trends :: colorspotting 2009

Just WHO are the color pickers behind Pantone Inc. , that color guru of the design industry that every designer pays homage to? I have no clue but here is the color palette they've chosen for Spring 2009. What do you think? I'm thinking these colors are very retro 50's 60's-ish which doesn't surprise me. So take a look and as tula over at whorange puts it " commit them to memory. paint your home, adjust your wardrobe, and purchase your panty shades appropriately. act quickly to impress your friends and neighbors."

Or be like me. Appreciate their color effort but do whatever color you like! It's JUST COOL!

cool product :: bending the rules for paper towels

Instead of hiding the paper towels away or on the usual stainless steel towel holder or that ugly plastic thing underneath the cupboards, why not spice things up a bit with these JUST COOL utilitarian paper towel holders from Neon. These are so cool they'd even look good right on the table, where you really need them!


So simple, yet so elegant.




A design exclusive from Neon Design, available in Denmark at 4house

music :: the coolest music you'll ever hear

Where else but in a land of ice and snow would an amazing concept like "ice music" come from?

All Ice Records is a Norwegian independent record company that was started in 2005. It's musicians / ice sculptors carve their instruments from blocks of ice they find lying around and then hold concerts at such events as Icefestival at Geilo, Norway.

The resonating sound is an interesting one - like hollow, haunting windchimes . Check out more about this interesting music in the video below that tells the story of the Geilo Ice Music Festival and the extraordinary artists that make it happen. In seven days ice is transformed into a stage and musical instruments are created: a guitar, didgeridoo, Norwegian horns, Brazilian Udus and Guiros. The festival culminates in an outdoor, mountaintop concert under the first full moon of the new year.

I don't know about you, but I'm off to put on a sweater. Its cold in here!
Ice music - its naturally JUST COOL.

cool product :: trashing children's art

image via toydirectory

Take a looky at this JUST COOL and functional product called drawbasket that preserves your children's artwork in a very unique way over at drawbasket.biz. When my kids were in elementary school there wasn't a space on the fridge that wasn't consumed by their artwork. Unfortunately, over time some of it ended up smudged, wrinkled and, I hate to admit it ( bad mommy!) in the trash. The drawbasket is a neat mini trash can that safely sandwiches your kids artwork or any other sheets of paper between its plastic walls to make a usable container. The art is preserved and interchangeable. Take it out, add to the kids scrap book and insert a new picture!

Great for kid's art, great for promoting your biz too! Now isn't that JUST COOL!

fashion :: grassy bling

Chia pets have invaded the fashion world with product designer Hafsteinn Juliusson's 'Growing Jewelry'. His grassy green bling is a redefinition of modern values, a modern mashup of gardening; couture and organism. He describes his JUST COOL hand jewelry as "designed for people in metropolitan cities", to bring the calm of nature back to the urban madness of city living. These mini finger gardens are neat and require only a minimum of green thumbness - just a spritz or two of water and your good to grow.

Just Cool Greeness over at hafsteinnjuliusson.com ! I like!

furniture :: skiing on a sofa

Jean-Marie Maussaud - Where have I heard that name before? Oh yeah, in my last post. I guess the designer gets around and his modern designs are definitely to my liking! From Cassina USA comes the Aspen sofa . Perhaps named "Aspen" because the backs taper like a ski slope? I love the contemporary curves but pity the poor person who ends up on the end with no back support.

Of course beauty is more important than comfort ;) and these sofas are JUST COOL!

via furniturestoreblog

candles :: big is better

Big always makes a grand statement and these gracefully sinuous sculptures would certainly do that if they were actually as big as I thought they were (five feet tall!) . I admit at first glance I eagerly misread the numbers and even envisioned them from the pictures as overscale candles. So I'm not as impressed with Designer Jean-Marie Massaud's "Overscale Flames" which in reality are only a mere 7 - 20 inches in height. I like the design though, that it actually made of opaque black ceramic supported by a metal frame, with a built in oil reservoir and wick. I'm so disappointed that I can't get the five foot version though. Will someone please start making them?

via dailyicon

these candles are still JUST COOL!

lighting :: bottled brilliance

Hang a bunch of plastic soda bottles from the ceiling, add a light source in the middle and you've got JUST the COOLest light fixture ever. Designer Shelley Spicuzza did just that and voila! her incredible ReGlow Chandelier was born. A central sphere with threaded holes holds the electric light source and by screwing in different colored and shaped bottles you can get a light show that is both dramatic and unique!

interior :: marmoleum flooring

Old fashioned Linoleum floors have gone modern in a new flooring product called Marmoleum Click that's as versatile in design as your imagination can make it. Marmoleum Click is eco -friendly, an ecologically produced, natural linoleum on HDF with a cork layer, that comes in squares and rectangles that you fit together to make your own custom pattern. Its unique construction with a patented click system, combined with a broad color palette, create a naturally comfortable and stylish floor.

Each panel slots together with a simple 'In & Out' system and since the panels are nice and wide, your custom floor is finished in a snap. No glue is required, so the floor can be walked on immediately after installation. With Marmoleum's wide color choice and your creative imagination, the design possibilities are endless. I like this innovative eco- friendly flooring idea! It is definitely JUST COOL. Check it out at the Marmoleum Store

art :: colorful creepy crawlies

When it comes to design, Mother Nature is Queen. Turning even the creepiest things into the most beautiful works of art.

The Top 7 Most Beautiful Creepy Caterpillars

Stinging Rose Caterpillar

Cecropia Moth Caterpillar

Hickory Horned Devil

Tetrio Sphinx Caterpillar

Spurge Hawk-moth Caterpillar

Red-footed Fuzzy-wuzzy Caterpillar

Monarch Caterpillar

from 10 Most Beautiful Caterpillars over at science ray.

So they're creepy... but design wise they're JUST COOL

green :: plates made out of leaves

If these recycled,renewable,sustainable,biodegradable,refrigerator safe and microwaveable plates aren't JUST the COOLEST thing! Verterra produces these plates as well as it's other "green" tableware from fallen leaves, a bunch of steam and a whole lot of pressure. I love the modern bamboo-ish , woodsy look to these. And even though they are made as "one use" plates they are still reusable. Something we all like! (hmmm...wondering if they are dishwasherable too)

The price is right too - starting at a mere 8.99 for a pack of 10 plates! Get them at Verterra

cool product :: sleep away your wrinkles

After reading about the copper pillowcase that claims to iron your wrinkles away, I am tempted to buy one. This fluffy head comforting miracle is woven of Cupron fibers (fibers impregnated with copper-oxide, that miracle mineral in medical bandages and other medical applications which is known to promote optimal healing and collagen synthesis. ) The manufacturer claims that in tests, those who used it for only four weeks had fewer wrinkles and lines than those with conventional bedding.

From My Cosmetic Surgery:

In a double blind, parallel, randomized clinical trial the test subjects who were given the copper pillows were shown to have improvement in their overall skin appearance. In the completed study, 57 individuals (2 men, and 55 women, between the ages of 30-60 years of age) were either given a copper pillowcase, or a standard “control” pillowcase. Photos were taken to document their “before” and additional photos taken at 2 weeks and 4 weeks for their afters.

At the end of the study, the improvements (or lack thereof) were graded by a dermatologist (whom I cannot yet find the name of) and included categories of wrinkles, crow’s feet and fine lines, general health, blemishes, and texture. The most improvement seemed to be with the texture, general health of the skin, with fewer blemishes seen in those who were using the Cupron fiber pillows. Fine lines and wrinkles were also lessened in appearance.

Am I convinced? If these aren't like those stick-em pads you put on the bottom of your feet to detox your body while you sleep, then...Yup! Who wouldn't like the idea of sleeping the wrinkles away? Dewrinkling, detoxifying ...while you sleep - Its JUST COOL! If it works ;)