Last Saturday we went to Urbis Designday where 12 showrooms collaborate with 12 designers from fashion and design industries. We had an awesome day, saw some interesting things, drank some yummy things and tasted some wonderful things. Good value at $30 per ticket (or 2 for $50). We figured we ate and drank an average of $10 each at each of the sites and including the taxis in between, we would have enjoyed $150 worth of Urbis. Here are some of my photos and a bit of a run down… This was were picked up their wristbands for the day if they hadn’t received them in the post. While this wasn’t considered one of the exhibits or a number on the circuit, this was actually one of my favourites. We spent a while here watching the Media Design School 3D projects. As you enter a big inflatable room you are given headphones and a Kapiti white chocolate and raspberry ice cream. Similar concept to a silent disco, there are 2 screens showing different projects and you can tune in your headphones to either screen to get audio.
Cookies & Scream was my favourite film and you can view it online here. Don’t worry, it’s short and sweet. Cartoons and ice cream were a hit with the kids too. Can you believe it!? The most interactive installation of the day, but the queue to get into the booths were a bit of a turn off. Not their fault I guess! We ended up hanging around in the middle area and upstairs for ages trying to decided whether or not the queue was worth it. In the end, curiosity got the better of us. 3 coloured boxes to enter to experiment with sound, touch and sight. Cupcakes and Absoute vodka drinks provided upstairs. I loved watching the white person stand still among white mannequins only to jump and growl when people walked past. Esther Diamond tea towels on display. Most of the showroom was the same as previous years. Which makes me wonder, do furniture fittings have seasons or fashion trends? Häfele had some of the best nibbles of the day. The meatballs were scrumptious and there were also chicken satay, crudités and dips.
Yummy bulk-made mojitos which I love love loved. From a foodie’s point of view, Social Kitchen was the winner on the day. Chefs Natalia Schamroth and Carl Koppenhagen of the Engine Room, furniture designer Sam Haughton of IMO and design studio Alt Group together with Fisher & Paykel make up this team. The entire back wall showcased a slideshow of products and dishes. The 8 dishes to sample were: The savoury beetroot and horseradish ice cream was the favourite based on taste although the garlic bread was clearly popular as the crowd swarmed every time a fresh batch arrived. Pretty rugs, trees used as table legs, more macaroons than you can shake a stick at. Codi’s “Cardinale” rug was my favourite. A kitchen design showroom but all I remember was beer, hotdogs and tools, tools. I wonder if they were trying to appeal to a slightly more masculine market?A ceramic stovetop with a concave surface for your wok to sit in. A Rube Goldberg contraption showcasing Dulux paint in collaboration with Furniture Lab and We Love Inc.
I don’t know, something about a Rube Goldberg contraption brings out the kid in all of us. It’s exciting to watch with the anticipation of stuff happening in a linear way as well as the chance of failure. It’s like watching a really long set of dominos fall in line. The contraption required 5 volunteers to inject paint into tubes via syringe and the show went through several cycles while we were there. A generous wheel of cheese provided for punters to dig at and the signature cocktail was a Dark ‘n Stormy – dark rum and ginger beer over ice. I’ve always loved this Navy chair design and it was cool to see that there is a plastic version made in collaboration with Coca-Cola. The plastic version is made from 111 recycled plastic bottles and is called the 111 Navy Chair. At about $500 per chair it is half the price of the original aluminium design. I don’t know about you, but I would prefer to pay $1000 for a metal chair than $500 for a plastic chair. Hypothetically speaking of course.
Fully clothed models dressed by Salasai in bathtubs, a huge chocolate fountain complete with marshmallows, hard boiled sweets in beautifully crafted hand basins that cost more than your car. A pretty basin for my future bathroom.Tried Moa beer…not a fan. Pretty table for my future office. Loved the idea of these bowls: made from the useless macademia husk. But at $250 for a small bowl, who buys this stuff? The Taylor fashion show was fun to watch and the models did the whole “Heidi Klum dead eyes” thing really well. Maybe we were over it as this was our last stop of the day (we started at number 11) but we weren’t feeling this one. It was cramped and just felt like a normal shop with some few royal embellishments. Some really cool stuff at ECC and only mildly (ok insanely) overpriced. Because we started and ended here, we were here first thing in the morning for coffee and biscotti and also for cheese and beer in the afternoon. The drum theme was cool, not sure if these were put into use at Urbis Designday, but this contraption looked like metal balls fall into the middle and then onto electric drum pads.
I want one of these lamps, maybe in black or red though. It would be my reading lamp. Can’t you just imagine positioning the most comfortable reclining chair under this light for reading? They were serving pastries with gin and tonic with here for breakfast. A bit too early for G & T when we got there, but I’m sure they were a hit later on in the day. These coloured toilet rolls were $5.50. This wall right here is $770 worth of loo paper.Humanscale L111 Liberty Task Chair with Height Adjustable Duron Arms Liberty Task Chair with Height Adjustable Duron ArmsProduct Features:Form-sensing, tri-panel non-stretch mesh with self-adjusting lumbarCounter-balance, self-adjusting recline mechanismPivoting backrestContoured seat cushionSeat height and depth adjustment5" Height Adjustable ArmsSpecifications:Back Dimensions: 20"W x 22.5"HSeat Dimensions: 21"W x 16.5-18.75"DSeat height: 16"-21"Weight capacity: 300 lbs. -- Please Select --Grade 0 Textile: Squiggle (Horizontal) Grade 0 Textile: Squiggle (Vertical) Grade 1 Textile: Wave +$14.70Grade 1 Textile: Vellum +$14.70Grade 1 Textile: Lotus +$14.70Grade 2 Textile: Ginkgo +$36.40Grade 2 Textile: Bridget Stripe (Horizontal) +$36.40Grade 2 Textile: Bridget Stripe (Vertical) +$36.40Grade 3 Textile: Promessa +$72.80Grade 3 Textile: Sensuede +$72.80Grade 1 Leather: Vicenza Leather +$283.50Grade 3 Leather: Cervo Leather +$576.80
* Back Mesh Type -- Please Select --Monofilament Stripe Silver Check Torque Dash Pinstripe * Back Mesh Options N10Black N01White N02Silver N03Graphite N34Cadmium N43Citron N58Cyan N74Crimson A14Platinum A19Zinc T10Black T13Aluminum T31Soliel T61Lagoon C12Alloy C32Topaz M10Black M11Carbon M14Platinum M41Green M51Atlantic M81Amber -- Please Select --Black with Black Trim Silver with SIlver Trim Silver with Black Trim Polished Aluminum with Black Trim +$95.90Polished Aluminum with Silver Trim +$95.90 Standard Foam Seat Pan Gel Seat + Standard Cylinder- Seat height: 16"-21" Low Cylinder- Seat height: 14.5"-19.5" +Tall Cylinder- Seat height: 17"-22.25" +High 8" Cylinder with 18" Foot Ring- Seat height: 20.5"-28.5" +High 8" Cylinder with 21" Foot Ring- Seat height: 20.5"-28.5" + Standard Hard Casters Soft Casters Glides + NoneC-CA-133Approved Plastics and Foams + Liberty, with Form-Sensing Mesh Technology, is unlike any mesh chair you’ve seen or experienced.
With its tri-panel construction, it has the body-fitting contours that single-panel stretch mesh chairs simply can’t achieve. And it offers perfect lumbar support for everyone, without external devices or manual adjustments. Liberty's mesh back is formed by combining three panels of non-stretch mesh in the same way a tailor combines multiple pieces of material to form a shirt. Its contours are custom-made to both fit and support the human body in unprecedented comfort.Physical CharacteristicsCushionsNon-stretch, tri-panel mesh backMolded polyurethane foam seat cushionDuron arm padsOptional arm pads and seats have top layer of Technogel®Seats upholstered with a variety of materials customized to the unique form of the cushionCushion Pan, Back Frame, Five-Arm BaseInjection-molded, structural, integral color plasticsOptional stainless steel caps on baseExternal FrameDie-cast aluminum with fused plastic coating or polished aluminum finishStored Energy DevicesNitrogen-charged gas cylinder for adjustable seat heightCoil spring in the self-adjusting recline mechanismTorsion spring in the pivoting backrestOptional Foot RingChrome-plated
steelStandard FeaturesSelf-Adjusting ReclineIntelligent counter-balance recline mechanism automatically provides the right amount of support through the full range of recline motion, regardless of user size and weightNo tension springs to adjustNo recline locks to set/releaseDuring recline, the angle between torso and legs opens up for better body functionUser maintains near-constant eye level during reclinePivoting BackrestExtra motion of the backrest during recline automatically adjusts to the changing needs of the spineProvides additional lumbar support as neededForm-Sensing MeshTri-panel, non-stretch mesh construction creates body-fitting contours and self-adjusting lumbar support for a customized fitNo external lumbar devices to adjust, break or loseLow-abrasion mesh protects clothingModular for easy replacementStandard CylinderProvides seat height range that accommodates 95% of the populationContoured Seat CushionCarefully sculpted to match body contoursIncreased contact area reduces pressure pointsModular for easy replacementBody FitSize adjustable to fit more than 95% of the populationForm-sensing mesh provides perfect lumbar support—automaticallyManual adjustments for fit-to-size
:Seat Height: 5" adjustment rangeSeat Depth: 2.25" adjustment rangeCasters3" dual-surface casters roll easily on carpeted floors and quietly on hard floorsOptional FeaturesArmrest OptionsArmlessFixed armrestsHeight-adjustable armrests with 5" range of adjustmentGel Seat CushionNon-degradable, non-compressibleTechnogel® layer on top of foam coreProvides maximum pressure distributionOffers unmatched long-term comfortArm Pad OptionsFlexible DuronTechnogel® for optimal comfortCylinder OptionsLow cylinder for small usersTall cylinder for very tall usersHigh cylinder with foot ringReturn-to-height cylinder returns chair to highest position when user exits chairFireproofingCAL 133-approved Fireproof barrier between textile and foamFire-retardant plasticsIf you need CAL 133-approved fireproof barrier, please call us at 877-919-1190 to orderCaster OptionsNon-rolling glides for fixed location usePolished Base CapsStainless steel caps on five-star base for wear protection and aesthetic appealFoot RingChrome finishHeight-adjustable