Our latest pick of products for the modern home. Here’s what to add to your shopping list.
12 October 2022
Top image: Miele SmartLine
Text by Janice Seow
Oneline may look like a simple pendant light, but it is so much more. Beyond its lovely, minimalist form lies a high functioning design, which is something we all want in our homes today.
A collaboration between Fritz Hansen and Danish artist Kasper Friis Kjeldgaard (it’s the latter’s first foray into product design), Oneline is an LED and dimmable task and ambient light with a 360° rotation feature that gives it the ability to cast light in multiple directions. It’s thus able to illuminate a whole array of spaces from the hallway to the kitchen counter to the home office desk and more.
Hanging delicately from conductive, silver-toned wires, the light is available in stainless steel, brushed brass or steel with black PVD coating. Polished brass hardware completes the design.
Fritz Hansen is carried in Singapore by W. Atelier
If you’re looking for paints that are kinder to our environment and our health, Alora Paints might just be it. This Singaporean startup is the first and only local paint company to receive U.S. Green Seal certification, a global environmental endorsement. It has also received Singapore Green Label verification, and to add to that, their products now qualify for points towards LEED environmental certification.
The paints are odourless, water-based and contain no VOCs. They can even be customised to add on features such as Anti Mould and Anti Viral & Bacteria. They are reported to have tested high for ease of application, splatter resistance and overall coverage, and excelled in fade and scratch resistance, and washability.
This carbon-neutral company is part of the United Nations’ Climate Neutral Now voluntary initiative, and sustainability informs the way it operates its business. For example, an online coverage calculator minimises waste by letting customers determine how much paint they need, while its 2.5-litre cans provide an efficient, cost-effective option for smaller projects.
Alora Paints offers DIY kits, doorstep delivery and painting services. It does not have a physical store, operating purely as an e-commerce business.
Wish you had alternative ways to organise your stuff? The Shaker System is a new collaboration between Danish textile company Kvadrat and Belgian designer Raf Simons that seeks to create beauty from order, and bring new meaning and artistry to the home.
Not only are these different storage accessories practical, they are a great way to jazz up a plain wall.
The Shaker System from Kvadrat available at Dover Street Market
Giving customers more freedom to choose, Miele’s SmartLine modules allow one to determine the kitchen ensemble for the cookspace. There’s the induction hob, Teppan Yaki, induction wok and countertop extractor and together these products form a cooking centre with a puristic appeal that ties in with the concept of the kitchen as ‘living space’.
The PowerFlex induction hob is based on the best-seller in the Miele range and consists of two PowerFlex zones in a 60cm-wide unit (there’s also a 38cm-wide option for compact kitchens). These can be used as four individual rings, which combine automatically when large pots or casserole dishes are used. As on all SmartLine modules, Miele deploys its SmartSelect controls. Power can be selected individually for each ring via a string of numbers. Various convenience and safety features round off the range, including Stop & Go, a warmer function, a setting allowing the screen to be cleaned without changing settings, a minute minder, automatic switch-off, a system lock and fault monitoring.
We also particularly love the 12cm-wide countertop extractor, which is an ideal option for open plan kitchens and supports the idea of a puristic kitchen design. This downdraft unit draws in steam and vapours and absorbs fat molecules in a 10-ply stainless-steel grease filter. In recirculation mode, a reactivatable active charcoal filter in a recirculation box binds odours. Alternatively, in vented mode, steam and vapours are transported out of the building via vent ducting. The countertop extractor is available as an individual unit and is combinable with all SmartLine elements. A countertop extractor requires a building-in depth of only 16cm, leaving plenty of space below the unit for drawers. The Eco motor used is powerful and, as a DC unit, particularly energy-efficient.
We think you may also like The Lookbox Edit 13: Dreamy bathroom products
Like what you just read? Similar articles below
Award-winning designer Mikael Teh from MONOCOT picks out eight door knobs and handles from Viefe that are his favourites for the home.
Looking for a kitchen island that is a little different? Here are great ways to take it to the next level.
