It’s a primordial urge, to build a better fire. For Mike and Maaike, that meant blazing through 27 prototypes of their Baja BBQ Firepack for Design Annex/Lazzari before alighting on the perfect formula. “We had to pay a lot of attention during the burn tests to understand what was working and what wasn’t,” says Mike Simonian of the San Francisco–based duo. “Once you burn a prototype and find that it works, it doesn’t exist anymore!” The final model is a petite, eco-friendly package made from 100 percent recycled, biodegradable paper pulp that instantly lights and burns away, sparking the natural lump charcoal inside without the need for chemicals or lighter fluid; $3.50. www.mikeandmaaike.com
Click here for our Product of the Week archive!