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I really, really don’t like wearing watches. They all seem so “look at me”, but I wouldn’t mind wearing this one…it seems so shy and apologetic in a way; even the lens is frosted. Issey Miyake’s Twelze comes close to achieveing the same effect, but Kurokawa’s is even more humble (the clear strap almost disappears against your skin), less designer label, and a fraction of the Miyake price.

Designer: Masayuki Kurokawa
Watchface: 1.33 inches
Length: 7 to 8.5 inches (from first to last hole)
Zinc alloy, glass, and silicone

Through a partnership with illy coffee experts, artist William Kentridge brings us this limited-edition set of six espresso cups and six illustrated saucers, but it’s not until saucer meets mirror-finish cup that the images become clear and right side up.

I almost didn’t post this because my favorite color, black, was sold out, but the concept is just so darn cute and hey, some people might dig the other colors available as well as some of the other cute products by YOURS.
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Too cute. Not only do I eat pork, but I think they’re totally adorable as inanimate objects. Conflict of interest with earthy-crunchy types? Maybe, but I’d rather this than a talking carrot. Barry White’s “Never, Never Gonna Give You Up” just took on new meaning.

Material: Ceramic
Designer: Idea
Dimensions: 3.5 x 7.25 x 4 inches
Available in black, white, and gold

10 grand for roughly 10 inches of light? Sure, but I’m taking it everywhere I go and it’s also going to double as my new favorite hat. Here’s some history on the 1960s-esque, Sputnik-style chandelier.

Designer: Hans Harald Rath
Manufacturer: Lobmeyr
Nickel-plated brass frame, Swarovski crystal, and hand-cut crystal

24″ D, $15,634.00 at TableArt
30″ D, $11,740.00 at Moss
33″ D, $26,845.00 at TableArt
39″ D, $29,990.00 at TableArt
51″ D, $63,185.00 at TableArt
63″ D, $78,465.00 at Moss

I’ll admit that the soup spoon might look a little funky to some, but if it didn’t, I wager the set could be mistaken for any generic place setting you might find in your gay uncle’s attic. Hence the unexpected and etheral forms of this stainless steel place setting by Zaha Hadid (winner of the Pritzker Architecture Prize – the equivalent of a Nobel Prize for architecture), brought to Earth in a mesmerizing mirror finish.

Impossibly sexy and devilishly handsome are a few of the words that come to mind when I see this glass. And somehow, I start to think of Tom Ford and The Four Tops’ “Reach Out I’ll Be There” plays in the background. Yes, this mouth-blown, hand-cut crystal beer glass is taking me there – to the Rive Gauche – and with the hefty price tag, it should, no? This glass is part classically-dimpled pint mug, part dark talisman, and all fantasy-inducing cup of the gods.

Designers: Monica Singer & Marie Rahm
Manufaturer: Lobmeyr, Austria
6.1 x 3 inches
Lobmeyr Collectible of the Year, 2008

This pretty little napkin ring is “giving me”, as they say, Viktor & Rolf Spring Summer 2010. Both are at once: feminine, delicate, bold, and surreal. The inspiration behind Viktor & Rolf’s cut-out tulle creations? “With the credit crunch and everybody cutting back, we decided to cut [holes into] tulle ball gowns,” says Rolf. The inspiration behind Urquiola’s napkin ring? Maybe the rolling hills of her native Oviedo, Spain.

Manufacturer: Rosenthal, Germany
Material: Porcelain

[via goodnight cruel world]

Black flatware… 1 cool point. Matte black flatware… 2 cool points. Stainless steel matte black flatware… cool point overload.

Produced in Europe
Manufacturer: TableArt
6-piece place setting available here.
Other black matte flatware and kitchen utensils available here.

Pieter Stockmans brings a touch of modernity to your favorite Old World Champagnes with this sleek porcelain cooler. And when not in use as a cooler, maybe it could work as a vase for billowing tulips or lacecap hydrangeas.

Designer: Pieter Stockmans
Manufacturer: Studio Pieter Stockmans
12.6 x 9.4 inches

I was intrigued by the design of this mouth-blown, Czech crystal glass thinking the bulbous bits were some modern use of animal heads – tapirs perhaps. As it turns out, the concept dates back to the 16th century when most people ate with their hands and the bulbous bits, known as Pupek (dots), kept the glass from slipping out of greasy hands. What’s old really is new.

6.9 inches tall
Special order

I’ve fallen in love with the Powermat. Maybe it’s because I was born under the Aquarius zodiac and as a result I’m weak in the knees for new gadgets, but nevertheless this charger is a fun glimpse into the future. The Powermat is a small plate that uses magnetic induction to wirelessly charge your gadgets: iPhone, BlackBerry, etc. Simply add a receiver to your gadget… if it’s a BlackBerry, it means a new battery door. Using a Miniot case for your Apple gadget? Add the Powermat univeral dock. Imagine stopping by your favorite coffee/hot chocolate shop and laying your phone down on the counter; as you sip, the counter powers your phone. This technology can be implanted into any surface, so just imagine what it means for the future of decorating and industrial design on the whole!

Also available in a foldable travel version.

I remember being in high school and the inner-city-cool-kid thing to do was collect candy-colored plastic watches from fast food happy meals and <gasp> wear them. Thankfully, I never quite fit in and managed to make it through without succumbing to peer pressure. Made of stretchy silicone and water resistant to 30 meters, this unisex (and stackable) watch is a more stylish nod to the days of yore. (The test tube is just clever packaging.)

Available in a rainbow of colors and three sizes: 6, 7, and 8 inches long

[via Oak]

Sure! Go ahead and eat with your hands. You’ll look totally civilized as long as you have these French-made, waffle-weave, spoon-and-fork cotton towels nearby. They’re a little pricey at $38 each, but they’re beautifully crisp, refreshingly white, and good at soaking up spills.

27.5 x 19.75 inches

Fork available here.

I hoped you saved those plastic wine and champagne glasses from your holiday celebrations…Stuart Haygarth might need them to create his next masterpiece after his limited-edition light fixtures are all sold out.  Katie posted his work a while back, but this particular floor light stood out to me. Standing at approximately 80 inches tall and made of 416 disposable wine glasses, you could say this piece is a tall toast to a properous new year.

Plastic, fluorescent bulb
200cm x 50cm

For more information, visit Stuart Haygarth’s website.
Price available upon request.