Elizabeth June 15th, 2009
The last couple of weeks have been really busy. Work seems to have picked up suddenly, the days are getting short as Winter sets in, and there just seems to be less time to do the important stuff. It’s been taking its toll a little bit, and this weekend Tim and I decided that we really needed some relaxation time.
I’m not ashamed to admit that Tim and I are basically just tall children, so our idea of relaxation time may not match yours. Our healing came in the form of delivered pizza, Buzz on the Playstation, and 18 hours inside the rejuvenating walls of a fort on our living room floor. It was sort of perfect, especially since it was freezing cold and there was little incentive to crawl out from under our doonas. Our pup was pretty pleased to be curling up next to us as well, and he did his best to share his warmth pretty evenly between the two of us.
However, by about midday on Saturday we began to feel a little bit disgusted with ourselves. We moved all our furniture back into place, threw all the bedding in the laundry and made the most of our afternoon. I made the spontaneous purchase of a new desk chair (my back LOVES me for it), shopped up and down Glenferrie Rd, and filled up on to-die-for Vietnamese food. The night was spent on a long boardgame and then sleep with no limit. Bliss.
Today we found a new breakfast place on Bridge Rd, and took our time getting on with the day. I’ve been trying to get to the Melbourne Design Market for about a year now, but always seem to find out about it just a little too late. This time I was determined, so we started off there.
The market was incredible, for many reasons. There were some truly brilliant designs on display – both artistic and functional – and I found myself wanting to explore almost every booth. Unfortunately the crowds made this impossible, so I really had to pick my battles. There were some stalls that I couldn’t have made it to had I not used my elbows. It was insane.
I admit I was a little disappointed with the experience, but only because the event has the potential to be so much greater. A bigger venue would have been more worthwhile for the designers trying to showcase their work, and for the crowds of people who wanted to soak it all in. It was telling that the “food court” was the place to get away from the people and noise. The people who showed up were clearly there for the merchandise.
Having said that, I was patient about getting to the stalls that really grabbed me. I was lucky enough to find some great stuff, and to finally see Lara Cameron and her friends from Ink & Spindle in person!
Ink & Spindle is a small, independent screen-printing and design business. I’ve bought a print from them in the past, but until today have mostly drooled over their beautiful things via their blog. I find their designs to be consistently top-notch, although it bothers me a little to watch other people living my dream!
The best part of their creations is seeing the way that other people use them. Those of us lucky enough to live in Melbourne already know the strong and beautiful bags by mattt, as he and his work seem to be a fixture at every major market. Today I was able to see first-hand the way that Pepperberry and Shonah have put the Ink & Spindle designs to use. Pepperberry’s things turned out to be my favourites today.
Another favourite was KeepCup
The people at KeepCup have thought of everything. Dissatisfied with alternatives for disposable coffee cups, they have designed a reusable cup that significantly reduces the average coffee-drinker’s impact on the planet. You can even use their calculator to see how much of a difference you can make. In my case, assuming that I drink 5 cups of coffee each week (and remember to take my KeepCup each time), this is what I can expect to achieve in a year:
They’ve thought up solutions to problems that I hadn’t even considered. How’s this for thoughtful design?
Made from recyclable, food-grade plastic
Dishwasher, microwave and freeze-safe
Matches standard industry coffee sizes
Fits underneath group heads of espresso machines
Fits in car cup holders
Can be individualised with replaceable bands, which can also be used to mark your coffee preferences
The lid is fitted with a swivel plug, that snugly locks the sip hole
The challenge will be remembering to keep it with me, and to gather the nerve to hand it over to my snarky morning coffee guy. I figure if it’s good for the Earth, I can handle the eye-rolling!
Lastly, I picked up a couple of pretty brass bookmarks – one to keep, and one to put with a present for Tim’s mum. Picture from www.ras.es.
By this stage we were pretty much over the heat, the people, and humanity in general. We escaped to the great outdoors and made our way to the comparatively serene riverside Sunday Markets, where I proceeded to stock up on miniature cacti. Because apparently my fridge door wasn’t complete?
So that was my weekend. I’m not kidding when I say that it feels like I’ve had a week’s holiday. I’m also completely aware that this sensation will disappear in an instant when I walk back into the office tomorrow, but I’m happy to enjoy it for now!
