Since we are on the subject of coat hangers, here is one that any minimalist home can use. The Star hanger from Thai design studio Aesthetic was recently presented at the International Furniture Fair Singapore 2011. The best feature of the piece is its compactness. It arrives to you flat, and you assemble it in a few easy movements. You can also dissemble it just as easily and store it out of the way. The Star hanger is handmade from one single piece of ash wood, covered with nothing but oil, so it looks and feels natural.
Source: Designboom
Scratching furniture for cats is like sport for humans. They pride themselves on it. And when you are trying to renegotiate the immunity of your new couch and offer your cat toys and boards instead, – s/he thinks you are just being silly. This collection from Czech Republic company Catworks can provide a mutually acceptable solution for you and your cat. The alphabet-inspired line of functional pieces will look good around the house and channel feline enthusiasm at the same time. Every piece is equipped with a scratchy board and can be used as a side table, stool, accent object, you name it. With several colors available, you can easily incorporate Catworks into any room.
Source: 2 Modern Blog
The Coat Check chair from Joey Zeledón, made for Continuum, is not only modern, fun, and minimalist. It also promotes tidiness. And that makes it extremely lovable (no wonder its designer has already scored the Annual Design Review recognition from the I.D. magazine). The piece consists of steal tubing that serves as a frame for plastic hangers. Brilliant for house parties, this clever little item can bring an element of organization to your entrance area. And do that in a cool and non-condescending way.
Versatility is a must when it comes to children’s furniture, and this clever item from Country Living fits the bill beautifully. These colorful benches, called Groowy, can be transformed into shelving. Stacked on top of each other, they create a bookcase, a free-standing room divider, as high or as low as your space allows. And if your child is having a play-date, and some extra sitting is needed, you can easily take the storage unit apart and transform it back into cool and child-friendly benches.
HT Babble
Rocking chairs are beautiful and universally loved, but how often do we actually use them? Honestly. We sit in them on a rare whim, and watch how they gather dust for the rest of their existence. But what if we could turn any chair into a rocking one when we need it and back when we don’t? This is the idea behind the Skis de Chaise from French designer Marie Thurnauer. These ‘skis’ can be applied to any four-legged chair. The wooden attachments snap into place, transforming your sitting into rocking! Made from wood, the Skis de Chaise has a slightly vintage feel to it, which adds one more complement to your existing furniture.
Here is a rather drastic way to save space – integrate every fixture you need into your walls. Specifically – into this brilliant functional tile system from DTILE. These tiles can house your outlets, ventilation, hooks, napkin holders, planters, provide magnetic boards, hide drawers and more. The system eliminates clutter by fusing all our everyday items into one clean surface. The idea has virtually no cons – the tile is functional, easy to maintain, gives the space a unified look. Clever stuff!
Source: Dornob
Writing nerds – rejoice. There is a new way to celebrate your obsession with typewriters, typefaces and lined paper. These pillows from Pi’lo will state your passion in print! Made from cotton in a neutral color scheme, the pillows are as soothing for the senses as the objects that inspired them. They make great gifts too (if you manage to part with them). Sold at Etsy.
(HT Designers’ Block UK)
Consider Chool from the London based design company Slam – a chair and a stool in one clever item. In its stool version, it can be pushed under the table or stored in a closet, taking very little space. But when the extra sitting is needed, Chool becomes a chair. The weight of your bum is all that is needed for the transformation to occur. The piece can also be locked in any position between chair to stool at the push of a button. Chool is fully customizable with different upholstery choices and finishes. Color combinations are plentiful. And if you happen to have an outlandish design idea that is not represented in the line, the kind people at Slam will make an effort to implement it.
SO3 is an efficient and practical DIY shelving system from Zhaolei, designed to fit any space. These wooden shelves can be assembled into any configuration, they are the building blocks with which you can create a bookcase, a decorative shelf, a room divider etc. SO3 arrives to you in a form of a flat and compact package – another sign of a well thought out design.
Source: Yanko Design
Isn’t it nice when your things can perform additional tasks? Even when it is something small, like providing a place for your book… This Book Rest Lamp, resembling an outline of a house, will allow you to save your page. When you are done with your reading, simply place it face down on the lamp. The book becomes a literary rooftop, and the lamp itself – an instant night light. Made out of glass, the Book Rest Lamp contains low-heat internal CFL bulb, which gives it both safety and a warm glow.
