design
M's System is a boutique Japanese speaker-maker, with products found in Tokyo's hottest design and living shops. Japanese buyers value technology, as well as natural simplicity, and M's MS0801 speaker delivers both.
Starting from concept of speaker-as-an-instrument, the MS0801 is a vibrational speaker that fills the room with rich sound. A single speaker is all that is needed for stereo, and two speakers work great for handling four channels of a 5.1 system.
The list price is $799 and you can buy it online at Dynamism.com
The problem with things audiovisual isn’t in the audio, it’s in the visual. Putting together your home cinema, TV, DVD player, speakers and amplifier means you’ve got more wires than a 1950s telephone operator. Set that high street hi-fi beside your Tom Dixon ‘Soft System’ sofa and it’s like serving somen with sashimi — chaos on a plate. As long as a product works, technology firms seem to feel, who cares what it looks like? In developing the Esprit brand, Sony’s European design team ignored such white-coat thinking and began with customers’ lifestyles in mind.
Continue reading "Sony Esprit TAV-L1 Theatre System" »
This fall, Netherlands Architecture Institute (NAI) in Rotterdam will explore the urban realm from the perspective of the best contemporary photography. Spectacular photographs, ranging from one to nine meters wide, will portray the beauty and potential of urban landscapes, iconic buildings and deserted streets. It is the first international survey exhibition of this work. Through these photographs, we will see how the images of our cities are changing. This photography tells us about that process and in so doing makes a specific contribution to the aesthetics of our time. These photographers do not just record their subject matter but manipulate, construct or reconstruct it. In so doing they give us a glimpse of things that may well have escaped our gaze, but are latently present in our rapidly changing world. Each of these photographers is engaged in his or her own way in photographing the future.
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The Outdoor Artisan Pizza Oven is hand fabricated entirely of stainless steel, with a painstaking double-wall insulated design. The baking surface is a professional composite baking stone. Its heat transfer performance exceeds that of natural stone, and it will never become brittle like quarry stone can after repeated heat cycles. The convenience of the 30,000 BTU stainless steel gas burner means the oven is always at the ready, while the integrated smoking drawer imparts the flavor of a wood-fired pizza oven. The 30,000 BTU stainless steel gas burner, integrated thermometer, liquid propane or natural gas, counter-top design for an easy fit into existing outdoor kitchens.
Available this October 2006 for $3,990
Designed by Barber Osgerby, this sophisticated coffee table sits low and is made of angled dual-walled ribbons of gray high-gloss molded polyester with a glass top. Items placed on the glass table top appear to be suspended in the air. You can buy this table at the MoMa store
Suissa Computers designs and builds desktop computer systems that stand out and challenge preconceived ideas. Suissa Computers are made with domestic and imported solid wood, metal and other accent materials. The highest quality wood is selected based on furniture woodworking expertise. All models are designed with liquid cooling and air-flow systems that ensure the technology is symbiotic with the materials
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The only way to the Bay of Fires Lodge is to walk—12 miles for two days along squeaky white sand. Good thing the rare Forrester kangaroos know the way. Architect Ken Latona's spare shedlike design, complete with roof-water collection, gray-water treatment systems, composting toilets, and 100 percent solar power, has won every award in the book. Still, the greatest prize is spending an evening by the glow of the outdoor fire pits, waiting for those Tasmanian devils to whirl into view.
Continue reading "Bay of Fires Lodge ~ Tasmania Australia" »
Traditional knife blocks, with their specific slots for specific knives, run out of space as soon as you buy a second cleaver. Martin Robitsch’s Schaschilk design challenges the widely accepted notion that each blade must have its own home. The box contains hundreds of wooden “chopsticks” inside a toaster-size box. You can slide in blade after blade at various angles and the Schaschlik will accommodate them until it’s swallowed your entire cutlery collection.
$125 @ Greenergrass.com
Thomas Jefferson tops the list of great thinkers who worked standing up. His preferred workstation, the stand-up desk, furnished many a counting house in the 1700’s. Standing desks still offer advantages: many claim for instance, that standing while working inreases blood circulation and productivity. Thomas Moser’s high standing desk, made of black cherry from Pennsylvania’s Allegheny Plateau in a blenhd of master joinery and chaker-inspired lines, features a lefge for readlamp and inclined writing surface.
The creations of architect Rick Joy epitomize the perfect marriage of materials, geography, and climate; this home in the sonoran Desert is an outstanding example of form following location. The use of raw, untreated steel works exceedingly well here in the Desert, reminding one of rusty cans or abandoned auto carcasses. The house is ingeniously angled to exploit precisely framed views in all directions and the overall effect is serene and sophisticated.
Vals Spa, Switzerland
In a remote valley in southeastern Switzerland, the contemporary architect Peter Zumthor has elevated the ancient thermal bath to the realm of the sublime. Contrasts between light and shade, especially in otherworldly grottoes of quartzite shrouding softly lit pools, inform the experience. Incomparable Alpine views from outdoor spaces serve as a reminder that nature is the preeminent architect.
Mountain, stone, water - building in the stone, building with stone, into the mountain, building out of the mountain, being inside the mountain - how can the implications and the sensuality in the association of these words be interpreted, architecturally? The whole concept was designed by following up these questions; so that it all took form step by step.
Until last November, Istanbul didn't really have a homeware design hub, but now its burgeoning middle classes can cruise around the élite environs of a mini mall dedicated to all things lifestylish, from sofas to tealights. AddresIstanbul has been designed by local architectural bigwig, Emre Arolat, and is a far cry from the bland malls that have so far infected the city. Its owner, Turkish entrepreneur Funda Akin, wanted to make a real design statement with the interiors, so Arolat came up with three-sided glass boutiques, accessed by long, shiny, raised concrete walkways. Mall stores include top names like Bang & Olufsen, Becara, Hilker and Rivièra Maison. Meanwhile, Turkish fashion designer, Bahar Korçan, will take space there for her first homeware collection.
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Born on the island of Funen in Denmark, Verner Panton came to design, like many of his colleagues, via the study of architecture at the Academy of Art in Copenhagen. After graduating, Panton landed an apprenticeship at the office of Arne Jacobsen, assigned to assist the master on the iconic "Ant" Chair. Although deeply influenced by the organic forms of Jacobsen and others typical of 1958. Panton first established himself at the forefront of avant-garde design with furniture based on extravagant, geometric forms and use of strong colors, such as the Cone Chair of 1958. Along with the Panton Chair, which was designed in the early 1960's, but was not put into production until 1967 due to its technical challenges, these designs cemented Verner Panton's reputation as a designer of an original and uncompromising approach.
Tsubo is a design driven company founded by British designer Nick O'Rorke and Patrick McNulty in July 1997. Tsubo is designed for the fashion conscious, comfort driven individual that wants the highest quality materials along with the highest quality product. The soles are built with comfort in mind. All of the styles uniquely have the "cushion oval bubbles" strategically placed on the sole at various pressure points of the foot, for the highest amount of comfort. These bubbles not only provide comfort they also allow customers to instantly recognize that these shoes are from Tsubo.
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The Dwell on Design Conference + Exhibition hosted by Dwell, America’s premier modern design magazine, will view architecture through the lens of prefab, sustainability, affordability, and urban design via a dynamic group of speakers and engaging industry partners.
Experience the Dwell on Design Prefab Studios, Modern Markets and Dwell Design Source Studios by joining Dwell this September for an extraordinary event revealing the most engaging design issues of the day.
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The design company P.O.M. is an abbrevation of "Piece of Mind". Their business idea is to develop products they miss themselves
Even though all their products exist in similar forms or are not completely new as such, they always try to enhance them with one or more features in order of having the distinguished edge and product advantage. There should always be several reasons for getting excited over what P.O.M. produces.
They design and manufacture interior products by following criteria's:
- The products should solve a problem in new and better ways.
- The quality should be equal or superior to what we demand by ourselves in our own homes.
The company P.O.M. Stockholm AB was founded in 2003. Their products are available through a network of exclusive interior decoration stores.
Bleach Design, located in Marinha Grande, Portugal, is a multidisciplinary design team with projects ranging from web design and corporate identity to product development and design. The Vase by Bleach Design is made of flexible polyurethane rubber molded into a familiar vase shape. Throw this vase full of daisies at your boyfriend's head and it'll bounce right back at you. Bleach also suggests using The Vase as an anti-stress device, much like those flour-filled balloons sold at ten bucks a pop. All in all, The Vase challenges the quintessential "vase" to an existence with no discrepancies, protecting love and sentiment within its nearly indestructible shell. But really, if you want to make a scene, stick with glass because shattered glass is super dramatic. Afterwards, you can squeeze the hell out of The Vase for effective stress release.
The Eva Solo Tea-maker is a complete solution to tea making. The Eva Solo design utilizes a solid metal cup that when depressed fully encases the leaves, preventing further steeping and the tea from becoming bitter. Because the elongated filter allows the leaves to extend to the bottom of the carafe, a partial pot is easily brewed. When pouring, the unique flip-top lid opens automatically with the metal lip preventing messy drips. The fabric cover (referred to as a “tea-shirt”) keeps the tea hot and accentuates the sleek lines of the glass jug as well as protects the pourer’s hand and the table from heat. The “shirt” comes in a variety of colors and materials to allow consumers to “dress” their tea maker to fit their personal style.
Born in 1914, Hans Wegner is perhaps Denmark’s best-known furniture designer. Wegner began his long career at age 14, as a craftsman, namely as an apprentice to a local cabinet-maker. Within four years he had become a journeyman joiner, and in another four -- evidently not entirely happy making things to the designs of others -- he enrolled at the Institute of Technology in Copenhagen. Wegner's education continued at the prestigious School of Arts and Crafts, where he studied under Molgaard Nielsen. After graduating, Wegner served a brief stint at the design office of Arne Jacobsen. Finally, in 1943, he opened his own design office
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The Mueller Coffee Cabinet is on castors in steel, painted. The upper opening to fit a MIELE coffee maker. A stainless steel tray pulls out in the middle, to set down a cup. The lower compartment has one grey laminated MDF shelf.
All Mueller Moebel furniture is made of of sheet steel. According to detailed drawings single blank sheets are cut and then shaped. Further materials used are aluminium, glass, chrome and linoleum.
Since 1926, L’Atelier du Vin has specialised in oenological euqipment and more specifically, has been an innovator in the development of bottling and cellar storage equipment. These days they are creating well designed and well made wine glasses, decanters, and openeners. Take a look at the complete collection, they definitely have something for everyone, with such a clean french twist.
Status Foe is here not to dictate what a person should think, but to provoke thought. They are a collection of a few, with the desire of painting a fashion story through the eyes of art. Status Foe is sometimes quirky, often wry and always has an underlying serious observation of life and culture.
The Status Foe summer/fall 06 collections were conceived from a journey through lands across the world. It was a time spent touching new landscapes, feasting on art and the unfamiliar.
Their new collections feature inspired patterns, accents, and colours to honor the artist within each of us.
All their shirts are made of Pima Cotton and can be purchased on their website.
Atelier Van Lieshout (AVL) is a multidisciplinary company that operates internationally in the field of contemporary art, design and architecture. AVL was founded in 1995 by Joep van Lieshout. The name Atelier Van Lieshout emphasises the fact that the works of art do not stem solely from the creative brain of Joep van Lieshout, but are produced by a creative team.
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Claus Jensen and Henrik Holbaek of Tools Design created the "tabletop grill", for EVA SOLO, Denmark, 2006 A new creative, functional and beautiful design for a tabletop grill is this new product. The grill cooks with charcoal for full flavor. It is a perfect size for a couple, or for cooking kabobs for a party. You can use it for dining on the deck, on a picnic, or wherever you want to grill. Not quite as cool as the Eva Solo Outclass Barrel Grill but very functional for a small place nonetheless.
Post Ranch Inn is blessed with one of the most extraordinary locations on the face of the earth, a place of such breathtaking beauty it’s hard to believe it’s even accessible by mere automobile-driving mortals. Big Sur is the most scenic destination along California’s most scenic drive, Highway 1, which links Los Angeles with San Francisco and features such curiosities as Hearst Castle and Steinbeck’s Monterey along the way.
Of course what Highway 1 mostly features is natural beauty, and some of the last unspoiled places in America. It would be difficult for any man-made structure to compete with these cliffside views of the Pacific, or the majesty of the redwood forests; but this strange and decadent little hotel holds its own.
Modernist architect Mickey Muennig settled in Big Sur in 1971, and has been responsible for most of its notable buildings ever since. Post Ranch Inn is his only hotel design, and indeed it’s hard to imagine it translating into some kind of movable hotel template, comprising as it does a number of discreet house designs, each uniquely suited to its location.
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Hybrid House is the brainchild of Sander Architects . They use the concept of part prefab, all custom to design a house which gets you all the advantages of a prefab house and yet gives you a building that is designed exclusively for you. They use established steel manufacturers to create the bones of your house. This allows a budget of any size to go much further. Their pproach means that this will be YOUR house, designed exclusively for you. You might be a foodie and dream of an open-plan kitchen, or have a fashion collection that is begging for extra-large walk-in closets: the point is that no two clients are the same and we love to work with the individuals who come to us to design their home.
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MEDIUM shoes is a group of individual designers selected to express a modernist design philosophy with a commitment to quality, detail, and style. By giving individual designers under the MEDIUM brand creative authority, they strive to promote a “design collective,” where as much importance is placed on individual creativity and style as it is on the shared vision. MEDIUM shoes is a designer’s movement, fashioning products that appeal to cultural creatives.
Buy Medium Shoes online at Zappos.com 
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Wonk was founded in 2004 in Brooklyn, NY. Their goal is to produce furniture that combines functionality with design to create an ideal and affordable modern living space to our clients.
All of their products are made locally in Brooklyn, NY and since inception, has grown to encompass the design and manufacturing of unique, well-crafted home and office furnishings. They serve individual clients as well as architects, design professionals, and corporate accounts. They specialize in modern home and office furnishings and offer innovative solutions to space management by developing furniture that is multifunctional, practical and one-of-a-kind. They have a variety of lacquers, wood veneer finishes, and style options to choose from.
Ultimately, it's all about the furniture and using it to create your ideal space. It's their mission to provide you with furniture that's inspired, thoughtfully designed, and reasonably priced.
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Niche Modern is a small design shop based in brooklyn that started by simply designing products for their own lives to make themselves happy and satisfy their super picky sensibilities. When other people expressed appreciation for their work and started placing orders they knew they were on to something. All of these fixtures are hand blown in subtle hues of grays and ambers, and no two will be exactly the same (which makes the one you buy that much more special)
They have also recently broadened their line of home furnishings by adding hand made needle point pillows with green and blue camouflage patterns. These little numbers will bring a splash of sassiness to any couch and with their soft, down inserts and velvet backs.
Request a catalog or buy them online from the Niche Modern website
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New York artist Amy Helfand creates collages and textiles based on garden imagery. Modern Nature showcases the artist's prints, fabrics, and carpets, all inspired by the riotous Wild Garden at Wave Hill, the famed public garden in the Bronx. In her exuberant designs, Helfand juxtaposes the organic and manmade, nature and culture, fantasy and reality. The results are imagined wonderlands comprising site plans and unrecognizable yet distinctly biomorphic forms. Amy’s work as an artist has taken many forms, including photography, sculpture, installation, digital collage and textiles. She received a BA in photography and American Studies from Hampshire College and an MFA from the School of the Art Institue in Chicago.
She will be displaying her work at the Frye Art Museum in Seattle from April 29– July 30
The term design hotel has found wide currency in recent years, and has devolved into a vague superlative, almost without referent. Today any hotel built after 1900 calls itself a design hotel, as though in opposition to those hotels which were not designed but which assembled themselves, of their own free will, from free-floating clusters of furniture, bedding, and masonry.
So it may strain the reader's patience when we refer to Hi Hotel as a design hotel, but there is really no more concise way to put it. Every aspect of the Hi Hotel, from the décor to the toiletries, was designed by Matali Crasset, a Philippe Starck protegé, and the style is somewhat familiar to those who have seen Starck's work — but somehow even more whimsical, more vibrant. A variety of schemes come in a variety of colors, from “White & White,” which resembles a hospital room, to “Digital,” whose walls are covered in foot-high pixels of blue and green, and “Monospace,” in bands of blue, white, and red.
Continue reading "Hi Hotel ~ Nice, France" »
ERICA WAKERLY graduated from the Royal College of Art in 2005 (MA Printed Textiles), specialising in surface design for interiors.
The inspiration behind the work is about unexpected ways of creating, using and contrasting print and pattern design within furniture and architecture. Drawing, composition and colour are integral to the designs. It is about combining innovative techniques and new materials, with more human qualities, for example, the hand drawn image with digital print.
The wallpaper designs, "Spiral" and "Angles", use geometric elements, in sophisticated repeats, which are both graphic and organic. "Spiral" is a bold linear design which, uniquely, can be hung horizontally or vertically. "Angles" is clean, modern and ethereal as the silver lines reflect the light. Each design has a curious 3D quality, playing with space and perspective.
EFCI is an acronym for the Elastic Fantastic Chronosynclastic Infundibulum, which means something like a place where different kinds of truths fit together to become one. But more simply EFCI is a company with creative menswear designed by Rory Scerri-Marion and Sumter Pendergrast. THe new fall/winter 2006 collection is described as “Oscar Wilde meets Hong Kong,” which loosely translates as velvet pants in colors like orange and wovens with Chinese-themed embroidery. Motifs include koi and dragons and an image of Bruce Lee pops up on tees. Dress shirts also feature details like french cuffs. The complete EFCI collection also showcases Italian corduroy jackets, pea coats and denim. The designers of EFCI want fans to picture an outfit worn by Wilde having drinks in HK’s Felix bar or riding his motorbike through the busy streets of Kowloon.
Jane & Jeremy has an interesting collection handmade books, photographs (35mm or poloroids), thrifty seconds (second hand clothes) and other things. Based in London, the site looks like it is just getting off the ground. It appears as though they will be selling bookmarks, sculptures, and beanbags in the future. Check it out.
Started by Sebastien de Jaegher aka Joon four years ago as punk/skate label, Noir Kennedy has just released their 7th collection. He began designing clothes because he didn’t find anything that he wanted to wear so he decided to makes his own Their influences comes especially from the musical medium, rock and roll of the seventies , Quadrophenia while passing by Minor Threat or Dispatch Mode. But also the skate, punk, trash scene in which he sepnt a good part of his youth and which particularly inspired him
If you didn't know it was there, you'd just pass this amazing store. around the corner from l'eclaireur [homme] this is definitely not one to pass up if you love skinny jeans and punk rock. Also good for anyone who wants to check out an interesting store concept.
Noir Kennedy 22 rue du Roi de Siecile Paris
This concept of furniture for transit spaces designed by Ross Lovegrove comprises a bench, seat/light, seat/planter and a waste bin. They are equally at home on the street, in the garden, in an airport, in a hotle foyer, or in a bar. Seating two or three it can be filled with either water or sand if required for extra stability.
Can be used outside or inside.
Dimensions: 55.5" x 47.25" x 118.2"h
Twenty-three-year-old Mitra Khayyam launched the creepily named Blood is the New Black to feature up-and-coming and mainly female artists work on tees. Blood is the New Black graphics range from cutesy to gothic to scary but they are are dazzling. Keren Richter, Milano Chow, Andrea Shear and the legendary Fuct all creating designs for the line – ranging from Richter’s blood drawing candy striper and drum majorette to Fuct’s wild wolf. All Blood is the New Black artists are encouraged to control all aspects of their design from advertising to packaging.
Blood is the New Black was born during Mitra Khayyam's final year in college. While writing her 50 page thesis on the role t-shirts play in the democratization of art, Khayyam decided she should put her money where her mouth was by starting her own t-shirt line. Armed with her experience from many years spent working in both the fashion and art industries, Khayyam launched the line in 2004 with the help of college friend and artist Keren Richter, who was brought onboard as Creative Director.
Instead of debuting in a trendy men’s boutique, Sovereign Beck ties launched in an art gallery – Wallspace in Chelsea, New York. Designers WIll Beck and Ryan Sovereign are both Rhode Island School of Design Alums, who collaborated in music and the visual arts before launching their collection of neckwear “ we both realized that, while there is no longer as many situations that require formal dress, there is still a true pleasure in dressing well and looking sharp”, says the duo. “ These ties are for those of us who want to wear a tie, not have to wear one.” The ties are made of silk and evoke classic neckwear from the 1950’s through 1980’s, but look modern not vintage or retro.
The Electrolux Jeppe Utzon barbeque was created by Jeppe Utzon, the grandson of the legendary Jorn Utzon. The Utzon Barbecue complements current architectural trends in a clean & minimalist design. Whispering high-quality sophistication in its aesthetic excution, combined with a deep understanding of cooking, reinvents the modern barbecue.The Utzon Barbecue, goes beyond basic functionality creating a sculptural element for any contemporary home.The stainless steel cover extends when in use to provide additional bench space for the user, and lock open whilst burners are on. Ergonomically designed knobs are hidden away when not in use. Sturdy 4 high powered burners, stainless steel cooking plates, grill has diamond shape cross section for perfectly barbecued steaks. Eco-friendly packaging is taken away upon delivery and reused to package another Jeppe Utzon BBQ. This re-use system is an active initiative taken by Electrolux to reduce the amount of natural resources used and futile packaging sent to landfill.
Casey Berman founded Gytha Mander (meaning “a gift fom me”) in 2004 as a ready-towear collection for men and women with contemporary accents and elegant details. The line is inspired by London’s Savile Row bespoke tailoring; a Gytha Mander look reflects a “keen appreciation for the sartorial traditions of yesteryear, but remains steadfastly forward” according to Berman. “We respect the tried and true but constantly try to reinvent the classics. Gytha Mander’s 2006 collection is entitled “The Urim and the Thummim” a reference to Exodus 28:1– a meditation on Jewish Diaspora throughout history. Berman describes the llok as “punctuated by wooden ties, high collar trench coats, Yemenite t-shirt patterns, prisoner stripes, dark denim dress shirts and crocodile holsters. The collection also includes scarves for men and women, silk neckwear and blazers.
Gau Designs is a Montreal design studio offering everything from furnishings to architectural interiors to photography and graphic design. My favorite piece is the Glowing Wireless table. Made of reclaimed and refinished wood, polyacrylic, and reclaimed steel, this indoor/outdoor bench/table has a built-in rechargeable lighting system (those acrylic tubes are wireless LEDs) which provide up to eight hours of light.
Conceived, developed and patented by Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin, the unique Clicquot Tw’ice Bucket rotates through 180 degrees using a clever ‘click’ system, activated by a simple push button mechanism. Within seconds the Clicquot Tw’ice Bucket transforms its round base through a playful somersault into a steel platform.
As a result of its double orientation, the Clicquot Tw’ice Bucket is equally at home on a flat surface or clipped to the edge of a table, with amazing balance and stability. Buy it online @ Malmaison.com
| Via Coolhunting.com |
Finally!! A hip alternative to the traditional pet crate, the ultimate luxury living for your pets! The Bow Haus comes in two sizes: Studio Haus: for pets up to 20lbs, 21” diameter x 15.5”h Loft Haus: for pets up to 50lbs,31" x 23"h The Haus is constructed from high quality materials ensuring the safety and comfort for your pet as well as the coolest look for your décor. Sliding pocket door , easy to assemble and clean, well ventilated, Foam pad for support and comfort!Silver metallic powder coated steel, Aluminum top, Base and lid in PVC. Includes reversible pad in either orange-charcoal or green-mocha
If you have a wine collection worth showing off, there is no better to display it than on this beauty of a rack designed by Anders Noergaard for Rosendahl. It is made from brushed aluminum, holds 18 bottles of your best vintages, and looks both sculptural and functional. Minimalistic in its design, the wine bottles themselves form part of the design. 35.5" height, 9.5" deep.
Buy it online at Unicahome.com
Designed to mimic a gentle rain shower, the Rain Sky by Sieger Design for Dornbracht integrates into the ceiling for a truly minimalist effect, doing away with bulky heads in favour of a sleek planel set into the ceiling. The newest and most innovative member of an extensive collection of fittings and accessories conceived around the notion of water as it is experienced in nature, Rain Sky is available in manually operated and electronic versions. You can control the amount, strenght and pattern of water fall, as well as fragrance, mist colors and soundtrack levels. ($7,000 to $14,000.)
While no task chair is perfect for everyone, designer Jerome Caruso’s new Celle Chair is a solution that suits up to 95% of the population. A mid-priced seat designed with cutting-edge ingenuity, the Celle functions like a responsive and adaptable skin to both support and resist the sitter’s weight. Founded on a patented system of cells and loops that are smaller at the interior and larger toward the outside, the pli- able polymer construction customizes to the sitter’s body and flexes as the body moves. This is a chair able to respond to the endless adjustments that we make throughout the day with a harmonic tilt mechanism that mirrors large movements, to keep gestures fluid and muscles relaxed. The Celle also offers vital pelvic stabilization, which is fundamental to maintaining proper posture and comfort. By allowing air to flow through its cellular suspension construction, the Celle offers the ultimate in thermal comfort. This original is an authentic, fully licensed product of Herman Miller, Inc.
Buy it online @ Design Within Reach
Rocio Romero's LV series is a line of homes inspired by her first prototype the LV home, built in Laguna Verde Chile in 1999. Since debuting the LV home as a prefabricated home to the masses her line of work has expanded, we now have other homes including the LVL, LVG, LV-150, and LVM. Each LV series unit has been thoughtfully designed to exist on it's own as well as be combined with the other units. All of the homes in the LV series are customizable, you can reconfigure the interior as well as the exterior.
The LV Home kit provides you with materials for the exterior envelope. You and your contractor will need to supply the foundation, roof, windows, and the interior finish out. Neither plumbing nor electric lines are included, allowing for the home to be constructed in adherence to local building codes. Leaving these materials out also ensures that the entire kit can fit on a single truck. And yes, the cost of these additional materials will add up, however the price is still quite reasonable. For a complete LV home, including transport, labor, site preparation, finishes and equipment, Ms. Romero estimates that it will run just under $100,000.
A Practice For Everyday Life (APFEL) is a graphic design practice formed by Kirsty Carter and Emma Thomas, graduates of the Royal College of Art. APFEL creates design, publications, exhibitions, editorial, installations and art.
APFEL’s work is born out of a mixture of commercial and personal work where they allow each to constantly inform the other, thus motivating an energy and creativity in inventing solutions. They are a graphic design partnership with a conceptual bias, working both as designer and/ or author. Their work is deceptively simple and aims to evoke feelings, twisting what is often taken for granted. Their work does not look obviously designed, but in reality, it is of course wholly designed to the finest detail – sensitive to type and image to intrigue and be functional to users. They like to collaborate with a client to develop a thorough understanding of the requirements of the project, before creating something which is always multi-faceted, investigational and playful. Thoughtful, sensitive, problem solving, honest and charming; APFEL create work which is both appropriate and engaging to the situation and client.
APFEL were nominated as one of the Creative Futures 2003 (hosted by Creative Review Magazine.)
Check out the Tate Modern Games
Purple South’s wonderful range of tableware is hand-crafted from Wych Elm sourced from a managed New Zealand forest. The unparalleled qualities of this hardwood include good natural resistance to fungi and bacteria. Therefore, this tableware will make your food look better while keeping it fresh longer. The genius design of 70 CM Fruit features four different ways of food presentation in an unusual and beautiful way.
Purple South is New Zealand's international design label, producing and marketing furniture and accessories that are developed in co operation with renowned local and international product designers. The vision of Purple South is to supply the local and international market with high quality and globally competitive designs that have a distinctive New Zealand style.
Lunar Design thrives on creating innovative and original products that make a meaning full difference. Lunar is regularly listed in the top 10 IDEA winners in Business Week Magazine and has been recognized repeatedly by ID Magazine, Good Design, iF, AIGA, Print Magazine, Cooper-Hewitt Museum among others. One of my favorite designa of theirs is the Lunar Cake plate. Lunar’s 20th anniversary commemorative cake plate with a debossed area for the cake slice and a candleholder. Moonshine thinking solves the age-old problem of where to put the candle once the song is over!
Also check out Icon-O-Cast : Lunar Design’s Podcast. The rececntly had a recap of CES and discussed the environmental aspects of sustainable design
Brooklyn based David Weeks began designing lights because he didn’t have enough room to make furniture. Happily, his impeccably made, mid-century inspired lamps were an instant hit. David Weeks received a degree in Painting from RISD before moving to New York to work for several artists and designers including jeweler Ted Muehling. In 1996 Weeks established David Weeks Lighting (DWL) and developed a collection of retail and custom lighting fixtures. DWL products have been featured in numerous design publications and exhibitions. In 1999 DWL was awarded the Editor's award for Lighting at the ICFF in New York City. DWL has expanded to include a line of furniture available at davidweeksstudio.com. All light fixtures are now available exclusively through Ralph Pucci International.
Futuba is love seat/ coffee beautifully design by Akemi Adrienne Tanaka. If you are a person who has a small apartment but likes to entertain this piece is for you. Futaba was the Akemi’s graduate design project at the Pratt institute. As many green aspects as possible were included including- bamboo plywood, non-VOC polymerized linseed oil, Carnegie fabric (a company that is eco-conscious), minimized material and waste as much as possible, non-toxic, water-based adhesive. She is currently in the process of bringing Futaba to market and hopes to have available for sale by the beginning of summer if not sooner.
Melt Modern is the design team of Matt Proctor and Aixé Djelal. They specialize in the creation of elegantly edgy cast aluminum objects for the home, garden, and commercial spaces. The combination of Melt Modern’s contemporary aesthetic and unconventional metal casting techniques yields a striking fusion of spare organic form and richly textured surface that is not available elsewhere in the marketplace.
Melt Modern offers custom work tailored to your individual needs as well as a limited number of in-stock products. They personally make each piece by hand, ensuring that no two are identical. While the basic shape and dimensions are consistent throughout a line, the surface texture, wall thickness and exterior edges vary considerably from piece to piece.
Continue reading "Modern Melt" »
Marmol Radziner Prefab homes are made from recycled steel and are completed in our factory with your choice of finishes, details, and appliances, many of them environmentally friendly. The homes are not kits or panelized systems; the full construction of your home takes place in the factory, and the finished house can be delivered and placed on your site in as little as 5 months from the time your order is placed. There are three floor plans available, each thoughtfully designed to complement the landscape. They also offer three installation options to meet your budget and site needs.
Combining the speed and convenience of factory-made houses with the specificity of custom residential design, Marmol Radziner Prefab provides beautiful and sustainable modern homes you can own today.
Groundswell: Constructing the Contemporary Landscape presents 23 landscape-design projects that reclaim and transform urban spaces—many derelict and in need of rehabilitation—into public parks and gardens. Groundswell features examples of the new artistic richness and critical debate in the design of public spaces, from small urban plazas to large parks for post-industrial sites to long range plans for entire urban sectors. The exhibition is organized by Peter Reed, Curator, and Irene Shum, Curatorial Assistant, Department of Architecture and Design, The Museum of Modern Art.
Continue reading "Groundswell: Constructing the Comtemporary Landscape" »
Half-Full is a design and communications collaboration devoted to providing highly effective, affordable, and imaginative design solutions for folks concerned about environmental and social justice. Our goal is to create a louder, more powerful voice for issues that affect all of us every day, everywhere.
From annuals to ads to logos to websites, our designs incorporate branding on every level. Organizations like Greenpeace USA, ForestEthics, and Rainforest Action Network rely on us to create everything from ads that run in USA Today, Wired, and The New York Times, to websites that attract international attention. And there’re not afraid to hit the streets themselves, armed with banners, stickers, signs, and unconventional creative solutions.
Working with their clients to determine the most effective and innovative solution for their needs is what we love. In fact, strategic analysis, coupled with original thinking, is at the heart of every project we undertake.
Half-Full was started by Libby Kleine, who is an excellent artist herself. You can view her work online
FLOAT is the inspiration of an architect who gathered together the skills and insight of fabricators, designers, and strategists who found common ground in a love of art, a passion for innovation, and a belief that well designed furniture can enlighten and enhance the lives of individuals. I first tried the long white float chaise when staying at The Standard in Los Angeles. They have 6 of the lined up next to the rooftop pool.
The founder, Jeanne Scandura, is a practicing architect and educator whose urban office ScanDesign produces works that holistically integrate architecture, landscape architecture, and interior design.
Initial investigations into the convergence of sculpture and furniture involved pouring rubber cushions, casting tabletops, and molding light fixtures. The resulting collection evokes a range of atmospheres from Mediterranean poolside modern to urban loft chic. Translucent materials create a delicate interplay of light, texture, and color. Each piece invites tactile exploration. Surfaces that appear soft are actually quite solid, and those that appear hard are given pliability of form and line.
FLOAT strives to create objects with material integrity that improve over time, respond to the human form, and welcome a dialogue with architectural space. The furniture reflects a joy for experimentation, versatility, and cultural curiosity.
For more information on products please feel free to call or visit the website.
Combination of pure wood and cool glass: the coffee table Yaqui forges these materials together into a single intriguingly beautiful creation. The base of the occasional table can easily be slid under the coffee table so that the two graphically form one matching piece. Yaqui is available as a coffee table and an occasional table. The coffee table is made of solid Masai, a mix of warm shades of wood. The glass table leaf of the occasional table is available as standard in clear glass. Other glass colours are also possible.
Buy it online at The Magazine
A few years ago, when French billionaire François Pinault was searching for an original way to show a sculpture by the American conceptual artist Richard Serra that he had acquired, he decided to buy a ruined chapel in Brittany, dismantle it, transport it across France and rebuild it in the park outside his chateau. Local planning officials were aghast, but Pinault has never been one to allow bureaucracy, or logistics, to stand in his way.
More recently, when Pinault was looking for a larger venue to exhibit his collection of contemporary art, he selected an abandoned island in Paris, three miles along the Seine from the Eiffel tower. There, on the site of a derelict car manufacturing plant, he aims to build a private museum to rival the Guggenheim in Bilbao or the Saatchi Gallery in London.
Work has begun on Paris's latest architectural feat, the François Pinault Foundation for Contemporary Art. The £150m concrete and glass art gallery, on an abandoned island on the city's outskirts, is the work of Japanese architect Tadao Ando. Aficionados of the avant-garde should be making their way along the Seine by 2008.
Sentinel has been designed with an appealing aesthetic in mind. The building's architecture combined with it's unique feature lighting establish it as a contributor to art in the City of Glasgow. It is rare to find a speculative administrative building which stands up to the requirement for excellence and inventiveness. It is a building designed and built with skill, ambition and confidence: qualities which were maintained throughout the project. Sentinel is a new basement, ground and nine storey office development providing flexible open plan, virtually column free, office accommodation throughout. The upper levels enjoy panoramic views over the city. At night-time a variety of colour lighting changes, controlled by the Building Management System, alters the mood of Sentinel.
Architects: Gordon Murray and Alan Dunlop Architects
K Studio has developed a line of embroidered softgoods offering many combinations of fabrics, embroidery designs and thread colors. Each piece is made by hand in their studio in Grand Rapids, MI.
Shelly Klein, a graduate of Kendall College of Art and Design, has owned and operated a design studio working as a consultant for the contract furniture industry with clients like Herman Miller. Mary Klein is a veteran of the contract furniture industry with extensive management and manufacturing background. The combination of their respective areas of expertise resulted in a natural collaboration exploring a shared interest in combining good design with sustainable materials and business.
Buy K Studio at 2modern.com
LA/SF Furniture Seen is a comprehensive, easy to use, searchable e-platform for the modern furniture buyer in the greater Los Angeles and San Francisco area. Their goal is to send qualified buyers into your showroom to complete a sale.
They offer a cost effective way to reach a very targeted audience and committed to building a strong user base including architects, interior designers, set designers and retail customers
Users are emailed about new products, special sales, showroom openings and design events as well, designers ard their funriture are profiled under the designs page, where users can get information about the designers and where to buy the product. I would consider it halfway house for prospective furniture buyers
High chairs are great. Except when you don’t have one. That’s where Totseat comes in. It’s washable. It’s squashable. It’s highly portable. It’s for babies who lunch. Fabric highchairs have been around for many years but Totseat differs significantly for three reasons. It adjusts for high and low backed chairs - it has an integral cummerbund which offers additional support (so works on open backed chairs too) - and it clips neatly and firmly at the back. Designed to fit almost any adult chair, the funky fabric Totseat will keep even the wiggliest child safely in place. It’s simple to use. Easy to carry. (Just squash it in and go). And ideal for children aged between eight months and two and a half years. Simply slip it over the chair back, adjust it, pop in the baby, and clip it firmly. It won the Scottish Design Awards grand prize for 2005.
Great design often comes from a sense of place, and this is no exception for the work of Angela Adams, who weaves the rugged beauty and inimitable style of her native Maine into her work.
Born and raised on a small island off the coast of Maine, Adams was educated in interior design at the Philadelphia Art Institute. Rediscovering Maine’s rug-making traditions when she moved back to the area after school, Adams began experimenting with rug-making by combining age-old techniques with modernist designs. The results are fresh, edgy rugs in dynamic patterns that are made from the finest New Zealand wool in traditional hand tufted construction and would look at home in the hippest Soho lofts.
Bringing a fresh perspective to an old tradition is what Adams’s work is all about. “For me, I've been very excited about treating the rugs as paintings and bringing some very painterly qualities to the new designs,” Adams said of her work. “Blending, shading and composing the design in a way that has more layers and keeps you entranced a bit in a very calming way – like a beautiful painting would.”
Adams’ rugs were an overnight sensation with critics and decorators alike, and she opened her own mill in 1998 to assure quality control. Today her company produces fabrics, throw pillows, and patterned glassware in addition to tufted floor coverings. She recently ventured into fashion accessories with handbags, belts and luggage. Angela Adams proves that the combination of local traditions, passion, and good design can be very good business indeed.
Buy Angela Adams at Design Within Reach
Former graphic designer Paola Lenti founded her self-named company in 1994, and it is now one of Italy’s leading luxury furniture and flooring brands. Lenti designs herself, but also brings in other renowned designers, such as Francesco Rota, to create pieces for the collections. The interpretation of colours and shapes, refined design solutions and a distinctive timeless style: these are the core elements of Paola Lenti’s corporate philosophy. At the forefront of Italian design, the company specializes in contemporary furniture and flooring and is renowned for its research and experimentation in the the textile field. Natural and technological materials are transformed into precious, unique resistant and durable yarns and textiles. Paola Lenti products represent the aesthetic and technical evolution of materials and ideas.
International interior designer Beverly Payeff Masey was recently recognized by the feng shui community for her outstanding contributions to the Science of Person/Place Connection and Pyramid School Feng Shui. She received awards at Feng Shui Institute International’s biennial Conference in St. Augustine, Florida. Ms. Masey was awarded the Feng Shui Institute of America 2005 Visionary Award for her groundbreaking developments in the field of neuro-design. Her work connecting brain research to visual perception of the environment has led to the first applications for feng shui, architecture, and design professionals, and uses scientific means to identify the specific set of sub-consciously processed visual cues that cause each individual to react positively or negatively to various design schemes. For further information: http://www.fengshui-ii.org/fengshuiconference.htm
Bark Deco: truly modern dog beds. Bark Deco beds are built by hand in America and feature exotic wood veneers, Crypton fabrics and upholstery grade foam. The elevated and ventilated platform beds provide comfort for our canine clients and sleek, architectural profiles for their owners. Each Bark Deco bed stands 7" tall (for easy access for most breeds and visual symmetry for multi-dog families) and comes with a coordinating toy box. Special orders are welcome.
Bark Deco
Los Angeles, CA
(310) 948-5522
The Figge Art Museum, a new museum by British firm David Chipperfield Architects, on the banks of the Mississippi River in Davenport, Iowa, not only envelopes its collections in a luminous and strictly orthogonal embrace, but it stands as a glowing emblem for the regeneration of Davenport's riverfront downtown.
The Figge Art Museum is Chipperfield's first civic commission in the United States. The firm — known for such projects as the River and Rowing Museum in Henley-on-Thames, United Kingdom, and the BBC Scotland Headquarters in Glasgow, and as winners of over 20 national and international competitions and awards — conducts its practice at many scales: from custom furniture to urban masterplanning. For the Figge, David Chipperfield teamed with award-winning Des Moines, Iowa-based architects, Herbert Lewis Kruse Blunck.
Core77 has 150+ images from the 2005 design festival in London, including shots from 100% Design and Designersblock.
In 1940, Karimoku took its first steps as a woodworking shop in Kariya, in the suburbs of Nagoya, Japan's third largest city. Since then, they have been committed to our love of trees and have steadfastly provided fine quality wooden furniture.
Widely recognized for its stance on furniture making based on its Quality First philosophy, by 1972 Karimoku had grown into Japan's No. 1 wooden furniture maker in terms of domestic sales. The Karimoku brand has been firmly established as a synonym of fine quality furniture and proof of reliable furniture, a reputation we have maintained to this day. They aspire to make furniture that creates a comfortable living space and will continue to be loved as a lifelong partner.
Handcrafted in Italy and designed to complement designer denim and dress casual wear, Mark Nason is the soul of style. With distinctive profiles and luxurious hand-distressed leathers, the range of classic and modern boots, shoes and sandals is also desired by those who define style as unique and individualistic.
Buy them Online at Zappos.com 
Piquadro blends traditional Italian craftsmanship with state-of-the-art technological solutions to produce unparalleled luxury leather accessories. Formed in 1987 in Bologna by the then 23-year old Marco Palmieri, the business has grown to become a zenith in the leather world, thanks largely to Palmieri's invention of a water-jet cutting software program to produce the best-cut leather. Since its formation in 1987, Piquadro has followed a very simple intuition: to be the very first Italian luxury leather manufacturer to interpret the new life and working style of the contemporary man. Piquadro's success is a testament to the validity of their philosophy, which is based on coherence, innovation, and brilliance, as well as beauty and genuine pleasure. Today Piquadro is distributed in 40 countries and has become synonymous with prestige and only the finest quality.
Orange22 is a downtown LA-based high-end design and build company specializing in enviroments and furniture objects that "push the envelope". The also have opened a new retail showroom downtown LA. Housed in a renovated turn of the century bank building, the showrooms white, glowing curtains span 20ft floor to ceiling. One side of the 2000sf space houses Orange22's design studio with a model shop in the back while the other half is lined with oversized white bases making for an impressive stage upon which design objects are honored. The gallery space is showing a collection of local designer talent that represent the style and vision of Orange22. The showroom's mission is to highlight great work and position it so that it makes way into the studio's designed environments. Events will be hosted throughout the year featuring the new designers as well as Orange22's latest furniture creations.
For those with sensitive ears, Origin Live's new Sovereign turntable is something of a frequency smorgasbord. Using an Encounter arm and Goldring 1042 cartridge, experts swear they can hear subtleties in sounds that they'd never noticed even in their favourite discs. The turntable is beautifully machined but the adjustment bolts are hidden from view and, coupled with a complex assembly, this can make for difficult work on Christmas morning.
The archetype of a table lamp now floats in a swimming pool is a ready-made project based on a traditional lampshade and an emergency light in use on the seaside. In ‘off’ position, outside of the pool, the lamp has to be placed upside down (during the day), in the ‘on’ position the lamp can float on water facing upwards (at night). The lamp can be recharged after 8 hours of use. Rotation-molded polyethylene. The ‘waterproof’ is produced by metalarte and they are part of its new collection metalab launched in september 2004 in barcelona, spain and presented internationally at the light+building fair in frankfurt, germany. By Hector Serrano
We all know smoking is unhealthy to people like ourselves and the environment. What better way than to use a Klop to filter cigarrette/cigar smokes. Smoke naturally flows through the Klop and becomes filtered by the plant leaves itself. Do ourselves a favour and save the environment. Designed by Grégoire Vandenbussche
Via | electro^plankton |
GLS Landscape Architecture is a multidisciplinary firm specializing in design and construction services for institutional, public and residential landscapes that have a complex architecture and site planning component. There are six people in the firm: Gary Strang, the principal, one architect and four landscape architects. Because GLS is involved in landscape architecture and architecture construction, the firm is especially skilled at working with architects, engineers, planners and public works agencies to integrate landscape architecture with architecture, urban design design, and infrastructure. GLS also works with clients to integrate interior and exterior spaces and materials, reinforce spatial ideas with horticulural design and solve problems associated with difficult sites.
GLS has received two AIA awards and and ASLA Honor Award for Beth Israel Memorial Gardens, a 7,000 sq ft. chapel and three acre cemetery in Houston and was recently selected to be the landscape architect fdor the Divinity School of the Pacific at UC Berkeley
The ingenious, yet simple design of the Eva Solo Barrel Grill includes a number of unique features. First, it is made from stainless steel so it is built to last. The portable coal bucket is easy to empty of ashes and the flat protective lid provides an extra surface on the patio when the grill is not in use. Cook directly over the hot coals or convert it into an oven using the optional domed lid. The Eva Solo Barrel Grill is designed to be pleasing to the eye so there is no need to hide it away after use.
Optional accessories available: Grill Tongs for moving and turning food, Domed Cooking Lid to convert the grill into an oven, Table Legs to convert the Flat Lid into a table, Cover Jacket to protect the grill from the weather.
Buy it Online @ Amazon.com
California Design: The Legacy of West Coast Craft And Style
The furniture, jewelry, recreational objects, ceramics, fabric arts, and other designs that emerged from the mid-1950s to the mid-1970s California would come to identify its outdoorsy, eccentric, sometimes entirely funky persona. And the best of these were exhibited, sometimes idolized, through a series of popular shows at the Pasadena Art Museum. California Design is a detailed retrospective of these exhibitions and the West Coast style they epitomized, replete with hundreds of innovative photographs showcasing the works in all their original glory. Signature works from Charles & Ray Eames, Tropi-Cal, Don Chadwick (co-creator of the Aeron chair), and many other designers and studios illustrate twenty years of style that was as diverse as it was pioneering.
Swedese is a classic Swedish furniture producer with a strong anchor in both the public and domestic domain.Swedese was founded in 1945 by two brothers, Yngve and Jerker Ekström, with Yngve leading the company until his death. Together with names including Alvar Aalto, Bruno Mathsson, Arne Jacobsen and Poul Kjaerholm, Yngve Ekström was at the core of a generation of designers who made the concept "Scandinavian Modern" famous all over the world. With a keen eye, he designed Swedese's furniture, the head office building, logo, catalogues and personalised Christmas cards including their own poems. And so on. The most well known design of Yngve Ekström's extensive portfolio is the Lamino armchair from 1956, which is still manufactured and sold all over the world. In 1999 the Lamino was voted the Twentieth Century's Best Swedish Furniture Design by the Swedish interior design magazine Sköna Hem.
Fellisimo Design House introduces Feliciti, a new line of home accesories for kitchen, bedroom, office, living space and bath. Derived from the word “happiness” Feliciti is not only a product line, but a lifestyle – a lifestyle where the inspiration is life at its most peaceful and serene.
Felissimo Design House is located at 10 West 56th Street, New York, New York. Their store hours are Monday thru Saturday, 11 am - 6 pm,
Friday 11 am - 8 pm.
Its a well known fact that things that dissapear often reappear down the sofa. Sometimes you find things that you thought were lost forever down there. That doesn’t mean normal sofas are suitable for storing things. Thankfully Gyugiu Chyon and John Stanislav Sadar, the duo behind the design company Little Wonder , have capitalized on the sofa’s storage space potential with their SleepSexWorkEatDream sofa. It consists of a seating area that is perforated with eight holes and are help in place using metal cylinders that are inserted into the holes. Depending on how you choose to position the cushions, SleepSexWorkEatDream can be used for all the activites its name suggests. More information at http://www.littlewonder-design.com
The Craig Konyk designed New York flagship for Malin + Goetz grooming products recently received an honorable mention in Travel and Leisure Magazine in their best retail design category. Malin + Goetz is a modern apothecary located in the Chelsea neighborhood of New York City. You can view a store tour on their website.
This month the French, Cinematheque Francaise, grandly opened up in its new quarters in Frank Gehry's "fantastic" building in the east of Paris right on the edge of the Parc de Bercy. Orginally comissioned as the new home for the American Center, a hub for experimental music, dance, and theater in Paris since 1932, the building opened in 1994 with great fanfare. Gehry himself has said that his creation reminded him of a dancer with her "tutu" in the middle. For me, the building resembles nothing more than the kind of house you read about in fairy tales, with all the rooms going up, up, up to the sky (not very practical, in fact: architects had to entirely re-do the inside of the building to adapt it to the needs of the new Cinematheque). Dominique Brard, the french architect chosen by a jury for the $41 Million rehab says it was possible to reconfigure the interior without altering the stone exterior, and form the start Gehry gave his blessing for change. Gehry told the jury not to revere the building.
Jen Mood Paris: One often thinks of librarians, drama teachers, and a stylin’ great aunt when they think of eyeglass holders. But once we saw these from French designer Jen Mood, we wanted glasses of our own. Made from vegetable resin in a variety of mod and art nouveau shapes and colors, the “chains” drape boldly down the back or front, and can clearly be worn sans glasses. With one of these draped around our necks, we’ll never misplace our glasses again!
Type Z is the brand of the fashion future. Hot, fast, and just marvellous, these shoes will turn any wardrobe fashion chic. A confection of simply smashing styles in sharp colors and fresh silhouettes made of rich textures and materials. Type Z is where you can find that perfect pair of shoes for a fashion edge.
Buy them On-Line at Zappos.com
The Dwell Home is for sale, with bids starting at $550,000.
From the Official Press Release: “Raleigh, NC – November 8 -- The most celebrated modern prefab home in America is now offered for sale. An open house will take place from Thursday, November 17 through Sunday, November 20 at 196 Beech Hill, Pittsboro NC. Bids begin at $550,000. Directions and more information can be found at www.Wieler.com”
Set to rise 54 stories above Manhattan, the crystalline Bank of America Tower at One Bryant Park will incorporate an unrivaled number of environmentally friendly technologies, from its windows to its toilets. The building will supply 70 percent of its own energy with an on-site natural-gas-burning power plant. For climate control, One Bryant Park will rely on excess thermal energy from the power plant, a groundwater heat exchanger that is the first of its type, and an air-conditioning system cooled by ice made with excess power during off-peak hours. The building will even have waterless urinals and use water collected from the roof to flush toilets. Together, these systems are designed to earn the building a Platinum rating—the highest possible—from the U.S. Green Building Council when construction is completed in 2008.
Maximilian Riedel (11th generation) presents his first glass series. The Riedel connoisseur will be surprised to find that this new glass series has something missing – there is no stem or base. So what is “O”? Riedel “O” is the new innovative take on the wine tumbler. In short: “O” is the ideal glass for every day use and for every occasion. It is fun, feels good to hold, looks trendy and it works!
The designs of “O” are based on the benchmark shapes of Riedel Vinum. For the first time in glass history the design parameters such as shape of tumbler, size and diameter of rim, have been fine turned to enhance the world’s most important grape varietals. “O” is available as: Cabernet/ Merlot, Pinot/Nebbiolo, Syrah/Shiraz, Chardonnay, Viognier/Chardonnay, Riesling/Sauvignon.
Buy them online @ Wine.com or Amazon.com
Pierre Charpin was voted Designer of the Year at this year’s Salon du Meuble in Paris, but he never set out to be a designer. Initially qualifying in fine art, Charpin later became more interested in the function of objects and how they’re produced. While working alongside George J Sowden in Milan, he was spotted by Ettore Sottsass. But it wasn’t until 2002, when he presented his ‘Stands’ collection at the Design Gallery Milano, that his work got the attention it deserves and commissions began to roll in from producers such as Zanotta and Montina. This year’s Salon saw the launch of his ‘Oggetti Lenti’ collection at the Design Gallery Milano. The result of two years’ work, it consists of 28 objects that, although extremely simple in design, are very sophisticated in their execution
Rucksack Haus is a portable extension that hangs from the steel cables fastened to its host building. Stefan Eberstadt, and artist now based in Munich, Germany, worked with engineer Thomas Beck to build the house last fall. He claims that addition can be suspended from most buildings as long as they structurally sound.
A head for business combined with a love for all things Scandinavian inspired Catarina Norman to develop the idea for Flicka. She recognized that while San Francisco readily embraces new cultures, design trends and shopping experiences, the city lacked a destination for Scandinavian style. Refining and developing the concept over the past year with Malin Leschly, a Swedish transplant with a Stanford MBA, it became clear that Scandinavia's unique blend of tailored, modern designs, coupled with respect for tradition and quality, would fit perfectly into San Francisco - a hotbed of innovation set against a Victorian backdrop.
Flicka showcases Scandinavian lifestyle with a variety of women's fashion and design items. Flicka's products meld a clean, simple look with a fashion edge from designers who embody the Scandinavian ideal of being trendy yet timeless. The Flicka boutique at 1932 Fillmore Street is a cool, comfortable and inviting place, infused with Scandinavian style.
Flicka is located at 1932 Fillmore Street, between Pine and Bush. There is metered parking along Fillmore Street, and there is a big parking lot with 2-hour parking one block away on California, between Fillmore and Steiner.
About ten years ago a lamp by Pablo Pardo began appearing in hip restaurants in San Francisco and New York. Composed of a tear-drop, cast aluminum body and a sandblasted shade, the Sophie Lamp turned an ordinary table top into a dreamscape for intimate conversations. Coming from a family of designers, the work of Venezuelan-born Pablo Pardo is deceptively simple, often made from no more than a couple of materials, beautifully crafted and devoid of superflous details. Once in use, however, Pablo’s lamps take on a new character that is much more experiential than simply visual. It is the experience rather than the look of an object that Pablo sought in his designs.
Continue reading "Pablo Pardo" »
Living Homes: With an immanent launch in Santa Monica, Living Homes is preparing to debut a structure that incorporates the key elements of eco-friendly home construction with an aesthetic that gracefully updates classic Southern California modern style.
With legendary architect Ray Kappe as their first designer, this aesthetic is coming straight from its progenitor. Founder of Sci-Arc and recipient of numerous awards, Kappe's residential work "has been characterized as 'the apotheosis of the California wood house.' Clear systems, harmony with nature, and environmental considerations are hallmarks of his approach."
Via Inhabitat
This fashion line designed by a four-man California collective is most aptly described as ’70s surfer-goes-to-prep-school. A little bit rumpled, a little bit whimsical, while still maintaining some semblance of traditional “class”, wares include illustrated t-shirts, hoodies, khakis and button downs.
Buy Trovata On-line at Revolve Clothing or Active Endeavors
The T-shirt has long been a fashion staple amongst teenagers worldwide, functioning as the medium of choice for subcultural communication for nearly 40 years. While many corporate brands still treat the common T-shirt as a mere billboard to propel their oversized logos into posterity, the trend has been to adopt a more creative, artistic approach in the temple of the tee. These canvases carry the silk screened and ironed-on legacies of countless anonymous artists. When Yoshi Kawasaki recognized the possibility of harnessing this network of potential “wall space”, his current T-shirt line, 2K by Gingham, was born.
Continue reading "2K by Gingham" »
The ultimate guide to the world's most special places to stay, from the author of the best-selling Hip Hotelsseries—featuring eighty remarkable destinations, many new to this book.
Herbert Ypma, creator of a whole new genre of style and travel books, has selected a galaxy of destination hotels that make travel dreams become reality. Every one is, in every sense, a Highly Individual Place.
This large-format, worldwide guide is divided into six sections—Europe, Africa, Asia, Oceania, North America, and South America—each with its own introduction and atmospheric historical map. You will be tempted, among a host of other alluring possibilities, by a stay in a classic Italian palazzo with a romantic rose garden, a magnificent mud Casbah set in a lush oasis, a traditional Japanese inn with a Zen ambience, a contemporary Tasmanian lodge overlooking idyllic turquoise waters, a rugged log cabin in the heart of the American Wild West, and an elegant colonial-style ranch set in acres of horse-riding country.
Featuring over 1,000 of Ypma's beautiful color photographs, this spectacular book will inspire and delight travelers everywhere.
Buy it from Amazon.com
CYDWOQ shoes are quality hand sculpted shoes with gracefully contoured soles that follow the shape of the foot. Lines creating geometric images on the foot, in contrast to the flowing curve of the sole, elevate the shoes to an art form.
Each CYDWOQ product is handcrafted by highly skilled craftsmen who take genuine pride in their work.
The CYDWOQ shoe line includes CYDWOQ Women's, CYDWOQ Men's, CYDWOQ Vintage Women's and CYDWOQ Vintage Men's.
The concept of creating architectural shoes that combine comfort with unique design was introduced in CYDWOQ's 1996 Spring/Summer line. In September of 1996, the CYDWOQ factory was established in Burbank, California to manufacture the shoes to the exact specifications and quality standards required by CYDWOQ designer, Rafi Balouzian.
You can buy them on-line at their website.
The Yestermorrow Design/Build School is a dynamic learning community exploring and teaching the integrated creative process of designing and building a sustainable future.
Yestermorrow offers over 100 hands-on courses per year in design, construction, woodworking, and architectural craft and offers a variety of courses concentrating in sustainable design. Now in its 25th year, Yestermorrow is one of the only design/build schools in the country, teaching both design and construction skills. Our 1-day to 2-week hands-on courses are taught by top architects, builders, and craftspeople from across the country. For people of all ages and experience levels, from novice to professional.
A contemporary take on the classic candelabra, this Swedish design in chrome casts a soft accent light anywhere in your home. Electric with a convenient switch on the cord. Eight 12 volt bulbs included. I saw these in my Chiasso catalog but you can also buy them online.
From Sweden to your toes. Designer Pia Wallen has created the perfect unisex slipper for men and women. With her Scandinavian design approach she has created something comfortable yet modern – totally wearable and warm. Treat your toes to something nice. These slippers are made of 100% wool with a rubber texture on soles.
Pia Wallén has specialized on developing a variety of felt products with high quality and innovative design. Her most required products are the felt slippers with white stitching, the exclusive jewellery in sterling silver and the Crux blanket which comes in a very limited edition.
After 20 years of designing she is still true to the material she once started with – felt. However, the products today have had many years of refinement.
Buy Pia Wallen slippers online at Modern Seed
Described by Interior Design magazine as “exploding the definition of the chandelier,” Jonas Wannfors Kristall pendant is a shining triumph of material exploration. Designed to resemble the corona that surrounds most bright lights, the splayed star shape is created using bent acrylic rods, which carry light from a single halogen bulb at the top of the chandelier. Crackles in the interior of the rods further refract and maximize the light intensity. Because of the unique materials used, the chandelier sheds a combination of diffused and direct lighting, highlighted by each rod tip appearing as an individual pinpoint of light. Included halogen bulb will burn for 5,000 hours. UL listed.
Jonas Wannfors Design is part of the design cooperative Electric Boogie. Electric Boogie is a collaboration between several designers who do everything from art magazines to web applications to interior and product design.
In the United States the Kristall Chandelier can be bought at Design Within Reach.
The One Club teams up with Stash DVD magazine to present Onescreen — 60 minutes of film, commercials, viral, video, and design from 2005. Keeping with the One Club's commitment to raise the standards of advertising by opening up the medium to extra-commercial work, this program offers new output from the Designers Republic, Lobo, Nakd, MTV, and PostPanic; music videos from Nine Inch Nails, Alias, and SoCal's Valley Arena; illustrations from Derrick Hodgson and Dalek; and a rare chance to see what's pumping out of ad agencies Wieden + Kennedy Tokyo Lab, Modernista!, and TBWA Paris. DJs SMC and DRM keep things lively all night.
Continue reading "Onescreen" »
R.A.G. (541 Octavia St. San Francisco , 415-621-7718) stands for "Residents Apparel Gallery." The funky collective shows off edgy, affordable men's and women's clothes from about 50 local designers. Bios tacked to the racks give the scoop on these up-and-comers like Chelsea Snyder, who has "been sewing since I was 10" and now creates placemat-size paisley miniskirts. R.A.G. doesn’t choose to have a specific taste instead prefers to showcase a wide range of styles ranging the gamut from deconstructed to very tailored pieces to represent the very diverse and unique styles in our community. R.A.G. currently showcases 40+ designers and rotates in a few new designers monthly
AvroKO is an idea driven, integrated design and concept group that creates high-style architecture, brands and environments. As a collective of artistic abilities and disciplines, AvroKO designs with a unique, “open-media” format. This has led them to projects as varied as curating art shows for Sony and Banana Republic, producing graphics and branding work for clients such as Adidas, Baby Phat, Jennifer Lopez and Rimmel, as well as award-winning, concept based architecture for multiple New York restaurants, including PUBLIC, Sapa and Odea
They also have plans to design furniture and begin selling apartments.
L.A. based line Evil Genius brings you innovative designs with a casual yet punk rock feel. Composed primarily of jersey knit material, Evil Genius pieces reinvent what a t-shirt should and can be.
Buy Evil Genius online at Chocosho.com
United Nude is a design company co-founded by Dutch architect Rem D Koolhaas and English shoemaker Galahad JD Clark. The idea is that the company is neither an architecture firm nor a shoe company but a design firm producing collections as a result of a constant stream of inspiration rather than broad seasonal ranges.United nude successfully launched with the Mobius Shoe and has plans to move into clothing, furniture, bags, eye-wear and a book.United Nude shoes and sandals are inspired by the Barcelona chair design of famous architect Mies van der Rohe and based on the infinity loop of the Mobius strip. The result is a divinely elegant, architecturally streamlined and highly fashionable shoe.
Buy United Nude online at Zappos.com
Palladium is a French company based in a rural city close to Lyon, France. Since its founding in 1947, Palladium has sold more than 60 million pairs of shoes worldwide. To this day, each pair of Palladiums is constructed with the same basic elements as the originals: natural materials, authentic colors and a lug sole designed for maximum durability and functionality.
In 1950, they introduced the rubber soled Pallabrousse in beige canvas. Since then, it has been the preferred shoe for the French Army, scouts, hunters and world travelers. Today, the Pallabrousse is the same as it has always been. Versions of the original are worn everywhere in the world by all generations looking for shoes with original styling and utilitarian functionality.
Since 1998, Palladium has been a subsidiary of Consolidated Shoe Company located in Lynchburg, VA. Palladium shoes are sold worldwide to a very focused group of better retailers, select department and athletic stores.
They can also be bought online at Amazon.com or Zappos.com
The trappings of 20th century Americana are frequently evoked in Ted Boerner’s furniture: a Lucite table that resembles a 1940s juice tumbler, a sleek upholstered chaise with the silhouette of a folding pool lounger, a dining table with a Lincoln Log like base. Ted Boerner’s childhood summers in rural Wisconsin were filled with midcentury modernist inspiration, much of which stemmed from his grandfather’s rustic log cabin. Outfitted with Eames chairs, a hand built modern staircase and a tangible patina of historical vitality, it was a setting steeped in the same simplicity and well-wrought comfort that Boerner has become known for in his furniture designs
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Celebrating San Francisco’s unique built environment and design community, Architecture and the City is the first series of its kind in the Bay Area to feature architectural tours, film screenings, exhibitions, design lectures and more. Now in its second year, the month-long celebration hopes to engage members of the public and design enthusiasts, as well as architects and designers, with a deeper appreciation for San Francisco’s rich architectural and design community. In honor of the second annual celebration, Mayor Gavin Newsom has officially proclaimed this period of September and October a time for San Franciscans to celebrate "Architecture and the City."
"Apex" which means the highest point, "museum" which is a place of artistic appreciation & value. Similar to a museum setting we work in exhibitions putting out 2 themes each season.
Apexmuseum designs sophisticated clothes which encompasses looks of military, classic, college preppie & peaceful modern. The logo - the lightning bolt resembles the sky & the building represents land - is where land and sky meet as one.
Apexmuseum was established in 2002 with experience dating all the way back to 1984 with a manufacturing/design background with a variety of today's lifestyle and outerwear companies. Our garments are manufactured with 100% quality & professionalism overseas. We work hard to pedal our heart's work across the atlas. "No Good Thing Ever Dies"
Buy Apexmuseum Clothes @ Chocosho
Lisbon based e-studio has recently developed an organic concrete. The Betão Orgânico has a permeable surface which allows plants to grow out of it. This new material exploits concrete’s capacity to trap water and retain humidity, so the substance can nourish plants even during a dry spell. The organic concrete makes it possible to create permeable living surfaces, allowing architects and urban designers to incorporate a bit of greenery directly into their designs.
Click on the Projectos link to find the link to Betão Orgânico
Via Inhabitat
Splashpad is a wireless power solution to power up your mobile phone and other portable devices like iPods and PSP's simply by placing them on a mouse-mat-sized pad called the SplashPad. No physical connection is required between the pad and the devices. The Splashpower solution is based around technology that uses inductive coupling as a means of power transfer - which means you don’t need any wires, connectors or contacts between the pad and the device. Products using the Splashpower solution are not yet available in the shops. They are currently working with top-tier consumer electronics companies to incorporate Splashpower wireless power technology into their devices and aftermarket products. Exact product launch timescales have not yet been announced.
Family owned and loved, Kowalski has managed to find it's way onto some of the coolest shelves in the coolest retails outlets globally.
Found in the cute little boutique store on the Champs-Elysees in Paris, the fashion metropolis of Milan, The hustle and bustle of Tokyo, Covent Garden in London, Soho in New York, the sunshine of Sydney.
They come from a small city named Elche, in the southern part of Spain, and have been written up as the next big thing. They are Kowalski made from leather, canvas, and suede with a hand crafted vintage look. The collection possess shoes modeled on an original running spike, that classic sand shoe that sits in everyone's wardrobe, slides and sandals, a collection for the ladies....a cute trainer with charms and jewels threaded through the laces. Kowalski, a shoe you would expect to find at the bottom of your closet after that once in a decade clean up.....will now be counted amongst your favorites. If you dare to be different then Kowalski will give you the edge !
Today, Jon Proechel and Patrick Reed wear their hair long and shaggy, rock-video style.
These former Marines are now self-taught fashion designers, investing about $10,000 of their savings in the endeavor, and they are launching their first collection of hip, military-inspired, his-and-hers styles under the label Poetic Rage. They dream of owning a chain of boutiques someday. But for starters, they'll sell their collection of shredded jeans, camo-patched jackets and canvas pistol belts on their Web site, poeticrageclothing.com. It will be open for business by the end of September.
emerge*nyc: New to the West Village, this store is kind of a bazaar for up-and-coming designers and artists. Designers can rent space without taking on the financial risk of opening a boutique. Consisting of 26 store-within-store boutiques, emerge*nyc is similar to Fred Segal in layout but you won’t find Rock and Republic jeans here, as the goods are definitely more Nylon than US Weekly.
A mixture of artists and products will be selected. At emerge*nyc 65 bleecker you will be able to buy fashion, jewelry, accessories, art, cosmetics, flowers, limited edition books, eye wear and much more. emerge*nyc 65 bleecker is a department store like no other. Here the customer can purchase designer items directly from the source. Direct interaction with the designer or the creator of each product is part of the process. Vintage and antique items come to life at emerge*nyc. The individual that acquired these precious items can tell you the story behind them. At emerge*nyc you will feel the energy of the new and experience the process of making. You will catch the designer in the act of creating and maybe get yourself involved in the final result. No ready made items wil be sold at emerge*nyc. No mass production is involved in what you are selling or buying.
emerge*nyc
65 Bleecker Street
New York, NY
p: 212.358.0255
When was the last time your bag came in Plum with Avocado accents? Well, let me say that the choice of color is not the only innovative approach that George, Gina & Lucy take, when it comes to their new line of bags!
16 different styles with 13 different color combinations leave for a lot of room when it comes to experimenting… but the definite winner are the bag’s names. ‘Bakerboy’ or ‘Her Mess’ are just two of the truly wonderful names that have been created here for an extremely imaginative range…
You can Buy George, Gina & Lucy at Yook.com
Swedish Design Expo 2005
October 1, 2005, 11AM-7PM
San Francisco Design Center, The Galleria
101 Henry Adams St. (Townsend St.)
San Francisco, CA 94103, United States
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