Waiting for Good Object-o
Is it possible to truly hate an appliance? If so, I HATE the vacuum I have been saddled with at our little creaky cabin in Maine. I bought it in a hurry. The old vacuum died, and the place was rapidly getting pretty filthy. There aren’t a lot of places to find vacuums near our cabin, so I bought the first vacuum I found. What a mistake. I could write a whole blog post about the failings of this cheap, heavy hunk of ineffective plastic. Worse, I have put up with it for over ten years because….it still works. Or at least it turns on and it still makes a lot of noise. I am too cheap to just throw it out.
I’ve written before about how I usually take a loooooong time to buy anything, other than things that naturally disappear, like food or ephemeral fashionista stuff. I don’t like being taunted in my own home by mistakes and compromises. I’d rather do without. Or wait until I can find–or afford–what I truly want.
Gary Hustwit, as photographed in Dwell magazine
Thus I loved what Gary Hustwit, the director of the design film Objectified said in an interview with Dwell magazine. The question was, How has making this film changed the way you look at everyday objects? Gary’s answer:
I really think about what I buy now: (A) Do I really need this? (B) What if this is the last of this object that I ever buy? I don’t want to buy chairs I’ll be sick of in five to ten years.
It might be surprising that I endorse this philosophy, given that Daily Grommet is so much about consumer products. Especially new ones. But in actuality, we are always trying to find the good stuff. The things that give lasting utility and pleasure, and won’t need to be tossed out in a couple of years. We reject almost everything we see, because it is just not worthy of “last coffee cup” status. We think the people who produce Grommets think like Gary…they make products that stand up to scrutiny. Lasting. Quality. Beautiful.
My Ittala Origo coffee mugs. They are a little odd, having no handle. But the stripes always make me smile, it fits happily in my hand, and the base of the mug has a round indentation to perfectly accept the raised round disk on the matching saucer. And it's very very subtle--but I love the satisfying little soft "click" that I hear when I casually fit the mug back onto the saucer.
Jules Pieri 
5 Responses to “Waiting for Good Object-o”
The Origo coffee mugs are beautiful. But without a handle, don’t they get too hot to hold?
As an official robot fan, I wonder if you’ve considered a Roomba? They’re not that expensive, and they’re fun.
@ Dan, I have considered a Roomba…good idea. And yes, the mugs are a bit dysfunctional that way. But they are never TOO hot to hold. I like the warmth, mainly.
I guess I’m the eternal product optimist, the ultimate consumerist or a marketer’s dream. I always seem to get crushes on products and hope they’ll deliver. I guess my relationship with products is sort of like the movie “50 First Dates.” Plus I’m a sucker for a pretty face. I seem to fall prey to pretty aesthetics without substance even more these days because of digital commerce. You’d think I would have learned by now and, as a result, be pickier.
On the other hand, when the product delivers what I hope for, I go from fan to fanatic pretty easily, too.
I think as long as you keep your “bad first dates” to yourself and only pass on the gems, you are controlling the collateral damage!