Over the weekend I received a couple good Kickstart submissions that I wanted to share with everyone. The first one (shown in the video above) is Freakers. Basically it's a knit sleeve for your beverage container of choice made with all sorts of fantastic colors and patterns. Sounds a little cheesy I know, but they actually look pretty cool.
Next up is a magnetic vase idea called Lusion Bloom. It's a vase that is held up by a magnetic vase that sits under a tablecloth. Pretty cool idea...
Love em or hate em, you can find out more on Kickstarter.
I'm not sure what I like more, the white on white room, or the stacking shelves shown in it. The One Shelves are made from powder coated aluminum and walnut. According to the Studio Juju the designer they are;
A set of small boxes that can be nested together to take up the least amount of space and expanded without tools to form a big shelf.Stack and arrange to fit different spaces.
A step up from the milk crates you have been using.
Studio Juju One Shelves
This cardboard child's chair is made from recycled paper and claims to support up to 132 lbs! It arrives looking like a small box, but once you open it up all the components for building your own chair are inside. I love that you can decorate and paint it, too (or let your kids do that part)! Clever, clever, clever.
DIY Cardboard Child Chair by MUJI: $30
The sparrow keychain is a cheerful little way to store your keys. The pink or green bird not only makes a great place to hang your keys, but it also doubles as a whistle. When you get back home, simply set the bird back in his house until you are ready to go again.
Sparrow Keychain $16
I am not usually too big of a fan of wire furniture. That being said, ANONandCo is an Australian based design group that is doing some fantastic work with bent wire. Whether it's the humble clothes hanger to this Dove stool, I'm really impressed with their work. The Dove stool is available in black, white or orange from their online store.
ANONandCo
Forget "birds", I say put an angle on it! (FYI: funky lines and playful angles are a sure-fire way to my heart.) This set of nesting shelves can be stacked or mounted on the wall - it would be fun to get a few sets for a large wall or paint them in subtle gradations. Endless possibilities and arrangements!
Angle Nesting Shelves from West Elm: $99 / set of 3
You can tell the weather is getting warmer when Capree and I start blogging about watering cans again. The BOCA watering bottle has got me scrambling for something green so I can justify buying it. Made of porcelain it has two spouts, one for fine streams, and one for pouring. It even has a felt ring to catch any droplets of water left behind.
BOCA watering bottle
A piggy bank for minimalist savers! This wooden cube is equipped with a clip to hold friendly reminders of what exactly it is you're saving for - a nice detail to have in moments of weakness!
About:
Designed by Markus Gläser and Jan Eilts for Side by Side, a collaboration between young designers and workshops for the disabled. Made by Ruperti Werkstätten in Germany.
Piggy Bank Fritz available from Plastica: $68
Back in 2005 when I was just starting the blog (I can't believe it's been 6 years!) I blogged about and did an interview with Jason Gregory from MAKR. Back then Jason was just getting started making fine leather goods. Just this week I stumbled across his site again, and I'm happy to report it looks like the business is alive and doing well. He still has a myriad of leather goods, and he has added some nice canvas bags to the lineup as well.
MAKR Carry Goods
Check out his blog too. It totally has me obsessing over this key.
It's gardening time soon, friends! Around this time of year, I'm always keeping my eyes peeled for cool modern (and affordable) garden tools and accessories. This watering can from Sprout Home fits the bill perfectly. Made from polystyrene and completely recyclable, this glossy little number also holds 2 liters of water. Not too shabby. Available in yellow or green.
Cayman Watering Can from Sprout Home: $16
Here's a snipet of video from the House 2 project that wrapped up last year. Video (and cabinetry) by Modern Union. Enjoy!
I'm too the point that I'm getting pretty skeptical about getting any sort of quality home furnishing items from Urban Outfitters. I'm hoping that I'm wrong about this Spectrum Pendant Shade though. I mean it looks like it is well made... Someone go check it out and report back.
Spectrum Pendant Shade
Talk about a garden party! Crate&Barrel adds a nice modern twist to the classic outdoor stacking chair with this colorful collection. A few in white, aqua, and yellow would definitely cheer up my sad little backyard. Which color or color combo would you spring for?
Backyard Stacking Chair from Crate&Barrel: $32
I've been posting a lot of Kickstarter projects lately, and I keep finding more great ones. Gypsy Modular based right here in Utah is this weeks find. They have designed CNC cut modular furniture for kids that can be assembled without any hardware. They have stools, tables, chairs and more. The styling reminds me of some other modern kids furniture I've seen before, but the prices seem crazy inexpensive. Stools are $25, chairs are $45. I believe those prices include shipping.
Gypsy Modular on Kickstarter
And the award for best DIY lamp shade EVER goes to....
Allison Patrick of Zipper 8 Lightning. A recent graduate from architecture school, Allison decided that she would "start a design firm making cool stuff". The result is a whole collection of amazing lighting like the Artichoke Mixed Book Page Pendant Light shown above. All of her lamps use commonplace materials like book pages, plastic bags, straws etc but with amazing results. I say we all reward Allison for being awesome and buy something from her store. It's all incredibly affordable and beautiful.
Artichoke Mixed Book Page Pendant Light $30
Apparently I'm adding obscure japanese bottle openers to my collection of obsessions. Like the cast iron tool bottle openers, this abstract crow bottle opener is made of “Nambu-tekki” (cast iron) and has the traditional japanese urushi glaze that prevents rust and gives it the black color. I have a feeling Urushi glazed cast iron is going to be right up there with felt and bent wood on my list of obsessions.
Crow Bottle Opener $25
We love Kickstarter projects here at GRM. The latest great project that we have stumbled upon is Blockets.
Blocklets are a system of interlocking pieces that can be used to make anything, from sculpture to furniture, and soon Arduino-based robots. Made of laser-cut wood and acrylic, they snap together with a satisfying 'click' and they feel great in your hand.
A $25 pledge will get you a basic Blockets kit with 86 wood and acrylic pieces.
Blockets on Kickstarter
Blockets website
Yep, I just checked and it's been confirmed. These ceramic vases from artist Wendy Jung are indeed the coolest things on the planet. They're available in two sizes as a hanging vase or wall mounted - and are surprisingly affordable considering they're handmade and one-of-a-kind.
Pod Vases by Wendy Jung: $29 - $39
Who says robots have to be all hard and unhuggable. These new 
You know, it's the little things that count. Little things like oak tea light holders hand-painted with slightly abstracted herringbone patterns. Yes, indeedy.