Heightening awareness of design-driven objects.

The art of an election. 2008.

November 7th, 2008 by PRand | 2 Comments

The art of an election. 2008.

An election wrap up: more creative generated in presidential election 2008. Passion trumps strategy — the bulk unsolicited, unapproved by either candidate.

Tags: Featured


Poo bags. Shit happens.

October 28th, 2008 by PRand | No Comments

Poo bags. Shit happens.

Creativity at work again: turning a negative into a positive. Yes, they’re a green product, 100% biodegradable.
Producer: Jungeschatel
Designer: Jungeschatel
via thedieline.com
Want to make a 100% biodegradable political message? dogs for democrats

Tags: Home · Pets


abc3d

October 24th, 2008 by PRand | No Comments

abc3d

I am reminded that this book is supposed to go on sale October 2008 but have done nothing yet to see if true…

Design student, Erin Weartz, alerted her typography class and me to this movie. Fun!
The french artist is Marion Bataille. The French ABC pop-up book won’t be available until October 2008.

Tags: Artist · Gift idea · Talent


Utilo lemon squeezer.

October 8th, 2008 by PRand | 1 Comment

Utilo lemon squeezer.

Here is an innovative, quirkly little product that may make a big (lemon) splash. The UTILO, Lemon Squeezer designed by Nicole Schaffert. Just insert spout into your lemon and squeeze for quick and easy seed-free juice. Made of stainless steel.
Producer: Blomus was established in 2001 to innovatively manufacture stainless steel items utilizing modern design. Blomus [...]

Tags: Designer · Gift idea · Producer


Gamila teastick(s).

October 8th, 2008 by PRand | 2 Comments

Gamila teastick(s).

With cold weather just around the corner, tea anyone?
Gems Teastick
The Teastick GEMS bring new light to your cup of tea. Now with two brilliant colors so sparkling clear you can see the steeping tea bloom. With classic “scoop it, slide it, steep it” functionality The Teastick GEMS are as useful as they are beautiful in [...]

Tags: Gift idea · Home · Kitchen · Objects


Coffee for One.

October 8th, 2008 by PRand | 5 Comments

Coffee for One.

This cool coffee maker offers up a smart industrial design which cleanly integrates a ceramic mug in place of a carafe.
The WMF1 Coffee Pad takes a single portioned coffee filter and can brew up a fresh cup of Java in about 1 minute. The compact coffee maker features a clean white design, with a [...]

Tags: Gift idea · Home · Kitchen · Objects · Producer


Cannondale. Collapsable Jackknife.

September 24th, 2008 by PRand | No Comments

Cannondale. Collapsable Jackknife.

Have been sitting on this post awhile getting into the mood for collapsable concepts and product. Though the “Jackknife” was created in 2006 it was worth posting as the styling and design was noteworthy.

The concept was designed by Philippe Holthuizen and Rodrigo Clavel for a contest sponsored by Cannondale Europe. Both are graduate students of [...]

Tags: Concept · Cycles · Designer · Transportation


Google G1. Android.

September 24th, 2008 by PRand | No Comments

Google G1. Android.

Google offers up a new vision of computing and it isn’t about desktops or laptops. It’s mobile. The Google phone has arrived. The phone shots are T-Mobile’s G1. But this is a design resource and the phone is not our focus. It is the software named Android.

What is Android if you already haven’t heard?
On [...]

Tags: Gadgets · New · Play · Producer


Flatterware. Collapsable cup.

September 24th, 2008 by PRand | No Comments

Flatterware. Collapsable cup.

Like sophisticated Transformers, these products fold to save space and to reveal a new function. The Flatterware cup body is molded out of a single piece of flexible plastic, with a helical structure allowing it to spring open and close with ease.
Just give it a simple twist, the bright plastic disc turns into an [...]

Tags: Home · Kitchen · New · Objects · Outdoors · Play · Producer


Porta-bote.

September 24th, 2008 by PRand | No Comments

Porta-bote.

This summer something caught my eye on top of a neighbor’s SUV. It looked like a lighter - than - air aircraft wing but found out it was a collapsable boat. It looks much better in vitro than in these photos.
Adding collapsability into the design criteria can be a bit of a challenge. Here is [...]

Tags: Producer · Transportation · Water


Megane coupe. Concept.

September 17th, 2008 by PRand | No Comments

Megane coupe. Concept.

As with many of the concepts shown this year of the Renault Megane Coupe foreshadows a production version that’s set to be released at a later date. Of course, don’t expect the gullwing doors or the futuristic interior to find their way into production, but you can get a general idea of what Renault has [...]

Tags: Autos · Concept · Green · Producer · Transportation


Top 10 hybrids.

September 16th, 2008 by PRand | No Comments

Top 10 hybrids.

source = http://autos.yahoo.com/articles/autos_content_landing_pages/469/top-10-2008-hybrids (show cars.com though!!)
Hybrid rankings have often been simplistic: Most are little more than lists of the highest-mileage models on the market. Here, we ranked hybrids based on how much fuel savings they get when compared to their non-hybrid version, as well as how much all that saved gas is going to cost [...]

Tags: Autos · Transportation


Christopher Conte. Bio sculpture.

September 11th, 2008 by PRand | 2 Comments

Christopher Conte. Bio sculpture.

Robots. A very interesting topic. DA recently showcased a sewer inspector, the world’s most powerful per the manufacturer, a very practical solution. But what about robotics that inspire art? An example: Christopher Conte. By day posing as a designer of prosthetics and making artificial limbs for amputees in New York. At night and on weekends(?) [...]

Tags: Art · Artist · Designer · Play


Nau is back.

September 9th, 2008 by PRand | 6 Comments

Nau is back.

On May 2, 2008, Nau announced that it was closing shop. The reason? They could not get financing to continue operations. If you don’t know who Nau is, they’re a uniquely new business—selling eco-friendly clothes with a unique business model: brick and mortar stores that displayed examples of their product but the purchases were online.
Ironically [...]

Tags: Attire · Green · Objects · Overheard · Play · Producer · Retailer


Envirosight SuperVision 250.

September 4th, 2008 by PRand | 3 Comments

Envirosight SuperVision 250.

“A sewer worker is like a brain surgeon. We’re both specialists.” —Ed Norton, The Honeymooners.
Ed’s fingernails would be a lot cleaner if this robotic sewer “crawler” existed. Though not an object of beauty this robot is designed to go where you would rather not. It’s estimated that 850 billion gallons of sewer and storm water [...]

Tags: Equipment · New · Producer · Work


Mr. Impossible. The chair.

September 4th, 2008 by PRand | 6 Comments

Mr. Impossible. The chair.

Phillipe Starck’s latest — a plastic chair — earned it’s name on the first sketch. Mr. Impossible. The designer said it couldn’t be made. The challenge being the weld. Using existing methods to weld the seat and the legs would create an unsightly seam. Kartell’s engineers had to go the blue water route. The [...]

Tags: Designer · Featured · Furniture · Objects · Producer · Seating · Talent


Hardcore Finnish design.

June 23rd, 2008 by PRand | 1 Comment

Hardcore Finnish design.

It’s summer in our hemisphere. Long days. Warm weather. Spending more time outdoors. Here is a innovative product that you make yourself at the beach or on a picnic — the cutlery! What fun!
The cutlery (Do!) and an extension cord (Thrush-In) that stores nicely in its own felt container is designed by Arihiro Miyake. The [...]

Tags: Designer · Energy · Events · Furniture · Home · Kitchen · Objects


iPhone. 2008 Creativity Award.

May 28th, 2008 by PM | No Comments

iPhone. 2008 Creativity Award.

In a highly extraordinary example of creativity and high-design, the iPhone captures the 2008 Creativity Awards Grand Prize Winner. Why so unusual? This event is judged by the advertising community where ad campaigns and 30-second spots typically rule.
A POV from one of the judges: “The iPhone. Iconic design or iconic brand? Simply put Apple [...]

Tags: Awards · Gadgets · Objects · Play · Producer · What's hot!


Home. Maintenance. Safety.

April 7th, 2008 by PRand | No Comments

Home. Maintenance. Safety.

Worried about space? The Dyson DP24 is for you. This version of the top-shelf Ball, measures only 29.6 inches tall and weighs 11.6 pounds. And its sucks the color off the carpet. Visit Dyson DP24
Home Depot was surprised by the fire-safety statistics. Their new design lab creates Home Hero. The goal was to create a [...]

Tags: Designer · Gift idea · New · Producer · Retailer


Gravity free. 2008

April 7th, 2008 by PRand | No Comments

Gravity free. 2008

“The brain is a category buster.”
-Elizabeth Phelps, American Cognitive Scientist, 2007
GRAVITY FREE is a truly unique multidiscipline design conference. Each year we pick a theme. Then we select 22 of the most passionate designers, design thinkers and innovators on the planet from 20 different design disciplines to help [...]

Tags: Events


Serious Play. Art center.

March 30th, 2008 by PRand | No Comments

Serious Play. Art center.

The biennial Art Center Design Conference is a three-day international gathering of entrepreneurs, thought leaders, and innovators from many fields and disciplines. The 2008 Conference, Serious Play, will explore the essential role of play in business, the arts, science, storytelling, technology, and more.
May 7-9, 2008 Art Center College of Design, South Campus, Pasedena, California, [...]

Tags: Events


EV-X7. Electric motorcycle.

March 17th, 2008 by PRand | 2 Comments

EV-X7. Electric motorcycle.

Here’s one electric vehicle where limited range no longer seems unpalatable. Designed and built in China by a company called Axle Corporation, the EV-X7 is driven by an electric wheel hub motor and has a top speed of 93 mph. This, of course, is a snail’s pace compared to modern motorcycles, but then again, this [...]

Tags: Concept · Cycles · Green · Objects · Producer · Talent · Transportation


Powerstick.

March 17th, 2008 by PRand | No Comments

Powerstick.

Simple idea that seems so obvious after it becomes available. A portable power source for your mobile devices.
Charge the Powerstick from any USB port anywhere, anytime; free yourself from wall sockets, converters, adapters and chargers. Travel overseas without converters or need for a power outlet.
Handy handy handy!
“Simplicity drives the purpose and form of the Ecosol [...]

Tags: Gadgets · Objects · Play · Producer


Jano.

March 3rd, 2008 by PRand | 7 Comments

Jano.

What do these two bikes have in common? Two wheels? We can feel the love.
Designer Roland Kaufmann has gone and built a bicycle out of wood. He calls this cycle Jano, and says it’s a dual bike, equally at home trekking cross-country or taking its rider to and from work every day. This project [...]

Tags: Concept · Cycles · Designer · Talent · Transportation


Quaranta concept.

March 3rd, 2008 by PRand | 1 Comment

Quaranta concept.

Italdesign Ggiugiao Quaranta concept powered by Toyota Hybrid Synergy drive
Uncompromising innovation in Giugiaro tradition
An ‘extreme’, clean-technology project embodying 40 years of styling research and engineering celebrated by Italdesign Giugiaro in Geneva
The ‘Quaranta’ project is a concept car designed to celebrate Italdesign Giugiaro’s forty years of business in styling and technological research at the service of [...]

Tags: Autos · Concept · MINO (Money no object) · Producer · Transportation


Yahoo! design innovation team axed.

March 3rd, 2008 by PRand | No Comments

Yahoo! design innovation team axed.

The entire Yahoo Design Innovation Team, aka yHaus, has been axed en masse, Portfolio.com has confirmed with one of the team’s former members.
“Yahoo Design Innovation team has been shut down completely,” wrote Doug Fritz, a former full-time staffer for the team, in an email.
The team had been working on next generation design projects. This week, [...]

Tags: Overheard


Talk to us.

March 2nd, 2008 by PRand | 1 Comment

Talk to us.

If you see an exceptional product, an innovative revelation, let us know. Visit the FORUM - our “twitter lounge” to ask questions or share your thoughts. What is your passion?

Tags: Interact


DesignApplause launches!

March 2nd, 2008 by PRand | 1 Comment

DesignApplause launches!

DesignApplause hit the world-wide-web on 3/1/08.

Tags: Interact