This week I spent a few days in Cologne, Germany for the annual spoga+gafa – the world’s biggest garden and bbq trade fair. It was lovely to see dear friends again, including Igor, that I had not seen for quite a while: time flies with two babies and many uni semesters. But very cool too to discover a lot of new brands and companies at the fair ground. The spoga+gafa fair itself is pretty big and organized by theme (like outdoor adventures, creation & care, shading solutions, decoration, furniture, etc.. I don’t think I’ve ever seen this many robot mowers and bbqs in my entire life: it blasted masculinity and power. But fortunately the fair has more to offer than power tools and pit boys, so let’s go for some of my personal highlights:
Cool stackable plant pots in XXL made from recycled plastic by Tera Italy:
Yes: stackable!
Plant cart, bar cart, baby bed… Herstera presented these cool metal carts that come in a flatpack. Several more neutral editions exist, like in sage green and black, but I loved these carts that represent the colors of some Spanish cities, and the one in collaboration with MoMa.
Amongst all the masculin barbecue gear, the team at Ziipa Paris created an entire range of barbecues, accessories and furniture that looks so good! This is what you want in your stylish garden or on the balcony. With roots in Italy, all items have name references to some family names and villages. Very cute and clever: the Ziipa products are both practical and aesthetic!
Ziipa made their own big pizza plates, made in Italy:
This makes you wonder: do you need a Gardentub?
Before the kick off of spoga+gafa we were invited to a tour and press dinner at the Mach Werk Haus Köln: a creative hub for designers and artisans in a former industrial building.
The designer behind Liebe+Schön shared his story and we had a peek into his huge workspace. Love that plants were everywhere around the atelier!
And then we were treated to a delicious dinner prepared by Dreigang Supper Club. So yummy!
Tchin tchin Dreigang!
At spoga+gafa we also spotted these beautiful gardening tools by Berry & Bird high: made from quality materials, like wood and stainless steel, inspired by traditional gardening tools, but with a more ergonomic and often double functionality. How cute are those heart shaped scoops?
Outdoor proof furniture that would look great inside too by trading company 2 Connect Denmark.
And exciting news from the spoga+gafa front: next year they plan a curated hall with top brands in collaboration with Home magazine. Interesting to see in which direction that will go!
Discovering new brands, companies, stories and products is amazing, but doing so while spending time with dear friends is gold. Thank you Igor, Ben, Claudi, Stefan, Tomislav and Leon!! And thank you spoga+gafa team for taking such good care of us!
This blogpost was created in collaboration with spoga+gafa Köln Messe. All images, opinions and words are my own, as always. – Thank you for your support!
