bltd

This Corkbox by Skram Furniture will no doubt find many uses throughout its lifetime. Toolbox, toy caddy, it’s a box-basket hybrid that corrals whatever needs corralling. A walnut H-shaped handle and box base elevate its appearance so that it’s just at home on the dining table as it is outside as a garden tote.
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Are you kicking yourself for not adding Photojojo’s Phone Lens Series to your wish list? If so, join the club. Maybe it’s not too late, though, especially if we lay down blatant hints… as in, gee, I really wish I hadn’t forgotten to add the Wide/Macro Lens to my list. Here’s hoping it works.
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Another Bluetooth speaker? Indeed it is, and this one seems sized perfectly for desktop or the out-of-doors. The Wow Speaker wirelessly streams music from any of your Bluetooth devices and charges via a USB cable. While it seems to be available only through one US retailer (Unica Home shipping Jan 2013), there are a few UK sites that seem to have it in stock (Do Shop and, of course, the designer’s site AAREVALO shop).
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A knife rack that’s also a shelf sounds handy for anyone not too clumsy- otherwise there might be some issues. On Our Table has several other sizes of non-shelf knife racks, as well as a walnut bread box ($190 CAD) and a wide-yet-shallow box knife block ($180 CAD) that are worth checking out as well.
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Who doesn’t remember playing a memory game in their younger years? Such fun can be had again with Maharam’s set of nicely patterned cards. It’s a little harder to find nowadays, but YLiving and highbrowfurniture currently have it in stock. It’s worth pointing out that all age groups can play this together, making it a good family activity during the holidays. Each card features one of 36 fabric patterns designed by different Maharam artists.
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Night lights aren’t just for little ones afraid of the dark, they can also be exceptionally handy for avoiding toe injury when making late night trips to and from the bathroom or fridge. Night lights are generally geared toward those in the age bracket of 2 years to tween, with many unfortunate cartoon-themed designs available, so these two Moon and Earth options from Kikkerland are nice to see as they’re gender neutral and could go anywhere- yes, a kid’s room, but also a hallway, bathroom, etc..
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Have an excellent beginning-of-December weekend.

We posted this last year, but that won’t stop us from reminding you again about this “no gap” calendar. The NeuYear Calendar shows the year with seamless transitions from one month to the next, which appears to be quite efficient for looking at the whole year all at once- no flipping back and forth like you would with a regular calendar. A horizontal format is on one side, a vertical format on the other. Also, NeuYear is offering 30% off, expiring 1/31/13. Use ‘BLTD’ as a discount code.
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What do get someone that doesn’t have a list? Well, if they’re interested in architecture, it’s a no brainer to get them Phaidon’s 20th-Century World Architecture. It’s half off the regular retail price and details over 750 works of architecture around the world from 1900 to 1999, making it the perfect coffee table book for perusing.
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If you lack any bravery when it comes to bold colors in your home, just take a look at the GMG House by Pedro Gadanho. Even if you don’t particularly like the colors chosen, you can see how color plays an important part in defining the space- red for the powder room or light turquoise for the stairs- and how it can add energy and movement to a large space. Plus, just think of how easy it would be to guide visitors to certain places: “The powder room? Sure, just go up the turquoise staircase and look down the hall for the red pod.” To see Pedro Gadanho’s other projects, visit his blog shrapnelcontemporary.

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Who better than Mr. Stefan Boublil, the creative director of the apartment, to kick off our collection of Gift Ideas for 2012? Our thanks to Stefan, as we know he’s busy running the business and the apartment broadcast, as well as generally providing better design for branding, marketing, and interior design worlds. Well done, sir, you deserve everything on your list.
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Why does it seem like a sleek key ring is the perfect gift for acquaintances, coworkers, and relatives? It is because it’s impersonal yet useful? In any case, this Beta Key Ring has an inkless pen attached, meaning its owner will never be without a writing tool. The pen has a solid metal alloy ‘nib’ that leaves a pencil-like mark on paper.
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Nice. This smart docking station senses your approach and lights up so you can find it easily in the dark. This function also simulates sunrise to make sure you wake naturally. Lumawake tracks your sleep cycles and gives you a detailed report each morning contact free (which means no wristbands). And, if you’re on the home automation bandwagon, the Lumawake can be integrated into systems like SmartThings & WeMo to turn off lights when you fall asleep or turn on the coffee maker when you wake up. Quite a few functions there, which helps explain the price tag. Ships early 2013.
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The following post is sponsored by Aether Apparel.

The Field Jacket by Aether Apparel combines the utility of a traditional field jacket with the weatherproof performance of a ski jacket. The design-focused outdoor apparel company came up with the idea after seeing their photographer struggle to carry an assortment of miscellaneous camera equipment during one of their photo shoots. Their solution? Design a tough-as-nails jacket to keep you dry in the backcountry with enough pockets to hold all your gear.
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Chances are that you can’t afford to buy the art of Louise Bourgeois, but if you’re a fan you sure can afford to pay $60 for a set of 4 place mats featuring designs from her fabric drawings. The intricate, geometric patterns are worthy of the wall, but we’ll take it where we can get it. There are coasters too (shown below) if you can believe it.
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