Dutch Design week 2013 / part 1

A week ago the whole city of Eindhoven was centered around design. All kinds of design and mostly dutch design ofcourse as from 19 till the 27th of October the Dutch Design week 2013 was held. From all around the world designers gather to see the newest design developments and during this one week Eindhoven is more alive than ever.
Being a designer myself, every year I visit many locations to find inspiration and enjoy the art of design.
So here a selection of the many photo's I took, which will hopefully inspire you as well.

Wooden necklace

Hello dear reader, it's been a while!
Shame on me..
But here a brand new blogpost!

About a month ago one of my best friends sadly moved to Sweden to follow a master course on design for two years. She will be working with wood a lot, which she is very good at, so what better present to give to her than a wooden necklace which I made myself :)

From a project I previously did I still had left over pieces of mdf which were lasercut in the shape of a necklace, as I used the negative as a mold to create a prototype. I had saved the pieces with the plan of using them later, so using them to make a present was the perfect occasion.

I painted the mdf white and added tiny triangles to create an aztec-like pattern. The backside I left white so the necklace can be worn both sides. With some silver wire I attatched a silver necklace with a clasp.

I loved the result and so did my friend who was kind enough to send me some pictures of her wearing it, all the way in Sweden! :)

Iris van Herpen @ Groninger Museum

Besides visiting Azzedin Alaia's exhibition at the Groninger Museum, the exhibiton of Iris van Herpen could of course not be missed. Since I already dedicated a blogpost to this amazing designer, it is no surprise that I love her work and this exhibition was no exception. I love how she uses unconventional materials and the perfection she creates in every little detail.
That I love looking at details was probably no surprise to the other museum visitors since the average distance between my face and the pieces was probably around 20 centimeter ;)

TOMS shoes, Etsy designs

Have you heard about TOMS shoes yet? It is a great initiative which sells shoes and for each shoe sold, they give a pair of shoes to a child in developing countries. Beside the wonderful idea behind the shoes, I really like the way they look! Quite simple and casual and of good quality. Since the shoes are made of fabric, they are perfect to paint, and so do many Etsy designers. Here some of my favorite designs.

Etsy link 1
Etsy link 2
Etsy link 3
Etsy link 4
Etsy link 5

The beauty of sugar

Quite some time ago I came across this design of Greetje van Helmond and I was immediately fascinated by it. Greetje creates jewellery out of sugar by letting crystals grow into beautiful pieces under special circumstances. With this collection, called 'Unsustainable', she want to show that beautiful things can be created with cheap materials.

  

Lace design

Lace, not only applicable to fashion but also an inspiration for many designers (including myself ;) ).

Sugar carpet - Alphons ter Avest

Lace fence -  Joep Verhoeven (demakersvan)

Lace paving slabs - Jethro Macey

Shovel - Cal Lane

Crochet Chair - Marcel Wanders

Pedestrian crossings - Studio Oooms 

random loves

Shiharu Shiota

Drawings, pen on paper - Susie Macmurray

Nadeem Darbey

Fabric tower - Atelier Manferdini

Nava Lubelski

Shiharu Shiota

A glass bowl 3D printed with sand. Say what..?!

Look at this, it's amazing!
Markus Kaiser, a designer from London, explored the possibilities of desert's two element, sun and sand.
In a world where energy production and raw material shortage are becoming a problem, using these materials, from which there is plenty, could be an option.
With the heat from the sun and the silica from the sand Markus made a 3D printer!
In the video you can see Markus at work in the Sahara desert.

http://www.markuskayser.com/work/solarsinter/

Shoe love

Whether it is to wear or just to look at, I'm totally loving these shoes.

1. Andreia Chaves

2. Sam Edelman

3. United Nude Web Hi

4. Walter Steiger

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Awesome finds // pop-up

Loving this interactive pop-up book in which with basic sensors a whole new experience is created. I would love to buy this for my future child one day.

http://hlt.media.mit.edu/?p=5

Necklace design

Today I want to share with you one of my own designs. This necklace, made out of the tips of cotton swabs sewn together, is inspired by the pattern of coral and the roadmap of the Antillian island Curacao. I love this kind of design where precision is required, interesting materials are worked with and a lot of detailing is involved.

Curacao is the island where my mother lives and which I visited several times. On the beaches many of these pertrified corals can be found and I love the pattern and texture of them. On the right you see the capital of  Curacao, Willemstad, from above. The white lines are roads and the red dot represents the house of my mom. This all resulted in the design of this necklace, a piece that represents beauty as well as personal value for me.

Iris van Herpen

One of the most inspiring designers for me at the moment is the dutch Iris van Herpen. I just love everything about her work; the unconventional material she uses, the level of detailing in every piece and the amazing shapes which wrap around the body as if grown on to it.

Below are some of my favorite pieces from Iris van Herpen.