Essentially, where mobile phones are concerned, you have a choice. Just grab one and go, use it is a tool of modern life (sometimes even a curse of modern life), or embrace it as an addition to how you express yourself to the world around you. We definitely err on the side of embracing. TAG Heuer’s latest MERIDIIST gives us another reason to continue.

Just like BMW with its DesignworksUSA creative consultancy that churns out non-automotive products ranging from computer mice to bicycles, Peugeot has launched the Peugeot Design Lab with a similar bent. The first product to come out of the studio is a futuristic baby grand piano designed for French piano manufacturers Pleyel that looks like it could beat my first car over a quarter mile.

I have a seemingly eternal struggle with most things Apple. There’s no denying the utter perfection of their aesthetics, and their ease of immediate use is surely without parallel. But where I do stop loving them, or at least stopping loving their portable products, is that they are all seemingly delivered ‘nude’.

For the 2012 London Design Festival Minimalux presented a film of a fictional, studio staged exhibition. Shot behind closed doors earlier this year, the film depicts an expansive installation of new and recent products in front of a cast of audience extras.

Recorded in just 1 day and screened continuously at minimalux.com from Tuesday Sept 18th - Sept 23rd, the film seeks to create a true-life exhibition experience to be shared at the same moment in time by a globally inclusive audience.

The Minimalux ‘Exhibition’ was produced in collaboration with the Londonewcastle Project Space, it is directed by independent filmmaker Ladan Anoushfar with a soundtrack based on an original composition by musician Tim Crompton.

Sponsored by Ernst & Young

through 30 September 2012

Anyone who witnessed the opening ceremony of the 2012 London Olympic Games will forever have the image of the Thomas Heatherwick-designed cauldron forming from 204 individual ‘petals’. His daring concept broke boundaries and highlighted to the watching world the innate talent within field of British contemporary design.

Clearly, however, there’s more to Thomas Heatherwick than Olympic cauldrons.

Over the course of the summer the V&A has present the first major solo exhibition exploring the work of Heatherwick, one of the most inventive and experimental design studios practising in Britain today. The exhibition 

Behind the imaginative brand of Fornasetti stands an eclectic creative figure whose works border between art, design, fashion, and decoration. Piero Fornasetti, the visionary of this brand, challenged formal conventions, intertwining the concept of minimalism and Zen culture with the essence of objects. Piero was a Milanese painter, sculptor, interior decorator, and creator of more than 11,000 products. His variety of design objects and furniture were among the largest of the 20th century, allowing him to become one of the most original creative talents of this period.

One of the most creative designers of this generation, and a winner of more than 300 awards, Karim Rashid’s designs capture the importance of everyday life in a world that runs at a progressively fast pace. Karim has designed over 3000 productions, and has worked on a number of ventures including the creation of brand identities for Citibank and Sony Ericson, as well as the packaging for Method, Kenzo, Hugo Boss, Swarovski, and others.

Where high labor-intensive luxury and functionality collide, the final product is always impossible to miss. Oliver Ruuger, a newly emerging fashion designer has come up with a way to combine sculpture, visual appeal, and high fashion, into designs which he considers “blind experimentation.”

From the first tailored trunk created by Louis Vuitton in 1854, to his seamingly distinctive luggage items, who’s production better embodies the characterists of an elegant globetrotter?

Louis Vuitton, known for his passion of travel and the city life, has formed an intimate booklet of information for the traveller in us all. Including advice and opinions from a combination of authors, journalists, artists, businessmen, designers, and his own worldly experience, these city guides present superior insight on the most exceptional places to see in each city. They provide an insider’s guide to these cities, from the local or fancy restaurants, to the street markets, monuments, and fashion stores - these city guides have it all

Studio job and Pieke Bergmans collaboration creates monumental lighting objects in a collection called Wonderlamp.

The collection includes seven objects: Wonderlamp, TL, Torch, Pipe, Pan, Cans and Hanging Lamp. 

“Mobili per Uomo” (Furniture for Man), a Bisazza Limited Edition collection designed between 1997 and 2008. Composed of nine oversized sculptures decorated with hand-cut 24K yellow gold mosaic tiles, the “Mobili per Uomo” collection expresses the great versatility and artistic value of the mosaic and the artist’s creativity. The first series, designed in 1997, includes the sculptures Giacca (Jacket), Guanto (Glove), Scarpa (Shoe) and Testa (Head)

In the very beginning of life, we first become aware of our existence by being mirrored in the eyes and faces of those around us. The foundation of the sense of who we are in the world begins here. As our awareness grows, the mirror as an object becomes an additional tool for self reflection.

Good design, where form and function come together so exquisitely, should always be celebrated. This month Men’s Passion features some of the most desirable and well executed products that define the times in which we are living.

Olivier Gagnère

French designer Olivier Gagnère has an original place in contemporary design. He breaks with the conventions of geometry and evokes a new balance that gives his creation a unique personality.

Olivier Gagnère effortlessly writes a new text with traditional vocabulary.

Christian Ghion 6 products by 4 manufacturers.

Born in 1958 at Montmorency/France, Christian Ghion decided to study design after taking a degree in law. He graduated in 1987 from the Ecole Nationale Supérieure de la création industrielle (ENSCI) and went on to win the “Grand Prix de la création de la ville de Paris” in 1990 - since then Christian Ghion has been working for prestigious furniture manufacturers (including Cappellini, Driade, Salviati, Ventura, Sawaya & Moroni).

Airdiem narghiles are a new, lavish interpretation of a 500 year-old object. Through their unique design value, Airdiem Narghile’s double up as decorative items that add an extra edge to your interior design. Airdiem is a luxury french brand, which picks up the thread of French excellency in narghiles manufacture. Till the end of the 20th century, firms as Baccarat, Saint Louis and Christofle used to deliver narghiles to diplomatic departments all over the world, as well as some palaces. Airdiem took this thread back offering French master-craftsman manufactured product.

Baccarat narghile

This narghile is a re-issue model of a narghile created in 1896 for the Court (Diwani) of Turkish Sultan Abdel Ahmed II.

The elaborate opulence of designer Kacper Hamilton’s work contrasts the minimalism of any glasses you’ve seen. His seven hand-blown glasses were exhibited in and around a beautiful wooden box with a crushed velvet inlay.

Stitching Concrete is a project, inspired by the versatility of the Concrete Canvas material. This method involves molding cement-infused fabric that is then drenched in water. The pieces consist of a coat of cement layered between fabric and PVC backing for support; post-soak, this combination can be manipulated for up to several hours before it begins to harden.

The H4D series has been specially designed to meet the most exacting demands of high-end commercial photographers who require the ultimate in both image quality and performance.

This revolutionary new True Focus technology helps solve one of the most lingering challenges that faces serious photographers today, true, accurate focusing throughout the image. The new Absolute Position Lock (APL) processor uses modern yaw rate sensor technology to measure angular velocity in an innovative way, accurately logging camera movement and using these exact measurements to calculate the exact distance needed for proper focus.

The Calibre R8 MK I Mechanical Belt Buckle was created by Roland Iten in 2003 and was an extraordinary evolution of a very simple three-component expandable mechanism patent which Roland Iten created and licensed to Bally in 1996.

Damien Hirst’s bespoke 4x4 wheel cover consists of a high quality stainless steel band covering the tyre tread and a high impact plastic central dish wrapped with the artist’s spin painting design. The wheel cover features a fully integral stainless steel lock mechanism and are easy to fit and remove once unlocked. The wrapped dish is covered with a UV laminate ensuring protection against colour fade from the sun.  Dimensions depends on wheel size, 5kg weight, £925.00

6,884,300,000 was the number of people in the world last time I checked. Each has a name and a story but for me Pieke Bergmans is definitely a name to remember.

This Dutch designer is definitely unique in every way. they say the sky is the limit, but for Pieke creativity is infinite as she crosses the boundaries of imagination with her work “Design Virus”, where she features 15 types of art work each unique in its own way. She makes the simple complicated and the complicated impossibly simple.

Kinfolk is Akira, John, Maceo, Ryan and, Salah. Their vision started as simply trying to make the bikes that they had in their heads. Simple handmade products whose aesthetic is classic yet modern and most importantly timeless. It’s never been to be the biggest bike company, or to get rich, or anything like that.

The 2010 Collection of products from Minimalux sees the brand extending its reach to a wider audience of design conscious consumers.

Alongside the enduring elements of small scale, formal simplicity and exemplary finishing are products with broad ranging functions, materials, colours and price points.

Production methods such as electroforming, spinning and tube manipulation together with materials such as glass, copper, solid silver and brightly coloured anodized aluminium are used to create candleholders, desk accessories, cutlery and vases – all complementary to the precision

Handpresso outdoor espresso set
Contains Handpresso Wild espresso machine, four unbreakable cups, stainless steel thermo-insulated flask (300ml), easy-serving espresso (ESE) pod, and two napkins. Works by hand-pumping the machine, then adding hot water from flask and an ESE pod. Height, 27cm; width, 21cm, depth, 9cm.

Handpresso, at www.handpresso.com

With this 30-year-old designer’s narghile, Airdiem is more than ever trendy. This fashionable object is also a nomad one. It makes us imagine the end of an afternoon at the beach, chatting with friends of the evening party to come…

LLadró Medieval Chess set (Chess Board box included) 21 x 56 x 56 cm

Chess Set:
Created in 2009 by the Sculptor: Juan Ignacio Aliena Size: 5½x21¼ “ (54x54 cm) It is a remake 

The Background 
The story began with Heinz Rohrer the CEO of Thorens making the decision that the time was right to move from the ’stabilise and grow’ strategy of the past few years to the ‘invest to re-establish position’ strategy. Heinz had always planned Thorens as a three-term strategy.

Good design, where form and function come together so exquisitely, should always be celebrated. This month Men’s Passion features some of the most desirable and well executed products that define the times in which we are living.

Louis Vuitton bespoke luggage

If you were to commission Louis Vuitton to create a bespoke trunk made to hold anything you desire, what would it be? What would you think of Karl Lagerfeld’s custom Vuitton trunk made to hold his collection of 20 iPods? Pretty cool if a little over-the-top - just like the man himself. A Chinese gentleman has commissioned something more grandiose and yet more mundane from the famed French luxury goods house, which will produce anything within reason.

Designer Alexander Amosu is most famous for his diamond-covered phones but he is also behind the world’s most expensive suit. The US$150,000 suit took more than 80 hours to create. It has been delivered to a private buyer who has not been named at a party in central London today.

There are a number of high-tech materials that have made their way into everyday items. Perhaps none is more ubiquitous the carbon fibre. What was once the preserve of Formula One cars and the aviation industry is now seen even in the construction of pens. Very expensive pens though. Where light weight and superior strength are required, there is simply nothing to beat carbon fibre. It looks sexy too. 

We listen to radio is a variety of ways and have seen people spend a small fortune over the years in keeping up to date with the latest technology. Feast your eyes on this little beauty from Roberts. Essentially it’s 1960s technology in a Paul Smith suit. An FM / MW / AM radio with absolutely no additional features, the ‘Revival’ range from Roberts is the complete antidote to 21st Century complication. There’s one knob which turns it on and controls the volume. Another to tune it in. Four buttons on the top to select the wavelength. And a carrying handle.

Good design, where form and function come together so exquisitely, should always be celebrated. This month Men’s Passin features some of the most desirable and well executed products that define the times in which we are living.

It’s a just hand-dryer. But like no other. Like everything that comes from the boffins at Dyson, they’ve taken a sideways look at an everyday product and turned it on its head. I know, I know, too many metaphors - but the more excited I become, the worse my writing gets.

Bike is too small a word for a machine like this. It is no coincidence that they called it the ‘Cielo’, which is Italian for ‘Heavens’.