Around The Home

Upcycling is an often overlooked method of creating something worthwhile and usable from things most people would happily bin. Thankfully a select few designers are taking the practice seriously, and incorporating it into their work. One of the best examples comes from Andreu Carulla, the Spanish designer behind The Stooler, a simple tool which enables almost anything to be turned into a chair.  Read More

Chuck is a flexible shelving unit by Natascha Harra-Frischkorn that can be considered either functional art or artistic furniture, depending on your point of view. The idea behind Chuck is a set of shelves that can be adapted to its owner's changing needs, with the six shelves literally able to be bent and shaped to your whim.  Read More

In cities where ever-growing populations need to be squeezed into the existing urban sprawl, living space is at a premium. This means more and more people are seeking (mainly out of necessity) dual-purpose furniture that saves space by transforming to fulfill different needs at different times. The aptly-named Convertible Sofa from Julia Kononenko is the latest attempt to fill this emerging need.  Read More

Refrigerators have gotten some handy upgrades in recent years, with everything from Wi-Fi enabled touchscreens to blast chillers for quickly cooling a beer. Now, Samsung has partnered with SodaStream to introduce the RF31FMESBSR Four-Door Refrigerator, which comes with a built-in sparkling water dispenser for making homemade soda.  Read More

For the person who has everything and wants to make sure that no one walks off with it, German safe manufacturer Döttling has created with the Fortress. Billed as the “safest luxury safe in the world,” the Fortress is available in a number of bespoke configurations and Döttling says it can be certified for insurance coverage of up to US$1,000,000.  Read More

It doesn’t matter if it’s called a BBQ, a grill or a Barbie; those char-grilled steaks leave a thick layer of grease and grime behind. And while cooking is fun, cleaning is not. What you need is a neat little R2D2 to scrub the filth away, leaving you to crack a beer and get ready to fire up the next BBQ. Enter the Grillbot, a cute, single button operated bot that perches on your grill and lives to clean.  Read More

There are certain devices in the home that we don't generally think about improving. The switch plates over our light switches have remained more or less the same for years, but that doesn't mean there's not room to make them better. Product designer Justin Porcano has decided to rethink switch plates, by adding more functionality.  Read More

Plenty of people enjoy coffee and a good many enjoy LEGO too, so it was only a matter of time before the two were combined. The Build-On Brick Mug is a coffee cup covered in studs and holes that attach to LEGO and other building blocks to customize it however you want.  Read More

Whether it’s smartphones, cameras or MP3 players, it probably goes without saying that most consumer electronics are designed for maximum user convenience ... that doesn’t always end up being the case, but it is at least the intention. The Wayki is somewhat unique, however, in that it’s specifically designed to force the user into doing two things that they’d rather put off: getting out of bed, and brushing their teeth. That’s right, it’s a combination alarm clock and toothbrush.  Read More