Limited Edition Paul Smith 'o9 Rhodia Pads

A fan of Rhodia pad, the famous fashion designer, Sir Paul Smith never let the small block of Rhodia leaves him. His first successful collection for Rhodia was released in 2oo5. Now,the limited edition of Paul Smith 'o9 Rhodia Pads came in 2 versions of map coated Rhodia orange and black with 4 different covers, the "Picture Frame", "Photographer", "Man Reading," and "Camera".

'I tried to draw sketches that had a sense of fun and also a relevance 
in some way to me - the drawings are simple, child like the type of 
work you would find in a sketch book. I always carry a camera with me and use it as a visual diary everyday 
along with my Rhodia notebook. They are the 2 things I am never 
without. The old fashioned camera is based on a camera my father used to use. 
He was an avid amateur photographer and especially liked to take 
photographs of still life. I am a big collector of art and photography and so the picture frame 
is very much part of my everyday life and that is why I used this 
image. A lot of people today use the internet for getting information about 
what is happening in the world and news events, but I still enjoy 
reading a newspaper with my coffee in the morning.'

- Sir Paul Smith.


a+. rhodia
a+. paul smith via colette
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Lego Kitchen by Munchhausen

Images by Hrvoje Goluza.

You are never too old for Lego! Don't get me wrong, i am not writing a pay per post for Lego of sort here, but Simon Pillard and Philippe Rosetti the Parisian design duo of Munchhausen took an extraordinary approach with their own IKEA basic kitchen island and

covering it with more than 20,000 pieces of Lego using more than a week....

From the Scandinavian touch on the Scandinavian brand, the result is an eye-catching kitchen mosaic-like center piece. Amazing isn't it? Now, we can all go and play in the kitchen!

Images by Hrvoje Goluza.

Images by Hrvoje Goluza.

The designers:

'Pillard, who works with fashion house JC de Castelbajac, and Rosetti who works with Hugo Boss France Identity, formed Munchhausen in 2004.

The two have recently contributed a collection of T-shirts, cushions, wallpaper and accessories for the new French label Commune de Paris, 1871. Munchhausen was one of three initial contributors for Commune de Paris, 187. The other two were Julien Langendorff and David Herman Dune.'

- Tuija Seipell, The Cool Hunter.

a+. hrvoje goluza
a+. commune de paris
a+. the cool hunter via fubiz
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Nissan Land Glider

The 41st Tokyo Motor Show 2oo9 is going on now, starting on 23 Oct (Fri) until 4 Nov (Wed) 2oo9 at Makuhari Messe, Chiba City. There's this car that interest me, the Nissan Land Glider. The 2-seated fully electric car meant to be an urban runabout, thus it is extremely narrow in size to ease congestion and makes it easier for parking.

'Inside the cockpit, the Land Glider's pilot sits front and center behind a suitably futuristic instrument cluster and a steering wheel that looks like twin joysticks. According to Nissan, the steering operations are computer controlled through a drive-by-wire arrangement, so there doesn't seem to be a direct connection between the steering wheel and the car's four contact patches.

Perhaps the most interesting bit Nissan pioneered with the Land Glider is the ability to lean into turns like a motorcycle. While this isn't an entirely new concept, it's a first for Nissan and the technology seems to be very well implemented in the Land Glider.'

- Autoblog.

Below photos for the Nissan Land Glider Concept Car.
Watch the Nissan Land Glider Concept here.

Nissan Land Glider's futuristic cockpit.

a+. autoblog
a+. design bloom via tokyo motor blog
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Designer's Fire Extinguishers from Fire Design

These certainly would brighten up those fire extinguisher that used to be hidden at the corner of a space! At least it will add as a display item for mine (if we were allowed to use this designer's extinguisher from Fire Design here. Wasn't sure wether the regulation here allowed this...if no, ~sigh~).

Shown here were a new fire safety concept from Fire Design, which is unique in Europe.

'It offers a range of fire extinguishers designed for extinguishing outbreaks of fire and providing maximum protection for your family.

Once a fire starts, it can spread very quickly. This is why having a fire extinguisher to hand is essential. A Fire design extinguisher, together with a smoke detector, will help assure your and your family's security. The Fire design range also offers you a large choice of designs, so you can choose the extinguisher that best matches the decoration of your home.'
- Fire Design.

Oh and the new colors on the extinguisher itself is fire safety too! You can create your own design if you want, just check out their site.

a+. fire design via vidafine
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Forest Classrooms by Robert Gaukroger

Robert Gaukroger, Dan Kealty and Ryan Hartley from KITA Design has just completed this Forest Classroom pods for a prep school in the Lake District, Windermere, UK. This is the first implementation of the Kitahaus Concept by KITA Design. According to The Architectural Review, one of the pod will be a classroom for sixth-year pupils as a transition into secondary school, while the other one will be an environmental learning classrooom.

'The project seeks to find a solution for a new learning facility including classrooms, Art room and external teaching space, by rethinking how a low impact, carbon responsible and sustainable structure can be constructed.'
-Gizmag.

Made from English Chestnut shingles and a ribbed timber frame, the 2 pods are connected by a deck constructed of timber and recycled plastic milk bottles which would later become an outdoor forest classroom during summer. This classrooms buildings are highly insulated because they are raised off the ground by Douglas Fir stilts which reduces heat loss in the winter and aids cooling in the summer.

Key ecological features of Kitahaus listed by Gizmag:

*The site’s natural landscaping helps to protect the pods against dominant prevailing winds and the use of structural stilts ensure a low impact of tree roots and the site

* Passive ventilation will be utilised to cool the rooms by the basic principle of cross ventilation. Each pod end has high, openable windows, which assist in ventilating unwanted heat in the space and introducing fresh air to cool the space, the flow of which can be controlled automatically or manually.

* Solar gain can be controlled by automated solar reflective blinds on the glazed area, while the principle of a solar heated, lightweight heat-retaining mass is being investigated

* Timber is a renewable material doesn’t require large amounts of carbon to fabricate, unlike concrete. Its growth also helps absorb carbon gasses. The timber frame construction allows higher levels of insulation to be installed.

* The structure uses sheep’s wool insulation, which doesn’t have the high levels of embodied energy (energy required to manufacture and therefore the quantity of carbon created during production) associated with chemical insulations.

* Vacuum tube solar water heaters will meet all of the classrooms’ hot water needs, reducing the need for a fossil fuel heating. Vacuum tube solar water heaters have a higher efficiency than flat plate solar panels and can be rotated to optimize the sun’s rays.

* The installation will use a grey water collection tank. Water collected from sinks in the art room will be used to water the gardens.

* Flat plate solar panels will be utilised to run low energy lighting.

* Only biodegradable soaps and detergents will be used in the school to reduce heavy metal building up in the soil or water table.

* The Pods are positioned on timber stilts to ensure minimal impact to the natural landscape. When the building comes to the end of its lifespan, it can be removed with little impact to the natural landscape and the building can be recycled and reused for new construction.

a+. kita design via arplus via gizmag

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