SO VERY FRENCH

PEUGEOT’S DESIGN LAB has turned out some stunning work – a notable example in recent years being the piano created for Pleyel (below) that looked more like a streamlined yacht hull than anything else, partly thanks to the lowering of the mechanism flush with the keyboard. The striking looks have functional advantages: you can see the pianist from any angle and the sound projection is said to be improved, too.

On a more real-world level, the lab is behind Peugeot’sot’s new line of ten bags and leather goods, from everyday items to luggage, with prices ranging from €59 to €239, in two collections. The styling of the contemporary design collection is a nod to the interiors of the new Peugeot 3008 and 5008 SUVS, pairing leather with a black and grey canvas. There’s also a sporty line echoing the GTI, with red-stitched black leather and a carbon-look texture. Available in the Peugeot online shop, as well as at Peugeot Avenue Paris. To find out more, visit boutique.peugeot.

com and peugeotdesignlab.com

Most likely you mean a Norton Utility File, a tool that has a well-earned reputation for quickly sharpening or deburring a variety of cutting surfaces, so long as they don’t have to be honed to a razorsharp edge. It’s perfect for sharpening spades, hoes and lawn-mower blades. Although it’s called a file, the tool is more like you described it: a sharpening stone on a stick.

The wedge-shaped 100-grit oilstone is made from silicone carbide, a medium-hard sharpening abrasive that is harder than the steel it’s meant to sharpen, yet wears away at a rate that constantly exposes a new – and sharp and clean – abrasive surface. For the relatively low price, you’ll get several years out of the Norton file. To use it, squirt a little machine oil on the blade that you’re sharpening and then rub the stone over the surface in a circular motion. All four working surfaces are the same. They’re just there to make sure you don’t wear one surface out. Simply rotate the tool as you work. When you’re done, rinse the sharpened surface with a little clean oil and put it back on the shelf.