December 2011
27 posts
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Postcards from Finland #14
SUOMI FINLAND JUSSAN TUPA – Hetta ENONTEKIÖ, PUH. 25
Anonymous asked: Hi! Please please scan the Anttila catalogue in full, it would be great to see the rest of it! Very important part of Finnish cultural history, you know!
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Review: The Anttila mail order catalogue, 1972
Our printed matter pick of the week is the Anttila catalogue from April 1972. The cover is going with a nautical theme, which seems to have been in fashion since the beginning of the history of mail order catalogues.
However, inside it’s a lot more than just stripy shirts. The catalogue is in fact heavily into retro fashion and it’s actually impossible to find anything made...
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Record of the month: Nukk& Pien' 7", 1969
The Kasper Stromman Design Blog record of the month is Nukk& Pien’ which was released by Kehitysvammaisten Tukiyhdistysten Liitto (The Finnish Association for Persons with Intellectual Disabilities) in 1969.
Depending on where you look the name of the record is also spelt “Nukke pien” or “NUKKE PIEN!”, but that’s probably due to the “intellectual disability” of the graphic...
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Postcards from Finland #13
TURKU–ÅBO UUTTA ARKKITEHTUURIA NY ARKITEKTUR
FOTO: VOLKER VON BONIN
… and while on the subject, still a few days left to catch Taistelu Turusta on Yle Areena.
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Top 3 charity shop T-shirts for Tuesday
3. The only gay Volkswagen driver in the village
The way we see it here at the Kasper Stromman Design Blog there are two likely scenarios why the previous owner would get rid of this nice shirt: he moved away from the village or went straight. Either way it’s up for grabs now for a cool euro.
2. Fun corset tee
With this updated version of the gentlemen’s tuxedo tee it’s...
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Anonymous asked: I like that you introduced a new tag: Hosing. I hope it makes many more appearances in the future. I studied the cover of the Berner "magazine." Truly a piece of art. What the hell is going on with that woman's hat? And why is there a ninja fishing in the background?
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Best christmas hats of 2011
In them olden days christmas hats were triangular, red and had an optional jingle bell on top. But that was a long time ago. Here’s what’s on offer this christmas:
“Chimney Hat”
A very dramatic take on the classic where Santa is stuck in the chimney and is now possibly dead. If that’s the case there will naturally be no presents this christmas, but rather some kind of CSI...
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Testing the Aqua Tube™
Yesterday Suomen luontoliitto (the Finnish Association for Nature Conservation) awarded the Aqua Tube™ flushable toilet roll the title of most pointless thing of the year. Needless to say, we wanted to test this magical object.
The manufacturer claims it has spent four years developing a solution to the huge ass problem of where to dispose of empty toilet rolls (bin, anyone?). The Kasper...
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Design food classics #2: Kylmä ateriavoileipä
Here’s a classic for all you lethargic people out there who can absolutely not be arsed to cook yourself a meal: Kylmä ateriavoileipä (“the cold meal sandwich”). Here’s how it’s done: you basically take whatever you have and put in on a loaf of bread. Done. And this dish apparently goes down well with a cold foamer.
We don’t like to be overly critical here at the Kasper...
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The Phiskarz® project
Fiskars scissors are nice, but you can expect to pay upwards of € 20 for a pair. Outrageous! We at the Kasper Stromman Design Shop for one thing are certainly not going to pay that kind of money. Instead we went out and bought a bunch of second hand clippers and got creative.
The good thing when creating your own design scissors is you don’t have to limit yourself, so we threw in some...
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Amazing children's book
It’s not often we stumble across a work of pure genius here at the Kasper Stromman Design Blog, but the children’s book Tiikerikonttori has to be considered just that.
First of all: the illustrations are truly spectacular. Every page is like a monument to true craftmanship, inspiration and talent. This is a book to read over and over again. And it’s literally impossible to...
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Postcards from Finland #12
SUOMI – FINLAND Foto: Henrik de Heij
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Best of holiday brochure covers 1963–2004
1963 Finnish officials disover there are other countries south of Estonia with a much warmer climat than Finland. Charter travel starts immediatly. Holiday-makers returning home introduce the word palmu (palm tree) to the Finnish language.
1965 Families travelling on a budget are given the possibility to bring their children for free as long as they travel as luggage. Scheme quickly...
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About the colour coding of milk: new research
Two months ago we blogged about the colour of milk packaging versus fat content. Since then our research team here at the Kasper Stromman Design Blog has been hard at work and came up with some new interesting milk design facts.
You see, through are contacts we have managed to obtain this vintage leaflet issued by Maito ja Terveys Ry (the Dairy Nutrition Council). Judging from the design...
Anonymous asked: Marimekko clothes. Those colours and textures
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Desperately seeking ar@bia
Arabia, Helsinki (named after a now non-operational ceramics factory) is a newish residential area in the north eastern part of town. Apart from the former factory it can also boast a shopping centre, opened in 2002.
For many years we at the Kasper Stromman Design Blog have wondered who answers if you mail the address on the neon sign, ar@bia. The president of the shopping centre perhaps?
...
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Attention design lovers!
We are happy to announce our new design appraisal service here at the Kasper Stromman Design Blog. If you are in possession of an object which you think may be of value, you can now e-mail a picture of it to appraisals@kasperstromman.com. Our team of design experts will then have a look at it and give their free valuation.
Why do we do this?
For the love of design, that’s why.
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Three fun things around the office
This toy sandwich is such a kneeslapper. But we’ve been trying to go green lately, wonder if any of the materials that went in it are recycled?
Okay, so re-using stuff is not fashionable anymore? Right, that’s what we’re doing then.
This leather jacket is great when it’s raining! Completetly water proof, but unfortunately not very breathing. Wonder what the secret...
copybox asked: As a man canny in the world of design and, I imagine, impeccably clean, do you have any knowledge of 1940s/1950s soap packet designs. I saw two this weekend which were both beautifully designed and funny because they were called Bi and Sex (I always laugh in Swedish lifts between floors five and seven).
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Art review: 3 really bad paintings
Some people may call it outsider art, but here at the Kasper Stromman Design Blog we choose to call it by it’s real name: bad paintings. Today we review 3 shit pieces of artwork we spotted at various second hand outlets.
3. “Famous grouse”
See how the weird blue snow accentuates the clumsy brush strokes and the unskilfully rendered trees? This painting of what we think should be a grouse...
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Who let the dogs out?
In them olden days gettin a dog was a pretty straight forward affair: you got a puppy, picked up a dog bowl and a leash on the way home and you were good to go.
But that was a long time ago, grandpa. Owning a dog today is different. Here are some of the things available for dog owners to buy today:
4. Singles meals for dogs.
Premium segment meals like this are marketed for the professional...
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Postcards from Finland #11
SUOMI FINLAND Vaasa Vasa Hotelli - Hotell Rantasipi - Sand Piper
Kuvaus ja tuotanto Foto Kurt Björklund ky. Vaasa
Anonymous asked: Dear Kasper Stromman, what did Suomen Urheiluliitto ry. do back in the 80s while USSR sports committee did stuff like "Sports & Music / Pulse series" ... just asking ... (is that 1978 basketball record the only comparable release) link: google "sports and music val verde" as tumblr doesn't allow links in these questions
