Man Week · Gift Guide + Giveaway

The Design Files Man Week Gift Guide & Giveaway! Clockwise from left to right: Dr Spinner light by Dowel Jones ($300.00), Klein/Gem black stool by Tuckbox ($325.00), Mr. Dowel Jones floor light by Dowel Jones ($250.00), Vis-a-vis Cabin Luggage by Crumpler ($395.00). Photo - Sean Fennessy, styling / production - Lucy Feagins, assistant styling - Nat Turnbull.

The Design Files Man Week Gift Guide & Giveaway! Clockwise from left to right: Vide-Poche from Henry Wilson ($165.00), Moleskine writing click pen from Nation State ($22.95), Vintage Contax G1 body film camera with a Carl Zeiss Sonnar T* G 35mm F/2 from Hillvale ($650.00), Agfa Vista 400 film with processing and lo-res scans from Hillvale ($65.00), Gentlemen's Hardware Pen Knife from Nation State ($29.95), Punkt. AC 01 Alarm Clock by Jasper Morrison from Punkt. Electronics ($185.00), Quick release camera Strap by Witu($75.00). Photo - Sean Fennessy, styling / production - Lucy Feagins., assistant Styling - Nat Turnbull.

The Design Files Man Week Gift Guide & Giveaway! Clockwise from left to right: Areaware Cubebot Ninja from Nation State ($12.95),  SONOS Bridge and PLAY:1 Compact Wireless Speaker from SONOS ($50 and $299.00), Yumaki Toothbrush from The Standard Store ($15.00),  'Time Teller P' Watch by Nixon ($99.00), Meniscus Wall Button in White American Oak by Interia ($81.25 +GST and freight), Gentlemans Brand moisturiser and face wash from Incu ($35.00 each), Double Black Leather Bracelet from Lord Coconut ($135.00),  Eclectic by Tom Dixon Pillar Candle Black from Safari Living ($51.00), Mr Natty Silver Label Shave Soap from The Standard Store ($30.00). Photo - Sean Fennessy, styling / production - Lucy Feagins, assistant Styling - Nat Turnbull.

The Design Files Man Week Gift Guide & Giveaway! Clockwise from left to right: Champ Magazine Issue 8 from Third Drawer Down ($24.00), The Trooper headphones from Nixon ($89.00),  Fantastic Man Magazine from mag nation ($35.00),  Stanley Knife from Bunnings ($15.00), Workman's Pencil from Bunnings ($3.00),  Design as Art by Bruno Munari from Metropolis Bookshop ($19.95), Tao of Wu by The RZA from Metropolis Bookshop ($19.95), Acute Misfortunes: The Life and death of Adam Cullen by Erik Jensen from Black Inc. Publishing ($32.95),  Annual Print and Digital Subscription to The Saturday Paper from The Saturday Paper ($139.00), Lamy Safari Mountain Pen Gloss Black from Nation State ($49.00). Photo - Sean Fennessy, styling / production - Lucy Feagins, assistant Styling - Nat Turnbull.

This week we're continuing with our annual tradition of bloke-inspired content in the lead up to Father’s Day - YES THAT’S RIGHT, it’s MAN WEEK!  We love Man Week. As always, we're kicking the week off with an epic MAN inspired gift guide / GIVEAWAY, which we hope will inspire a few cool gifts for the bloke in your life this weekend... and as the week progresses we'll be profiling a bunch of clever creative local designers / makers / creative dudes. We hope you enjoy this round up of super cool designed product and gifts. There's a cross section of locally designed pieces, alongside items sourced from our favourite local retailers.  We are SUPER grateful to all the designers, retailers and brands listed below who came to the party, generously offering up their wonderful wares for inclusion - so please do check them all OUT! Big thanks to photographer Sean Fennessy for the gorgeous shots, and to my own amazing man Gordon for building our sets (how about that blacker-than-black stained woodgrain!?) and a special mention is in order for our styling assistant Natalie Turnbull for pulling together this epic product lineup almost single handedly (not to mention the captioning effort!). To be in the running to win one of the amazing items from our MAN WEEK gift guide, simply leave a comment on today's post, stating in 40 words or less who your 'main man' is, and why they deserve one of these awesome gifts. Please also include your POSTCODE. Leave your comment before 10.00pm Melbourne time this Monday 1st September 2014. Please be patient if WordPress struggles to keep up with the entries this morning. If you have trouble, please pop back in the afternoon when the rush subsides.  35 winners will be selected and contacted by email next Monday Sept 8th 2014.

THE FULL man week GIVEAWAY LINE-UP

Dowel Jones - Dr Spinner Light Black ($300.00) and Mr Dowel Jones floor light ($250.00). We recently featured the clever local lads behind Dowel Jones, Dale Hardiman and Adam Lynch.  Such an inspiring pair, we love their lights! Tuckbox - Handcrafted Klein/Gem Black Stool ($325.00). It wasn't so long ago that we featured Melbourne-based furniture makers Tuckbox, and we especially love the sleek masculinity of this black on black Klein / Gem faceted stool.  SO photogenic! Crumpler - Vis-A-Vis cabin luggage ($395.00).  The hard shelled Vis-A-Vis cabin bag from Crumpler is our pick for stylish, functional carry-on luggage. Its durable shell, unique interior clothes compression system and smooth glide wheels ensure you'll arrive in style, with everything exactly where you packed it. SONOS - Bridge ($50) and PLAY:1 wireless speaker ($199.00). SONOS is the speaker system of the future - super stylish, 100% wireless, it hooks up to your iTunes / Spotify / iPhone with no skips, delays or drop outs, ever.  Once you have the 'bridge' (included) you can place speakers in any room of your house and wirelessly play tunes throughout your house, perfectly in sync.  Hard to believe I know. Get on it people. Klaus Goods - Giordi Slim Wallet ($75.00).  We are loving these sleek handcrafted leather accessories by local label Klaus Goods, who we featured not so long ago over here. Country Road Flask ($59.00) and Painted edge keyring ($19.95). Country Road is classic 'Fathers Day' territory.  CR are always guaranteed to get you out of a last minute gift-hunting melt down. Nation State  - Areaware bottle opener ($22.95), Areaware Cubebot Ninja ($12.95), Brepols Notebook ($24.95), Gentlemens Hardware Pen Knife ($29.95), Lamy Safari Mountain Pen Gloss Black ($49.00), Moleskine Writing Click Pen ($22.95). Nation State is the giftware / stationery arm of Mag Nation, and they stock a surprisingly varied collection of stationery and gifts, including Lamy Pens, Areaware desk accessories and more.  Lots of ace manly gift ideas can be found in their online store. Mag Nation  - Fantastic Man ($35.00).  We love magazines, which means we love Mag Nation.  I actually cannot enter the store without spending $100+ on magazines.  Outrageous I know.  (But claimable!) As far as 'Manly' mags go, Fantastic Man is our top pick. Metropolis Bookshop - Design as Art by Bruno Munari ($19.95) and Tao of Wu by The RZA ($19.95).  Metropolis is one of our favourite Melbourne bookstores.  Design as Art by Bruno Munari is a cult classic and would suit the art / design / typography loving man in your life, whilst the Tao of Wu is a philosophical book written by prominent Wu-Tang Clan member and producer,  RZA. Mr Wares - S'well 750ml stainless steel bottle ($59.95), Haws English made 700ml watering can ($19.95), Lodge USA 8"/20.3cm seasoned cast iron skillet ($49.95). Mr Wares is an EXCELLENT shop for mens gifts which we recently stumbled across in the Block Arcade in the city. Such an awesome lineup of products for blokes and lovely friendly staff, well worth a little look next time you're in town! Witu  - iPad Tech Case ($100.00) and Adjustable Camera Strap ($75.00). Our love of all things WITU is well documented.  We recently featured their latest range, Ozone which is FLYING off the shelves.  Our fave colour way is the olive green, seen below in the iPad case. Haztek Sports Luxe - Zig Zag Sock ($30.00). OK, this guy is aqwsome.  You could just buy regular old socks from some shop or you COULD buy these awesome locally designed sports socks by 20-something Melbourne cycling fanatic Harry Scott (somewhat enigmatic housemate of Adelaide and Fraser Daniell, whose super cool apartment we featured here). Vanishing Elephant - Desert Boots ($260.00).  Mens shoes should be comfy as well as stylish... both based are covered with these navy desert boots by Sydney fashion label Vanishing Elephant - we love the subtle yellow stripe on the sole. The Standard Store  - Stolen Riches Laces ($20.00), Yumaki Toothbrush ($15.00), Macon & Lesquoy Moustache brooch ($20.00), Mr Natty Silver Label Shave Soap ($30.00). - The Standard Store is hands down our FAVOURITE local fashion boutique, and you'll be pleased to know they stock excellent threads for both men and women, in equal measures.  It's very democratic. They stock an excellent edit of international super cool labels including Sunspel, London Undercover and Kitsune.  Also, one of our dearest pals JEN BOOTH manages the Melbourne store.  Say hello from us! Bunnings - Black Paintbrush ($5.00), Stanley Knife ($15.00) and Workmans Pencil ($3.00).  If you are brave enough to visit Bunnings this week, all manner of 'Father's Day' specials will most certainly await you.  For this line up we stuck to the basics - a decent paintbrush, stanley knife and work man's pencil. Safari Living - Eclectic by Tom Dixon Pillar Candle Black ($51.00).  Another excellent local retailer with a great range of gifts for men is Safari Living.  We love all Tom Dixon's candles, and the new Pillar Candle in black is particularly tall, dark and handsome. Nixon - Time Teller P Watch ($99.00) and The Trooper Headphones ($89.00).  California based label Nixon make a super stylish range of apparel, luggage, tech cases and covers, headphones, speakers and watches for both men and women, (but their men's stuff is particularly cool).  We love their minimal black Time Teller watch and Trooper Headphones. Interia - Meniscus Wall Button in White American Oak ($81.25 + GST and freight).  We featured Tasmanian design studio Interia SUCH a long time ago, and they tell us they still get referrals from the post we ran about them way back in 2012!  We love that!  These brand new turned timber wall buttons are hand made in Tassie with love.  Do check out Interia's full collection of turned timber architectural hardware on their website - so beautiful. Incu - Gentlemens Brand Moisturiser and face wash ($35.00 each) and 99c Prize Pin ($15.00).  We love local fashion retailer Incu - you might recall our recent interview with Incu founders, brothers Brian and Vincent Wu.  This clever team stock an incredible range of local labels, and have 7 stores in total across Melbourne and Sydney. Lord Coconut - Double Black Leather Bracelet ($135.00).  Lord Coconut is a jewellery store in the city, specialising in handcrafted pieces for the stylish local gentleman.  Proprietor Mark Boldiston is endearingly passionate about his store and the jewellers he represents. Situated on level 4 in Carlow House on Flinders Lane, Lord Coconut is a little off the main drag, but well worth a look for unique handcrafted jewellery, cufflinks and objets d’art for the discerning man in your life, with many local designers represented. Third Drawer Down - Champ Magazine Issue 8 ($24.00) and Peter Shire Pinch pot cup ($45.00).  Another of our most favourite local stores is Third Drawer Down - proprietor Abigail Crompton is well known for the clever range of art objects she produces in collaboration with both local and international artists, as well as the eclectic range of inexpensive gifts sourced internationally. Black Inc. Publishing - Acute Misfortunes: The Life and death of Adam Cullen by Erik Jensen ($32.95).  Erik Jensen in the editor of The Saturday Paper.  Somehow, he found the time in the launch year of the paper, to ALSO write a brilliant biography about his late friend, Australian artist Adam Cullen.  Acute Misfortunes: The Life and death of Adam Cullen is actually out next month, but we have an advance copy for one lucky reader. The Saturday Paper - Annual Print and Digital Subscription to The Saturday Paper ($139.00).  The Saturday Paper is Australia's newest newspaper. Published by Morry Schwartz (of The Monthly and the Quarterly Essay) The Saturday Paper champions a return to long form journalism – news and current affairs reported in an independent, intelligent way.  We have one year-long subscription to give away. Henry Wilson - Vide-Poche ($165.00).  Henry Wilson is one of Sydney's most exciting young designers. He is a graduate of the Australian National University in Canberra, and also holds a Masters from the prestigious Design Academy Eindhoven.  Henry's practise is driven by the simple idea that ‘design should be built for longevity and honestly resolved’, and this affection for old fashioned utilitarianism is clearly evident in all his work.  'Vide Poche' translates to 'empty pockets' in French. This double-sided solid aluminium tray is the ultimate desk tidy for coins, keys, phones, wallets. Hillvale - Vintage Contax G1 body film camera with a Carl Zeiss Sonnar T* G 35mm F/2, with Agfa Vista 400 film plus processing and lo-res scans. ($650 + $65).  Hillvale is an  independent photo lab based in Brunswick, and run by pals Jason Hamilton and Andy Johnson.  We featured them a little while ago over here!  Hillvale turns photos taken with old fashioned film cameras into high res digital scans.  They also sell film and vintage cameras, such as this super cool vintage Contax. Sensory Lab  - Full coffee making kit including Bueno Kettle 800ml Stainless Steel, drip coffee kit and Sensory Lab roasted coffee (kettle $86.00, total pack value - $200).  Coffee always seems to make an appearance in our 'Man Week' gift guide in one way or another (hey, we are Melbournian after all). This time we've included an epic drip coffee kit from Sensory lab - everything you need to make the perfect caffeinated drop without leaving home. Muji - Nail Clippers ($5.00), Black Lunchbox (set of two $29.95). We haven't quite gotten over the excitement of MUJI having landed in MELBOURNE!  SO much un-branded organisational goodness for the home / office / bathroom / studio, all under one roof.  And super affordable, too. Mr. Kitly - Futagami Bottle opener Waku frame ($65.00).  We're massive fans of the product range at local retailer Mr Kitly, and we firmly believe this Japanese bottle opener is the most stylish bottle opener ever invented.  Seriously.  I mean look at it.  It's a work of art, people.

The Design Files Man Week Gift Guide & Giveaway!  Clockwise from left to right: Bueno Kettle 800ml Stainless Steel from Sensory Lab (Kettle pictured is $86.00 ,  prize comes with full coffee making kit and coffee valued at over $200.00), Nail Clippers L from Muji ($12.95),  Swell 750ml Stainless Steel drink bottle from Mr Wares ($59.95),  Peter Shire pinch pot cup from Third Drawer Down ($45.00), Black 2 rows Lunch Box from Muji (comes in a set of two $26.95), 99c Prize Pin from Incu ($15.00), Lodge USA 8" Seasoned Cast Iron Skillet from Mr Wares ($49.95), Futgami Bottle Opener Waku Frame from Mr. Kitly ($65.00). Photo - Sean Fennessy, styling /production - Lucy Feagins, assistant Styling - Nat Turnbull.

The Design Files Man Week Gift Guide & Giveaway!  Clockwise from left to right: Giordi Slim wallet by Klaus Goods ($75.00), Flask by Country Road ($59.00),  Areaware Bottle Opener from mag nation ($22.95), Haws English made 700ml watering can  from Mr Wares ($19.95), iPad Tech Case by Witu ($100.00), Zig Zag socks by Haztek Sports Luxe ($30.00), Desert Boots from Vanishing Elephant ($260.00), Brepols Notebook from mag nation ($24.95), Painted Edge Keyring from Country Road ($19.95), Paintbrush from Bunnings ($5.00),  Stolen riches laces from The Stardard Store ($20), Muuto Plus Salt and Pepper Mill (black) from Safari Living ($118.00). Photo - Sean Fennessy, styling / production - Lucy Feagins, assistant Styling - Nat Turnbull.