Gense to be featured at Swedish royal wedding

Sweden's Crown Princess Victoria is engaged to Daniel Westling, a former fitness trainer, and they've set the wedding date for June 19, 2010, which is her parents' 34th wedding anniversary. According to the New York Daily News, it's going to be a $13 million production.
Swedish Princess Victoria with fiance Daniel Westling

King and Queen of Sweden Carl XVI Gustaf and Silvia

Gense's silver line, Mema/GAB, will be providing the official flatware for the reception. Royal families from all over Europe will be dining with the Svensk (Swedish) Model, a classic model created in the 18th century. The wedding series will have the royal monogram and the year 2010 engraved on it.

Mema/GAB has been manufacturing handmade flatware in Eskiltuna, Sweden since 1849. Creating silver flatware requires precision and artistry which is why Mema/GAB is known for their skilled silversmiths and designers, who have carried on the tradition through the years, creating attractive, timeless designs.

Menu Baggy Wine Coat

Menu's new Baggy Wine Coat gives the popular Bag in Box wines a casual yet stylish look. Simply take the wine bag out of the box, place it in the Baggy Wine Coat and close the flexible top. Designed for a wine bag from a 31 Bag-in-Box.

The Baggy Wine Coat was recently featured on The Today Show. Check it out here:

http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/26184891/vp/36597515#36597515

Menu Carving & Serving Set Wins Design Plus Award

Menu's Carving & Serving Set proudly won the prestigious Design Plus Ambiente Award, a competition that launched in 1983 in Frankfurt. Awards are based on product design innovativeness and new creative directions.

MOMA is now carrying the Serving Set in their 2010 Spring Catalog and have recently added the Menu Cool Coat in Lime/White.

Gense Shakes Things Up

Gense Shakers feature a classic design with a retro 50's feel. The eye-catching conical shakers are made from stainless steel with a plastic black foot and come in 3 sizes - sugar, salt, and pepper. Suggested retail is $49.95

DropStop Offers Great New Feature

DropStop now offers the option of individualized features for DropStop orders. They can print numbers, code combinations, or names all in the same production run and with low reproduction costs.

This makes DropStop perfect as a voucher for lottery campaigns, sweepstakes or as name cards for weddings, giving DropStop to a whole new application!

The Unusual Cups

To create a double-walled porcelain mug, Pernille Vea had to develop a whole new way of producing porcelain.

The first thermo cups were launched in the 50's. But they were made one-of-a-kind , the production method was very time-consuming. So for many years thermo cups were only for elegant little ladies sipping mocha. It wasn't until MENU launched the Black Contour mug that the thermo cups became accessible to a much larger group of people.

"In 2002 when I began working on the first thermo mug, Birgitte Ran Bennike Mayall, a designer and qualified ceramist, helped with the first models" said designer Pernille Vea.

It was designed as an informal mug for the wider public without a handle, now that the production method allowed for a surface that was cool to hold. It is the process that makes the double-walled cups both expensive and cumbersome. It is a long difficult process to create a cavity in the cup, which insulates and keeps the outer surface cool even when it is full of hot coffee.

But with a few tweaks in the production process, they were able to create thermo mugs at and affordable price. This production method revolutionized the way double-walled porcelain items are produced today and paved the way for the modern method of creating all thermo mugs. And that's quite a few..

New MENU Tripod Set

MENU has made it easy to add a healthy measure of zest to your meal. Pods are a new range of beautifully designed glassware with different measuring tops for herbs, spices, vegetable oil and more.

The stylish Pods can stand in threes on a Tripod tray with detachable finger grip, so you can easily carry a Tripod or two to the dining table or out to the garden.

Pods with different measuring tops and the Tripod stand can be purchased individually or in a gift box with 1 Tripod, 2 Pods with non-drip pouring spout and 1 Pod with shaker with large holes. Add to your collection as required.

Menu Wine Breather nominated for the Formland Design Award – Spring 2010

Menu A/S has now made aerating wine easy and entertaining with the new Wine Breather Carafe, which aerates a bottle of wine in less than two minutes.

This new product has been created with focus on design and aesthetics and is nominated for the Formland Design Award – Spring 2010.

"Aerating wine becomes a delightful experience with the carafe from Menu A/S. This is elegant, Scandinavian design expression, and the carafe is both hygienic and practical. You can aerate and serve wine in the carafe or pour it back into the bottle in just a few minutes. And at an attractive price," states the Award Committee's nomination.

http://www.mch.dk/Formland---spring-2010-(UK)/Formland-UK/Exhibitors/Formland-Design-Award/Nominated-Spring-2010.aspx

New Menu Top 10 from New York

In case you missed our booth at the New York Gift Show, below the 10 items that got the best reception at the show. We truly believe this years news from Menu are one of the strongest lineups ever.

10. Red is hot...Ball Glass Vase
Refreshing reinterpretation of a classic ball vase.
9. Menu's Classic Water Jug now offered in a smaller version...Water Jug, .8 L

The new water jug from Menu is tall, slim and simple – specifically created for the purpose it was intended.

8. Always have cool water on hand...Norm Water Bottle

The airtight lid keeps freshness in and unwanted odors out. It can be stores easily in the refrigerator door so cold, ready-to-serve water is always on hand.

7. Be discrete...Picnic Corkscrew

This new corkscrew by Menu is discrete yet full of character. The soft, comfortable silicone handle ensures a good grip.

6. Keep boxed wine fresh...Baggy Wine Coat, Black

This wine coat is designed for a wine bag from a 3 liter (standard) Bag-in-Box. The opening fits all standard taps and it's easy to lift and carry by the broad, soft rubber belt.

5. Add a little art to each day...INK Thermo Cups

The award-winning thermo cups now come in a limited edition design by Alexander Hasnaoui, one of Denmark's most respected tattoo and airbrush artists.

4. Bring your own wine...Picnic Coolcoat

With this cool coat, the detachable cooling pad allows you to enjoy chilled wine. It features a convenient handle with vibrant and sensible reflector tape.

3. Keep condiments within reach...Pod Shakers by Norm

Use this pod shaker with large holes by Norm to hold bigger herbs and spices such as chili flakes. 2. Let your wine breathe...Winebreather Carafe

This elegantly designed carafe aerates your wine in one easy step.

AND THE WINNER IS

1. Think big...Double Candleholder XL

Impressive, giant edition of the luxurious ’Double’ candle holder designed by Mikaela Dörfel.

Menu's strong program for Spring 2010

Once again, Menu proves to be the most innovative Scandinavian Design company with its Spring 2010 Launch. We will be presenting Menu's new items at the New York Gift show Jan. 31- Feb. 4 in booth 4034 and we look forward to seeing you there.

Here's a peek at the Spring 2010 Launch

Burning For A Better World

Since 2008 more than 100 torches have been handed over to people who are making an extra effort to improve living conditions for women throughout the world. The recipients include UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, First Lady Michelle Obama, Archbishop Desmond Tutu and U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton along with quite ordinary, but at the same time extraordinary, people around the world.

It is so simple in its form and so powerful in its symbolic expression that it overcomes cultural, social, and language barriers: the torch that Danish Minister for Development Cooperation, Ulla Tornaes, in 2008 put at the heart of the MDG3 Global Call to Action, a global campaign to promote women's rights and empowerment. MDG stands for Millenium Development Goals, the 8 goals set by the UN in 2000 to eradicate poverty and inequality by 2015, and the number 3 stands for the third goal concerning gender equality and women's empowerment.

In his acception speech Ban Ki-moon said:

"We come from different walks of life, from international organizations to grassroots groups, from ministers to educators, and from CEO's to artists. That is what makes this torch project so meaningful. Because we need all partners working together to make gender equality a reality."

These torches are a creation of the Danish designer Pernille Vea produced by MENU.

MENUMAG 2nd Edition Now Available

Welcome to MENUMAG, the second edition of Scandinavian Design Originals. This time we open a window to our world and show you some of the fascinating processes behind good design. Whether it is the 2010 hair trends, one of the world's finest power boats or a double-walled thermo mug, it's all about design, and how to turn abstract trends into tangible products.

Like in the article on trends. Our logo has changed recently, marking the first step toward a new visual identity to suit the new times. The logo emphasizes that at Menu, daily dialogues between design and people constantly generate new ideas. And nothing is more fascinating than when millions of people all over the world suddenly do things in the same new way, made possible by design. That is truly original. View the magazine using the link below.

http://viewer.zmags.com/publication/0e01a32d#/0e01a32d/1

Add A Little Gold To Your Life

Verner Panton's geometric patterns on Menu's thermal cups makes enjoying hot drinks cool. This line won both the Good Design Award and the Design Plus award. Panton originally designed the pattern for textiles, but the graphic design is particularly well-suited for porcelain, both in the Panton series' basic colors of black, red, orange, purple and turquoise, as well as in the new, limited edition gold version MENU is introducing this year. Verner Panton was in every way an original and ahead of his time. Just like MENU.

Happy New Year from Creative Danes

For Creative Danes 2009 was a rewarding year with double digit sales growth and many new happy customers.


We thank you all for your support in this past year and look forward to serving you in 2010.

Image: Creative Danes wish you Happy New Year from cold and dark Denmark.

Menu Moments To Be Proud Of

Best of the Best

The Red Dot "Best of the Best" award is fitting for Jakob Wagners most recent Menu design. A new, refreshing reinterpretation of the classic bottle archetype, combined with an ingenious 100% drip-free smart-lid that also acts as a filter for ice cubes, lemon slices, etc. Another Scandinavian Design Original of highest quality.

Oil On Fire
Christian Bjorn's series of outdoor oil lamps had not been on the market for long last year before the world's attention fell on the simple, Scandinavian design and the unique construction with its bonfire-like flames arising from inside the oil lamp. This excitement resulted in the Lighthouse series garnering the two most widely recognized international design awards, Red Dot and IF, serving as an international pat on the back for good design and a mark of quality for MENU's modern oil lamp, which is already considered a classic.

Bottle Fahrenheit
Jakob Wagner is also the man and wine connoisseur behind the award-winning wine thermometer. In its pure simplicity, the thermometer is wrapped around the body of the bottle, where it measures the temperature of the wine and ensures an optimal experience. As with all of MENU's products, this unique measuring device is constructed with a heightened sense of efficiency and simple design. Wagner's original wine thermometer has been awarded an IF, a Red Dot, and a GOOD DESIGN Award for its aesthetic functionality and practical design.

The Prize of Prizes

Jakob Wagner's propeller trivet has thrilled consumers and critics around the world with its simple construction and aerodynamic design. The elegant trivet, which already boasted an IF Award, a Design Plus Prize and a GOOD DESIGN Award, was awarded a silver medal in one of the world's most prestigious competitions this year, "Designpreis der Bundesrepublik Deutchland 2008." An impartial jury bestowed the trivet with Germany's official design distinction - a prize that is considered by many to be "the prize of prizes."

Hanging Jewelry
Louise Christ has designed a new solution for jewelry storage. Rings, bracelets, earrings and necklaces can be admired on the simple and sculptural Menu Jewelry Tree when they are not being worn. Louise Christ won in 2008 the Red Dot Award, which is awarded by Design Zentrum Nordrhein Westfalen in Essen, Germany for excellent design quality and trendsetter status. The jewelry tree is manufactured in silver or black chrome aluminium and, as with all of MENU's characteristic design, it features superb functionality. The jewelry tree is very durable and has sufficient weight to hold the jewelry without toppling.

Good Design

Pernille Vea is the designer behind the MENU Black Thermal Jug, which combines the forms of nature with stylish and effective high-tech materials. With its high degree of functionality, well-balanced design featuring a double-walled stainless steel thermal insert and matte black rubber coating, the jug was enthusiastically named the winner of the 2007 GOOD DESIGN Award in Chicago. The award, which is one of the most prestigious in the world, is awarded by the Chicago Athenaeum Museum of Architecture and Design to the most innovative and ground-breaking international design.

Menu Double Candleholder XL

The Menu Double Candleholder XL is enormous. Measuring at 26 inches tall, this impressive XL edition of the elegant Menu Double Candleholder stands on the floor. This stylish stainless steel accessory is sure to steal the spotlight in any room, retro or contemporary.

Menu's Best Selling Collection: Water & Wine

Four water and wine items are on Menu's Top 10 Best Selling list, making this collection Menu's most popular. Check it out:

A Classic Favorite

Menu® thermo cups have a double layer of porcelain with an isolating air-cavity in between. This keeps your coffee or tea warm for much longer than regular mugs and fingers never get burned. Some of the designs even come in two sizes: 7 oz and 10 oz.
These cups have it all ­– brains and beauty! Menu® has created multiple design lines – hopefully one of them will fit your needs and personal taste…

Designer Jakob Wagner continues to impress

The latest water carafe from Menu® by Jakob Wagner recently won the prestigious Red Dot Design Award “Best of the Best."

Menu's new water carafe, along with Wagner's new set of glasses, benefit from being made of tempered glass. It’s much stronger than usual glass – it doesn’t break as easily and if it does break, it does not break into sharp shards. Adding to this, it’s heat resistant – so the glasses are great for hot drinks like café lattes or hot chocolate. And they possess a beautiful, contemporary design!

When Jakob Wagner isn't creating award-winning water carafes he's busy creating phenomenal wine accessories...

Menu® and Wagner has improved the classic waiter’s corkscrew by adding a layer of Teflon to the windings. This makes it much easier to use – and makes the opening of bottles with even long or old corks look much more professional. It’s always a nice touch when the bottles are opened at the table. The classic lever ensures that even the most difficult cork is easily and elegantly removed from the bottle. Also includes a foil cutter.

Wine – not necessarily something that has to be hidden in a dark cellar…

Very good wines may need this – but why not make some of the bottles a showcase of what your home or restaurant can offer? Jakob Wagner has designed a wall mounted wine rack for Menu® – inspired by the winding, branched grape vine –mother of all wine. It creates an eye-catching piece of art when the bottles appear to be poised an inch or so from the wall.

Gense Introduces Royalty-Inspired Silverware

The Swedish Prince Carl Philip Bernadotte has designed the latest silverware, CPB 2091, for Gense.
“It has been a fantastic challenge and I am very proud of the result," says Bernadotte, who was assigned to think ”new and contemporary”.
This line is handmade from 830 Silver by the silversmiths in the Eskiltuna factory in Sweden.

With its international character, CPB 2091 adds an extra essence whether you choose to arrange the table in a traditional or modern setting.

Menu Boogie Woogie on Extra TV

A Menu Milestone!

Since its debut in 2007, Creative Danes has successfully grown the Menu brand from just a few stores to more than 300 stores all over the US and Canada. We are very proud to introduce the first Menu shop-in-shop. This year Emmo Home has taken Menu to the next level, now carrying every product we offer. And the location couldn't be better. Emmo Home is now a part of the South Coast Plaza in Costa Mesa, one of the finest and highest-grossing malls in the United States. We're happy to report that the newly established shop-in-shop is doing extremely well, out-selling any other brand in the store.
http://www.emmohome.com/