The last time I wrote about the faceted and fabulous form of the rare and precious diamond, it was in regards to a coffin, of all things. As you may remember, the startling design by Tommerup Kister and Jacob Jensen captures the impressive materiality and unparalleled beauty of the vaunted gem, thus extending the functional applications of the aphorism "diamonds are a girl's best friend." I'll remind readers, however, that the living continue to garner great enjoyment from the earth's hardest surface, and that designers like Alexandra Von Furstenberg are cognizant of its continued appeal. In some ways, her Bullet Cocktail Table resembles a coffin in its own right; albeit, the capacious negative space created by its polyhedral acrylic surface is to rightly remain unpeopled.

Bullet Coffee Table. Designed by Alexandra von Furstenberg.

A Diamond Shaped Table in Transparent Acrylic

Unless, that is, you'd like to trap your little brother in there. Sibling rivalry and animosity aside, the great beauty of Von Furstenberg's design is the way it plays with transparency. The piece is constructed of 18 clear acrylic panels joined at each of the 18 junctions (nine up top and nine below) in a pattern that duplicates the look of a cut diamond.



I must admit I'm a bit of a sucker for transparent Lucite (see Ghost Chair and 25 Acrylic Chairs), but Bullet has a transcendent allure that's four parts attraction and one part repulsion. Chalk this up, perhaps, to conflation with the previously-mentioned diamond-inspired coffin-and the fact that Bullet projects a sense of danger-but I'd venture that all of that is purely intentional. The piece doesn't so much resemble a 50 pound diamond (or a 50 pound bullet for that matter), but a clever modulation of these iconic forms. For my money (and that's 15,000 cool ones if anyone's counting), Von Furstenberg's Bullet improves on the look of each, and gives you a sexy place to park your martini in the bargain.