Shade

The 'shade' reflects and projects changing weather conditions by a special film on the window. I find this very smart and executed brilliantly! Nice.

Also, I am very keen to look at how this project was developed, early prototypes, the mistakes; basically how this project became a reality.

Designed by: Simon Heijdens

Donald Norman

Can I shake this man's hand?!

This article from Core77 address that designers need to be familiar with engineering, experimentation, technology and people AND not just be about drawing and sketching. He discusses that a new education system needs to be in place to address this 'crap' and actually solve problems properly and not just make it up!

This is music to my ears! I am a designer with an engineering degree which taught almost all of the above! We are here, just no one wants us... hopefully this is a sign of change.

Focused sun light melts every known material

My mind has been BLOWN!!

Tin Foil Face

Awesome! An everyday useful product transformed into something quirky and unexpected. It is just standard tin foil molded onto a person's face. This i suspect to be molded on a plaster cast as doing it on a living breathing person causes difficulties...

Designer: Dominic Wilcox

I am pleasantly surprised to already be familiar with his work, especially his xylophone bin!

An Furniture

You just have to love this! Finally flexible furniture WITH style and elegance!

Designed by: KAMKAM

Park Su Jin

Park Su Jin has a new fan! Her work is magical. It combines existing furniture into brilliant one off's, I'm especially LOVING that chair!! She also creates unexpected illusions with good old everyday products!

Visit her website

Design needs more heart

I stumbled across this article from an industrial designer from Singapore. It is quite long but is charming and honest.

"As much as it is about who we are designing for, it can very much be also about who we are designing as!"

DIY Design: Threat or oppertunity

I've just discovered that I am in the middle of a design debate with my Alarming Clock! Check it out, compliments to Design Sponge.

I'm unsure whether to be flattered or insulted. Flattered because they thought of me or insulted when it states that I "crossed the line from craftsy to people with money." I ain't ever had money and still have none actually!! That bit irritates me as it seems childish and off the point.

Read the article and decide, I just know I want to know more about what was discussed and what conclusion was reached.

Benjamin Hubert

Dezeentalks at [D3] Design Talents: Benjamin Hubert from Dezeen on Vimeo.

This is a really interesting interview from a young and successful British designer. In the interview, Benjamin makes comments on his role and skills within his company stating that "I probably couldn't make anything to be honest" and so will hire craftsmen to make his designs a reality ! ! !

What I am most attracted to is the range of materials he uses. I like the organic and pure qualities which he continues to translate through the design. Its a celebration of the unordinary with the ordinary. LOVE it!

When I visited his website, it was Float that made me intensely jealous:


On his website, he doesn't just show the finished product, he shows the process (big thumbs up). This CORK lamp shade was shaped on the wooden lathe. This you might not think is a big deal but when it is your favorite wood working process with your all time favorite material, I can tell you it is!

I feel it is a shame that he is not a designer maker, like myself but cannot help but admire his humble designs and well earned success. Hopefully now with him promoting high end craft products, there will finally be a demand and appreciation for designers with those complete set of skills like moi.

Minarets

These glass vessels have been made from scrap pieces of glass containing flaws and imperfections. I love this as it's implies that these were made by accident and therefore can only be one offs.

Designed by: Kacper Hamilton and Ezgi Turksoy

Stamps for the soil

"Nothing in nature is wasted". Following this principle simply return the stamp to the soil once used. Nice!

Designed by: Calum Crease
(His collection of work is something to see!)

Unpaid Internships 'breaking minimum wage law'

BBC news article 07.03.10 questions unpaid internships with a specific role or duty opposed to simply observing. Finally someone seems to have our backs! My question. Stick up for yourself and refuse working for free just for someone else to snatch it up or just get stuck in and get some experience and live of beans on toast for years?? hmmm!

Tate Modern '10

I ventured into the Tate and have taken pictures of some of things I really liked and found inspiring.

My main inspiration and admiration came from these tree's carved out from a rectangular bit of wood. It is one piece, where the artist carved the branches from the knots showing on the surface with a chisel.


And this is other work that caught my eye:

Nice wee find

I think these are fabby! It was a nice wee find when I was wondering the streets of London. I am eager to make my own one now...

Good Milk

I think this is fab package design.

What a transformation from those naff and icky milk cartons! The aim here is to encourage the consumption of milk not just inside your house. So to do this, they have designed milk to look like, yet stand out from every other type of drink you consume whilst out and about.

The proposal is to keep milk in an aluminium can or revamped carton where it preserves the milk perfectly and is easier to recycle than plastic, for those annoying political reasons surrounding weight. Each colour also symbolises a different fat content.

I just find this design nice and refreshing. It is nothing too fancy, simply plain and honest much like it's contents.

Designed by: StudioIN

365 clock

It appears that I have fallen in love with clocks! I like this one as their is an end product to keeping the time; a knitted scarf! Every 24 hours, the clock knits a loop of your scarf, taking a year to complete. I'm not entirly sure how you read the time but most certainly enjoy this concept.

designed by: Siren Elise Wilhelmsen

New Designers- A review

New Designers, what an experience! Met lots and lots of people from industry, a few alarming clock fans and many students from around the country.

The University of Dundee, my stand, was well received and displayed. Many individuals praised our work due to the depth and quality of our ideas. All our work was child friendly and we welcomed interaction with out products;

Most stands had "do not touch" signs everywhere. This was ok when I could see how delicate some work was but for a table or chair? I missed the point.

Some stands looked outstanding; wooden decking, a half pipe however, looks can be deceiving. Most work had tried to solve a 'problem' which did not exist or even matter. No wonder our environment is in such a mess. The majority of projects lacked imagination, uniqueness, purpose and depth.

However, I felt Buck stand was the best. It was a nice and simple stand where the content made the stand brilliant. I lost a good couple of hours looking through all their projects.

The New Designer Winner is actually from this uni. I was happy for this girl to win. I think she did a brilliant job and deserved the title.


This is my hand favourite love to hate invention; an umbrella dryer. It is a hair-dryer for your umbrella...w.o.w !

AND strangely there was plenty of mop buckets, dustpans and even toilet brushes. 100% design winner actually made a dustpan and brush...

I am not all bad I promise! I did enjoy looking around other universities discovering their own unique processes and facilities. There was some really well made models on display, yes they didn't work but the standard they were finished to was admiral. Sadly not all of the designers have websites; in fact the majority of the designs I like don't have a web presence...strange so I cannot even copy in a picture. Thats rather annoying!

Bi King


ND pictures are coming soon and I'm going to kee an eye out for some of the designs I really liked!

Wipe Clean

A "reverse graffiti artist" cleans soot off walls to draw along side roads... nice!

by: Alexander Orion

Stanley Ruiz

I was pleasantly surprised when I came across this log speaker. Immediately taken away by the fact that Stanley merges electronics with raw and organic materials in the same way I do. We share the same enthusiasm and we have both experienced the challenges of hollowing out a tree. I wonder if we share the same methods?!

My only criticism? Why are the speakers laid down? A tree grows up. Sound is best heard projected up. I think the product would be enhanced if it was free standing instead of being placed on dodgy stands or surfaces. The product would also be much more solid and confident.

My other pleasant surprise? Stanley has referred to me and my work as I was nearing the end of reading his profile! That did indeed put a smile on my face.

designed by: Stanley Ruiz

Robotic Lamp

Watch this video.

I am not normally a 'fan' of robotics. I appreciate the work and skill behind it but I find they have no purpose to really exist but this lamp does.

I like that they have kept the lamp's internal workings exposed and well for it being a lamp! It is basically a computer that instead of being in a square box, is a free moving lamp that projects an interface onto a surface. Its touch screen with no screen!

by MIT Media Lab

Teabag Coasters

At last another use for the humble tea bag! I'm not so keen on the teabag coasters themselves, I find them a bit naff but I love the idea of turning that waste product into something useful and beautiful. It is a good idea.

Designed by; Yuree S. Lim and Jieun Yang

Ben Heine

Smart. Clever. Inspiring. Wow.

Loads more examples on his blog

Chair

Basically. I love the simplicity of this chair. The square planks of wood, the blocks, the dowels and shear appreciation of Pine! I love the continuation of the pine's grain is in the next chair, the organic aesthetic without the need of organic shapes is just fantastic. The other brilliant factor? They will smell so so good!

designed by: Markus Bergström and Joe Nunn from Glass Hill- a lovely studio / workshop set up i'd love to work in.

Stretch!

Stretch is a new way to respond to your alarm signal. I really like this action ... HOWEVER, why is there a silly little clock interface? And why does it use an alarm buzzer?! sigh

Created by: Seung-hee Ryu

Brilliant!! The bark is falling off, its raw and awesome!