Smart Design

A self-proclaimed “Solar Powered Lunch Box”, Muvbox transforms from a closed shipping container to a gourmet fast food destination in a flash of 90 seconds. The spotlight is now on food service, shipping container architecture’s newest adaptive darling, following in the footsteps of retail shops, prefab residences, and mobile clinics. The boxy trend is gaining momentum with a seemingly endless list of ways to transform retired shipping containers into minimally foot printed, self-contained urban hotspots like Muvbox. read more

Here’s something awesome for anyone that’s feeling homesick for the World Cup. I think this product is pretty rad. According to many happy children all over the world, the One World Futbol “never needs inflating, requires no pump or needle, and will never go flat or lose bounce, even if punctured.” How cool is that? read more

Even the most environmentally conscious of us have found ourselves tempted to quench our thirst by buying (gasp!) bottled water when we’re out and about and can’t find a place to fill up on clean, drinkable H2O. So wouldn’t it be wonderful if your reusable bottle could also purify tap water from your office, gym or public water fountain, making it infinitely easier for you to avoid purchasing costly and wasteful plastic bottles? Well, that’s exactly what Bobble does — it’s a reusable water bottle with a built-in water filter. Conceived by product design mastermind Karim Rashid, the colorful, modern Bobble is made of recycled plastic, and if that doesn’t impress you, maybe the $9.95 price tag will! This is a great example of smart design — solving a ubiquitous problem that plagues us all.

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For The Birds, a series of food-based lamps by Florian Kräutli, came about when the young designer was left to make decisions about a previous tenant’s belongings following a move. The pieces that Kräutli liked became his; the others ended up as garbage. This arbitrary approach led him to the realization that products that are no longer owned by anyone are, in fact, anyone’s. He says, “But it is our concept of value, which makes them garbage or (precious) objects. Often there are chairs standing on the street as bulky waste which only shortly before were inside a house and were valuable objects.” read more

This conceptual pendant lamp, titled Nissyoku, combines a streamlined, “galactic yoyo” aesthetic with sustainable construction. The piece features tilting, sliding orbs that can be adjusted to change the way your space is illuminated. The design team explains that they were inspired by a solar eclipse, and in a darkened room, the lamp perfectly simulates the the effect of a glowing, shifting sphere. Depending on how you arrange the orbs, different stages of an eclipse are highlighted. Not only does this concept offer a contemporary, unobtrusive lighting solution, it’s a multi-faceted lighting solution with the ability to function as a wall, table, or hanging lamp. read more

Iain Howlett has come up with a new, fun and practical application of the kid-favorite papier-mâché. Paper pulp is molded into table surfaces; these are held up by minimal wooden legs sculpted from stick lumber and hardwood dowels.

Though lightweight, the tables are very strong and can be used on a permanent basis. Structural cues have been taken from industrial paper pulp packaging, used to ship eggs, electronics, and other industrial parts. To prove the robustness of these pieces, the designer stood on an overturned paper bowl, which didn’t give way at all. read more

About a year ago I was introduced to my first purse hanger. Was I late to the game? Did everybody else know about these ages ago? Who knows? All I can say is it was mind-blowing-ly innovative to me.

When I was first handed the purse hanger, I had no idea what it was. It sat in my palm, a flat disk with a metal ring around it, and a sponsor logo featured in the center. I thought, “Hmmm. What an odd piece of swag. Is it a not-very-good paper weight? I hope they didn’t spend much money on it.” And then, someone demonstrated the function to me and I pretty well gasped. read more

While students at the Rhode Island School of Design, Grain designers Chelsea Green, James Minola, and Brit Kleinman participated in a career shifting course led by designer Mimi Robinson entitled Bridging Cultures Through Design. This six week program connected the design students with groups of artisan communities and exporters in Guatemala. The goal was to create unique textile products to bring to US and international markets that celebrate Guatemalan artisan techniques and traditions while building sustainable incomes for the artisans. read more

Here’s the truth. The idea of maternity clothes is more fun than the reality of maternity clothes. (I write this confidently, in the middle of my 6^th pregnancy.) A 9-month pregnancy lasts through 3 seasons and is accompanied by at least a dozen changes in clothing size. There are few women in the world with the time and money it would require to dress themselves perfectly through a pregnancy — to shop for clothes on an almost daily basis that are size and weather specific over 40 weeks. read more

Doing the dishes: a thankless job and the dreaded finale to cooking and eating. Couples fight about who has to do them, and how they’re done. The mere mention of the phrase can elicit an audible groan. Which is precisely the reason dishwashers can be so desirable. Though many new dishwashers have a water conserving “eco” setting, these appliances can still be energy inefficient and water wasters, especially if you have an older machine or don’t have enough dishes to fill up. Now, several designers have rethought our approach to hand-washing dishes, making the this option more efficient, interesting, and appealing. read more