Latest articles from Retro To Go

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• For sale: Peter Moiret-designed terrace house in The Hamlet, Champion Hill, London SE5
• Eco Retro Desk Clock
• Portmeirion Children's ABC
• Tu Dark Wood Flower Clock from Sainsbury's
• GJ chair by Grete Jalk back in production
• eBay watch: 1970s Howard Miller for MDA coffee table
• Soulboy DVD reviewed
• Adidas Samba and Adidas Samba Suede get new colour options for 2011

For sale: Peter Moiret-designed terrace house in The Hamlet, Champion Hill, London SE5 Posted: 04 Jan 2011 07:49 AM PST Not the most instantly eye-catching house we've ever featured, but this Peter Moiret-designed terrace house in The Hamlet, Champion Hill, London SE5 is certainly architecturally significant and ripe for a renovation. A mid-terrace house, it's located on what is described as 'one of London's most desirable modernist developments' - a collection of 32 dwellings designed by Peter Moiret that all overlook a communal green, as well as being located on a peaceful hilltop site surrounded by trees, but still within easy reach of central London. This particular house is 'on the favourable part of the development', facing the green and with leafy views at the rear. The ground floor currently contains a kitchen, an integral garage and a cloakroom. The first floor has a double-aspect reception room with access to a full-width south-facing balcony, and a small study room. There are three bedrooms and a bathroom on the second floor, along with a good-sized garden at the rear, and an off-street parking space at the front. Downside? Well, there's a couple. The current decor doesn't exactly fit the modernist aspirations of the building and will need some work to put it back as intended. That will need money on top of the already hefty price - hefty for a terraced property that is. Offers are invited around the £500,000 mark. Find out more at the Modern House website

Eco Retro Desk Clock Posted: 04 Jan 2011 06:58 AM PST   New York-based product designer, Amelia sells her wares on Etsy under the name, Vector Cloud. Amongst her many wonderful wooden creations, my favourite piece is this Eco Retro Desk Clock. The eco part comes from its use of eco-friendly materials (mainly bamboo), whilst the shape of the clock is obviously mid-century inspired. The clock hands are reversible, so you can chose between black or white. The clock is supplied flat packed, but with assurances that it fits together easily. Buy it from the Vector Cloud Etsy store, priced $58 (approximately £38), plus an extra £8 or so for postage to the UK.

Portmeirion Children's ABC Posted: 04 Jan 2011 06:49 AM PST   Depending on your frame of reference, Portmeirion will either suggest pottery or the setting of The Prisoner. But the Welsh village was also the place where its designers Clough Williams-Ellis brought up his family and thus provided the inspiration for this book Portmeirion ABC. The book's author, Sarah Nachamkin was a family friend and wrote the book to help William-Ellis' grandchildren to learn the alphabet. The book dates back to 1950 and the illustrations are evocative of that era and the Portmeirion location. Buy the book online from the Portmeirion website, priced £5.99.

Tu Dark Wood Flower Clock from Sainsbury's Posted: 04 Jan 2011 05:30 AM PST If you're keen to inject some retro style into your home but your bank balance has taken a battering over the Christmas period, this Tu dark wood flower clock from Sainsbury's is something of a bargain. It's a simple wall mounted clock, with wooden petals radiating out from the central design, that would fit easily into a 1950s/60s look.  And the price? The clock costs only £18.  Buy it online

GJ chair by Grete Jalk back in production Posted: 04 Jan 2011 05:20 AM PST Something of a lost 1960s design has now been put back into production: the GJ chair was designed by Grete Jalk in 1963 but originally only 300 examples were produced due to its complex construction.  That production challenge has been taken on by Lange production who are using the same factory and tools to produce this reissue of the moulded plywood chair that were used for the original. They're also reproducing a set of nesting table by the Danish designer.  As you might have guessed, the price tag attached to the design is hefty. But the slightly good news is that it's been reduced in the sale from £2350 to £1997.50.  Buy it from Skandium

eBay watch: 1970s Howard Miller for MDA coffee table Posted: 04 Jan 2011 05:11 AM PST In terms of classic British design, Merrow Associates is the most overpriced brand you'll find on eBay. Not that long ago, you would be able to pick up the main pieces in charity shops for modest prices. These days, even the most common design is pushing £1,000. Someone even has the cheek to be asking over £20 for a photocopied old catalogue. Yet similar labels are still much cheaper and of similar quality, as this Howard Miller for MDA coffee table shows. At first glance, this is a Merrow Associates design, sharing the same industrial-style detailing as well as the chrome, rosewood and glass construction. Except this is actually the work of another British company operating at the same time and servicing the same market - Howard Miller of Miller Design Associates. In 'excellent clean condition', it's on a buy it now of £295 or you can make an offer. There's also a trolley on eBay by the same maker for £175. If you like the look, but don't like the Merrow prices, it's a label worth seeking out...until everyone cottons on and the prices fly up. Find out more at the eBay website

Soulboy DVD reviewed Posted: 04 Jan 2011 01:08 AM PST We have featured the movie in the past, but we missed it on the big screen - because it didn't happen to make it to the big screen in our particular area. But now Soulboy is on DVD - and we have a review online. If you missed our earlier features, Soulboy revolves around legendary northern soul haunt The Wigan Casino, but is also a wider story of one boy's teenage years in the early 70s - in Stoke to be precise - throwing a couple of love stories, some petty crime and of course, plenty of music and dancing. Any good? The review is up now on our Cinedelica site. Check there for the lowdown. Soulboy DVD reviewed at Cinedelica

Adidas Samba and Adidas Samba Suede get new colour options for 2011 Posted: 04 Jan 2011 12:56 AM PST A new year and a new set of colours for a couple of regulars on the Adidas reissue circuit - the Adidas Samba and Adidas Samba Suede. Following on from the recent leather reissue in white and green, there are three variations up for order right now, with the Sambas pictured above having a nubuck upper, vulcanised sole and gold Samba detailing in a choice of 'aluminium and bole' or 'espresso and orange'. Both are available for £49. Alternatively, you can opt for the Adidas Samba Suede in the original colourway of black with white detailing, this time with a premium suede upper and gold Sambas detailing. Once again, these are available for pre-order, £49 once again the price. Find out more at the End Clothing website Via His Knibs

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