Paris designer Lee West has designed an extra-tall teapot that has no handle but instead has a removable cork sleeve to stop you burning your hands.
The pot, and the accompanying ceramic cups, are called Nomu, meaning "to drink" in Japanese.
The set was launched by French brand Eno at Maison & Objet in Paris earlier this year.
Here's a little more information from West:
Nomu (to drink in Japanese)
NOMU a Cork and ceramic tea pot with ceramic cups produced by eno
Nomu is the fruit of a materials orientated project where turned corked has been used to create a heatproof sleeve for the teapot. The user can serve tea free from heat issues and appreciate the tactile qualities of the material.
The homage to Japanese craft mixed with a compact design result in a functional object that recreates an everyday tea ceremony.
The lid has a lock in system and will not fall out whilst pouring and the cork cover can easily be removed for cleaning. Nomu has a 75cl Tea capacity equal to 3 mugs or 4 cups of Tea.
tomfisk anyone?
I like the mixtue of cork and ceramic. sweet!
Way nicer than Tonfisk, but same idea!
cool stuff
very nice and poetic product!
@ chirs
u r making it too easy for yourself
inspiration similar , execution not the same
give some credit man
i just dont see how i would enjoy using it, pour with two hands?
agree with chris.
http://www.tonfisk-design.fi/products/warm_teapot.html
tonfisk design is about 8 years old now!
I dig it, yet…. it’s kind stupid too. Instead of cork he could have used ceramics and that base could be used as a cup. But hey! Cork is fashion these days.
soon in Mundano!
really nice, belive.
beautiful!
http://www.tonfisk-design.fi/products/warm_teapot.html#
Why Mr West or Tonfisk chose not to use bamboo is beyond me.
Cork is in short supply, is it not?
“that recreates an everyday tea ceremony”…the tea ceremony crowd might have a problem with this statement.
The shape of the cups are very nice, however. Understated.
European law now states that cork shouldn’t be used for bottling purposes.
I for one salute the fact that design can support the use of a wonderful material.
Why not provide us some form of storyboard visuals so we can see how people handle the object?
Ever try to handle a heavy bottle of water across a table ? The shifting weight… the slippery surface… and ceramics are certainly heavier than plain ol’ PET.
Perhaps providing a “stop” just at the limit of the cork so that the user’s hands wouldn’t slip onto the hot surface would have been more comfortable. You’ve certainly tested the prototype so I guess our opinion as virtual critics is only relevant when deciding the form rather than the function.
beautiful nonetheless. I enjoy the contrast of materials and sheen.
Romain +1
Well put Romain, well put!
I have seen this design before by a portuguese designer with plates as well in a shop in Lisbon. As for the use of cork for Romain, what EU decided was that cork could not be used in bottles which Portugal has criticized contrary to many believes it's our cork industry that has suffered and probably some plastic industry in another european country ha sprofited from it. Cork is cut from a tree , and it is only the ouside part that from "sobreiro".The tree gives this maybe 12 times during its existence. It's like the cover of the trunk that is explored while the tree lives around 250 maybe 300 years.