Wonsuk Cho

MoCo Loco posted about Wonsuk Cho's gorgeous X-Ray Lights - I love them! His X-Ray Lights take the iconic fixtures and make them the lamp shades. Beautiful.

Equally lovely are Wonsuk's Book Hangers, which add a little pleasure to every day storage - conveniently arranging the books you are reading in an orderly way - even allowing you to bookmark your place when you put the book away for the day.

Milagro Barrel Select Anejo Bottles

The hand-blown crystal bottle for the Milagro Barrel Select Anejo tequila from Milagro is so very striking. I'm not a tequila fan, but I could be convinced to have this bottle on my shelf.

img via BURИBLUE's photostream. Nice light painting too.

Hyper Grilles by Milgo Bufkin

Who says architectural grilles have to be ugly or boring? 0112 and 0104 are part of the hyper grilles line by Milgo Bufkin in Brooklyn, NY. Mathematics determine the repeating/changing patterns and varying degrees of openness in the series. Perhaps not for every one's walls, but they might make nice trivet's too.

ARTSPROJEKT

ARTSPROJEKT is an online community for arts, pop culture and action sports. Conceived by Andy Howell, one of the most established skater-artists (Underworld Element, Sophisto), the site uses Zazzle to on-demand print a TON of different products. ARTSPROJEKT is just starting out so create a gallery there and promote your work.

Darth Vader Balloon

Created by Lambert Benoit with Lucasfilm and Cameron Balloons, the Darth Vader Balloon shows us that hot air balloons don't always have to be all flowers and rainbows. If I am to travel in style, I prefer the overscaled and disembodied head of a Sith lord.

Bear-Aide Crime Scene Template

Though slightly macabre, the Crime Scene Template from Bear-Aide recalls the green templates we all used as kids but for a much more serious purpose. The template includes scaled typical furniture and measurements for sketching the layouts of crime scenes. Bear-Aide makes a bunch of different templates worth checking out including traffic, railroad, boat and sniper templates.

Nike Terra CI

The new Terra CI from Nike expands their Considered line of sneakers. The shoe is full of great details, e.g. how the upper is stitched to the outsole with the shoelace that alternates with the waffle pattern below and the fold-down lace cover.

Nixon Watches - Esquire and Groove

Nixon is just good at what they do. The Esquire (top) and Groove (bottom) show-off the designers' inventive use of strap material, clasp types and form.

Waterflask by Eva Solo

The Waterflask by Eva Solo meets a very simple need: transport a drink while keeping it cold or hot. The leash keeps it from getting away, or other people trying to take it.

Swatch Puzzle Collection

The new Puzzlemotion Collection from Swatch takes watch faces to another level. Instead of extra hands for extra information, the discs rotate and form different patterns at each half-hour. The Interpretation is shown above. Be sure to check out the video and the rest of the collection.

Burton Premium Sleeper Hoodie

A very cool idea for the weary traveller from the Burton catalog: The Sleeper Hoodie. Available for sleepy men and women. It includes a built-in inflatable neck rest in the hood, snap-in/out light shield and eye mask for catching up on sleep between stops. Or, use it in the back row of your math class...

FLOWmarket

FLOWmarket is a brand created by Mads Hagstroem that is designed "to inspire consumers to think, live, and consume more holistic[ally]". FLOWmarket looks at the imbalances in the world and has created packaged products (empty, in case you were wondering) that allow you to buy a "feeling of safety" or a little bit of "empathy". It's an interesting idea but I'm not sure that it does what it desires by encouraging further consumption of products that don't offer any solution to the imbalances of our world. Looking at it purely from a ideas perspective, though, I love it!

Swingline Saddle Stapler

The Swingline Saddle Stapler solves the basic problem of stapling a large booklet or zine. If you have ever tried to put one together, finding a stapler that will work is a big problem. The long arm staplers do work, but this little Swingline makes it very hard to mess up the spine placement.

Pepsi Raw

Check out these hot new Pepsi bottles, as seen over at Reuben Miller. The bottle design is organic and sleek (it reminds me of the way a wave disturbs sand, or of a shellfish skeleton), and I love that the bottle is textured.

In an attempt to create a "healthy" cola, Pepsi is debuting Pepsi Raw - an all-natural drink made from apple extract, plain caramel coloring, coffee leaf, tantaric acid from grapes, gum arabic, cane sugar and sparkling water - as opposed to the traditional Pepsi recipe of fructose corn syrup, sugar, artificial colorings, phosphoric acid, caffeine, citric acid and natural flavors. It is soon to be found in select bars and clubs in the UK - so if you live in London, Manchester, Glasgow, Brighton, Birmingham, Leeds or Liverpool have a drink and let me know how it tastes!

Peg Pencil by Yuta Watanabe

I enjoy the pegpencil reinterpretation of the leadholder and clothespin by Yuta Watanabe. Clean and simple, not much more needs to be said.

Chikuno Cube

The Chukino Cube itself is only about 1.5"x1.5"x1.5", and the miniscule hexagonal cavities in the cube reduce the scale of the object when you inspect it closely. The cube purifies the environment around your desk by absorbing odor particles in the air into the charcoal. The cube can be 'reset' by placing it in the sun.

M-OW-1 Drinking Fountain

The surreal image of the tree trunk drinking fountain is more than enough for me to post it here. The M-OW-1 fountain, manufactured by Murdock, is designed for use in parks and outdoor areas to camouflage what is normally an eyesore. This fountain deserves to be in the MOMA's permanent collection. If you know any of the curators there, slap them in the face and show them this thing. It's so absurd it's amazing.

Lalique Vibration Box

The Vibration crystal box from Lalique is such an interesting object. We usually post items that are built around a function, but this box is just a beautiful form with a fairly mundane purpose. While you may think of crystal frogs when you think of crystal art, this is an example of an atypical and modern piece from a field which typically looks to the past.

Furni and Emil Kozak

The Alba 'EK' is a handmade timepiece designed by Furni with graphic and packaging treatment by Emil Kozak. As with all of Furni's creations, the production run is limited, so pick one up while you can.

Furni also completed a Show Us Your Skills competition that anyone could enter. Buy a DIY Kit and start building!

Causas Externas

Causas Externas is a group of young designers from Barcelona (Ismael Jubany, David Marti, and Claudia Rosello), whose interest lies in blurring the line between indoor and outdoor objects.

The Road Cone Candle "is a provisional element which delimits urban spaces. A candle illuminates domestic spaces in an ephemeral way. Mixing both concepts we can get a hybrid which temporarily lights up and delimits spaces."

(Thanks, Claudia!)

Roger Arquer

Fish Bowls by Roger Arquer is an exploration in reprogramming and redesigning the fish bowl. From left to right: Do Not Piss Me Off, Pure Life, and Private Matters. You can see all fifteen projects at Dezeen. Fish Bowls will be part of the Conversational Spanish 02 exhibition this September, curated by Hector Serrano and running in conjunction with the 2007 London Design Festival.

DBI-SALA Hydration Harness

An interesting product from DBI-SALA, who specialize in fall protection, is the Harness Hydration System 1150174. The Camelback-style hydration unit slips into a pouch secured to the harness and uses a bite valve for liquid delivery. Very thoughtful.

Tortise DOF by Ted Muehling

The Tortise DOF glass by Ted Muehling is a beautiful piece of work. The precision cut concave excavations makes one think of a precision crafted crystal arrowhead.

Andrew Grima - Royal Jeweller

The 'Gondola' (left) and 'Cerini' (right) watches, designed by Andrew Grima, are each 30+ years old. In spite of their age, they are years ahead of today, and will continue to be so. Be sure to check out some of the other watches featured in the Ideas column on the right and the archive.

Itoya Pointkeeper Mechanical Pencil

The Pointkeeper Mechanical Pencil by Itoya is a curious little item. The mechanical pencil is housed in a real-wood casing, just like an old-fashioned No.2 pencil. And by clicking the eraser, you advance the lead. Weird.

Kho Liang Ie Collection - Royal Mosa

Kho Liang Ie was one of The Netherlands most significant and influential interior and industrial designers and Royal Mosa has revived some of his simple and basic white relief tiles. They bring a quiet ripple to the typically taut appearance of a white tile wall.

Victorinox Rescue Tool

The Rescue Tool by Victorinox recently won the Knife of the Year Award at IWA 2007. The rescue tool sports a ton of utility in a compact and easy to use tool. The integrated glass breaker and disc saw are the most interesting parts of the kit. The disc saw can actually saw through auto safety glass, check the video of it at work.

BKLYN DESIGNS

Stay tuned Monday for our favorite picks from BKLYN DESIGNS. I browsed the exhibits earlier today, and there were some familiar faces and a lot of new ones. 2007 is the five year anniversary of BKLYN DESIGNS with a great cross-section of Brooklyn designers exhibiting.

Douglas Hammers

Check out this sexy hammer (if there is such a thing)...It's sleek and looks like a hammer with a purpose. I like the niche for a nail/screw to help you make that initial punch into the wall.

Via Acquire.

Atypyk

Atypyk is a Parisian design studio made up of Ivan Duval and Jean Sebastien Ides. The Snapshot Mirror, the Souvenir Camera (27 pre-exposed images of Paris so that you can pretend to have been to all the touristy spots) the Good Mood pad and the Do Re Me Glass - all very clever products from Atypyk.

Arc'Teryx Arro 22 vs. Patagonia Lightweight Travel Pack

I love backpacks. There are a million types out there and they all have their own particular uses. I have 6 backpacks/shoulder bags that I use for different things. But what it typically comes down to is weight. Take these two packs for example. The Arc'Teryx Arro 22 (left) is one of my favorites, except that the pack weight by itself is already 1110 grams and has a volume of 1,350 cubic inches. Meanwhile, the Patagonia Lightweight Travel Pack weighs in at 284 grams and has a volume of 1,200 cubic inches. So picking the pack depends on what your outing at hand is and how much rough and tumble you plan on getting into. The Arro feels completely Jack Bauer bomb-proof and the Patagonia pack could probably be flown as a kite. But to carry around 5 times the weight in the pack alone is a big compromise. I say go lighter, your shoulders, neck and feet will thank you.

Lamp Lamp by Hironao Tsuboi

The Lamp Lamp by Hironao Tsuboi is a curious little oddity. I like that it turns the vernacular of the lightbulb into something that makes you think twice about how it engages the light fixture. Available at Unica Home

Pepin Press

The Pepin Press makes a number of great resource books for graphic designers. We just picked up a copy of Structural Package Designs (left) for a project we are working on. And the Special Packaging Designs (right) book is a great companion book to the package design set. They both come with cds with .eps files of each container design.

Suck UK Key Bottle Opener

The Key Bottle Opener from Suck UK is a nice little piece of hardware for your cluttered life. A skeleton key...for beer.

Vitamin, A Life Less Ordinary

Discovered these great product designers, Vitamin, A Life Less Ordinary via 100% Design. Check out their line of garden gnomes, some of which double as lights or speakers.