Some call it compass, some call it rounder, I call it absolutely breathtaking. Designed with a minimal appeal that one often doesn’t see in geometry tools, the Ballet is a beautifully simplistic compass (yes, that’s the technical term for it) that looks as beautiful as a uni-body metal pen. Milled to precision from what I reckon is aluminum, the Ballet is perfectly cylindrical, with a hint of a parting line running vertically down the center, giving you a compass that splits into two, pivoted near the top. The Ballet also comes with two knobs, one to control the tightness of the pivot, and the other one to deploy and secure the graphite lead. The lead itself is an interesting detail too. Rather than have a separate lead and a needle, the Ballet merges the two together, almost how ballerinas’ feet look when they’re posing on their tip-toes. The detail right at the bottom is singular, and is half needle, half lead. Open the compass out and the two separate, becoming two individual volumes, just like the compass’ legs!
Designers: Andreu Gadea and Jorge Ros (Maki Studio)
