Around The Home

With a name and design that suggest a Space Age, Barbarella-style design, Fagor’s new Spoutnik microwave could perhaps be mistaken for a cartoon-ish UFO that landed on the kitchen counter. Its bold, fun design is about more than just looks, though – it serves a functional purpose, too.  Read More

While many people love kicking back and relaxing into an expansive armchair made of plush material, owning such a thing isn't always practical, and is rarely cheap. Armchairs are generally heavy, (almost) immovable, and designed with just one purpose in mind. LLSTOL is a piece of furniture which goes against this grain, being light, highly portable, and adaptable for a variety of different uses.  Read More

UK design outfit andViceVersa has come up with this novel take on the dining table and chairs. Named A-Cute, the set is designed to form a single cohesive shape when the chairs are tucked in.  Read More

Christmas decorations normally comprise of a tree (whether real or fake) covered in baubles and tinsel. But there are alternatives for those who don't feel the need to uphold tradition, and (perhaps more importantly) don't want to have a part of the outdoors brought indoors for the season.  Read More

Aside from professional painters, it's a sure bet that painting can be a cumbersome and messy chore for most people. That's why hardware retailer Rockler has created the Mixing Mate Paint Lid, which attaches to a paint can to easily stir the paint, pour it out smoothly, and even seal it for later.  Read More

Bookshelves have a basic design flaw. When books are neatly arranged for storage and display, they tend to tip over and lay on the shelf in confused disarray. This vexing problem has been solved by the Korea-based design group monocomplex, whose Lean/Bookshelf uses the force of gravity to keep things in order – no bookends required.  Read More

Floppy disks are a rare sight these days, but just because a product is no longer cutting edge doesn't mean its better qualities should be dismissed out of hand. And floppy disks have certain design qualities that, as it turns out, make for a rather attractive (though admittedly industrial) coffee table.  Read More

Sitting somewhere between the "solar trees" erected on parking garages at the University of California in San Diego (UCSD) and the nanotrees developed on the same campus, the electree+ is a sculptural bonsai tree with 27 solar cells for "leaves." The tree's branches can be adjusted to catch the rays just right, and its internal battery will store enough electricity to charge an iPhone5 nine times over, a Galaxy S3 seven times, or an iPad 2 twice.  Read More

The common thing amongst the various smart light bulbs we’ve seen recently, such as the Lumen, Philips hue, LIFX and INSTEON, is that all the enabling wireless technology is built into the bulbs themselves. This means that when the bulb inevitably fails, you’re faced with replacing the whole expensive kit and caboodle. Spark overcomes this problem by separating the expensive wireless components from the bulb, thereby allowing a standard bulb to be connected to the internet.  Read More