Product Design

Recent product designs I'm in love with: or if you need a GRAND Christmas gift idea!

The regulation size Pingtuated Equilibripong Table

by Axel Yberg:

I can't imagine how long it took to build this table.  It has exotic wood, a center glass-covered cut-out that is lit from beneath, and places to house your ping pong balls and paddles when not in use!

The ping pong table easily converts to a dining table by removing the 'net'.

Constructed from seven species of exotic wood in chop-block style, live edge slabs (black walnut, cherry, and holly) the table also includes reclaimed plumbing pipes and fittings, glass, mirror, steel, aircraft cable, and Edison reproduction light bulbs.

This is the most gorgeous game table I've ever seen!

The technology and possibilities of The Square intrigues me.

by Jack Dorsey

Independent business owners always have the issue of accepting credit cards. First you have to actually set-up a merchant account, than you have to purchase all of the scanning equipment. It’s almost not worth the trouble, despite the fact that no one uses cash these days.

The Square plugs right into the bottom of your iPhone and allows you to accept credit card payments on the go. Developed by Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey, The Square plugs right into your iPhone jack and even offers photo verification.

It is essentially a small magnetic reader that plugs into the headphone jack of an iPhone.

When a credit card (or a debit card) is swiped through the reader, it reads the data and converts it into an audio signal. The microphone picks up the audio, sends it through the processors and then is routed to Square’s software application on the iPhone.

From there the encrypted data is transmitted using either Wi-Fi (for iPod Touch) or a 3G Internet connection to a backend severs which in turn communicate with the payment networks to complete the transactions. – Twitter creator Jack Dorsey

Blue D1653

by Damian O'Sullivan, Arian Brekveld, & Chris Koens

Delftware master painters are combining their art with modern design in a new design label by Royal Delft called Blue D1653

I love the reinvention of an old art form, such as the Dutch Delft pottery from the 17th century, rejuvenated with modern design!  I remember old family members collecting these items from travels abroad; now it can be experienced in a new way!

 Biome Smart Terrarium

by Samuel Wilkinson

An iPhone/iPad controlled flora terrarium promotes 'digital downtime' by finding an alternative use for smartphones encouraging users to consider a slower life.

Hidden Radio & BlueTooth Speaker

by John VDN & Victor Santa Maria

By lifting the cap the user proportionally increases the volume.  The further the cap goes up the louder the sound gets.  To tune the radio you simply rotate the cap and receive feedback of tuning quality via the LED on the front.  It has quality sound [goes up to 80db] and remote technology that works with your smartphone to use for playing music, conference calls, skype, movies, and gaming.  You can seamlessly switch between multiple speakers if you have one in each room through your phone.

This product is the perfect example of how good design incorporates aesthetics with each of the given functions of a product by purely simplifying.  “Every now and then there’s a beautifully simple design that is so intuitive it beggars belief as to why no-one else had thought of it.” - Gadgetrynews.com

Due to the cost of getting the product ready for production, they need your help to fund it.  It will only be funded if at lease $125,000 is pledged by Wednesday Jan. 18, 5:03PM EST.  By pledging, you're basically pre-ordering your very own speaker.  Check out their kickstarter page for more info and to watch the video!

New Cork Floors

My mom just finished having cork flooring installed in their bedroom and office.  There was originally frieze carpet there [which is soft and awesome], but her unruly dogs kept reminding her that they like it better than grass.  She'd had enough of the old-age dog accidents and was ready for an easy-care option.

There is slate tile throughout the rest of the main level that we could have used, but these two rooms needed a warmer option.  Cork absorbs sound better, has more cushion under foot, and with the dark stain feels warmer like hardwood.  It also repels water better than hardwoods, resists mold, mildew, and insects.  It made sense that doggy accidents would be less damaging on cork floors than carpet, or hardwoods.

Here is my good friend, Christopher, installing the cork strips in the office

[he will hate that I used this picture of him!]

 The Office:

 [I didn't get a chance to snap any before photos of the office that show the carpet]

 We preferred the cork strips rather than the tiles, purely because they resemble hardwood planks.

This specific project called for something that looked more like hardwood to contrast with the slate tile.

[my dog, Jaeger, in the midst of shooting pics!  He's too cute for me to handle!]

The Master Bedroom:

 [before]

 [after]

Easy-Clean Aprons

 At the Holiday Mart this year, my mom and I purchased new aprons for when we tile/grout mosaics.  We bought the animal print ones from Sarah-Janes booth.

They are oilcloth- so easy to clean and cute too!

Nothing like going to work in jeans, a t-shirt, and an apron!

Moustache Madness

So in honor of my husband Matt's moustache he's been growing for 2 months now, I am devoting this post to moustaches in design.  He started growing it for the Renaissance Festival, then it kept going for Oktoberfest, now it's officially "Movember," I don't think it will end before Christmas!

People have gone pretty crazy for them in design lately; here are some of my favorites:

They're even a hit in baby products:

Do you think the craze will end soon?  

...Please convince my husband it is!