ICFF 2012 - Things That Inspired Me (Tops!)

I recently had the pleasure of attending ICFF and Design Week in New York City. What an amazing experience. Not only was I in one of my favorite cities, but I was surrounded by creative people and the products they have labored to make. My inspiration tank was on empty when I arrived, but I came home refreshed and excited. Such a great feeling!

The little things.

While the whole experience was well worth the trip, I'm going to break down a few specifics. Things that really caught my eye.

Wood spinning tops! I spied them is a great shop called The Future Perfect in the SoHo area (click this link to go to the top's page on The Future Perfect website). These beautiful little guys are around and 1.5" to 2" tall, so they are small and could easily have been missed. Thankfully I didn't walk passed them. Displayed in a small dish in four different types of wood, hand turned in Japan, and in various shapes, they make lovely little kinetic sculptures.

These are the three I purchased! My 6 year old son and I have fun playing spinning top wars together.

I also had the pleasure of seeing the Herman Miller Pop-Up Shop. A designer's playground! Very inspirational. Interestingly enough, they also had spinning tops available for sale. These were much larger and in Walnut. I wanted to take all three of the designs home with me but they are approximately $60 each. Sigh. While doing some research I found out that this is not new for Herman Miller. This link will take you to Herman Miller's blog from 2009 and show you the limited edition tops from that year. Maybe, just maybe, I'll be able to get this year's set.

To quote Charles Eames “Toys are not really as innocent as they look. Toys and games are preludes to serious ideas.” The Herman Miller Pop-Up Shop also had a book of quotes from Mr. Eames that would be a great addition to my library!