Archive Category: Home & Garden
Traffic Light Birdhouse
Now you can control the bird traffic in your backyard with a neat wooden birdhouse that looks like a traffic light.
This traffic-sign yellow birdhouse includes an entrance in each “light,” three shelves for nesting and openings at the back for easy cleaning. Bird-safe paint. Hanging wire included.
The product is available from Uncommon Goods for $40.
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Pluviae
Who needs a shower stall when you’ve got Pluviae? A great design for a minimalist bathroom, or a very small space for one, from Matteo Thun & Partners. Link -via Ursi’s Blog
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Furniture by Stanislav Katz
Chest of Drawers by Stanislav Katz
Book shelves with a built-in bench
There are two reasons why we feature Stanislav Katz’s website:
1. The amazing furniture that he made, like the curvy Chest of Drawers and the bookshelf with a built-in place to sit back and read.
2. The title of his website: In Soviet Latvia, Design Makes You!
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Sneaker Speaker
The Converse sneakers are making a comeback in the shape of a speaker, designed by 3F Studio.
The Converse Shoe design by 3F Studio is a large model of a Converse shoe that has incorporated speakers for listening to your favorite tunes while lying back on the shoe relaxing.
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Man Converts Church into a Home
Flickr user fyngyrz lives in a 1940’s era church converted into a house. He is in the process of making the big, empty box into functional spaces for his family.
Check out the bedroom loft (with a bridge to the music studio loft - just don’t fall down!):
And check out the gorgeous library underneath the bedroom, where he used the ceiling joist as bookshelves:
More pics at fyngyrz’s Flickr photoset - Thanks Ben!
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Fire Alarm Clock
For the really, really, really sound sleeper (or in case you want to wake up the entire neighborhood), Alan Parekh of Hacked Gadgets Forum cobbled together this masterpiece: an alarm rigged up to a fire alarm bell!
This hack takes a standard cheap alarm clock, some interface components and a fire alarm bell to get the job done right. Normally these small alarm clocks use a piezo buzzer to attempt to wake you up. The alarm signal is hijacked from the clock circuit board and used as an input to the interface board.
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The Mushroom House
For the past 22 years, Canadian artist Zube has worked on a house in Whistler, Canada, named The Mushroom House.
The Mushroom House basks in pure sunlight. The external design of The Mushroom House was inspired by the glacial rock formations found in Emerald Estates. As the home took shape, fascinated onlookers dubbed it The Hobbit House, Bedrock, and finally, The Mushroom House.
The interior design is based on the anatomy of a tree. All aspects of the decor reflect this motif, from the womblike hues of the Jacuzzi room in the ‘roots’ to the vivid leaf greens on the walls in the ‘canopy’.
Link - Thanks panzyfaust!
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Vintage Postcard Lamp Shades
A series of neat looking vintage postcard lamp shades has just arrived over at the UncommonGoods website.
Visit another time and another place with these charming, retro Americana postcard lamp shades. The vintage-style shades sit atop a natural cedar stump base (sold separately) for a campy, kitschy accent that will bring to mind road trips, vacation homes and an era gone-by. Choose from New York, California, Florida or Texas postcards.
The shades measure 7.5(H) x 10(W) x 6.5(D) inches and are priced at $60 a piece.
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Lamp Made from Melted LEGO Blocks
Craftster user sweet4ever made herself a custom lamp out of melted LEGO blocks! (Warning: burning plastic releases toxic fumes) Link - via GeekAlerts
This is but one of many craft/DIY projects on Craftster Best of 2007 list (LOL at PoiToy’s "Mature/Adult" Felted Sheep for Army Buddy in Iraq [SFW] and My Cat’s Evil Pope Costume)
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What’s in that pillow?
There are laws that say mattresses, pillows, and other bedding must have a tag stating its composition. This pillow had the tag, and the manufacturer was honest in saying they just don’t know what’s in there! This was submitted to Consumerist.
I had a pillow that says ‘contains textiles of 100% unknown kind’ on that tag that says ‘Do not remove under penalty of law’. Kind of defeats the purpose of the tag, and I’m wondering what is in my pillow. Used underpants? Human hair? It does say ‘all new materials’ but that might just be ‘new to me.’
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As seen on T.V.
My husband was sick last weekend - as in, up at 4 a.m. hugging the Porcelain Goddess sick (and not because of alcohol). So we were up at an ungodly time of the morning. He was dying a slow death and I was flipping channels because I couldn’t get back to sleep. I have to say, I got sucked into a number of infomericals that were absolutely horrendous. Is there anything Billy Mays doesn’t hawk?
One of my favorites is the Magic Bullet. It sounds suspiciously sexual, but it’s really like a mini blender. I actually got one for Christmas a few years ago and I loved it - until the motor burned out after a few months. The informercial is positively addicting though. I thought I was the only one who noticed the strange old lady wandering around with a cigarette hanging out of her mouth the whole commercial, but no: there’s a whole YouTube video dedicated to the lovely Hazel.
When I was in high school, the ever-present infomercial was the RonCo Electric Food Dehydrator. I always wanted one of those, but alas, I never got one. He just makes it seem so easy to make beef jerky, turkey jerky, dried fruit and MORE!
I’m cheating, though, because we didn’t actually see either of those commericials on T.V. at 5 a.m. last weekend. A couple we did see:
The Handy Switch. Just plug in the receiver in any outlet and then plug in the lamp to the receiver. You can stick its corresponding switch anywhere… even in your car so you can turn the lights on when you pull in the driveway! My favorite part is when Billy Mays says how great it is for kids to be able to turn the light off from bed - the infomercial cuts to a little girl in bed with a lamp within arm’s reach on a nightstand on one side of her bed and the switch within arm’s reach on the other side. She goes for the switch.
By the way, the number of products that Billy Mays endorses is insane. Here’s a sampling: OxyClean, OrangeGlo, Hercules Hooks, Mighty Putty, Easy Off Bam!, Kaboom! products, Bang! Automotive Dent Remover, Bump Be Gone zit cream, Gopher reaching tool, the Grip Wrench and the Ding King automotive Dent Remover (think the Bang! people were mad?).
Here’s Billy Mays falling into a bathtub.
Then there’s the Shamwow. It holds 20 times its weight in liquid!! The Web site says you’ll never have to use paper towels again - unless you’re prone to using them as napkins. But it’s not just for spills and car washing, oh no!! You can even use the Shamwow as a towel. Cut it in half and you’ll have two towels!! I’m glad they do the math for those of us who aren’t so hot at calculations. Shamwow isn’t promoted by Billy Mays, so it probably isn’t that great.
Feeling sick? It’s probably all of those toxins in your body - we all have them. What you need are Takara Detox Foot Patches. You just attach the pads to the bottom of your feet before going to bed and when you wake up in the morning, the pad will be black with all of the horrible toxins it has sucked out of your body. Asbestos? Mercury? No match for Takara Detox Foot Patches.
Yeah. It’s a good thing Paul didn’t get sick any earlier in the morning, because I would have totally been suckered into buying something if I had been exposed to these much longer. If the food dehydrator commercial had come on, I definitely would have been picking up my phone.
So, on the infomercial topic - what have you tried? What has actually worked and what has been a complete waste of money? Any food dehydrator users??
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Whatever Wall Clock
Score one for apathy. It’s a clock for people who really don’t care what time it is. Link -via Gearfuse
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Infinite Path
Is it true that “paths are made by walking”? Well, these guys decided to find out.
In order to determine whether the above phrase was actually true, we kept running in a park for 5 days. In the fast-forward movie compiled from digital photographs taken one per second, a path the shape of ? (infinity) gradually emerges as we move with high-speed.
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Star Murals by Rip Read
Rip Read is a star painter, or "startist" as he calls himself. Specifically, he paints stars and galaxies on the ceiling.
Rip uses phosphorescent pigments (that glow for up to 25 hours) to create his artwork. Though I haven’t seen it in person, he assured me that his stars not only glow, they also twinkle and shimmer - just like the actual stars in a night’s sky - due to a clever layering technique to create an illusion of depth and movement.
Note: Yes, the photos on his website are photoshopped - I’ve had an email
conversation with him regarding "night" photography and Rip said that he’d tried everything (using all sorts of low lux cameras) but nothing had managed to capture his "stars" just right.
Link [self-starting audio] - Thanks Rip!
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Gorgeous Bird-Shaped Clothespin
Designboom has a neat post about an exhibition of Yoav Ziv and Gad Charny’s clothes-pins (or clothes pegs, take your pick) collection (curated with Yaacov Kaufman):
One would have expected the pegs to disappear, with the appearance of the drying machines, but they have survived the technological change. on the contrary, the number of different clothes pegs seems only to be growing.
Like this lovely bird-shaped clothes-pin above, for instance! See more here: Link - via Ishbdiddle
Previously on Neatorama: Fighting for the Right to Dry
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Warning Illustrations
The Japanese appliance company Amandana has added whimsical warnings to their normal product warning illustrations. You cannot control your girlfriend with a remote control. You cannot fly your calculator as a kite. You cannot insert a parking ticket into your desktop music player. You cannot make yourself disappear with your humidifier. And you cannot trap monkeys with your DVD player! Gizmodo has a gallery of lots of these. Link -via Dump Trumpet
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SnuzNLuz Alarm Clock Robs You Blind Everytime You Snooze
It seems like every year we see alarm clocks with new methods to wake you up, like requiring you to "defuse" a bomb, solve a puzzle, go hide and seek, just using plain ol’ loudness.
Well, this one takes the old saying "you snooze you lose" and turn it into economic reality (hit ‘em where it hurts, the pocketbook!):
The SnuzNLuz uses the very complex psychological phenomemon known as ‘HATRED’. Basically it’s human nature to wish harm upon your enemies. Similarly, it’s human nature not to give your enemies gobs of cash so that they can grow big and dominate the world with their totally wrong, stupid and invalid point of view. ThinkGeek realized that. That’s why everytime you hit the snooze button, the SnuzNLuz will donate a specified amount of your real money to a non-profit you hate. The problem of sleeping in is solved.
Erhm, it’s an April Fool’s joke, folks. But the concept is sound: here’s an article about pre-commitment by Nobel laureate and economist Thomas C. Schelling at the New York Times.
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Bright Ideas in Bulbs
Dark Roasted Blend has a collection of the coolest lamps and light bulbs around, including this bulb that has lighted electric fireflies inside! Link -via Dump Trumpet
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Vertical Limit Champagne Storage Rack
Champagne maker Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin commissioned Porsche Design to create this eye-catching storage rack called "Vertical Limit." The 6-feet tall cabinet holds 12 magnums of Clicquot champagnes and keeps them chilled at 12° celcius - the same climate as the company’s cellar in Reims, France.
Only 15 Vertical Limits were produced. If you want it, it’ll set you back $70,000!
Cool Hunting has more: Link - Thanks mikolka!
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Urinal Cake Candle
No girly French Vanilla candle here at Hotwicks … only man-candles, like this one:
THE URINAL CAKE CANDLE — Bring the industrial chemical freshness of a public restroom right to your home.
We’re often asked if THE URINAL CAKE CANDLE smells like pee. It doesn’t. It’s a cinnamony floral smell that’s modeled after a urinal cake our founder once relieved himself on at the Bellagio Hotel in Las Vegas. This candle covers both number 1 and number 2 odors and has become a regular contributor in the HOTWICKS world headquarters bathroom. This is the perfect gift for anyone that likes tacos, asparagus, and really hot chicken wings.
Link - Thanks Dutch!
Oh, wait - it has a cinnamony floral smell. Never mind!
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Wall-Mounted Paper Folder Shaped Like Computer Desktop Folders
German designer Wir Gestalten created this wall-hanging paper folder called "Neuer Ordner" (New Folder) shaped like a desktop folder on your computer!
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Light Drop: Lamp Shaped Like a Dripping Faucet
Brazilian designer Rafael Morgan’s Light Drop is a lamp that you (literally) turn on by turning the tap - the more you twist, the brighter the light gets. Rafael’s design is supposed to make people think about saving water.
This award-winning design is supposed to go into production this year.
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Cactus Chair
As part of the China Chair Project art exhibit, artist Xiang Yun created this chair and footstool shaped like a prickly cactus from a hand-molded silicone!
Why, it’s the perfect chair for a house guest who has overstayed his welcome … Link
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Batcave Theater
How would you like a batcave in your basement, complete with a bat-theater? A retired naturalist has just that! DC Audio Video Systems of New Hampshire set up a complete home theater in her cellar.
The set-up includes prop bats which hang from above, a motorized 110 16:9 Stewart Electriscreen, Triad Silver THX Speakers, and a Sony G90, a $36,000 commercial 1080p 2500 x 2000 CRT projector. The room also features eight black, motorized leather recliners and a LiteTouch LC5000 System for Lighting Control.
It has stalactites, too! It’s the “battiest” place to watch any of the Batman films. Link -via Unique Daily
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Nut & Bolt and Screw Salt and Pepper Shakers
Ask your friends at your next dinner party if they can figure out these nut & bolt and screw salt and pepper shakers:
These Salt and Pepper shakers are definitely something different. Pick them up, turn them whatever way and shake them, and….. nothing…. Bend then shake them however, and the Salt or Pepper will be sprinkled from the gaps that will have appeared between the coils. Once you are finished the shaker will return to its original form.
Link - via Nerd Approved
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Balloon Light
The designboom shop is selling a kit by Kyouei Co. Ltd. that turns a regular white balloon into a lamp with a clear LED light powered by small batteries.
You can cluster the balloon lamps into a chandelier, though at $25 a pop, it’s not a cheap adventure: Link - via Love Made Visible
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Kitchen and Egg Timers Round-Up
Design*Sponge blog has a very neat round-up of kitchen and egg timers. Fantastic! Link - via BB Gadgets
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CAVE Bookcase by Sakura Adachi
Japanese designer Sakura Adachi created this fantastic bookcase, called "CAVE" with a built-in reading lounge!
Supposedly, sitting in the seat gives a feeling of hiding in a cave (hence its name). Books can be stored on either side of the bookcase, so it’ll make a good room divider too. Link
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How Much Condo Real Estate You Get for €50,000 in Cities Around the World
anArchitecture blog calculated how much surface area one gets for every 50,000 Euros (about USD $73,400) in various cities in the world.
For your convenience, here are the conversion:
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m2
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Sq. foot
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| New York |
4.1
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44.1
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| Tokyo |
6.7
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72.1
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| Sydney |
8.9
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95.8
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| Shanghai |
21.5
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231.4
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| Berlin |
22.6
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243.3
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| Beijing |
30.4
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327.2
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| Dubai |
59.8
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643.7
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In New York, the most expensive city, this translates to about $1664 per square foot or $11.6 per square inch!
Link | Source: Trend 10/2007 (Austrian business magazine)
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Not Your Grandma’s Kitchen Timer
Looking for a quirky stocking stuffer for your favorite cook? Look no further than Design*Sponge’s handy guide to funky kitchen timers. I actually had (and loved) the tape measure timer above until my husband broke it.
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