rare brede by tess

14 July 2015

PCM Design at Playtime Paris 2015

These boldly coloured and minimal puppet toys looked fresh and modern at Playtime Paris. Sculptural, lightweight and soft to the touch, these little creatures are made from neoprene, so can be easily washed and can go in the bath too!

Policosmos Families are designed by Italian designer Eleonora Castellarin and Mexican designer Moisés Hernàndez for Spanish product design company PCM Design.

Policosmos Families PCM Design

The Policosmos pop-up habitat adds an interactive play space for the animals and an opportunity for children's imagination to run wild! Created by Spanish designer Karen Mazo-Madrazo.

Policosmos Pop-up PCM Design

PCM Design was founded by architect Paloma Cañizares and showcases the talent of young designers from the best design schools in Spain. The edit of imaginative projects on the website blends contemporary industrial design with Spain's artisan history. For more products, take a look at PCM Design.

13 July 2015

Animation: Moomins on the Riviera

The Moomins on the Riviera feature film finally made it to our local independent cinema, and with almost the entire screen room to ourselves one Saturday morning, my family and I were entranced.

It captures the gentle, mischievous characters of the Moomin family in an adventure to the French Riviera. The hand drawn, two-dimensional animation technique was inspired by the original comic strip design and artworked by designers in Helsinki and Paris, then animated in Asia.

A wonderful inspiration for colour palette and whimsical, laid-back charm, and a complete antidote to the usual CGI-animated blockbusters. I loved the way Moominmamma kept the dirty dishes under the sofa for a rainy day....

Moomins on the Riviera, directed by Finnish Hanna Hemila French Xavier Picard

Lulu & Nat bed linen

I took a short break from the blog but I'm feeling inspired again . . . . .

This gorgeous bunny rabbit bed linen from Lulu & Nat always cheers me up when it's time to read a bedtime story to my youngest daughter. The block printed rabbit motif in neon tones of geranium pink and tangerine really pops.

Fantastic salad greens in Lulu's dinosaur set too.

lulu & nat

11 November 2013

Masha and the Bear at Brand Licensing Europe 2013

Following on from my post inspired by The Three Bears, this funny Russian animated series features my favourite new Bear. His co-star, Masha, is a little girl with an impish, fearless character and the perfect comedy partner to Bear's kindly patience. Watching each playful adventure is a very giggly experience with my six year old!

I was so happy to see a unique Russian children's property showcased at the Brand Licensing Europe fair, all set to go global. These two characters are already huge stars in Eastern Europe with over 50 million free views online in 2012, with Masha and the Bear being the most popular cartoon on Russian YouTube.

Masha and the Bear

30 October 2013

I'm inspired by The Three Bears

Now that the days are getting colder and porridge is back on the breakfast menu, I thought about how much I like bears which come in threes, and golden yellows which remind me of syrup. Here are some lovely bears including the book cover of Goldilocks and the Three Bears by my all-time favourite Japanese illustrator Piu Sudo.

15 October 2013

Neue Freunde Products at Kind + Jugend 2013

Our Brio railway track is a construction toy with real longevity in our house and our collection has grown from a starter set to a giant tub over the years. The little train wagons have often transported dry pasta or rice around the floor, not always successfully!

It was great to see this original idea from Neue Freunde Products developed to encourage independent eating. The Railway Breakfast Set takes the concept of playing with food one step further. I love the curved track piece with a saucer to stop spills and the way the cup handle makes a tunnel.

Neue Freunde Products

14 October 2013

Looodus at Kind + Jugend 2013 kidsroomzoom!

The Font Alphabet Puzzles from Milan-based company Looodus caught my graphic eye in the kidsroomzoom! design space. Co-founders Kurt Stapelfeldt and Denise Bonenti developed the product for their daughter, Allegra, to explore the aesthetic values and language they aspire to in everyday life.

The puzzles come in an array of gorgeous tonal colours and are beautifully made in the hills of Trivero, Piemonte in Italy from FSC-certified poplar wood. However the most exciting part is that each laser-cut letter is a different typeface carefully chosen for its shape, size and special place in the world of design. I've always loved Playbill (P is an important letter to me - my oldest daughter is called Poppy!) but it's the curvy 'L' from the font Lavanderia which steals the show and is the favourite of designer Kurt.

Looodus Font Alphabet

Magnetic Alpha-Bits are also being launched for creative and poetic word play. The sixty six letter set includes two full alphabets plus the thirteen most commonly used letters.

Looodus AlphaBits

Looodus AlphaBits