CasaSugar -- Home sweet home.

Cool Idea: Play in Public

casasugar — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 15:00:07 -0700

We may not remember rocking away in bouncy seats as infants, but I'm sure we all remember playing on swing sets as kids. In either case, was it ever not fun? I think not. So, why are Trix just for kids? And why should play be relegated just to playgrounds and backyards? I think adults should get a piece of the fun and games, and play should be accepted in public, and apparently so does British industrial design student Bruno Taylor.The renegade playground builder has decided that it's about time we bring play back into public space. He has created a project which incorporates incidental play in the public realm, including a public bench that bounces, for all to use, and the installation of swings into existing bus stops. Is that rad or what? To see a video of Taylor's swing being installed guerrilla-style into a bus stop,

Cool Idea: Steps Side Table

casasugar — Sun, 31 Aug 2008 11:41:41 -0700

In Rimrock Ranch, a home near Palm Springs designed by architect Lloyd Russell, which was recently featured in the LA Times, spare modern architecture lends an urban style to the cowboy roots of the desert. Here, the steps to a kitchen set between two suites have a dual purpose. The wood planks were extended to serve as a side table for the rustic couch beside the staircase, relieving the need for additional furnishings. Rather than cluttering up the room, this clever idea keeps things minimal, and the attention on the bold desert display of antlers on the wall. Of course, it's convenient that there happens to be a couch next to the stairs, but would you like these stairs in your home if it made sense architecturally?
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Cool Idea: Manetone Pantone Painting

casasugar — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 13:30:25 -0700

Graphic designer Tim Fraser Brown created a reproduction of Édouard Manet's "A Bar at the Folies-Bergère" entirely out of old Pantone chips. He painstakingly color matched over 5,000 chips onto a blank canvas over the course of four nights. The result is a bit Impressionism meets Pointillism, taking PMS to a new level of literalism. I love how all the details of the original painting, like the beer thought to cater to a British clientele, much debated by art cronies, are blurred. And, it's been said that Manet's painting is modern paraphrasing of "Las Meninas" by Diego Velázquez. I guess, in a way, "Manetone Pantone" is modern paraphrasing of "A Bar at the Folies-Bergère." It's certainly a heck of a lot cooler than my paint-swatch weaving . . .
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Cool Idea: Chrono Shredder

casasugar — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 04:30:00 -0700

German designer Susanna Hertrich's Chrono Shredder is "a hybrid between calendar, clock, and waste-producing automaton," that has no on/off functionality. It runs unstoppable for 365 days until it has continuously shredded all of its calendar pages, which are kept on a paper roll. The paper is fed through a hacked paper shredder, which is programmed to use exactly 24 hours to shred one "day." The device reminds us not only of the day, but of the passing of time. So, on Dec. 31, you'll have a big pile of shredded paper that is not simply waste, but actual evidence that time has passed. Hertrich created Chrono Shredder to target would-be future hibernation obsessives, to remind them that while they sleep, something tangible is happening. The design is not actually in production. Would you like it to be?
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Cool Idea: A Colander As a Vase

casasugar — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 14:00:44 -0700

I recently polled you on your love for Todd Oldham's ice cream cone carnation floral arrangement, and you were pretty split on it. I on the other hand was not a fan; although in general, I feel that the world-renowned designer can do no wrong. Today is no exception to that notion, though. Oldham has created another arrangement for FTD, the Todd Oldham Green Salad ($79.99), this time using a colander as a vase. I adore this innovative use of a colander, not only for its good looks but because it is something everyone can achieve. Of course, it helps to have a vibrant, kelly green colander to perk things up, but I love it regardless of color. It's also a great housewarming gift, as the colander can be used in the kitchen once the arrangement falls by the wayside. Love it?

Cool Idea: Hanging Wedding Flowers

casasugar — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 07:45:03 -0700

Miss Cherry Pie recently posted photos of her hanging wedding flowers. She's still perfecting the idea, but I think they look great already. She writes that she "spent some time this weekend with my shepherd’s hooks and cache of jars working out how to attach one to the other. First, I picked out 20 jars of a similar smallish size, and set them aside. Then, I went a-crafting. I took a trip down to Michael’s to pick up some wraphia (aka raffia), a natural-looking, grassy ribbon that’s strong enough to use as a hanger."

Then, she tied the wraphia around the mouth of each jar, fashioning a handle out of it, and hung them from the shepherd's hook. This is such a lovely, simple idea for displaying large flowers. It's a beautiful, easy arrangement for any couple planning a DIY wedding.

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Cool Idea: A Converted Train Car

casasugar — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 11:00:29 -0700

I never thought I'd want to live in an old boxcar, until I saw this cheerful cafe built into a converted train on Treehugger. Located in Deptford, London, the pop-up shop is selling sustainably farmed coffee while the nearby train station, originally built in 1836, is being renovated.

I'm surprised how sunny and spacious the space is. It makes me want to park an old train car outside my house and use it as a guest quarters. With so many old railway cars around, I wonder why more people don't do this. What do you think of the idea?

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Cool Idea: Grown-Up Record Collection

casasugar — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 04:30:00 -0700

Designer Kenneth Brown offers this smart idea for integrating vinyl record collections into a home. Instead of bulky record shelves (which is what I currently live with), he designed pull-out, partially exposed drawers to house a family's 2,000+ records. I love the accessibility of this storage solution, and the varying shades and patterns of the record spines offer a built-in design accent.

Do you have a savvy solution for storing albums?

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Cool Idea: Mounting Mismatched China

casasugar — Mon, 18 Aug 2008 14:00:00 -0700

Flea markets and thrift stores can be a treasure trove of mismatched china, which could lead to trouble depending on your level of impulse control. One too many "Oh, this little dish is too cute to pass up!" and next thing you know, you've got boxes of quirky plates without coordinating mates.

That's why I was mesmerized by this wall I snapped at a Northern California diner. The quirky patterns look so serene, mounted on the seafoam-green wall. What do you think of this idea? I loved it so much I never wanted to leave. The diner did something similar with mismatched mugs on a shelf. Curious about this curiosity? Then

Cool Idea: Drought-Resistant Landscaping With a Twist

casasugar — Fri, 15 Aug 2008 07:45:00 -0700

If you live in a drought-prone area, it's smart to landscape with succulents and cacti, which require very little water. That's what this household did. By covering the soil with mulch, this garden further decreases its need for watering. But what's that plant in the left-hand corner of the picture?
Yes, there are some vegetables mixed into this succulent landscape. More specifically, it looks like some Summer squash, perhaps zucchini, is sharing the front yard with succulents and cacti. I love this mix of plants; it's something I wouldn't have thought of trying, and I think the plants look great together.

Cool Idea: Fluorescent Fixer

casasugar — Fri, 08 Aug 2008 14:00:59 -0700

I've urged you to switch over to CFLs enough, so I'm not gonna go there. But I will admit that I agree the soft-serve-like shape of CFL bulbs is less than desirable — unless you have an ice cream cone pendant light to go with. But, what if CFLs looked like the standard bulbs you've come to know and love? Would that make you switch? I hope so. The Fluorescent Fixer does just that, attaching to CFLs to conceal their unsightly shape, and diffusing the light, which reduces glare at the same time. The light cover sells in sets of three for $9.99 at Ace Hardware, Bed Bath & Beyond, and Walgreens, among others, or directly from the manufacturer, Adaptive Lighting Solutions.

Midday Muse: A Patterned Floor

casasugar — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 12:00:33 -0700

This gorgeous floor, which was hand painted by Catherine, won the Design*Sponge prize for best use of pattern in a home. I can definitely see why. I know a lot of friends who have concrete floors in their homes, but I've never seen any of them painted with patterns. Now, I'm going to have to bend their ears about this cool idea.

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Su Casa: Thinking Outside the Furniture Box

casasugar — Wed, 06 Aug 2008 08:30:10 -0700

Su Casa member Divagwendolyn recently posted pictures of a friend's creative use of an unusual furniture item. Here's the piece in use in her friend's home.

Can you guess what this sleek-looking shelf has been constructed from? To find out,

Cool Idea: Graphite Sculptures

casasugar — Tue, 05 Aug 2008 08:30:23 -0700

ASB Workshop's Graphite Objects, created by San Francisco-based artist Agelio Batle, are olive branches, asparagus, calla lilies, raven heads, shells, quills, and other delicate shapes carved from graphite. The art pieces double as writing utensils when you don't have a pencil handy. The small sculptures transform the ordinary into the extraordinary and the art collector into the artist, whilst serving as an elegant artifact in your home. It's no wonder the objects are lined with remarkable, intricate details; the artist studied biology in college. Set one on top of a stack of books, use it as a paperweight, or arrange it in a vignette with other souvenirs and beautiful things. Available at Bluehouse ($34-$38) or contact the studio to purchase.

Cool Idea: Useful Moldings

casasugar — Tue, 05 Aug 2008 05:30:52 -0700

French industrial designer Mathieu Lehanneur created Useful Mouldings, modular units made of resin-reinforced plaster meant to be fixed to the wall, which double as ornamentation and a shelf, CD organizer, odds-and-ends holder, or a bench. The design combines elements of both design and architecture, merging pieces of furniture with the structure that supports them (kind of like a built-in), making the object disappear into their environment. Useful Mouldings gives something that's traditionally been an ostentatious ornamentation a function beyond aesthetics; that's something I'd like to see more often in the design world. Lehanneur's designs are certainly modern, but there's no reason why the same product couldn't be designed with traditional taste.
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Cool Idea: Hammock Hang-Up

casasugar — Fri, 01 Aug 2008 04:30:42 -0700

A recent New York Times article, "A Spare Stage for the Spectacle of Life," took readers into the Long Island home of artist Karin Waisman and architect Carlos Brillembourg, which is quite narrow yet still full of light and space for the couple and their daughter, Antonia. While I would certainly call the property a Coveted Crib, it's not the house itself that grabbed me.Perusing an interactive photo blueprint for the home, I noticed that the couple had used five hammocks as wall décor in their dining room. The space is notably minimal (white walls and chairs, oak floors and table), so evenly spaced on the wall and picking up the colors of a tray of veggies on the table, the hammocks are quite visually arresting. They're fitting, too; Brillembourg hails from Venezuela and Waisman from Argentina, and hammocks are ubiquitous in South America. I've been attracted to the colorful multi-stripe textiles used in traditional hammocks, so using them purely for decorative purposes was a successful move. Of course, if they'd like to step outdoors and enjoy the Southampton Summer weather, the family of three can each grab one, and still have two for the road . . .

Cool Idea: Books As Décor

casasugar — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 11:00:16 -0700

This weekend, when I stopped by the Berkeley Anthropologie, I was pleasantly surprised by the window display. Using old books (I'm hoping that these were books that would've been recycled, not ones that people still wanted to read), those clever Anthropologie folks folded individual pages, and then strung the books through their binding to hang them. They remind me a bit of paper chandeliers.

To get a closer look,

Cool Idea: Color-Coordinating Your Plants

casasugar — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 04:30:31 -0700

When I volunteered at the SF Victory Garden, I was inspired by this small garden bed, which provided a fun twist on an edible garden. Using scarlet runner beans and rhubarb chard in the bed, the gardeners matched the colors of the two vegetables; the red of the chard stalks matches the red of the blooming bean flowers. While color-coordinating flowers is nothing new, using vegetables as ornament is a very neat idea. The matching colors are eye-catching and pretty, but the fact that these plants are also edible makes them doubly appealing.

For some ideas on coordinating veggie colors,

Cool Idea: Bicycle Wheel Pot Rack

casasugar — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 16:00:00 -0700

You've probably heard the cliché "When life gives you lemons . . ." applied to all sorts of situations. But, I'd make an honest bet that a pot rack wasn't involved in one of them. So here we are. Handmade Detroit's boyfriend was in a bike accident that left his bike wheel too bent out of shape to function. Instead of sending the sad, sour wheel to a landfill he repurposed it by hanging it from the ceiling of his kitchen, using it as a pot rack. I love the DIY attitude of it and think it's perfect for a bicycle dude's home. It adds a refreshing, subtle touch of personality to something that's not traditionally very interesting.
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Cool Idea: Closet Case

casasugar — Fri, 18 Jul 2008 14:00:20 -0700

If you were thorough with your Spring cleaning this year, you might have found yourself with a closet to spare. For some of us, storage space is at a premium, but others might just be short on work space. If you fit this profile, consider turning a spare closet into an office.
You can store your books and files on high shelves and then install a plywood shelf across the closet to serve as your desk. The greatest thing about this trick is that when guests arrive, you can easily shut your closet door to hide all that paperwork that inevitably piles up. If you already have a chair in the room which can serve as your desk chair, you're all set. And if not, you can store a folding chair under the desk to pull out when needed.
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Cool Idea: Petal-Filled Vase

casasugar — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 14:00:20 -0700

I'm not a flower snob. Pick a couple of wildflowers from alongside the Interstate and toss them in a Starbucks Frappuccino cup, and I'll be just as happy as if you'd charged a floral masterpiece to your Black card. But I do appreciate a little innovation when it comes to flower arrangements. And sometimes, it's not thinking outside the box that brings about innovation, but rather, inside the vase. The Kartell Pantagruel Vase by Phillipe Starck ($198) was re-imagined here, filled to the brim with pink hydrangea, highlighting its feminine curves. This new genre of bouquet can be achieved with any flowering plant, dried or fresh, and works best with a clear glass vase with a nice shape. Try it with grasses for a more masculine arrangement.
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Cool Idea: Frankensteined China, Two Ways

casasugar — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 15:00:56 -0700

Belarusian artist Vika Mitrichenka makes gorgeous tea sets by casting broken pieces of china together, which were picked up by Dutch Design Shop Frozen Fountain, as well as the Stedelijk Museum. At $5,742 for a limited edition set of serving tray, tea pot, dish, sugar and cream bowls, and cup and saucer, you'd better have a pretty tame tea party if you want to use them, but I think it's best to think of Mitrichenka's work as fine art sculptures. To hear who else frankensteins china,

Cool Idea: Metal Interiors

casasugar — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 06:15:43 -0700

Are you into adding some heavy metal to your house? I'm not suggesting you start listening to Black Sabbath, of course, but that you experiment with some unusual materials. Take this ribbed metal wall, which I found in Australian architect Cathy Spratt's portfolio. She used metal walls for this beach house bathroom, which lends a vacation-oriented feel to the room. This is such an unexpected and interesting design element, which I think would work perfectly in a beach house or summer home. I'd love to experiment with metal walls. If you're interested you can find some metal wall and ceiling products here. Do you love this look as well?

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Cool Idea: Tubelor Trashcan

casasugar — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 14:00:08 -0700

If my Crave Worthy posts aren't evidence enough, it's not hard to find beautiful home furnishings. But, good design with an unprecedented function that's also aesthetically pleasing isn't exactly at every street corner. The Ideaco Design Tubelor Trashcan ($41) does fall into this category, though. The modern, candy-colored cans conceal ugly trash bags in their inner waste basket by covering them with a pretty tube — like a hat on a bad hair day. It's no wonder the design won the iF Product Design Award (Germany) for 2008; they're not only handsome but functional. I know the sight of trash bags in a trash can isn't the most severe eyesore, but aren't you glad that that boo-boo has been healed?

Cool Idea: Hang It With Ribbons

casasugar — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 07:45:03 -0700

My all-time favorite ice cream shop, Ici, announces their rotating handmade flavors on cute framed signs. While I love everything about the signs, from the font to the bold, black frames, my absolute favorite part of these ice cream signs is the pretty red ribbon with which they're hung.

If you have crown molding in your house, you also probably have a line of molding below it, which is known as a picture rail or picture molding. Using picture frame hooks and some ribbon, you can re-create this very cool look. Are you going to try it at your home?

Cool Idea: Stacked Books Table Leg

casasugar — Tue, 08 Jul 2008 13:00:29 -0700

I recently attended a charity event at the Ted Baker store here in San Francisco. Given that Ted Baker is a purveyor of quirky British design, I wasn't surprised to find that the store itself was chock full of inspiration and original interior design ideas. One of these was a neon-green table with one leg built from a stack of books. Genius! Not only does the table just look cool, but it offers a fresh way to repurpose dusty old books. To add another dimension of authenticity to the store, the books used were British in nature, such as Britain's Offshore Islands, Great Britain, and Old English Customs. The weight of the metal table on the books and the fact that it had a sliver of metal leg at the top kept the leg from wobbling, but this might not be the case if you used other materials or a different table design. I did a little research and found a DIY for making table legs out of books, which involves drilling a hole through the books to fit a rod through; it's cool too but not as successful visually. The orange table beside it, which I did not get a photo of, had one leg that only went three-fourths of the way and sat on a slightly deflated basketball, which had been filled with cement or sand or something equally weighty for stability. Bloody marvelous.

Cool Idea: Freecycle

casasugar — Sun, 06 Jul 2008 08:00:00 -0700

The Freecycle Network is a grassroots and entirely nonprofit movement and online community, launched in 2003, made up of 4,528 groups with millions of members across the globe giving and receiving free stuff. The online tool connects people on a local level, via local groups and a local volunteer, so that neighbors can pass along their possessions. As a result of this international sharing, over 300 tons a day of good stuff is kept out of landfills. Membership to Freecycle is free; everything posted must be free, legal, and appropriate for all ages; and navigating the groups (Yahoo! Groups) is quite easy. To give you an idea of how extensive this network is, San Francisco proper alone has 10,666 active members. Have you used Freecycle? Would you? What items in your home would you give away for free?

Cool Idea: My Sky My Water My Garden

casasugar — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 04:30:29 -0700

London-based designer Tithi Kutchamuch design was too lazy to lean her outdoor chairs against a wall in case of rain when her mom asked. Instead, she designed her My Sky My Water My Garden (inquire for price), a garden table that collects water in its central base, which can be used as a pot for plants and flowers, potentially saving 178-510 liters of water a year. The design functions as a table, a cache-pot, and a watering can all in one. As she puts it, it's an "effortless eco-friendly object." Kutchamuch also designed a bird feeder, which collects water from its roof and channels it into a bird bath underneath it. In a world where solar panels are still unattainable for most, it's nice to see eco innovation in the simplest things.

Cool Idea: Ample Sample

casasugar — Sun, 29 Jun 2008 05:30:18 -0700

Ample Sample challenges architects, interior designers, and home decorators alike to "Rethink. Reuse. Upcycle," and repurpose the carpet samples that they test for their homes and projects (and which are otherwise "destined for the dumpster") to make a design product from the carpet specimen. Creatives transform their carpet samples into design ideas, making a fixture, furnishing, or personal accessory meant for much more than a soft place to step your feet. Winning designs of annual Ample Sample contests are judged on criteria of aesthetics, purpose, ease of creation, creativity, durability, number/volume of carpet samples used, and promoted at NeoCon World’s Trade Fair 2008. I love how the contest brings attention to something oft overlooked and ignored as environmental waste. What other household items can you try to repurpose? Plastic bags? Scrabble letters? Light bulbs?
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Cool Idea: Eco Chic Gifts

casasugar — Fri, 27 Jun 2008 14:13:27 -0700

Growing up I had a friend who was the queen of re-gifting. She usually passed on my gifts to her to our mutual friends when their b-days came around, but one year she re-gifted a board game I'd bought her to me on my birthday! It got to the point where she might as well have left all of her presents in their wrapping paper and change the gift card. While I certainly don't recommend this shopping technique, it does do a good job of curbing consumerism and waste. TeamSugar member Mazdagirluk thinks along the same lines; she recently wrote, "For my bday this year, I have asked for no "new" items. Only items friends have but don't use anymore, or just a smile. I am interested to see what people share!" There are other ways to give (and request) eco chic gifts though, without emptying out your own closet. To hear them,

Cool Idea: ReadyMade Magazine's DIY Hammock

casasugar — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 06:15:04 -0700

I picked up the latest issue of ReadyMade over the weekend, and was delighted to find it brimming over with fun, easy projects for Summer living. One project I started nearly immediately was making their hammock project, which was explained in the article "Re-Kindle." Basically, all you need for this project is an old sheet, a sewing machine, and some rope. I used a duvet cover I'd made a few years ago, and which had been gathering dust in the linen closet. The project only took about half an hour from start to finish (threading the rope through and remembering my rock-climbing figure eight and water knots took the majority of that time).

If you want to make one for your own yard, pick up a copy of ReadyMade at your local bookstore. You can also check back tomorrow, when I'll share my own version of building this hammock. And yep, that's my hammock in the photo. It's surprisingly comfortable and strong, given that it's just a few layers of cotton. Are you going to make one for yourself?
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Cool Idea: Le Petit Paris

casasugar — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 14:00:00 -0700

Gerard Brion took up the challenge of building a miniature model of Paris 15 years ago. With 18,000 hours of painstaking work logged, he has crafted a miniature city, known as Le Petit Paris, in his garden in Vaissaic in the South of France out of salvaged items like old concrete blocks, baby food jars and soup tins. 150,000 visitors a year experience over 40 Paris monuments, such as the Champs Elysées, Montmartre, the Seine River, and the Eiffel Tower on a 1:130 scale set in a French-style garden planted with 400 bonzais. Year-round, the miniature city keeps up with the times, too: a miniature military-parade along the Champs Elysées on Bastille Day; Easter Eggs in the Bois de Boulogne in April; a true French Cancan show in Little Moulin Rouge featuring animated dolls; and demonstrations and traffic-jams along the little Paris boulevards keeping with typical French social unrest. After Princess Diana's car crash, Brion even smashed a miniature Mercedes car with a hammer and exhibited it under the Alma Bridge. In 2004, Brion opened the Little Louvre Museum, exhibiting 100 pieces of his own work and personal collection, including paintings, drawings, models. The small capital, open to the public on weekends and holidays, takes an hour to visit. How about that for backyard décor? Only in France . . .
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Cool Idea: Pant Hanger Picture Frames

casasugar — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 15:00:03 -0700

I recently spotted this pant/skirt hanger picture frame idea on Ladies & Gentleman Home, and felt a pang of "why didn't I think of that?" It actually started as a budget solution for hanging prints, but evolved into something that has an art-like quality of its own. I'm not so sure that this technique would work in every home, but it certainly works wonders above this mid-century tufted sofa with the mix of screen-printed, floral, and graphic toss pillows and plaid throw picking up the colors and patterns of the prints. If you purchased some new pant hangers when I showed you how to organize your hangers, or have a few to spare, you're in luck.
You can hang your prints and photographs from the moldings, hooks, and any crannies in your home, or construct a simple shelf like this one made from strips of wood. I love how the telephone pole print mimics the shape of the shelf. What do you think?
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Cool Idea: a Tablecloth Sans a Skirt

casasugar — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 14:00:07 -0700

I recently introduced you to one of my favorite blogs, My Marrakesh, about a family's quest to build an eco chic boutique hotel, called Peacock Pavilions, in Marrakesh. As part of this quest, Maryam, the blogging girl, wanted her hotel's tables, Saarinen tables I might add, "to be, well, pretty." Instead of purchasing traditional round tablecloths or leaving the tables undressed, she designed her own tablecloths, edged with handmade passementarie buttons, because she didn't want "to cover the graceful stems of the Saarinen tables." If that's not sheer brilliance, I don't know what is. One look at the table settings, and I'm already booking my flight, waiting to hear the words, "dinner is served."

Cool Idea: Take a Tip From the Kids

casasugar — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 15:00:05 -0700

If you're yearning for a pretty, feminine chandelier or other accessory for your home, but you don't want to drop big bucks on it, then consider looking in children's sections of major home retailers. For instance, this Blossom Chandelier ($299) from PB Teen bears a passing resemblance to the Primavera Chandelier ($1,800), but at a fraction of the price. So, if your tastes align with some of the more whimsical designs found in children's and teenager's retailers, it might be smart to check there before heading into more pricey adult fare.

Have you ever shopped in stores like PBTeen for yourself?

Cool Idea: Nick De Marco's Garbage Chair

casasugar — Fri, 30 May 2008 08:30:27 -0700

Artist Nick DeMarco from California College of the Arts designed this chair for a sustainable production furniture class. His XS chair is essentially a shell that can be filled with any excessive item you have around the house — from bottles and cans to old clothes or newspapers. He wanted to draw attention to the reality of trash, and how it can be reused. The chair was presented at the ICFF in New York this month, as part of the Sustainable Design For Mass Production exhibit. While I think the project works on a conceptual level, I can't imagine even the most eco-hippie communal homes filling their living room with such furniture.

For a video of Nick describing his project,

Cool Idea: A Damask Makeover

casasugar — Wed, 28 May 2008 08:30:18 -0700

Melissa from Sugar City Journal recently made a small change to her staircase that carries a huge visual impact. She scanned a damask fabric into the computer, then digitally enhanced it in PhotoShop. After printing the pattern on paper, she glued the sheets together, laminated them, and then used Modgepodge to glue them to her stairs.

To see a surprise in the pattern,

Cool Idea: Growing Works

casasugar — Fri, 23 May 2008 13:00:42 -0700

London-based production designer Óscar Díaz dreamed up a novel printing technique whereby a specific type of paper absorbs ink gradually. The technique allowed for him to create self-printing designs, where numbers on a calendar, letters on a card, or leaves on a botanical (etc.) are revealed bit by bit, so they are "growing works." Quite appropriately, his calendar design showed under the "Gradual" category at the 2007 London Design Festival. Each number on the calendar is printed daily, until the end of the month when the ink well is dry. So, the calendar not only signals elapsed time but gives a true sense of it. His plant posters grow up slowly, mimicking the growth of a real plant. In the case of his larger plant posters, complete growth can take up to four months. His Christmas card, which reads "Happy New Year 2008," took four days to print itself. Clever, huh? I have to say this is genuinely one of the coolest ideas I've shared here. Let's just see if Díaz can take a note from Gutenberg and make this printing technique commercially viable. To see his card in action,

Cool Idea: Retro Wooden Speakers

casasugar — Thu, 22 May 2008 13:01:11 -0700

My fiancé recently emailed me asking if we could buy these
Sound-e-Motion M100-20 BF speakers (inquire for price), since they'd complement our other wooden furniture. Granted, there's something pretty retro-cool about them, and I have to give my guy props for actually understanding that natural-tone wooden speakers are the correct decor choice for our house. However, I can't help but be reminded of Mario Philippona's Boobycase when I look at them. What do you think? Are these retro-cool, or are they just bizarrely boobylicious?

Cool Idea: Fringe Benefits

casasugar — Tue, 20 May 2008 04:30:10 -0700

The Inga Sempé Brosse (inquire for price) is a storage unit that proves there truly are benefits to fringe. Its large, car wash-style brush bristles were adapted to conceal shelves storing your personal items, be it books, tableware, or umm . . . home videos. Brosse is a modern alternative to a traditional armoire, bookcase, or cabinet, keeping your possessions out of sight, flapper style. While I suspect that most of you will agree this would be weird in a home, it's certainly inventive, and might look cool in a W-Hotel-meets-Virgin-airlines-style restaurant or club. Tell me, do you think it's cool, weird, or just wild?

Cool Idea: Fabric Panels Frame a Bed

casasugar — Fri, 16 May 2008 07:45:33 -0700

Natalie of Technology Drive hung fabric panels adjacent to her bedside table "to enclose the bed area so it didn't feel like it was floating between the living room door and the open closet/hall." This small change successfully delineated bed, giving it a cozy, canopy-bed-like feeling, but is actually a really simple project. It's also a really attractive update; the cherry-blossom pattern of her fabric panel brings an interesting visual element to an otherwise simple room. This would be a great solution for those of you working on decorating a studio. To see the fabric panels from another perspective,

Cool Idea: Shoe Closet Bulletin Board

casasugar — Wed, 14 May 2008 14:00:33 -0700

Apartment Therapy Small Cool 2008 contestant Stephanie lined the back of her shoe closet shelves with cork to make use of the space as a bulletin board in her small Chicago apartment. Not only is this an efficient use of her space, but it makes the daily rush to get dressed just a bit more interesting, and can be used as a reminder to get certain activities done that day, like go to the post office, pick up dry cleaning, etc. It also keeps the sort of papers, business cards, and souvenirs that you want to keep, but not necessarily display, private and out of your guests' eyes. Otherwise, a bulletin board in the kitchen or at your desk might look cluttered, or reveal unpaid bills, etc. that you don't quite want to share with the world. Are there any nooks in your home where you can recreate this idea?
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Cool Idea: San Francisco in Cookware

casasugar — Sat, 10 May 2008 10:31:18 -0700

If you're visiting San Francisco in May — or if you're lucky enough to live here — definitely make a stop at the Asian Art Museum to see artist Zhan Wang's installation On Gold Mountain. For this exhibit, Wang uses rocks from the foothills of the Sierra Nevada to create the sculptures, which are"alluding to the nineteenth-century Chinese immigrant experience of mining gold during the California gold rush."

However, what I find equally intriguing is the cityscape of San Francisco that he created entirely out of stainless steel cooking items.

Both installations comment on California's past and present need for Chinese labor and goods — whether it was during the Sierra Hills' Gold Rush or in present-day San Francisco restaurants and kitchens. An important social statement on its own, Wang is presenting it in an entirely unexpected and incredibly executed way.

Cool Idea: Ever-Open Laundry Bag

casasugar — Fri, 09 May 2008 14:00:44 -0700

I spotted this neat trick on Martha Stewart and was once again impressed with all the clever things you can do with an embroidery hoop! Here, Martha has transformed a traditional, hanging, drawstring laundry bag into an ever-open one by tightening a large embroidery hoop at least 14" in diameter around it. This keeps the bag open so you don't have to wrangle with it, but still allows you to hang it, keeping it off of the floor and at eye level. This small change will make a tedious household task a bit more efficient. Personally, I use the Umbra Crunch Can as a hamper, which is inherently
always open, crunches for storage, and has handles to be hung or transported; but the key is to work with what you've got!
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Cool Idea: Bentwood Strays From Its Café Chair Roots

casasugar — Mon, 05 May 2008 05:30:46 -0700

I've never had any complaints about bentwood (quite the fan, actually), but I'm impressed to see it showing up in places other than café chairs and coat trees. That's right, the technique most often associated with furniture is now being used to seat your hot coffee. This Veer Coffee Cuff ($59) is like a Flip & Tumble bag for your caffeine fix — you can take it with you on-the-go without sacrificing your chic style. I don't think the hand-shaped reclaimed black walnut veneer cuff, which doubles as a coffee cup sleeve is what Michael Thonet had in mind when he started manufacturing bentwood in the 1800s. It's certainly inventive, though, and handsome around your wrist, too!

Cool Idea: Edgy Porcelain

casasugar — Thu, 01 May 2008 13:00:45 -0700

If you haven't noticed, I'm anticipating a trend here, with my coverage of alternative crochet work, subversive lace, and now, edgy porcelain. It's as if a punk-rock grandchild raided her grandma's attic and added some 'tude to traditional, feminine styles.

The Brooklyn-based designer Sarah Cihat did just that when she asked metalsmith Michael Miller to dress up the hand-cast porcelain bowls and vases from her new Dirt collection. Using copper and brass chainwork, Smith's metalwork adds an unexpected touch of edginess to Cihat's designs, and I love the results.

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Artist of the Day: Carol Hummel

casasugar — Tue, 29 Apr 2008 16:00:45 -0700

An overt sign that the growing crochet trend has been taken to new heights, literally, is artist Carol Hummel's Tree Cozy. As part of a two-year exhibition of eight works by sculptors in Cleveland Heights, Ohio, Hummel crocheted a cozy with brightly colored nylon and synthetic material for a tree in front of Cleveland Heights City Hall, which wouldn't impede "the growth of the tree or [harm] wildlife." In her artist statement, Hummel refers to the tree cozy as "an emphatically handmade blanket representing femininity and comfort" which covers "a natural object representing masculinity and strength," a piece that personifies the tree "keeping it cozy and colorful throughout the year, enhancing the beauty of nature," and evokes "memories of bygone times and places when life was good," as well as "softens the strong tree form while also emphasizing it." She says, "The cozy covering the tree fluctuates between comforting blanket and suffocating cover-up; it conceals as much as it protects; it hides as much as it reveals." Tree Cozy was on display from 2005 through 2008, and landed Hummel an award as the winner of the Heights Public Art Competition. There's more to learn and see about this project, so

Cool Idea: Can o' Plants

casasugar — Wed, 23 Apr 2008 04:28:52 -0700

I've just come across a duo of similar products that are fit for Good to Grow month, and just plain kewl. Leave it to the Japanese to find a way to be innovative with plants; Flowers in a Can ($10) are a bit like Red Bull, except when you pop the top, it gives you flowers!!!! Of course, you've got to toss in some sunshine and de l'eau, too, but you get the point. Dandee Designs Spring in a Can ($10) works much the same and grows grass, but I'm not sure whether the kit comes preassembled or not. Perhaps this is not the most cost-efficient way to grow plants, but I'm loving the packaging concept.

Cool Idea: Play Table

casasugar — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 15:00:09 -0700

You might say the BCXSY Play Table ($5,999) is the Rubik's Cube of furniture. The coffee table has a slide puzzle top concealing sixteen storage boxes below, and one missing piece. In order to solve this puzzle, or to retrieve what you've stored inside, you must move one square top piece at a time, until it reveals the appropriate square. I love the idea of this and I think it's actually quite good-looking, which is important, although it's too masculine and geeky for moi. I suppose it acts a bit like a safe, making it difficult for people (kids, perhaps) to get access to your possessions. Despite its "playfulness," It's kind of a pain-in-the-butt, especially if you can't remember which unit you put the DVD box set of your favorite show in . . .