You’re stuck having to buy a gift for that friend or loved one who has impeccable design sense and the most discriminating of tastes. This isn’t easy. But it’s not impossible. Here are 10 gifts any design junkie will love.
AiAiAi TMA-1 Headphones
AiAiAi’s TMA-1s not only look great, enveloped in a singular, matte-black finish, but they’re also durable, versatile and sound fantastic. The TMA-1s are designed for lovers of hip-hop and electronic music, but work fine with other genres as well. $US200.
[AiAiAi]
Rhombins Desk Organisers
Desk organisation is boring, but without somewhere to stash crap, workspaces fall into disarray. Rhombins make putting your space in order fun. Configuable in a variety of ways, their simple, geometric goodness will look sharp no matter where, or how, they’re arranged. $US40.
Uniform Wares 150 Watch
Sometimes people mistake simplicity for a lack of quality and they’re wrong. Concepty watches are cool, and gigantic, multi-dial watches are eye-grabbing, but sometimes all we need is a nice-looking watch with clean colours and lines that just tells the damn time. $US220. [Dezeen Watch Store]
Block Lamp
You may love that halogen torch lamp your parents bought you for your first apartment 15 years ago, but for the design junkie, that just won’t do. They need something stylish, modern and clever. The Block Lamp, housed in MoMA’s permanent collection, covers all three of those criteria, and is the perfect piece for a desk or a table. $US140.
Ventu Strainer Bowl
Few things are more annoying than pulling a pot of pasta off the stove only to realise that the strainer is sitting in the sink. By the time it’s ready for use, that perfectly al dente pasta has turned to porridge. The Ventu bowl has a straining mechanism built-in — saving time and cookware. Brilliant! $US55. [Quirky]
Muji Wall Mounted CD Player
I know, I know, CD players are sooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo 1990s. But I mean look at this thing. It mounts on a wall and looks beautiful and future-y. Plus people still have some CDs lying around. They need to put those things to good use. $US153. [Muji]
Unit Portables 01 Bag
Unit Portables’ 01 is a simple sack that provides a home for a laptop. But its real appeal are the exterior velcro strips, which allow you to attach as many of the 02 and 03 pockets you can fit, in whatever configuration suits you. Customisation is cool. $US110. [Unit Portables]
Hex Paperweight
Not everything has to be entirely useful. Sometimes having a well-designed object for the sake of having a well-designed object is good enough. And when matte black powder coating combines with a hexagon — one of the most underrated shapes pretty much ever — one can’t help but smile when they see this thing sitting atop a pile of papers. $US26. [Ghostly]
Glif iPhone Stand/Camera Mount
Multi-functional devices cause the inner design nerd within me to short circuit — in a good way. The Glif is not only an iPhone stand that is small, lightweight and barely seen, but it also doubles as a mount for a camera tripod. Smart design is good design. $US30. [Ghostly]
Bauhaus Chess Set
The Bauhaus is one of the most influential schools of modern design. Aiming to unify art, craft and technology, its philosophy is felt in many creative disciplines. The Bauhaus chess set eschews the ornate work generally found on chess pieces, instead opting to give them a stark visual design that also hints at their function. $US557. [ChessHouse 1, 2]
Still haven’t found the right present? Don’t worry, we’re here all month with a new gift guide every day — right up until the last minute. To see ’em all, head on over to our gift guides.