Santa's most iconic gifts

Our look at Santa’s most iconic gifts through the decades:

1950’s  barbie, elvis presley’s album, television

1960’s action man, beatles vinyl, tupperware

1970’s star wars action figure, abba’s new album, lava lamp

1980’s rubik's cube, michael jackson’s thriller tape, video recorder

1990’s pokemon, imac computer, spice girls’ cd

2000’s itunes vouchers, wii, ipod

Send us an email at create@designclarity.net with your own predictions for this decade’s iconic objects… best ideas to be posted here in Jan 2011

Festive DC windows attracting curious eyes

Our London Xmas window this year is dedicated to looking at the way our shopping habits have changed over the decades & how that has been reflected in the way we wrap our presents. The pictorial & illustrative images of the 1950’s gave way to a “pop art” aesthetic with the introduction of more stylised repeats & vibrant color combination in the 60’s. A more toned down, earthy & natural style with DYI detailing dominated the 70’s while the stuck on bow perfectly encapsulated the spirit of 80’s. The 90’s found us all so serious, monochromatic & minimal while in the 00’ s when retail went digital gift-wrapping in the traditional format would be no longer necessary.

Menu envy

When considering a new menu layout – here’s a few tricky design tips from the experts on ways to subtly sway the diner and maximise dining profitability for your restaurant:

1.     Eyes go to the upper right hand corner first – put the pricier items here

2.     The anchor – the role of the most expensive plate on the menu is to make everything near it look like a relative bargain

3.     Offer a smaller serving size of the anchor – still profitable and feels indulgent

4.     High profit dishes cluster near the anchor

5.     Columns are killers. Omit all $ or £ symbols too

6.     Add boxes to draw attention

7.     Menu Siberia – for low margin dishes or reliable orders

8.     Bracketing to offer size options – diners will tend to trade up

To read more, here’s a link to the Menu Mind Games article on the New York Restaurants site:

http://nymag.com/restaurants/features/62498/

Excerpted from Priceless: The Myth of Fair Value (and How to Take Advantage of It), to be published in January by Hill & Wang, an imprint of Farrar, Straus & Giroux. © 2010 by William Poundstone. All rights reserved.

Westfield Sydney opens doors

Here's a snapshot of the visual feast that is Westfield Sydney. Stage 1 now open and plenty more to come. Glossy finishes, textural lighting, urban attitude and big brands abound.

Moo Moo Wine Bar & Grill up for another award

Moo Moo in Brisbane CBD has been shortlisted for the IDEA10 Interior Design Excellence Awards in the hospitality design category. 


An iconic landmark on the river in Brisbane’s CBD, this two-storey, colonnaded structure became the Port Office in 1888. Originally housing the Department of Harbours and Marine, the building has found a new lease of life as the Moo Moo Wine Bar + Grill; a slick, up-market restaurant within the Stamford Plaza Hotel. Design Clarity partnered with Global Shopfitters and the Moo Moo directors to realise a unique vision for the new fl agship Moo Moo restaurant in this impressive heritage listed site.

Evolve awards : Designer rugs

The top 25 finalists have just been announced. 


Rebecca Boland's Faux Hide is our rug of choice. 
If you're thinking of voting in the people's choice award you can win $1000 in prizes - email: evolve@designerrugs.com.au 

Retail design: smoke & mirror

Baku QVB recently re-opened its doors after a full fitout transformation in this awkward 12M x 2M deep site on the highly trafficked lower ground floor. Creating an illusion of space was key to making the new design work for Baku; playing tricks with mirror, introducing a new reflective materials palette and exercising restraint with receding black floors and ceiling. 

Photography credit: Claudio Mantovani 2010

Industrial Antiques

Dock 1 industrial antiques is a treasure trove of character finds. Dock 1 has been trading for years in three sites across Sydney. The old Newtown retail warehouse is now home to Berkelouw Bookstore & café. A fantastic renovation and slick example of adaptive re-use. The Marrickville Dock 1 has since closed up shop, but the Camperdown site is certainly worth a visit if you don't mind getting in amongst a bit of dust on the workshop floor. Pre-loved furniture, old timbers, fittings, turned legs, blocks, church pews and so much more. The creative possibilities are endless.

Doug up on Bourke in Sydney's Bourke St  is another must-visit destination if you're looking for something old, familiar, or just out of the ordinary. Offering up a vast display of fascinating stuff  including street signs, bus rolls, antique medicinal bottles and stamped crates to carry your wares home in. They've taken the legwork out of sourcing and obviously spent a lifetime trawling around country towns to come up with such an impressive selection of memorabilia.