Yes, in Greek mythology, Pandora’s box is actually a large jar that unleashed terrible things on mankind. But that didn’t stop us from liking this Pandora’s Box, a secret storage shaped like a large leather bound book.

The Pandora’s box Secret Storage has black felt interior, with magnets to keep the case closed. It will surely keep your personal things secret, hiding in plain sight on your bookshelf. Just don’t store any "ills, toils, and sickness," like the original Pandora’s box, mmkay?

From the Neatorama Shop: Link | See also: Das Kapital Money Bank

This massive structure is filled with room after room of salvageable building materials in pristine condition, ranging from sprawling kitchens and custom cabinetry to a unique sauna and indoor pool slide.

At the company’s link are several pages of photos and a walk-through video.

The company saves money by inviting the public to go directly to the home to harvest materials; what remains is transported to their warehouse and store for resale.

Link.

Only male gardeners are participating, in part because of some dubious claims regarding gender-based differences in urine:  “There are obvious logistical benefits to limiting it to male members of the team, but also male pee is preferable to women’s, as the male stuff is apparently less acidic.”

A secondary benefit is anticipated in terms of water conservation:

“An average flush of the lavatory can use anything from four and a half to nine litres of water each time, but what people may not realise is that this water is treated to the same standard as drinking water and shouldn’t be wasted.”  Urinating outdoors or in the shower is advocated by environmental activists, including Cameron Diaz, as a way of tacking climate change by saving water and energy.

They are tentatively encouraging the public to follow their lead: ““Adding a little pee just helps get it all going; it’s totally safe and a bit of fun too.”

Links for the Telegraph and the BBC (where there is an explanatory video).

Photo: Jason Taylor

A few years ago, British designer Jason Taylor created a furniture set made to look like bristle brushes. So far, he’s made two tables and a trio of stools using this theme.

Link via Make | Official Website

Fiat Lux is a lamp with a switch that hovers underneath -no strings attached! The ball-shaped switch is magnetic, and rests on the lamp when not in use. When you approach the lamp, it turns itself on. Then you “hang” the switch underneath, where it levitates by magnetic force. Move the switch to turn the lamp off. Designed by Constance Guisset and Grégory Cid. Link -via Metafilter

(L) Banana Juice Water Bottle (R) Pickle Brine Water Bottle – $11.95

Being environmentally friendly doesn’t mean that you have to lug around ugly water bottles. Here are 4 new stainless steel water bottles with funny designs that will make you instantly hip. From the Neatorama Shop: Link

Check out these 15 ludicrously expensive fireplaces. Pictured is the enormous transparent fireplace called Pictofocus, which will set yu back $21,000!

Link

From the Upcoming ueue, submitted by delrond.

Photo: Marcus Tremonto

Designer Marcus Tremonto created a lamp made out of carbon fiber. He selected this material for the Carbon 451 Lamp because it is strong enough to support its own weight but thin enough to present the aesthetic qualities Tremonto wanted:

When asked by art gallery owner Patrick Brillet to design a piece out of Carbon Fiber, we decided to celebrate and utilize the best of the materials true physical properties, its strength and lightness. The complexity of curves and required thinness could not be duplicated in any other material while still maintaining its ability to support itself completely[...]

More pictures at the link.

Link via Gizmodo | Artist’s Website

Photo: Unica

Andreas Dober’s wall clock for the German luxury shop Anthologie Quartett cycles a bicycle chain to display the hour with copper digits at the top. A custom job, it prices out at $2,338.

Link via Make | Anthologie Quartett

Photo: Kibardin Design

Prague-based Russian designer Vadim Kibardin created the Deep Forest Lounge Chair out of 374 wooden dowels, carefully molded to seat a person comfortably. Each is custom-made and priced at $6,584. More pictures at the link.

Link via Gizmodo

The British Royal Mail service commissioned Studio Dempsey to create first class stamps with classic albums covers. The covers include albums from Blur, New Order, Led Zeppelin, The Rolling Stones, Primal Scream, David Bowie, The Clash, Mike Oldfield, Pink Floyd, and Coldplay -but no Beatles.

The final selection of ten sleeves (which perhaps oddly doesn’t feature one of The Beatles’ album covers) will appear on a set of 10 stamps that will launch on January 7, 2010 – and the stamps will be uniquely shaped, as shown in these images, to accommodate a glimpse of a vinyl disc poking out of each record sleeve.

Link – via babycreativeblog

From the Upcoming ueue, submitted by Babycreative.

If it looks like mechanical failure is the cause, and you need just a bit more data off that drive before it’s gone for good, try sticking it in the freezer until it’s good and cold, then let it reach room temperature again and give it another try. This passed-around tech geek tip works, as a last resort, because when worn-out mechanical parts fail to connect and align properly, contracting them with cold, then allowing them to expand again, can sometimes restore things to barely-working order just long enough to give you a little more time before the funeral.

You’ll also find quick fixes for stripped screw holes, broken light bulbs, and even hangovers! Link -via the Presurfer

Is that an alien being disguised as furniture or is it artwork by Julian Göthe?

This wonderful piece is part of Julian Göthe’s exhibition "Events during Flood" at the Galerie Buchholz in 2008 but just in case I’m mistaken let me just say I, for one, welcome our new furniture overlords: Link

Photo: razy2

The Polish design team razy2 made a chair that’s built like a stack of sticky notes. The Q-Book is composed of sheets of paper, carefully cut, that are attached on one side. If you need something to write on, just tear off a sheet.

Artist’s Website via Make

A man cave is a place for a man to get away from the rest of the family and the problems of the world and to engage in his favorite pastimes. The best man caves get posted to the internet, and BroBible.com selected 15 awesome setups for this collection. Some are centered around sports, some take up the entire basement, and almost all feature an elaborate entertainment center. The garage pictured also has a bar and room for motorcycle parking. Link -via Gorilla Mask

Ever wonder how IKEA makes their furniture sturdy yet light? The secret is the honeycomb skeleton inside their tabletops. National Geographic went inside an IKEA factory in Poland: Link

Time is tight if you are just starting to make Halloween decorations, but this one can be ready in a day. Evil Mad Scientist Laboratories has instructions for making your own concrete tombstone! It might not be fancy enough for an actual grave, but it is sturdy and customizable for Halloween. Link

Image: Gabriel Cañas

Mexican industrial designer Gabriel Cañas created this fiberglass Tetris-inspired chair. So far, it’s one-of-a-kind, so it’s not yet available for retail. Follow the link to Cañas’ portfolio for more odd furniture.

Link via GearFuse | Previously on Neatorama: Tetris Furniture

This one will make Karl Marx spin in his grave (you may be surprised to find where the father of communism was buried. No, not the Soviet Union. Karl Marx was buried in London.)

Behold the Das Kapital Money Bank – a secret storage case shaped like his Das Kapital manifesto. And at $19.95 over at the Neatorama Shop, you don’t have to be the bourgeoisie to buy one: Link

See also: Good Marx, Bad Marx T-Shirt

The following is a Neatorama Shop Story, a narrative starring the products carried in this blog’s very own online store.

1932, Vieux Carré. The spirited jazz befit the life the old lady had lived. She had been known for curing illnesses, lifting curses and brewing love potions, all without charging. She had gotten along with everyone, even the reclusive nocturnal couple who rented the windowless basement apartment. The procession wound its way back to her grand dwelling on St. Ann Street where we found ourselves at a wake hosted by the deceased’s attractive young niece, Sookie, who had just returned from her studies abroad.

We had only recently taken up residence in the sun-drenched breezy balconied rooms on the second floor. The first floor was occupied by a handsome but shy young pianist. He and the old lady had “adopted” each other some years earlier and had become constant companions, so his absence from the procession had raised our eyebrows and our concern. Later, when we did not see him at the wake, we feared he was bedridden with grief and loneliness, yet our worries melted away like Cajun crawfish croquettes as we eagerly sampled the buffet before us. In anticipation of crossing over, the old lady had written out a meticulous plan which Sookie had followed to the letter, lovingly preparing all of her Aunt’s secret recipes, and placing at the center of the table a voodoo doll toothpick holder. With each miniscule skewer removed by a guest and plunged into cayenne crab cakes, deep fried jambalaya crisps, or gator gumbo gobs, everyone present felt a pang of sadness lift, and recalled in its place a joyous memory of a joke shared or wisdom gained in times spent in the company of the dearly departed.

The jazz band paused as the very house itself seemed to groan and sob a long cathartic wail. Just then, our mysteriously absent neighbor stumbled through the doorway, clutching his bosom. Our hostess looked into his eyes and then down at the table, where a lone stick jutted from the heart of its man-shaped holder. Plucking the tiny toothpick from its hole, she stabbed a soft praline ball and lifted it to the quivering lips of the young man whose hands promptly fell from his chest to his sides and then wrapped themselves around the waist of his savior. The two young people closest to the old lady’s heart would now dwell in each others’, as she had long intended.

We knew it was past our bedtime when our subterranean neighbors arrived bearing blood-sausage-stuffed po’ boys. As we were saying goodnight, the hostess passed us the little perforated person who had served up so much deliciousness and pain. She said, “Please take this. My aunt would have wanted you to have it. She told me that your love spanned the ages.”

Our little friend is now marketed under the name of “Ouch! The Voodoo Doll Toothpick Holder.” We have employed ours on several occasions without attracting the attention of authorities. It has retained its power as a great party starter. We have used it at an acupuncturist’s reception, and have adorned “Ouch!” with ruffle-ended toothpicks to evoke a grass skirt for a Very Brady taboo/voodoo luau. When he is not partying, “Ouch!” makes a nice paperweight and graciously holds our “flags of all nations and eras” pushpin collection (essential in mapping our adventures). Just hanging out with him imparts a comforting feeling that you have a tool with which to control the universe. “Ouch!” does not appear to have been approved for use with sparklers, so we cannot advise in good conscience that you try it. Suffice it to say that it would look wicked cool and the spell would be that much more effective.

Ouch! Voodoo Doll Toothpick Holder, available from the Neatorama Shop for $7.95

__________

The story above is written by the dynamic duo Drs. Ernest and Convalescence Bidet-Wellville (hey, I didn’t name ‘em) of the University of Self-Conscious Consumerism in Olde Busytowne, Connecticut. I suspect they write cover stories for the CIA, so if I’m inexplicably missing the next few days, you know what happened.

Hit play or go to Link

The worldwide recession has hit a lot of people hard, but it’s not all doom and gloom. Far from it actually, as is the case with property. As the price of real estate has fallen, there are plenty of bargains to be had all around the world! The villa pictured is in Halcyon Hills, Greece.

No doubt there will be a few reading ready to point out the error in the title. Surely, it’s a mistake? Homes for less than 50K? No way! But yet, it’s true. Since the global financial debacle of last year, it’s shocking how many homes are available for sale for under US$50,000, especially in the US where the housing market was hit hardest.

Link

From the Upcoming ueue, submitted by Arby.

Here’s something quite neat for your bookshelf: a pair of matching Rosie the Riveter bookends, made from heavy-duty stone resin. The bookends, created by Chris Collicott commemorate the spirit of the machine age and honor the hardworking ladies who worked in war factories during World War II.

You can count on Rosie the Riveter bookends to work diligently in keeping your books organized and neat!

From the Neatorama Shop: Link

Don’t go unprepared to your next party. Forget those clumsy disposable cups, bring your own portable beer glass. The Port-A-Pint Beer Glass pops open in seconds with a flick of your wrist. From the Neatorama Shop: Link

The next time you throw a party, make sure you’re well armed. The Bombs
Away Shot Glasses will definitely make your party a (direct) hit. These shot glasses are made from high-quality double-walled borosillicate glass with a frosted interior. And as you can see, it is shaped like the tail fins of an aerial bomb.

New at the Neatorama Shop: Link

Photo: Kamiya Design, Inc.

The components of this table and chairs set by the Japanese firm Kamiya Design spell out the word ‘table’. It’s part of an exhibition at the upcoming Nagoya Design Week, held from October 14-18.

Link via Gizmodo | Company Website | Nagoya Design Week

Here’s one for your next party: the Stone Cold Ice Tray that makes ice shaped like the moais of Easter Island! Perfect for your tropical drink.

From the Neatorama Shop: Link | More cool and unusual ice trays

It might not be comfortable or all that functional, but this shopping cart chair is just undeniably cool. It can even work as a wheelchair if necessary. Instructables can tell you how to make one of your very own.

Link

Photo by Iwan Baan

Gorgeous design and blending of utilitarian and aesthetic elements.  More photos at link (The Contemporist).

The New York based landscape and urban design office of Balmori Associates has designed the “Garden That Climbs The Steps” in Bilbao, Spain.

Link

This is a clever one by Carl Mitsch of Fred Studio: a set of measuring cups shaped like matryoshka (babushka or Russian nesting dolls). They’re cute and functional! And perhaps best of all, they nest inside of one another so they don’t take up much cabinet space. At $11.95 each, they’re the perfect gift for those who love to cook … and who knows, maybe you’ll get dinner out of it, too.

From the Neatorama Shop: Link