Our first full day at the New York International Gift Fair offered some very nice and interesting surprises. The first of which is a striking selection of handcrafted ceramic mugs and accessories from Montreal’s own PMO Design.

Below you’ll see the “Pisa Oga” ceramic cup, an eye-catching design that may look tipped while sitting on the table, but is perfectly balanced in your hand. And since the liquid can only be filled to the level of the lower rim, this cup should never too full to hold and drink comfortably.



Seen below, the “Union Oga” family of Salt and Pepper Shakers. Each piece has its own personality and character thanks to the simple (and functional) placement of the dispenser holes.

Here’s a smart idea we likely won’t see featured at this weekend’s NYIGF, but I love it nonetheless. Touted mostly as a place to store your spare key - and honestly, does anyone use those magnetic hide-a-key’s anyway? - the ”Hitch Safe” is a clever storage place for truck owners. They also appear to be compatible with most existing Truck Nuts (I’ll just assume that someone can’t remove the pin and steal your entire hitch)

Because a keyboard stitched into the front of your pants isn’t enough, these “Beauty and the Geek” jeans from designer Erik De Nijs also include a pair of speakers built into the knees, a pocket for your mouse and even a “joystick controller located just behind the front zipper.” No one said you have to leave the house in them.. via.

....distract from the food, take a look at the design elements from ”Tast.es” Catering. They offer some of the sleekest dining platters and accessories you will find anywhere. Although, I think after a few sake bombs you may need to be careful not to injure yourself on the wasabi dish. via.

One of the many brilliant creations from XYZ Design, their Computer Desk is completely cable free, and all of the computer components are easily accessible under the desk lid. Their design is from 2007 and still listed as a prototype for purchase shortly.. One day everything will look like this, so please hurry up with it!

While you may be wondering what’s left to improve in the field of ironing boards, there’s always room to add more functionality. Cup holder? iPod dock? No, this iteration actually combines a step ladder and ironing board to create - what else? - the Ironing Ladder! Despite being a cult hit on blogs across the web, it looks like Tiny Living in NY has closed its doors. So please, any aspiring engineers out there add a cup holder to this thing and get it back in production!

The perfect icebreaker! Once you’ve touched on the subject of your visitor’s weight, the rest of the conversation should unfold much easier.. Available for sale at curiosite, it’s the Felpudo Chivato or “Doormat Scale.” via.

It’s the first exciting electrical socket news of 2010! From the Best of Yanko Design 2009 - from creator Meysam Movahedi - the ”Rambler Socket” is an incredible concept that needs to catch on as soon as possible. Simply pinch the sides to release the cord, about 5 feet worth, and when you’re finished, just give it a tug to activate the spring and retract it back to the socket. What more could you possibly want? Ok, maybe an “On/Off switch” but that’s IT!

We at PureModern stick to things that are cool, contemporary, and fun - however there comes a time where every media outlet needs to join in a common cause. 

We stray from political, social, and volatile topics to keep our company neutral of all controversy ... we’re totally live and let live.  However, when events in the world require all media to come together to do something for humankind—we’re there to help.

While we may not have the readership of the NY TIMES, NBC News, etc --- we do have many thousands of people that visit us daily.  So we ask, in a very sincere way, if you have a moment to contribute to the Red Cross for assistance in Haiti, please do --- we have. 

We’re all neighbors on this planet—let’s help if we can.

Donate — Red Cross

Sleek, contemporary doorbell buttons illuminated by long lasting, colored LED lights from Spore Inc are the most recent additions to our product catalog at Pure Modern. While they’re designed to work with most standard doorbell systems, they also can be used for garage doors, security systems or home automation with some amazing results. See our collection [ here ].

Pictured below: Spore Inc’s True LED Illuminated Doorbell Button (in Black with White LED; Aluminum with Blue LED) and Square LED Illuminated Doorbell Button in Amber.

I suspect the Parrot Drone will be the best thing to come out of CES this year.  Yes, I want one.  Cool gadget!

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Update:  CNN Video from CES after the jump…

MORE...

I’m a pen (and watch) lover… They are my gadgets of choice when thinking of things I collect.  Some people think I’m ridiculous with some of these things… but THIS is truly ridiculous.  A $90,000 pen (yes… NINETY THOUSAND DOLLARS). 

18K Gold, 10 Brilliant Cut diamonds in a platinum ‘grille’ made to represent the iconic Rolls Royce radiator grilles of the past & present.  Created by Gallerani design firm. 

Sonia Spencer features so many amazing Cufflink and Keychain designs, we could easily feature them here all year long. But I’ve selected just a couple of pieces that are very striking and indicative of her type of fun, colorful and playful creations.

First, the Pantone Reversible Dark Slate Square Cufflinks (pictured below) feature true Pantone Universe colorways and are available in several different funky color combinations. In addition, each pair can be reversed for two distinct looks.



Next, the truly captivating Fire Dancer Cufflinks (pictured below) - made with a fine lenticular lens holographic image, her full collection of Moving Image Keyrings and Cufflinks are all guaranteed to add some flashy style with hours of entertainment for your friends.

For the distinguished taste that changes with the season, Pure Modern now offers Sonia Spencer’s complete collection of Pantone Universe Color Chip Key Rings and Cufflinks.



Don’t feel intimidated, each Keyring and Cufflink set includes a guide to the seasonal Pantone colour palette. Click here to view our complete selection of Pantone Products, as well as Sonia Spencer Cufflinks and Keyrings!