design :: simple pots

Presentation is everything and this photo sure makes these simple minimalist pots look like something very special. And they are! Bambinas are super cute handmade pastel/white colored vessels, slipcast from Matauri Bay clay , native to New Zealand where the maker Zakiah Heath calls home.

The wee Bambinas are double cast and high fired, then sanded and left unglazed. They look beautiful on their own or in a cluster, perfect for a dinner table, mantle or window ledge. They can also be used with a tealight candle inside or as a vase. Each Bambina measures approximately 10cm in diameter. $26. Find them at  Zakiah's Popkraft Etsy Shop.

Lovely! And JUST COOL!

design :: oh christmas tree!

Love this idea! It's actually a decal that you put on the wall. What a great way to give any spot in your home a festive look at Christmas! And it isn't permanent either- just peel it off and pack it away until  next year's holiday season!

Found it over at fellow etsian's Circleline Studio's shop. You can customize it with your own colors too. $62. Soooooooo JUST COOL!

design :: walking on air

This "Mistral" staircase by Stiller is not only functional but has beautiful design sense as well. The "floating" stair treads give the illusion of walking on air!

Check out more unusual and JUST COOL staircases at the Siller website.

design::light my fire

French Fireplace Designer (yes, there is such a person) , Dominique Imbert, has come up with some hot and edgy designs for contemporary fireplaces. Fall is not far off. These should take the chill off in an unusual way. I like...

Fireplaces that are JUST COOL... in a hot sort of way ;)

anion lighting :: feel good about it

How many people does it take to change a light bulb at my house? NONE! Because I switched years ago to all CFL's .You know, Compact Flourescent Lightbulbs. If you haven't  made the switch then you should!.I've saved a bundle on my electric bill, not to mention not having had to change or buy a light bulb  in the past two plus years! Okay so CFL's are nothing new. Right. But there's a new CFL on the block - the Anion CFL.

These innovative light bulbs save energy, money AND make you feel good at the same time. Not because you're saving but because they actually make you feel PHYSICALLY good. The Purely Anion's CFLs go green and beyond. How? These light bulbs include a negative-ion generator which produces negative ions which are said to have beneficial effects to indoor environments  which are typically flooded with positive ions from things like TV screens, computer screens etc.With negative ions counteracting the negative affect of positive ones, Purely Anion claims its bulbs allegedly can remove cigarette smoke and dust, reduce e.coli and ozone in the air and create 900,000 negative ions per cubic centimeter. So yeah, lighting your home,saving money and the environment and energy AND removing harmful stuff from the air at the same time-that's a no brainer. It's JUST COOL!

via Dvice

stairs :: the coolest for the smallest

What do you do when you have a small space and lots of stuff? You  get creative! Here's a clever way to do it with style. This sleek modern staircase has three functions. It's obviously a set of stairs but it also acts as a room divider, a coffee table and a bookcase too. Very smart and very JUST COOL. I like!

 

Unfortunately I found this one on the web and have no idea where it originated or who manufactures it / designed it. :(  Do you??

via tumbler

interior :: cool curly stairs

More stairs! This cool DNA staircase was designed by Ross Lovegrove and manufactured by Chistophe Moinat Design. The staircase is made out of fiberglass. It looks so lightweight...

It's JUST COOL!

via coolboom

interior :: air stairs

Me and my floating stairs. I love these - Designed by Florence architect Guido Ciompi for The Gray Hotel in Milan, Italy. They're JUST COOL!

via cubeme

art :: 100 tons of paint on the walls

It's stunning, it's staggering and grandiose both in design and cost! The commissioned artwork for the domed ceiling of the Human Rights and Alliance of Civilizations Room in the United Nations offices in Geneva stoked controversy over the spending of over 18m euros to create it. The pricey ceiling took over 100 tons of paint layered on anextra strength aluminum dome to come to fruition.

Spanish artist Miquel Barcelo took over a year to create his abstact 3D Michelangelo like masterpiece. When asked about his source of inspiration, he stated, "On a day of immense heat in the middle of the Sahel desert, I recall with vivacity the mirage of an image of the world dripping toward the sky - Trees, dunes, donkeys, multicoloured beings flowing drop by drop."

Like stalagtites in a psychedelic cave, this ceiling is JUST COOL - Hope it doesn't puncture anyone!

via BBC news

cool product :: handy hooks

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style :: and the winner is

style :: and the winner is

Apartment Therapy's Fall Colors Contest is over and the winners have been chosen. I wasn't as keen on the US design as I was on the International design winner. This one pops with color - so lively and inviting - I just love it! Check it out -

Zee and John's philosophy in decorating their two bedroom 1930's terraced house in Dublin Ireland was "...when decorating, we instinctively chose the things we liked best and that worked well together, and the results turned out to be pretty colourful. I’ve always been colourful in the way I dress and have never been very good at working with a neutral palette — it doesn’t come naturally to me. We find that filling our home with our favourite colour combinations is stimulating and mood elevating..."

And that it is. It's JUST COOL!

interiors :: enchanted in amsterdam

If you haven't checked out Photographer Hotze Eisma's amazing portfolio of uncommonly inspiring spaces then go there and be inspired. Here he's captured the essence of this enchanted cottage set in a leafy village just beyond Amsterdam. The artist owner and his wife have given this dilapidated period farmhouse new life, creating a place that's both a charming family home and an ever-evolving gallery.

furniture :: mod lighting + cool chair

Lovin' the simplicity of this minimalist room done up in only the coolest transformers of all - Pastille Chairs by Leolux and lit up in these extremely bold oversized floor lamps by... well I don't know who exactly these are by, but aren't they JUST COOL? The two together make a functional and thoughtful pairing that looks like a million dollars. The pastille chairs can transform from footstool, to coffee table to comfy plush chair in a matter of seconds. Plus they have cool industrial casters that give them mobility which is another plus.

Seen over at trendir

style :: chair of the century,timeless and cool

Are you a mid-century modern freak? Although my house is extremely eclectic (aka hodge podge lodge) I admit that mid-century modern is at the top of my list of style favorites. Probably because I was born in that era and have fond memories of living with that style. The lines were clean, the designs sleek and innovative and the construction was top quality, not to mention, great materials went into the making of many of these classic pieces. Teak. Molded Plywood. Chrome. Be still my heart!

So guess what? Last night I discovered that Lushpad is running a contest to win a true mid-century modern classic - the Eames Molded Plywood Lounge Chair, LCW - which has been aptly referred to as the "most famous chair of the century" . Sign up for their free newsletter (which is a must have for you mcm junkies anyway because it keeps you informed on the stuff and is a fun, educational resource for the modern collector) and you are automatically entered. Who knows, maybe you'll win THE CHAIR. But hurry, the contest ends November 17, 2008.

Here's some interesting history on this famed chair:

" ...Discovery often takes interesting turns. Consider the shapes Charles and Ray Eames made plywood take. In the early 1940s, when Charles Eames was working on MGM set designs, he would return to the small apartment where he and his wife, Ray, were experimenting with wood-molding techniques that would have profound effects on the design world. Molding thin sheets of wood veneer formed under heat and pressure, they adapted new technology to furniture making. Sculpting a seat and back to fit the contours of the human body, they designed a truly comfortable chair that became a milestone in modern furniture design. Time Magazine named the Eames Molded Plywood Chair, a design also known as the LCW, the Best Design of the 20th Century."

What a chair - it's JUST COOL!

via allmodern

furniture :: plum panache

This autumn the color is purple. The chair is LUIS from KFF ,swathed in luscious ripe plum.

Sit back...it's JUST COOL!

Home Theater Seating, Reclining Sofas

Interior :: Fall Color Contest

Well it's over. Apartment Therapy and CB2's Fourth Annual Fall Color Contest closed it's design entry doors last week and there are a ton of great entries to choose the winner from. They are awarding $5,000 in prizes and the decision will be tough! Here are just a few I liked, Christine's colorful Budget Cottage being my absolute Fav!

Christine's Colorful Budget Cottage

Jeanie's Candy Colored World

Logan & Joey's "Tiger Stripe"

Diego's Color Therapy

Zee & John's Colour Combos

Jamie's "Iced Cube Silver"

Chris and Jay's Real Reflection

Aw heck, I like them all. Check out the entries and vote at Apartment Therapy.Design thats JUST COOL!

Cool Product :: Legos to warm the home

This radiator makes heating fun as well as economical. Sciroccos snappy looking BRICK radiator takes its cue from the infamous Lego building block. Don't let its playful look fool you though, because inside it's got some serious technology going on. Brick is a small colored aluminum radiator block with an interior of copper pipes and aluminum plates, making the product highly versatile and thermally efficient. Each brick module has a double plumbing connection: one for the heating system and the other to connect the bricks together, so heating your space isn't just a snap, it's fun too!

Designed by architect Marco Baxadonne, this Lego looking radiator is JUST COOL!

via dvice

Lighting :: a modern glow

There's some cool light going on over at Pallucco.Their design mix combines contemporary, historical and timeless objects in an original and non conformist style.

Lalinea is a bookshelf system that can be used as CD, DVD and Book holder of modular elements and can configure as both horizontal or vertical structures, from wall to wall or from floor to ceiling. Different colored lights can be alternated and each module is lit internally by a fluorescent bulb in white, blue and green.

Alone is an “illuminated circular outline” and a coat hook that casts an eye on the concept of a wall light. Its clear-cut, linear design is enhanced at the rear by an opal finish ring that fills with white light creating a bright halo focusing on the hanging garment.

Nimbo Pendant gives the impression of floating in a world without gravity and is enhanced by a dual light source: the light given off from the below is pure, soft and white while above it is colored and atmospheric. It comes in opaline white, magenta and orange.

So brilliantly JUST COOL!

DESIGN :: Pillow Talk

What's that perched on your sofa? A glorious and grand TROPICAL BIRD? Yup, John Robshaw does birds too. I just found more treasures over at his shop and these pillows are something!


(Oh and he does circus animals too, like lions tigers and elephants . )

But don't you just think these tropical bird pillows are the cats meow? ;) The birds are hand painted on linen and, as the catalogue says, “so life-like, you might want to feed them.”

LOVE THEM! They're JUST COOL!

Textiles :: Organic Inspiration

Anyone who knows me will tell you that my home is a plethura of patterns and colors, from layered textiles in paisleys,toiles and batiks to oriental rugs in every design,period and style. I just LOVE color and pattern! I can't help it. Spending a large part of my childhood in the company of a grandmother who was a textile and fashion designer, and a grandpa who was a watercolorist and architect, how could I not have a headful of patterns running rampant in my mind just waiting to come to life in my home. So you'll understand why I am in love with the textiles and products over at JohnRobshaw.com.

John Robshaw Textiles employs traditional printing, dying and weaving techniques, painting a story of adventure from far off places - from Yogakarta to Rajasthan, Bolivia to Vietnam. His authentic designs capture all the variations in blockprint and printmaking such as overlapping prints and the miss-registrations of woodblocks that record the human hand. I think this is just one of the reasons I like his textiles so much.

They aren't perfect - they're JUST COOL!