LUMINOUS WURM SUPPLY: Goes an LED on the road: But the "bookworm" by Less 'n' More (www.less-n-more.com) is more than a mobile bedside lamp. It also illuminates any bookshelf, for example. The worm with its luminous head protruding from its own book can be turned and bent in any direction. When it is not in use, it disappears inside together with its plug-in power supply. Hardly anyone then suspects that a reading lamp is hidden behind the plain back that stands next to all the other books. A luminaire that provides light from the shelf: That was the actual idea of the designer Kai Steffens. The thirty-seven-year-old, who founded the company Less 'n' More ten years ago and has been running it together with Christian Dinow since 2010, knows how to work with light-emitting diodes. "I have specialised in LEDs from the very beginning," says Steffens. And that was despite the fact that in 2003 the supposed technology of the future was still in its infancy: the light of the diodes was cool and uncomfortable, the luminosity was far from sufficient. That's why Steffens, who studied industrial design in Wuppertal, didn't develop any luminaires for the home at first. That only changed four years ago: Since 2009, LEDs have achieved a similarly good luminous efficacy as conventional incandescent lamps. And since then, Steffens' designs have also conquered living rooms and bedrooms. The "bookworm" has been available without a book as a simple clamp luminaire since 2010, "but not everyone wants to attach a luminaire with a screw clamp to their shelf," says Steffens. That's why he had the idea last year to let the flexible steel spring with aluminium jacket and focusable light head peek out of a book (23 by 19 by four centimetres in size). Since it is made of magnetic stainless steel, the cover sticks without a fastener thanks to magnets. The whole thing is bound with wool felt. When the lamp is not in use, it is bent inside. This way, the "bookworm", which weighs barely 500 grams, can easily travel. "After all, many hotels lack a bedside lamp," says Steffens. And for those who want to put away their jewellery, watch or glasses before going to bed and quickly find them again in the morning, the "bookworm" is also an ideal container. (pps.
