design and find that I can spend hours meandering and finding surprisingly wonderful things... many of them just prototypes.  Some are destined to remain a one off, others may go into production.  The only thing to make finding cool new design even better is to see something in its infancy come to fruition as a tangible product.

Objects of Desire will be a weekly feature where we share some of our finds.  If we're lucky, perhaps one day we will see them in our "House".

Icelandic designer Thorunn Arnadottir hasn't had any of her designs go to production... yet.

Clock

A necklace by which one counts the time by beads.  Red and Orange beads represent hours.  A silver bead represents midnight and a gold bead indicates noon.  As described on her site, Take Me There! , the beauty of this clock is that the beads can be removed and worn to represent your freedom from time.

 

Tree

A three dimensional painting which adds function to form.  An experiment by the designer which resulted in something fabulous.  I'd purchase one tomorrow if I could.

There are other interesting and unique objects, a radiator which makes one wish they had at least one heater of that type in their home, a dramatic wall sculpture on which to hang jewelry.  Well worth a visit to learn more about the designer and explore her work.

 

Learning Curve

If you follow our blog regularly you have likely noticed some changes on the side bar.  Lots of 'em.  This is me wading into the social networking pool much to the chagrin of my guy's 14 year old.  People 'our age' have no business being on Facebook or Twitter or the myriad of others out there.  We should stick to email and telephones - preferably the rotary kind - if she were to have her way.

Well, we say "pffffft!"  You kids may have popularized social networking but that doesn't mean our generation - who, by the way, paved the virtual highway for you - can't jump on board (albeit a little late).

Granted, we've been sticking our toes in the waters tentatively.  But we've been finding the water is warm (translation:  its not so hard to learn after all) and we've decided we're jumping right in - sharks be damned (translation:  we don't care that you think we're unhip dinosaurs)!

I'm even going to go and Tweet this post as soon as I'm done!