Salon.com > The Latest Thing

Protection by mail

Tue, 15 Dec 2009 01:15:00 +0000

Sometimes, products are interesting simply because they are unusually useful. And, because they achieve that result in an unexpected way. This cooking glove is like that. It solves a very real problem -- in a way that you'd (or at least, I'd) never have imagined.

We all have issues with cutting things in the kitchen. Scary. We try to figure out how to maneuver the knife, how to adjust our grip, so as to minimize the risk. Too often, however, blood flows.

It's actually harder to protect yourself as you get more serious about cooking. When I was young, I was taught to cut so the motion of the knife is away from your hand. But I've now come to understand that you're actually supposed to cut toward your hand, because it's more accurate -- you can better guide the knife. Unfortunately, you are guiding it right toward your own flesh. People who cook a lot, and love cooking, commonly lose parts of fingers. If you meet a serious chef, don't look closely at the hands.

As I became sensitized to this issue, I became more and more aware that there is not a widely used solution. I have a number of friends who are serious cooks. They have all sorts of gadgets in their kitchens. But for real protection against bad cuts? Nothing. Except health insurance.

China that looks like New York

Tue, 08 Dec 2009 23:10:00 +0000

Lovegrove & Repucci's New York Delft China is a wonderful statement that confuses genres, and reminds us of the boxes that we instinctively put things in, surprising us while also being beautiful -- and usable.

L&R is a London-based design consultancy. It's two guys, named (unsurprisingly, I suppose) Lovegrove & Repucci. They've done advertising, branding, interior design, furniture design, retail concept design. They are creative, witty designers. And they've created a small line of products that are social commentary -- products as gestures, products that make a point.

You know the drill with traditional Delft china. It's white, high-quality, handmade china with unmistakable blue graphic treatments. Made in Delft, Netherlands, it is collected worldwide. (Delft was actually a copy of Ming-era porcelain from China, which the Dutch East India Co. began to import into Holland in the early 17th century. The Dutch copies gained a reputation of their own, and Delftware became a highly desired species of pottery.)

Products that mean something

Wed, 02 Dec 2009 01:26:00 +0000

Every time I think about how to explain the new Salon Store, I come back to the bicycle.

Last summer, I began working with Salon CEO Richard Gingras to develop a "store" concept under the Salon brand. We had many meetings. (Salon people do a lot of thinking and talking, I learned.) Throughout our discussions there hovered a central question: Did we think that Salon's DNA translated into a store? If so, why?

On first blush, it may seem like kind of a tough road. Salon is a media site. It's about ideas. Important ideas, deep ideas, goofy ideas ... but ideas. So why suddenly offer stuff for sale? If you begin driving Salon there, kind of taking the site (and indeed the brand) off-road, aren't you risking that the wheels will fall off?

Late one night during the brainstorming phase last summer, I was winding down by cruising Craigslist (no, not that part of Craigslist). I wound up in "bikes."

Amid the $1,000 (and $10,000) titanium-framed, fully suspended, on- and off-road competition bikes for sale around bike-obsessed San Francisco, I stumbled onto this. A custom Sting Ray chopper re-creation. All chrome. With spiral/twisted fork ... and high-density spoke wheel ... and a steering wheel ... and mufflers ... and a spare tire, to top it off, carried in the back, like my granddad's '35 Ford.

Welcome to the Salon Store

Mon, 30 Nov 2009 02:26:00 +0000

Welcome to the Salon Store -- a new Salon feature that we hope you will find engaging, entertaining and a useful extension of what Salon is all about.

The Store's mission: to offer a collection of products that reflect what always interests us at Salon -- startling creativity, soul-pleasing utility, interesting ideas, unique perspectives and sometimes just the profound wackiness of our culture.

Why do we think the interests of Salon and its audience translate into products? Because, in various ways, things matter to all of us. They make statements, they offer solutions, they express or create emotion. I think of Salon as a place -- a destination, a community -- that is defined chiefly by an evolving set of shared interests. So we think it will be fun, interesting and appropriate to identify products that reflect those interests and showcase them on Salon. And we are particularly interested in your feedback about the products we offer as well as others you think we should be offering. We'd like your participation not merely as purchasers but as curators along with us.