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Showing posts from May, 2013

Summer starts today...

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Pass the spoon please

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There have been numerous times in which we would over-season our food due to a lack of control from the traditional salt and pepper shakers. There is also a prevalent problem with traditional salt shakers in which the humidity from a recently-cooked meal will eventually build up and clog the openings at the top of the shaker. This design would seem to circumnavigate that issue entirely. With that said, I love that its multi-functionality does not encumber its minimalist design. Sogum Huchuhuchu  is a minimalist design created by Korean-based designer  Jaemin Jaeminlee . The function of the design is to allow users to deposit small amounts of salt or pepper into the recessed area of the spoon. Not only does this allow the user to have more control over how much salt or pepper needs to be dispensed, but also gives him/her a visual cue of the amount of salt or pepper being used for future reference.

Concrete design

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This series of plates by Nir Meiri are made from two basic materials: concrete and wood. We think that the feet look like ballerina toes, delicately balancing the treats.

Concrete thinking

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Ivanka Beton is a Hungarian concrete artist and designer whose Hübler Applied Literature is a collaboration between the designer and fine artist János Hübler . More (or less) concrete bookcases here...

We're hooked

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Urban Butik has some new products launching from Born in Sweden , including this coatrack that looks as though its hooks are peeling up off your wall.

Shopping bag bag

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KimKim Artifacts creates simple leather bags that pay homage to ordinary products. Neat.

Variations on a kettle...

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Variations on a Kettle by French designer Jean-Baptiste Fastrez takes the plain tea kettle and creates one-of-a-kind hybrids of mass-produced components and handmade containers by artisans.

For the birds

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Who says modern can’t have a sense of humor or a dash of whimsy? Certainly not Bill Playso, the head of the Australian lifestyle brand Playso . He designed the Koo Koo mailbox in a stylized shape of a bird to bring some fun to something that’s normally relegated to simply functional. Working with industrial designer Justin Hutchinson, the avian themed mail holder came to life, making it designed and manufactured in their homeland of Australia. We love how the wing is open to hold magazines and larger mail!

Bright idea

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The team at Sputnik Zurich aim to keep bikers and pedestrians both visible and fashionable when they’re out in the urban world with their high visibility bags . Taking inspiration from the streets for its material and production, the company’s aim was to help bring safety to the complex and intertwining transportation system that left individuals in risky situations. Their solution: bags to hold your stuff while at the same time alerting traffic to your position on the streets. The concept and design seems fitting since the bags are made from safety vests you see joggers wearing at night or construction workers on site. Their idea is to use building containers on construction sites around the city as production locations, bringing a locally produced product to the people in those locations as a way to help shine attention on urban development. Sustainable. Fashionable. We like.

The most interesting Cabinetmaker in the World...

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While visiting our friends at Skovby during the recent High Point Furniture market, we saw a picture of this guy and asked about him. We were told he is the World's Greatest Cabinetmaker. He is the craftsman who creates some of the amazing multi-functional, intricate pieces we fill our showrooms with. Take a look at what he makes...

11 Homes Made From Shipping Containers

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Photo by Andres Garcia Lachner Benjamin Garcia Saxe Architecture designed this orange container home for clients in San Jose, Costa Rica. The goal was to provide them with the the spectacular views of the natural landscape. The roof between the two containers is made from the scrap metal. Copenhagen-based architecture firm arcgency created the “WFH House” in Wuxi, China, out of three stacked shipping containers. Upcycled steel shipping containers were used for a steel frame, which was then clad with a sustainable bamboo facade. The home includes a rainwater collection system, solar cell-clad green roof, skylights, and permeable paving. Photo courtesy of the Walker Art Center This structure, which was exhibited at the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York City and the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis is called the MDU, or Mobile Dwelling Unit, and was designed by Lot-EK . It is meant to travel with its dweller to long term destinations. When traveli

Not the same old grind!

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Gregg Palm marries exceptional craftsmanship with perfect functionality. “My passion is to transform everyday objects into prized pieces,” he says. “Each is an original. The texture, strength, grain and infinite variation in wood inspire me, and seeing each piece come together gives me a feeling of complete satisfaction. I felt as if all parts of me became whole working with metal and wood.” G3 Studios was launched in 2003 by Palm and Yvonne Holland, his wife and business manager. The couple introduced their one-of-a-kind products at art fairs and galleries throughout the Midwest. He is a Buyers Market of American Craft exhibitor, and today his flat- and turned-wood products are in demand throughout North America. Math figures prominently in the artist’s complex process; each and every component must fit together precisely. Palm uses no stains or dyes, only natural woods from Forest Stewardship Council suppliers around the world, and each item undergoes multiple stag

A drop...

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This Drop bank from Portuguese designer Rita Botelho is made of glazed ceramic and inspired by gravity and the idea that a rain drop falling from the sky is akin to a penny dropping into a bank.