Design Blogfest Window Competition Finalists
by Joey Roth, Brooklyn, USA on 05.16.07
About a week ago, Treehugger and five other blogs invited designers to submit prototypes to be shown in The Apartment's SOHO-facing windows during our Blogfest. The deliberation was hard, but we've picked the finalists; now it's your turn to choose the winner. Read on to find the finalists, photos of their designs, and the chance to vote on your favorite:
Cribcandy chose the Drawing Pod I chose the drawing pod, because it solved a very simple problem that I encountered when i was an architect, but which anyone who has tried to extract a poster from a cardboard tube will relate to. Rolled up drawings tend to unwind and stick to the sides of tubes making them difficult to extract without tearing. The solution: make the tube tear-drop shaped, in section.
TreeHugger chose the Keyboard Waffle Maker Chris Dimino's Keyboard Waffle Maker proves that a little whimsy and sense of fun is often critical to a recycled design's success. It just wouldn't be as interesting (or as green) if the typewriter's metal and plastic were melted down and turned into another forgettable appliance. The design also celebrates the typewriter's patina and imperfections instead of attempting to hide them, which I think is a growing movement away from iPod-like super-slickness in design as a whole.
Apartment Therapy chose The Bean Screen and Lettuce Coffee Table These two designs stood out for the ambition of their design and practicality. As we move into the green age, designs like these will challenge the way we think about our interiors and our furnishings. These were beautiful and simple as pieces and inspired curiosity as we wanted to take one home and try it right away.
Curbed chose designblogfest_v1_window display Simple. Something we've talked about doing at the Gawker HQ down the block. And solidifies the idea of this stretch of Crosby Street as Blog Alley for a night. Fun!
Both NOTCOT and Cool Hunting chose Pet Plus Series Per NOTCOT; There's a playful style to her pieces that make you stop, pause, giggle, and then realize how fun it would be to gift someone with those. What puppy wouldn't want to be a part of the family and partake in some wine at the dining table (with a collared shirt and all)... or for the lonely ladies out there who want to "hold hands" as they walk the dog, there's the boy leash.
MoCo Loco chose FLIRTSTATION Design Blogfest is all about people connecting with other people and design, a concept embodied in Shannon South's FLIRTSTATION. "Two can share this bench that will naturally allow connection to occur by keeping one focused on the other through the window that connects yet separates them.".
It seems as if Treehugger is just an outlet for so called eco-gadgets and more ridiculous consumer junk. The answer to problems of environmental ecology is not to produce more expendable garbage to litter the earth with. The answer is to consume less. Years ago when things were made in the U.S.A. they were built to last for a lifetime. The consuming public has been duped by market capitalism which is always misleading and wasteful . As long as the standard is more production for higher GDP you may as well say goodbye to your children's future.
Keyboard Waffle Maker is so cool :)