Friday 29 August 2014

Josh Renouf's cool coffee machine/alarm clock

The Barisieur
The Barisieur is an alarm clock and coffee brewer. It eases the user into the day with the subtle movement of stainless steel ballbearings that boil the water through induction heating, accompanied by the smell of freshly brewed coffee. It encourages a ritual before going to sleep, signalling to the body and mind that it is time to unwind and relax. Living slow even when times are fast.














 http://www.joshrenoufdesign.com/new-gallery-5/av7fqhie9y5ptdbxr9s4i8rb65irqo

Tuesday 26 August 2014

The Sexiest Staircases in the World

Although our experiences with staircases are fleeting by design, there is still pressure to make them beautiful. Because they're seen from multiple rooms and different levels, there's a lot of room for a great architect to play with scale and structure. And boy, do they deliver. This is gratuitous, unabashed stair porn, and no, we're not sorry.
Click through to view more photos from the architects behind these stunning homes, stores, libraries and museums.
Waves of Wood: This U-Shaped staircase in a Mubai apartment, from Fabio Correa of Mexican Studio Arquitectura en Movimiento, is crafted from walnut and metal.
La Maison Unique: A creative solution to an unusual space in Longchamp's glovbal flagship store in SoHo, New York, designed by Heatherwick Studio.
Book/Stair Case: A multi-functional bookcase and staircase in one, from Veronika and Sebastian's Rental Apartment in London, designed by Levitate Architects. See their full house tour here.
Art Meets Architecture: This sculptural staircase sits in the Art Gallery of Ontario and was designed by Frank Gehry. Part of a redevelopment plan called Transformation AGO, it was constructed in 2004.
Slippery Slope: A staircase and slide in one makes getting around easy in the home of London architect Alex Michaelis of firm Michaelis Boyd. He designed the playful staircase in their new home at the request of his young children.
Seeing Red: The Livraria Lello & Irmão Bookstore in Porto, Portugal, is well known for the intricate red staircase that descends through the center of the store, one of the oldest bookstores in Portugal.
Cutting Corners: A narrow passage between the ground floor and attic inspired this diagonal-step staircase crafted from stacked boxes of pine, designed by Gabriella Gustafson & Mattias Ståhlbom of TAF Architects in Stockholm, Sweden.
Work and Playground: Stairs (and a rope swing!) in the Didden Village of Rotterdam, Netherlands, a playful private family home for the Didden clan designed by MVRDV in 2006.
Rippling Ribbon: This delicate floating staircase, designed by HSH Architects, was constructed from 10mm-thick sheet metal for a private home in Liben, Prague, in the Czech Republic.
Spiral Stairs: This modern and dramatic take on rounded stairs was designed by arctitects from the firm gh3 for a home on Russell Hill Road in Toronto.


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Friday 8 August 2014

Man Builds Home for $11,000 Using Local Found Materials


Kayaking instructor and boatbuilder Brian Schulz embarked on an ambitious construction project that took him about a year and a half to complete. The end result is a beautiful home in the woods that cost only $11,000! Inspired by Japanese architecture, the Japanese Forest House (as Schulz aptly refers to it) includes both a rustic western and traditional eastern appeal.
Located in the woods of Cape Falcon, Oregon, the home offers all the basic amenities one would expect from a living space. What separates it from other homes is the architect's design choices (given its location), the structure's sustainability, and the locally sourced materials that went into its construction.
It all began one day when Schulz found a brass sink at a local recycle center and immediately started fantasizing about building a home around the object. He wound up fulfilling his dream on an affordable budget by carefully salvaging materials for construction and items to adorn the house. He also did a fair bit of traveling and meeting people who offered anything from handmade paper lanterns to allowing him to actually haul trees from their property.
Schulz says, "With deep enough pockets a person might be able to duplicate such a structure by writing a large check to a talented builder, but that would risk missing the point entirely… Whether or not one believes that turning a log from beside the house into the house itself imbues it with some mystical qualities, it is undeniable that the pursuit of local materials connects more deeply to your landscapes, your neighbors,  and yourself. The simple act of searching adds richness to our lives. To reiterate:  You meet people, you discover new places, you have adventures, you learn things, AND, you come home with beams, windows,  doors, and shingles."








Brian Schulz website

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Wednesday 6 August 2014

John Willey

 by kim  As I mentionned back in a post in '08, Manhattan interior designer John Willey is an inspiration for those who believe that beige is a colour. Because he certainly does NOT. His spaces are wrapped in bold colour and pattern and give off lots of fun energy. He's a genius, what can I say. Here are some newer photos from his portfolio.
 

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Monday 4 August 2014

15 Rustic Kitchen Design Photos

As the hub of the home, the kitchen is the room with all the action. It’s not just the place to prepare and cook food — it’s also used for entertaining guests, storing gadgets and eating family meals. Your rustic design needs to accommodate all these activities, which is why remodels are more popular than ever.
As the hub of the home, the kitchen is the room with all the action. It’s not just the place to prepare and cook food — it’s also used for entertaining guests, storing gadgets and eating family meals. Your rustic design needs to accommodate all these activities, which is why remodels are more popular than ever.
15 Rustic Kitchen Design Photossource
15 Rustic Kitchen Design Photossource
15 Rustic Kitchen Design Photossource
15 Rustic Kitchen Design Photossource
15 Rustic Kitchen Design Photossource
15 Rustic Kitchen Design Photossource
15 Rustic Kitchen Design Photossource
15 Rustic Kitchen Design Photossource
15 Rustic Kitchen Design Photossource
15 Rustic Kitchen Design Photossource
15 Rustic Kitchen Design Photossource
15 Rustic Kitchen Design Photossource
15 Rustic Kitchen Design Photossource
15 Rustic Kitchen Design Photossource
15 Rustic Kitchen Design Photossource

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