Off-grid lake life & a car freshener that smells like... nothing 🌞 #62

Buonasera from Colli al Metauro!

Welcome to this week’s installment of what’s hot in brands & products.

This is a short summer edition. One week down, one to go.

I’m still in the Marche, where the pace is slower, the tomatoes sweeter, and nobody’s stressed unless the espresso runs out.

Most of the time, I’m just doing nothing.

Sitting by the pool. Watching the kids invent Olympic-level pool games that involve yelling, alliances, and eventually someone crying.

And honestly? It’s kind of perfect.
(Except for the crying).

With the constant pressure to be productive and being ‘on’, there’s something essential about unstructured time. Just being in the same place with people you love. No plans, no pressure — just sunshine, slow conversations, and the same songs on repeat. (This album has been the unofficial soundtrack.)

So this week’s picks follow that spirit — fun, low-stakes discoveries.

If you’re new around here: Every week, I share 5 of the coolest products from Europe I’ve discovered in the past 7 days.

I scout, you explore. Let’s get to it!

With love 🌞 
Jakob

P.S.: Missed last week's edition? The electric moped was the most clicked product.

Clickbait Print [🇦🇹]

This one stopped my scroll. Francesco Ciccolella is a Vienna-based illustrator who makes visuals that feel like punchlines.

Add this to your wall

Italian Ice Cup [🇩🇰]

Picture sitting on a plastic chair with strawberry gelato melting faster than you could eat it. HAY’s version brings that vibe into your life.

Scoop one up

Vase en perles orange [🇫🇷 | 🇩🇪]

Hand-strung in Paris and Berlin by Inès – the founder of Nini Shop. The vase holds flowers — but mostly attention. It’s bold, bright, and built bead by bead.

When your flowers need a plus-one

Marble Air Freshener [🇳🇱]

From Casper Braat, who is working in his workshop on a Porsche 911 carved completely out of marble — not as a flex, but to romanticize the incomplete. His marble air freshener does the same: elevates a cheap, disposable object into something oddly reverent. A souvenir you can’t throw away. Spotted in a vending machine at a boutique hotel in Amsterdam.

Keep your car fresh (not scented)

KAI Floating Cabin [🇬🇧]

Imagine drifting on a lake in a tiny cabin that powers itself, filters its own water, and asks nothing from you but stillness. Waterpod built exactly this with KAI, the floating cabin. It’s not cheap, but if I go missing this summer, check the lake.

Float away