air crosswalk

Air crosswalk by Art Lebedev Studio.

Air crosswalk is an ingenious solution for increased pedestrian safety.  Not only does it provide greater illumination on the street walker, it greater signifies “crossing” to the driver.  But don’t get too comfortable New Yorkers, because unfortunately it can’t make the drivers actually care about avoiding you.

The first of these crosswalks are to be installed in Tumen, Russia in 2009.

+via: Design East

nimbus

Designer Igor Pinigin’s low water comsumption wash sink.  Ingenious idea, but I reserve judgement untill I try it. 

dish rack

If I was not a renter I would tear through those short little cabinets above my sink and replace them with this:

Actually, I might tear through the entire thing and draw a little inspiration from Kevin Mark Low and his small projects collection. Nice details can turn seemingly mundane objects into pleasant surprises.   No object, not even a dish rack should be too ordinary to make beautiful.  This dish rack is easily lovable for eliminating the need for a drip tray and utilizing the sink instead.  It nice detailing is what made it catch my eye. A few more shots of the metal and wood connections:

 

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the color of salt ponds

Who would have thought that salt evaporation ponds could be so amazing? I’ve just drawn a little inspiration for my next painting! 

WOW!! Be sure and check out the rest.

+via: kottke

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TRASH

If you live in NYC or have spent any time in the city you know how large piles of trash bags can destroy your morning and evening walks. Well, how’s this for TRASH . . .

Anycoloryoulike developed a citywide art intervention that has been replacing normal trash bags with designer trash bags from local artists. The TRASH appears on strings of blocks throughout the city and you too can get involved.  An extra plus in the project is that each bag is biodegradable and treated with repellant for Rodents of Unusual Size and things like that.  

+via: designundersky

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sustainability for your ipod

I just read a review of this sustainable ipod sound dock, the Vers2X. It comes in cherry, bamboo, or walnut straight from plantation forests. It runs on 56 watts which is 50% less that its counterparts which are also full of lead, mercury, hexavalent chromium, among other hazardous materials.

I must say from a design stand point it is much nicer than the others as well. It has a slight retro feel as well as being very modern.

Check out the site (above) for more images, it has a few different options. I’ll be adding this to my list of wants. Priced between $149 and $179, It is not out of my price range!!

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twist chair

Who needs four legs?  Not Nick Ross or his twist chair.  For those with a little piece of dirt to call their own.  You could get several and arrange them at different heights, it would be like a garden of chairs.

+via: yanko design

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New Bar + Club Design: Book Review

In many countries and cultures, bars and clubs are a social staple. Harkening back to the days of the “waterhole”, the purpose has pretty much stayed the course: to socialize and, more importantly, quench thirst.

In modern times, however, a third function has arisen – to become a breeding ground for panache designers’ wild ideas.  While many bare-bone bars exist to help one simply forget about the day, in the large high-culture cities around the world high-technology, cutting edge design, and trendy flair come together to create unique social experiences.

For the past several years, Abbeyville Press has been there to help document this strong sub-genre of design and architecture;  New Bar + Club Design is their latest installment.

New Bar + Club Design is a photographic journey through the worlds most popular spots of the “cocktail culture”. Though chock full of beautiful full-spread photos (for us visually oriented), there is also well-written textual descriptions and architectural plans (for when you need more “in-depth” information).  A guide for design and inspiration, or a traveling itinerary for night-lifers and bar-lovers around the world, New Bar + Club Design is a fun book to have in any library.

You can buy here. (Abbeville Press)
Also check out theAbbeville Blog

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summer lounging

Spending time outdoors this summer?  Designer Patricia Urquiola has taken the traditional woven look for outdoor furniture and reinterpreted it in a contemporary style.

Her chairs make me want to curl up with a book under a shade tree and doze away the afternoons. The Pattern and texture of Patricia’s Canasta Collection is unique and the serving tables to match make the chairs that much more interesting.

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fast food slowly

A set of tableware by designer Pearl Chung helps you slow down and enjoy your food – even if it is from McDonalds or the like.

According to Pearl:

“The pleasure of Fast Food exists as I can still see people enjoy eating it because it is delicious. In Slow Food culture, apart from the quality of food, it is important that whether people really enjoy what they are eating and whether they can find the pleasure from it. Therefore, if people really enjoy the process of food consumption, no matter what kind of food it is, all kinds of food can actually be Slow Food. I initiated a task to design a set of products to encourage people enjoy their Fast Food consumption and to have more sitting down occassion with the others while eating Fast Food.”

The design is part of a collection of works from students at Central St. Martins. You can view more on their flickr photostream.

+ via: Gem Sty