Saved by droog 

During Salone del Mobile in Milan in 2010 Droog presented 5135 items saved from liquidation sales and other leftovers.

Every month about 500 companies in the Netherlands go bankrupt. Where do their products go? In the past several months we have been bidding on liquidation auction items ranging from handkerchiefs to dog baskets. We acquired 5135 items—1 water cooler, 1 dining table, 2 bar stools, 4 metal trays, 6 wooden trays, 8 mirrors, 10 small bowl sets, 11 cups, 14 dog baskets, 20 dish towels, 40 glass vases, 50 safety vests, 60 sets of cutlery, 80 folding chairs, 90 flower pots, 100 candy pots, 102 wooden spoons, 168 plates of glass, 200 saltshakers, 448 wallets, 500 matchboxes, 720 cola glasses, and 2500 handkerchiefs.

Having invited 14 designers to consider these items as raw material for creative re-interpretation, the result is a new collection of 19 products, with outcomes ranging from folding chairs manicured by nail artists, to handkerchiefs that distribute selected daily news articles, to spoons with non-edible yet mouth-watering coatings. A pragmatic starting point with surprising outcomes, the presentation celebrates the re-use potential of leftovers as a valid approach to product design and development. All items were immediately available for sale in editions dictated by the limited liquidation lot quantities.

Three stars bomb

Get ready for a three-star-performance! Ignite this bomb (don’t worry, it’s safe) and watch three bronze stars appear. A typical Atelier Ted Noten piece of democratic jewellery—from now on, anyone can become a general.

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