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Now all say awwww…

Here's a sneak preview of Winter Bonfire, the latest addition to the best-selling Moomin collection from Arabia Finland. Due for launch in October it’s sure to be a popular stocking filler. I hope Helen Harrop is smiling…

Hanna Werning for Anna Sui

We always love it when our favourite designers do well, this time it’s illustrator/designer Hanna Werning who looks set to make it big. At this autumn’s fashion shows her prints will be shown off by a bunch of long legged models wearing super hot Anna Sui’s latest collection.

FunktionAlley is yet to aquire any of Hanna’s designs for our online inventory, but we’ve tried to push her designs for a while. Some of her fabulous wallpapers can be had from our Leeds store,

and a few months ago JH - with one of his special networking stunts – tried to persuade the powers that be at SonyErcisson's head office here in Lund that Hanna Werning’s illustrations were just the thing to adorn their soon-to-be-released collection of mobile phones. The suits at Ericsson were not impressed, but if I were them I’d be kicking myself now. It looks like Hanna is becoming very hot property indeed. (Vicki)

Rio ahoy!

This arrived at our Swedish office on Monday. Good to know that our fans have fans as far away as Brazil! Last month the iconic FlowerPower was featured in leading Brazilian lifestyle magazine Versatille.

Love the slightly camp cover - seems all the nice girls still love a sailor... (Vicki)

lindvall goes linear

The first entry since our summer break comes courtesy of star designer, Jonas Lindvall. Having bumped into him at the Swedish Derby in Malmö on Sunday, I swapped a tip on the winner of the third race for an invite to Wednesday's photo shoot for his latest product. Due for release in the autumn and with its name still under wraps, this sliding “archive” unit goes straight in at number one on my list of must-have designs.


Consisting of five handmade boxes mounted on a walnut back panel, the system incorporates a touch-glide linear motion that allows the three centre boxes to slide horizontally to reveal or hide whatever music and literary treasures (and shames) are stored within. It is not merely the ingenious engineering which appeals, but also Lindvall’s trademark attention to every detail, be it seen or unseen.


The boxes are constructed with blind dovetail joints, a traditional technique previously adopted by Lindvall to strengthen structure and enhance the inherent beauty of wood. By repositioning the shelves within the boxes, the system can be adapted for paperbacks, hardbacks, CDs, DVDs etc. The walnut back panel ensures that no mechanism is visible and gives the unit a perfect balance of form and function. Forget the wish list, I’m ordering one… (JH)