Interioer

Stuck in the city? Fake tropical island!

2006-07-31T20:57:00.000+02:00

This is too silly to resist: a fake little tropical island with a hammock. Perfect for that stinky little backyard or the not so little balcony facing a brick wall in the city. You know what more is silly? The price: USD 8280! Well, well...

To come: fake shark head sticking up from the floor

Going blinds

2006-06-16T21:39:00.000+02:00

Curtains have always had a strong presence in Sweden. In contrast to countries like the UK where the standard MO seems to be to show as little as possible of the inside, presenting a nicely framed interior using curtains has been the way to go in our country of (or lack of) Nordic light. I keep coming back to one of my favorite topics and here I go again: the professionalisation of the private sphere. What I mean by that is when products or behaviors from the professional sector start appearing in our homes, for example the espresso machine or the full-size steam press for the pants. This time it's happening to the curtains. More and more - me included - is looking for something else to frame our windows with. We have huge windows in our living room and we were reluctant to lose our view with traditional curtains. On the other hand we wanted to be able to bring down the direct sun light to a minimum some days. We decided to use a typical office solution with large white vertical blinds that filter the light and shield the room from heat. Told you: office -> home. I know, you'd think that it'd look kind of sterile but I think it looks clean and modern. There are a lot of niche sites, like those all about blinds and even blogs, helping along this trend that I think is here to stay.

See? Not sterile!

Wall paper? No, wall graphics

2006-06-04T05:01:00.000+02:00

Considering how much space our walls represent in our homes, it's odd that we don't pay more attention to them. It's like the walls in an art gallery where our furniture is the art (I wish!). Well, the folks over at Blik is helping us out today with their slick wall graphics. In true modern individual spirit you can design your own graphics. Before you do, check out their wall decals with featured artists.

Don't run around in circles, let the walls do that instead

Google announces free version of 3D modeling program

2006-04-27T22:40:00.000+02:00

Nowadays Google is all over the place - and guess what - now they're knocking on your door. At least your virtual door. Google recently aquired Sketchup which is a simple 3D modeling tool you can use to model your home additions, interior or why not your whole house. True to their business Google then provided us with a free version of this tool. I think it's a great idea. Now people all around the world can make models of their homes or any building and place it on Google Earth. Come on, let's build Earth version 2 - only better.

Apartment 3D model from the SketchUp Gallery

Wallpaper for singles

2006-03-29T18:15:00.000+02:00

Single? Feeling lonely in your dull apartment? Don't worry, there are other solutions to your problems than to give up the advantages of your single life: the single-tapete. If you're in a hurry there are ready-made singles waiting to populate your walls and if you're into a more personal touch you can send in your own image.

The Christine wallpaper helps you get dressed in the morning - or not.

Bemz covering the IKEA after-market

2006-03-15T18:54:00.000+01:00

Do you think all the business is over when IKEA has shipped sofas to all corners of the world? Well, they seem to think so. You ever tried to buy a new cover for your one+ year old IKEA sofa? Yep, me too. An empty stare from the IKEA staff was all I got. Fortunately there are people picking up this after-market over at Bemz. And the covers are even _nicer_ than the original ones. They'd have to be, because the IKEA I know would not let anyone make money on their stuff if they could avoid it. I know a company that was supplying a product to IKEA and suddenly IKEA started to manufacture the exact same product and dropped the supplier like a hot potato. It was a very small company so a legal battle was probably out of the question. So, Bemz beware.

Now you can bring your sofa when visiting the Stockholm Archipelago.

Watch TV while taking a shower

2006-02-26T09:38:00.000+01:00

Sometimes you gotta go when...you gotta go. But don't worry, there's people in the world constantly working to meet your every need. You no longer have to miss a second of your favorite show. I'm talking about TV in the bathroom! Now you can watch Baywatch and shower at the same time. You'll feel like you're part of the action. Or...you could just get a DVR and watch everything later, but hey, what's the fun in that? The guys over att AquaVision have even found a way to keep the screen steam free.

10 basic principles when decorating

2006-01-28T19:18:00.000+01:00

Ok, it's time to get busy. HGTV.com comes to our aide with a 10 step guide when decorating your home. Now, this web may not represent the peak of modern design and style, but this is about the basic principles - you add the style. So if you like to refresh the basics how to get it right, take a look at this short and handy guide. You can drill down in every step to get an example from a designer.

Warning to style sensitive people: HGTV.com may contain cheezy images like this one.

Lord Of The Rings Furniture

2006-01-24T22:37:00.000+01:00

I know a lot of you folks out there enjoyed the Lord Of The Rings trilogy, as did I. Peter Jackson put a lot of effort into the incredible environments in the films and I think a fair amount of people got inspired by all the costumes, gears and interiors. I can see why it would be a good idea to try to re-create that, and perhaps make a buck or two, selling it to LOTR fans.

Over at Middle Earth Furniture they're making a pretty decent effort to capture the LOTR spirit in their products - and it's not just about churning out copies of furniture as seen in the films. If you're into LOTR, take a look for yourself.

The Rohan & Gondor Coffee table, I kid you not. Imagine our heroes kicking back with their tired feet on this baby.

Exceptional Woodworking

2006-01-22T17:14:00.000+01:00

Following up on the previous woodworking post, I just wanted to share some more inspiration that I stumbled upon when I was checking out the web of the talented woodworker James Krenov, who used to live here in Sweden. He's well known for his delicate cabinets and his gentle approach to the material.

On his web there's a link to the Pritam & Eames Gallery and I recommend you stopping by their display of some top notch crafted furniture.

This chest with drawers really blew my mind. Not to mention the coat rack to the right.

Woodworking hotter than ever

2006-01-14T13:13:00.000+01:00

We've seen more and more pro equipment moving into the domestic domain the last couple of years. It's not just picking up an ordinary coffee maker when your old one gives up it's last breath (after the one-year guarantee + one day). Oh no, you have to read up on pressure numbers, coffee and water qualities in order to wrestle down the big stainless steel monster of an espresso machine and drag it home to your cave. The same goes for the whole household. You need to hammer down a couple of nails? Why not go pro and buy that nail gun? Need to lift something in the garage? Well, that new overhead crane you installed may come in handy some other day - who knows? Life's an equipment sport.

So, now you've got all those tools. What to do? That's why woodworking is so hot right now. Think about it. You got the tools and can get the palpable satisfaction from working with your hands creating something after a day of pen pushing at the office (bit pushing, nowadays I suppose). Let me start you off with a woodworking plan to make a fine Finger Joint Jewelry Box. Good luck! Not that I think you need it - since you got the tools for it!

Hmm those finger joints look tricky...I think I'll need to get a band-sawing machine

Enter the Hive

2006-01-11T23:00:00.000+01:00

Time for some design shopping, folks! Style and business don't seem to mix very well on the web. For some reason stores on the web usually are butt ugly and confusing, but let me point out one of the exceptions. Hive is clean, lean and has a mean stack of classic design products. Just browsing the categories waters my mouth (and makes my credit card run and hide). Ah well, in another life, maybe.

One of my favorites, a re-make of the 1966 "Joe" chair. Perfect for the lawn.

The wallpaper making a comeback

2006-01-06T14:04:00.000+01:00

Remember in the 70's (oops tell tale phrase), when wallpaper patterns were bold and colors hammered the daylight out of your senses? Since then we've seen wallpapers becoming more and more anonymous, even replaced by paint. However, a few years ago we saw bits of patterns showing up on one or two walls in our homes. Now again patterns are bold, but they enhance the room rather than completely occupying it.

Maybe it's time for the total comeback for the wallpaper? New York Times has an interesting piece about new designers putting the cool back on paper. Take a look and be inspired.

Wait a minute...someone tore up my wallpaper! It's the design, man! Oh, ok...cool

Hamster's lair gets my vote in coolest room top list

2006-01-03T22:21:00.000+01:00

Welcome to the other side of the New Year! Hope you made it through the holidays fairly unharmed. Let's start off 2006 checking out futuristic e-homes over at Wired. Many times so-called "e-homes" are nothing more than a poorly integrated home entertainment center and perhaps some remotely controlled dimmers, but in this article you can find a couple of solutions that are genuinely original and well integrated.

My favorite is the Aspen house on a plot developed by Mr Hamster Face himself, actor Michael Douglas. It's surrounded by beautiful mountain views, which it flaunts shamelessly in bath- and bedrooms (I would've used the two-layered glass with liquid-crystal to add some privacy). All tastefully packaged in natural materials. If you're looking for the tech stuff check out the plasma screen that is swiveled out from a closet by a robotic arm - or the tennis court sized server room!

HELLOOO NEIGHBOR! What's up? Not much...taking a shower...

Discardia

2005-12-18T16:58:00.000+01:00

The concept of Discardia is very appealing to me. I remember in my younger days when I moved from one apartment to another, about 6 or 7 a year, that my pile of possessions became smaller each time. Finally I moved abroad and the pile disappeared altogether. I felt a great relief and a few of my friends could enjoy my books and records (yeah it was the LP era). Of course this feeling didn't have a name back then.

Nowadays when concepts don't exist if they're not branded, the concept is known as Discardia. Metagrrrl.com is a nice place to talk about this phenomena.

I must admit though, that I apply Discardia in a different way nowadays as well. I still don't like having a lot of stuff in my way, but I do enjoy great empty spaces. That could of course be considered a kind of possession...and hey, Kjell, I want my LPs back.

See that smile? I could be you.

Stockholm Furniture Fair

2005-12-17T14:00:00.000+01:00

For us up here in the North it's about time to saddle our polar bears and queue up for tickets for the big interior event of next year - Stockholm Furniture Fair, 8-12 February 2006. For you guys living in other parts of the world I can only say: come on over - or keep dreaming about the famous Nordic light (non-existent this time of the year, to be honest) playing with the clean lines of top notch design at the fair.

Be there and be squared?

Guest of honor at the fair is Naoto Fukasawa, who's designs are easy for admirers of Scandinavian design to relate to. I can recommend you to have a look at some work he's done for ±0.

Nope, it's not superglazed doughnut. It's a Fukasawa Humidifier.

HGTV how-to video guides

2005-12-14T23:00:00.000+01:00

Over at HGTV.com there's stuff going on I tell you. If you get over the first ALL-POSSIBLE-CONTENT-IN-YOUR-FACE shock caused by the typical US web design of the first page, there are some interesting how-to video guides to help you out when improving your home. The videos are nicely packaged and allow you to step through them in your own pace. I had to see the masterpiece Installing a Tin Ceiling, which no doubt had to be some sort of horror flick. Well, I admit I watched with growing horror as the merry couple in the video began to nail some ornamented tin pieces to their ceiling. The result was a hideous tomb looking room, but the video was very educational.

Who said you have to live in a church to have your own tin ceiling? Well, I'll say it now: Yes, you'd have to live in a church!

IKEA Walkthrough

2005-12-08T21:21:00.000+01:00

I'm an avid gamer. So there, I said it. In the gaming community there's this thing called a walkthrough. When you're so stuck in a game that you're half-way through the window holding your gaming console over your head enjoying the fact that the console at least is going to hit the street before your head does, a walkthrough is what you need. A walkthrough is a guide published by a fellow gamer that has passed all the levels of the game and has written down the experience to walk you through the game, step by step.

I sometimes wished I had a walkthrough for real life situations. Well, finally here's the IKEA Walkthrough. Although not so practical it's sure to bring a smile of recognition to the face of seasoned gamers, or people like you that have enough imagination to think of a day at IKEA as a game. Enjoy!

Go! Capture the flag!

Intimidating furniture

2005-12-05T22:09:00.000+01:00

That oversized desk not so impressive any more? Time to redecorate your office with some intimidating furniture. I recommend the Harkonnen Capo aluminum chair from the H. R. Giger furniture line. I can't guarantee that this chair won't rip the soul out of your body or suck the marrow out of your bones when you're seated in it.

Would you interrupt the guy sitting in this chair? Yeah, call Ripley.

Floating homes

2005-12-04T16:17:00.000+01:00

On lazy Sundays such as this with the sun never showing, the rain killing off the the last of the white crisp snow we where blessed with a couple of days ago, my mind often drift away to other places, other climates. What could be more fitting than this utopian creation of the floating home, Trilobis 65. Of course, if you parked one of these babies in these waters around here, you'd only see a couple of meters of muddy, murky water and perhaps a grey dead bottom. Nothing like the tropical water environment shown in the illustrations of Trilobis 65 (65 by the way - there are 64 other models or what?). Anyway, enjoy the thought of you sitting in "the underwater observation bulb, an intimate and mediative place".

New addition to the pick-up line collection: "Hey baby, let's go home to my bulb"

Your classic getting dog eared? Go repro!

2005-12-03T15:11:00.000+01:00

Everyone loves an original piece of design furniture, but let's face it: it's a piece of used furniture. Sometimes in mint condition, but most times not so much. The other day I stumbled across a nice store on the web that sells reproductions of old design classics. I have no idea how they handle the business but they have nice picks of design. With these repro babies you could even let your kids play around with your Mies Pavilion Lounge Chair. Well, maybe not.

These marshmallows do NOT go into the fireplace

Inspiring Flash film showing off IKEA kitchens

2005-12-01T21:45:00.000+01:00

In my mind IKEA is not exactly edgy in it's communication with customers. However, today I saw a Flash film on the Swedish IKEA site that made me turn my head - or rather - turn the kitchen! Hurry over to this page and let the film load. Then click the image and drag it to the left or right. You'll see what I mean. Niiiiice!

Not so edgy logo

David Delthony Sculptured Furniture

2005-11-30T21:31:00.000+01:00

I have a weakness for organic shaped furniture. Now, how about organic shapes made out of all natural material? David Delthony has taken furniture carpentry to a new level with his series of sculptured furniture. Check them out here.

The age lines in the wood adds to the warped feeling. Scotty, warp 5, please!

Eurobad '74

2005-11-20T00:02:00.000+01:00

You must stop by at Eurobad '74 to see a hilarous collection of distasteful interiors from 1974. It's not only extremely painful to see each image because of the interior per se. The staged situations in the images often contain an under-current of disturbed behaviour, for example the kid lifting a woman's skirt or a nude in terrified fetal position on the washbowl.

A stable-kitchen? Are you kidding me? I can smell the horse from my goddamn computer!

Room with a view - or rather, three rooms but still one view

2005-10-30T23:40:00.000+01:00

Understated web mag Moco Loco has spotted an interesting project by designer Colani. It's a small house with a view shared by a kitchen, a bathroom and a bedroom - but not a the same time! A cylinder in the house is divided into these three spaces, and the cylinder rotate on your command so that the space of your choosing is exposed to the view. Sounds nice in theory, I think, but when looking at it more closely I feel that the three spaces were made smaller than necessary. And forget about using two of the spaces at the same time. If your looking for that austronaut feeling, it's a gem though.

2001: Live the film.

Now, if you're looking to give your life a more sophisticated spin I would recommend Curitiba in Brazil instead. There you can make the whole apartment rotate - independently of the other apartments.

If you jog real slow you can make a lap in your round apartment standing still.

Try it! It's Del.icio.us!

2005-10-22T13:56:00.000+02:00

The web http://delicios.us is a place where you can keep and share your bookmarks. As such it's also a great place to get an outlook on topics that have at least passed the filter of a human eye. If someone took the bother to submit a bookmark, it's probably better than just an ad.

Now, this is of course applicable to our favourite subject: interior design. The latest bookmark will lead you to the web Generate Home, which has a collection of some nice things. For example, check out this nicely overdesigned drinking glass:

Invisible Speaker Wire

2005-09-19T12:11:00.000+02:00

I thought I'd post something useful for a change. This is one item I wish I'd seen before turning my apartment into a spider's web of speaker wires. Just one question: what if I want the "Invisible Speaker Wire" to make a 90 degrees turn?

Peel, Spackle, Pop...uhm...Paint

The iPod Apartment

2005-09-19T11:16:00.000+02:00

There's no doubt that the iPod design struck a chord in design sensitive minds. I don't think it's such a revolutionary design, but it's rather a happy marriage between form, function and marketing (before you stop to think: polygamous marriage). This clean white surface seems to lurk in the back of our minds in all arts, for example take a look at the stage design in a Kubrick film. If 2001 would've been released today it would probably been called iPod The Movie. Well, interior design is not a huge step from stage design and I bet there are a lots of apartment interiors inspired by 2001. This one, however, is said to be inspired by the Alps surrounding the place. Anyway, something lurking in the back of my head says it's simply irresistible.

Psycho decorating qu'est ce que c'est?

2005-08-09T06:21:00.000+02:00

Sometimes I feel that home decorating is somewhat frowned upon by people who would prefer to call themselves interior designers - although they may be doing the same thing. "Home decorator" tastes a bit - hmm - Martha Stewart-ish, a bit over-the-hill-american-woman-with-to-much-time-on-her-hands.

Well, be it as it may, sometimes some of these old ladies go completely overboard. Check out this site about Psycho Decorating. I find it disturbing in so many ways that it almost isn't funny. Almost. It has a section called Living Room Signals with some home-grown psuedo psychology that'll blow your mind. It lines up some things that should be present to indicate a certain characteristic of your persona:

"Achievement orientation is shown by...Sofa and chair upholstered in gold-toned fabrics"

And guess what?

"Dominance or leadership qualities are suggested by...Sofa and chair upholstered in gold-colored upholstery"

Wow! This is ground-breaking stuff! And the list goes on like that. But the joke is probably on me; I wouldn't be surprised if Tom Cruise is her best customer - recommending her to all his nutty friends.

Would you let this woman go psycho in your house?

The answer is 42. What was the question again?

2005-08-03T09:04:00.000+02:00

Sometimes you run into a problem when fixing up your home and you don't even know where to begin. It could be that stupid leaking radiator (can I repair it or do I have to buy a new one?) or perhaps the daunting task of building a nice porch (do I need cement for that?). There are many site on the Net dedicated to one or the other detail about home improvement/decoration, but let me just hook you up with a couple of treasure troves that cover a whole variety of subjects on the matter.

Google Answers is an increasingly interesting place to go if you are looking for specific answers about the most far-out questions. Check out this guy, for example who was looking for a sofa and had only ripped pages from a catalogue to go by. Yes the sofa was found. Or this guy who wanted to know the pros and cons of an indoor pool when selling his house. The answer is quite an impressive investigation.

The eHow.com site is filled with step by step guides on how to do almost anything from how to buy someone a drink to building a snow shelter. I recommend the Decorating and Design section. It has matter-of-factly guides on silly projects as How to Make a Cowboy Lamp but also more useful things like How to Decorate a hallway.

What would you pay for the answer to the meaning of life?

Lenny Kravitz In Da House! Your House!

2005-08-02T21:25:00.000+02:00

It surely hasn't escaped anyone that Mr Kravitz is interested in design. His outfits are clearly carefully put together - even if it looks like he's been attacked by a pack of dogs sometimes. Now his interior design business that he started two years ago seems to be picking up and he announced the formation of Kravitz Design in July this year. So why is this important? Well, it's not really, but I thought I'd post one for the ladies today.

Would you buy a rug from this man?

"The Art Of Interior Decoration" anno 1917

2005-07-31T13:02:00.000+02:00

If you're curious about what was hot in interior design in the old days - get a load of this dusty book on "The Art Of Interior Design Decoration" by Grace Wood (I love the name). It was published the same year of the Russian revolution, but is hardly inspired by anything close to upsetting, though some paragraphs strike me as more interesting than others, for example

"There is a psychic connection between the outline of furniture and the inline of man."

Yes, ponder this my friends. I myself have no idea what she's talking about.

"A man's library" according to Gracie.

Design your own hotel room

2005-07-30T11:12:00.000+02:00

The (in my view, improved) Interior Design web has a nice piece about a new boutique hotel in Tokyo. The first few floors are occupied by shops, galleries and offices, but the top floors offer long term guests to design their own room. You don't like what the last guest did with the room? Skip the sightseeing and redesign it!

One long term guest thought it neat to cut niches in the wall to store furniture.

Design mistakes lowers the price when selling your home

2004-12-18T01:40:00.000+01:00

If you ever plan to sell your home, think twice before putting in that pink marble fireplace. The Guardian reported a while ago about some findings on the do's and dont's of home improvements when selling your home.

"Ripping out an original fireplace, adding a conservatory to a south facing wall, or converting a loft space with too little headroom are some of the mistakes made by owners trying to sell their homes..."

If you follow this simple advice perhaps you will stay clear of your spouce giving you the "I'm not the one who would tell you I told you so, but I TOLD YOU SO".

One happy home owner not selling, by the looks of it

Prince buy badminton cabinet for MUSD 36. No balls included

2004-12-14T20:42:00.000+01:00

Never have I heard such a modest name for a piece of furniture worth almost 36 million dollars: The Badminton Cabinet. Well, that didn't discourage the prince of Liechtenstein from buying this antique for GBP 19045250 (about USD 35,6 million) at an auction the other day.

If His Highness is reading this, I'm happy to announce that my old closet where I keep my tennis balls is for sale - starting bid at...well let's say an even USD 40 million - balls included!

Ok, hmm...where to put the racket and balls?

Human powered couch

2004-12-13T22:52:00.000+01:00

I suppose this could be considered a nod to my fellow blogger Johan over at BikeLog. The question today is: can you still be a couch potato if you ride it? Before you answer take a look at these guys with their couchbike. Pretty neat huh? Strap on an TV with an Xbox in front of that and I wouldn't mind riding shotgun.

Yes it's ugly as hell, but the view, the view!

Oh my god they killed Kenny

2004-12-09T10:00:00.000+01:00

Well perhaps not Kenny per se, but the musical career of Kenny Rogers seems to be fading. Following up on celebrities in the world of home improvement, Kenny has announced that he's teaming up with the world's largest home improvement retailer, Home Depot, to bring another gift to the world: The Kenny Rogers furniture line.

I think it's a brilliant move by Kenny to exploit that cozy-american-country-side quality in his music. I predict it will sell as butter, as the saying goes in Sweden (don't ask).

Get a load of that rugged used feeling - no, not his face - the chair, the chair!

Billy Bob fears the day he gets the really old chair

2004-11-29T09:56:00.000+01:00

It's interesting how important news travel around the globe. This piece of stunning journalism made it's way from Hollywood to India almost unharmed (apart from the word "sleep", mutilated to "leep", giving the story a whole new angle when read aloud). Apparently, old furniture gives the actor Billy Bob Thornton the creeps:

"I just sort of gag around antique furniture. Most especially, the old English and European stuff. It is an odd phobia and it has always been with me"

Well, I tell you. Psycho actors with strange phobias just freaks me out, so I guess it evens out somehow.

Hot damn! All smiles until the antiques get the best of him.

Eichler made modern affordable

2004-11-14T13:41:00.000+01:00

The Sacramento Bee has an excellent piece on Joseph Eichler who was a house developer who built modern affordable houses in California between 1949 and 1974. In those days a typical Eichler house would cost you USD 20000, while today you're looking at up to USD 1 million for an "Eichler". Though he wasn't an architect - he just built what he liked - he is highly regarded in in architectural circles. For me, this all goes to show that aestetics doesn't have to do heaps of benjamins...Oh, and that people will make loads of money on your art when your dead.

The garden and patio is always present even inside the "Eichler" kitchen

Furniture goes to Hollywood

2004-10-20T10:00:00.000+02:00

As you have seen before, famous people's names end up selling the most unexpected products. The Boston Globe has an entertaining article about this trend (?) in the furniture business.

"'The home industry is starting to look a lot like Hollywood,' said Kathy Ireland, the former model. She's now CEO of Kathy Ireland Worldwide, her own brand of furniture, rugs, carpeting, and other home furnishings."

One reason for the famed to lend their names to furniture is said to be that this business hasn't been exploited yet in the same way that fashion clothing has. That means it's easier to grab a bigger piece of the cake. The Famous Serial Killers Electric Chair Collection, anyone? No?

This collection is soooooo football

General tips on interior design

2004-10-13T20:54:00.000+02:00

Welsh web site icWales offers some general tips on interior design. Basically it boils down to the following:

Make a plan
Stick to your plan
Focus on the most important pieces
Go for quality
Keep it simple

Too general? Well read the article yourself. God, do I have to do everything around here? While you're at it, I recommend browsing through the other articles in their home style section. They are a easy read, free from the usual artsiness found in self-absorbed design sites.

All blonde. Except for the woman

Time machine

2004-10-12T22:25:00.000+02:00

An entry in Metafilter a while ago about Arne Jacobsen gave an interesting example of when architecture and design is controlled down to the fork on the table. As a homage to Jacobsen the room 606 at the Radisson Hotel in Copenhagen is kept exactly as it was designed in 1960. When I took the virtual tour it is striking to me how dependent we still are on design from this period in time. I wonder, are we going to rehash old design every other decade from now on? Have we reached the perfect design already and the rest is variations on the same theme?

No fluff, just stuff

Interior design in history

2004-10-11T22:26:00.000+02:00

The Metropolitan Museum of Art has put together an ambitious timeline of art history. It even has segments of interior design such as for example Interior Design in England 1600-1800 A. D. The timeline is a great way to get an overview of all art and influences. Che-che-check-it check it out!

Exquisite! Armchair (bergère en cabriolet) from 1788 by Jean-Baptiste-Claude Sené

The Dale Earnhardt NASCAR® sofa

2004-10-10T15:43:00.000+02:00

The perfect boom boom room sofa is here! Just add a full inch TV set and you're practically inside the car in a roaring NASCAR® lap. Well, it's only polyester, but hey, that's a good thing when you're swinging those beers like crazy with your buddies while watching the race or playing this year's best car game Burnout3.

Honor Dale sitting down

Afraid your kids will love it too much? Throw them a NASCAR® Victory Seat bean bag!

The question is: how do I get up again?

It all comes together

2004-10-09T13:09:00.000+02:00

It's obvious that there's a push to converge all media into a center in our homes. Sharp recently announced it's version of that concept. I bet this product takes care of 90% of the Audio/Visual/Computer needs in most homes. From the press release:

"The main A/V unit features a slim, compact deck-like design to provide a new 3-in-1 styling that puts an LCD TV, hard drive/DVD recorder and PC into a single slim package that will complement any room decor."

I must admit it looks good enough. It will be interesting to see what compromises they had to make.

Now we're talking. That monitor could actually double as a TV set.

For you people that like it big, Sharp recently also dropped another living room bomb. From the press release:

"Sharp Corporation has successfully developed a 65V-inch AQUOS LCD color TV, the industry?s first and world?s largest. The TV?s full-spec, high-definition, 6.22-million-dot panel is manufactured at the Kameyama Plant, an integrated LCD TV production facility for complete manufacturing from panel fabrication to final TV assembly."

The consumer product based on this TV is said to be out in 2005. The future suddenly looks a lot...bigger.

Whoa! Make sure your wall is strong enough before you hang this baby up.

Ornament and crime

2004-10-04T19:15:00.000+02:00

Ulf Meyer elaborates on the conflicting trends of glamour and mainstream, amongst other things in his interesting article Glamour by design in SFGate.com about the ongoing exhibition GLAMOUR: FASHION, INDUSTRIAL DESIGN, ARCHITECTURE at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art.

A lovely Lovegrove lamp from the exhibition

Duh! It's a virtual house

2004-10-01T21:41:00.000+02:00

Anyone who works in an office should be aware of Dilbert, the funniest comic strip there is about the bizarre office world. It's like reading a slightly twisted version of the office were I work. I bet everyone that makes a living behind a desk feels the same as - *sigh* - stupidity seems to be universal.

The maker of Dilbert, Scott Adams, decided to create a virtual home for his character. True to the universal office spirit, "Why make it easy when you can do it the hard way", he made a design based on the ideas of thousands of fans [from the press relase]:

"Adams, in an attempt to create an 'open source' project, called upon his many fans to design an ultimate house. After receiving over 3,000 responses, ranging from the innovative to the absurd, Adams took the most forward thinking, out-of-the box, thoroughly useful house solutions to the engineers and architects of Heartwood Studios. In addition, he enlisted the consultation of PG&E, the primary west-coast gas and electrical company, to receive top energy-efficiency tips."

Though being more of a humorous project it has some interesting real life solutions that make it worth taking the virtual tour.

If I was imaginary I wouldn't hesitate to move in to this imaginary house

Architectural salvage

2004-09-29T02:45:00.000+02:00

The Chicago area North Shore Magazine has put together some interesting articles about architectural salvage - recycling old artifacts from old buildings that have a date with a wrecking ball. It could be architects trying to restore another old building with original door knobs or just a home owner looking to spice up the room with an Italian hand-carved marble fireplace. These artifacts can be found in salvage shops or on demolition auctions, where the article offers some practical tips for North Shore auctions that clearly could be adopted for any demolition auction:

"1) Bring plenty of cash. Credit cards are a no-go and checks are only accepted from Murco members (you pay $35 for a year's worth of bidding privileges and a Murco T-shirt, as opposed to $5 for an individual bid card).
2) Bring your own tools. Begging strangers for a crow bar is never attractive. Also be sure your vehicle is big enough to haul away the items you've got your eye on.
3) Arrive early. Chances are if it's a North Shore auction, there will be a line. Items are auctioned piece by piece, and if you snooze, you lose.
4) Measure and measure some more. Nothing is more tragic than bringing home the leaded glass doors of your dreams only to find they are three inches too wide.
5) Avoid distractions. A good deal on a closet organizer may be enticing, but not if it makes you miss out on the one item you came to bid on."

Old interior decor artifacts look great in your garden too

Everchanging art on your wall

2004-09-28T08:30:00.000+02:00

Tired of looking at the same old thing hanging on your wall? Open Door Networks Inc has taken the screensaver/desktop image a step further with Envision, the simple idea of packaging it nicely and start a service that provides you with weekly web image show. Furthermore, the software shows only the images on the web sites you specify in a slide show sort of way. So what? I already have a screensaver based on images on my dull grey PC in the corner. Well, now when you can wall-mount the new iMac you can have true everchanging art on your wall! Neat-O!

Ok not that much of an impact sitting on your desk, but imagine on the wall...

Who does better French furniture than the Americans?

2004-09-26T01:04:00.000+02:00

One of the things I appreciate about the Americans is that they're very practical. I found another example of that non-sentimental attitude in this article in The Ledger. Apparently the original style of French furniture didn't quite suit the American taste. Well, simply adjust the design and voilà - a better French design. They don't even have to go to France.

A tweaked Louis Philippe design

The robotic vacuum cleaner now a granddaddy

2004-09-25T01:53:00.000+02:00

IMHO, one aspect of interior design is to make life at home easier to live. I should be looking forward to coming home and relax. But even a home needs taking care of - or does it?

The Swedish company Electrolux was the first to launch the robotic vacuum cleaner in 2001 for the consumer market, the Trilobite. Now the second generation is out, version 2.0, and the competition, e. g. the Roomba Discovery has reached version 3. The fact that it's been hacked says a lot how popular it is. They have similar features, like they both dock automatically with their power station when they're finished. The Trilobite is way cooler, though. Over at Engadget they're all fired up over the Roomba. They even have a video where you can see the Roomba docking.

Fossil Trilobite. Now where's the ON switch...?.

Trilobite, by name as well as by design.

Roomba, if you prefer the more plastic look and feel

Freedom antiques?

2004-09-23T19:24:00.000+02:00

Remember the beef the US had with France over the war in Iraq? Some people went to extremes renaming "French fries" to "freedom fries". Well, now it looks like it spilled over to the antique market where Americans have been known to pay big bucks for French antiques.

It seems like American buyers have stopped travelling to important events in the world of antiques in France. At least as reported from The 22nd Biennale des Antiquaires in Paris by The New York Times:

"Another designer, Charlotte Moss, went back to New York with a list of items to propose to clients who had stayed home. She was at Jorge Welsh's stand admiring a blue-and-white Ming platter when a friend, Ann Nitze, walked by. 'That'll look wholesome at someone's next barbecue,' Ms. Nitze, an art dealer, said dryly."

The French dealers might not be happy, but I bet the antiques are...

"Hmm this Louis XVI bed looks perfect for my poodle"

Home furnishing gains momentum in the world's largest market

2004-09-19T05:24:00.000+02:00

Ponder the following passage from an article in the International Herald Tribune:

"Not only do they want cars and electronics, they want upmarket home furnishings, too, offered with upmarket style and pizzazz. Indeed, for an ad industry struggling to come to terms with sluggish growth in the West, China and its 1.3 billion consumers are the great hope."

If you're in the home furnishing business and have a Chinese connection, now would be a good time to start up some business in China if you're interested in them greens. I suppose you could argue that doing business in China is endorsing the dictatorship there. I've heard the same argument about having the Olympics in China. I personally believe, though, that the more we begin to depend on each other between countries (e. g. doing business), the more control can be wrung from the hands of a totalitarian government. Isolation is never a good thing. It only makes people suffer while the top hogs always will have food on their tables. Look at North Korea or Cuba. I'm convinced that if the US lifted it's embargo towards Cuba today, the island would be democratized within a couple of years.

Ok, I got into a political side track here, but hey - life isn't all chairs and pillows.

Guess who's coming to dinner? Yep, the everpresent Mao never misses a family moment

When your home is a gallery

2004-09-18T18:39:00.000+02:00

To turn your home into a gallery is an interesting concept - if you don't have to live in it, I suppose. Check out this überdesigned Paris apartment. It's pure design porn and does lend itself beautifully to a stylish article, but I think I would freak out if I were to live there and have my cereal in the kitchen/morgue every morning.

The kitchen. Full of warm fuzziness

The red light district? Nope, the children's corridor

The public room - why it had it coming

2004-09-13T08:52:00.000+02:00

As the summer withers away here in Stockholm, the construction and re-building projects in our streets and other public places are scurried to finish before the winter cold tightens it's grip. Swedes are known to be modern and efficient - maybe too efficient, I sometimes think. Many times the new Metro station or public square is opened to public before it's even finished. I think that how we perceive the public room tells us how to treat it. A public construction site invites the feeble-minded to scrawl all over the walls and drop their cigarette butts on the floor. Think about it: wouldn't you think twice about littering a clean new bus station and at the samte time don't even think once about littering a half-finished dirty one?

In the transition from half-done to finished, something is missing. The public room is never allowed to feel new and fresh. Why not clean it up at least once and perhaps even have a corny inauguration to mark the event?

The same psychology applies to graffiti, or the scribble that it usually is. Being surrounded by filthy walls makes us feel bad about where we live and a sense of insecurity that in turn affects how we treat each other. There are a few true graffiti artists, but the rest just serves as a recruitment base for small time criminals (future big time criminals). Reclaim the streets? I think we just lost it to an unsecure manipulated bunch of kids...

Try to reclaim the added cost of the ticket next time you take the train, Lowe!

The classic luxury item

2004-09-11T17:46:00.000+02:00

I find the typical image of the ideal American home so overloaded that it's amusing. Take a look at the images at the site getdecorating.com where they've gathered a remarkable collection of "ideal" interior decoration settings. It seems like the idea is to express wealth and cosyness by cramming the place with stuff.

For me, the ultimate luxury is empty space. Isn't that great? You have the classic luxury item available for free when designing the interior of your place. Don't be afraid to use it!

Yikes!

The timeless work of Carl Malmsten lives on

2004-09-09T20:21:00.000+02:00

If you're interested in Scandinavian design I'm sure you know about one of the greatest Swedish designers, Carl Malmsten, who's furniture from most of the last century still hold their own against anything made today. Well, if you ever go to Stockholm, make sure you stop by at the Carl Malmsten store and ask his grandson Jerk, the owner, to show you around the unique handicrafted pieces of furniture, the classics or the NU line of furniture from young designers carrying the Carl Malmsten torch of art and handicraft. The address is nr 5B on the most exclusive street in Stockholm, Strandvagen. Then take a stroll down the street to see if you meet the tennis legend Björn Borg, who also live on Strandvagen.

This baby makes a palace out of any home

Free Gmail invitations

2004-09-07T10:29:00.000+02:00

I saw on eBay that people still are selling Gmail invitations. That doesn't seem right to me. If there are any of you readers that need a Gmail account just put an e-mail address in a comment to this post and I'll send you an invitation. I currently have six Gmail invitations.

Megayacht interior design

2004-09-06T20:47:00.000+02:00

Take a look at this image and try to guess what kind of house this is:

Ok, the title probably gave it away already. No, it's not a corridor in a large mansion. Yes, it's the interior of a yacht, not a superyacht but a megayacht! I saw this image in an interesting article in the Nautica Superyacht magazine discussing different approaches in interior design for yachts. It really gives you a look inside a world that few has access to. For me, it also confirms the fact that money can't buy you even the slightest sense of aesthetics.

I'm not an expert on yachts but I don't get the idea why you'd want to make the inside look exactly like the interior of a house. Where's the adventure?

The result of a large sum of money in the hands of aesthetically challenged american megayacht owner

Man's defiance in the face of nature's powers

2004-09-04T13:04:00.000+02:00

Looking at the images of the Villa Nackros, built on water, and at the same time following the news about the current hurricane Frances trashing the Florida coastline, it struck me how much in denial we as humans are when it comes to natures untamable forces. It doesn't matter how much we get our asses kicked by all elements - we just keep challanging them, building close to water, over earthquake chasms and on the moon. This passage from an article about the hurricane in the New York Times I think sums it up very well:

To the north, in Vero Beach, Wayne Watkins walked along an abandoned U.S. 1 holding his mixed poodle, Petey. "He likes his morning walk," Mr. Watkins said as the wind practically buckled his knees. "So he got it." Mr. Watkins added: "I was in Nam in 68, 69, so this is cake city."

Oh sweet defiance! I think I'll buy one of those floating villas some day and park it outside the coast of Florida. I want to go out in style!

(Read more about Villa Nackros designed by Staffan Strindberg)

The calmness before the storm in Villa Nackros

Last words from the Villa Nackros living room: "What's that dark cone-shaped thing coming this way?"

Flood your crib with ever changing light

2004-09-02T23:36:00.000+02:00

Ever wondered how it would be to live inside an all-flavoured ice cream? The designer Marcel Jean Vos must have had something like that in mind when he designed The Vos Pad. It's an orgy of light emitting diodes (LEDs) that can change color in an instant. LEDs emit "cold light" so you can fit them into anything without affecting the material, which makes for some interesting design possibilities, for example lights in the floor or in the bath tub. The dimming and color could be programmed according to your mood as in The Vos Pad.

Same bathroom - different moods

An over-the-top showcase perhaps, but doesn't it look tasty? (Thanks Olgierd Malecki for the link)

Mmm...strawberry milkshake

Naked bulbs for the well off

2004-09-01T19:26:00.000+02:00

Following up on that recycle theme earlier, here's a lamp (85 actually) that ended up in MoMA (The Museum of Modern Art in NYC). It's from famous Dutch designers Droog Design and I saw the other day that you can buy it from moss for USD 3270 or from inreda.com for SEK 26950. Myself I am already fighting a losing battle against cable abundance in my apartement, so I'll pass on this one - or was it the price tag?

I wonder when that Cuban stuff will find it's way to the shops...?

Did a bulb just go out? Not to worry with this mofo

August spawned an iMac in the shape of an iPod

2004-08-31T22:06:00.000+02:00

I'm not a Mac freak, but I was eager to see whether Apple would be able to top the last iMac design today with the new iMac. Now that I've seen it, I'm confused - is it a clean design or just dull? Wouldn't it look better in brushed aluminium (damn, that metal surface urge again...)? Are the Apple people just trying to repeat the iPod design success just by applying it to a computer like iMac? The last iMac was a triumph in design in my opinion, but I decided to hold out for the next generation which was due today. I think I'll have to see it live to be able to make up my mind. The look and feel of it is very important to me as I planned to put it in my living room as a digital media center and an ugly PC just won't do.

So what's the verdict? You tell me!

The new iMac

The old iMac

The mother of invention

2004-08-29T14:02:00.000+02:00

I can't help but be impressed by people that creates something usable and inexpected from almost nothing. I stumbled across some images from an old exhibition of some truly inventive stuff. Cuba has certainly been through some rough times - still is - and the Cubans have to make do with whatever material they can find. For them it's just solving some day-to-day problem, but in my eyes it's true art. How about a TV antenna made of canteen trays or a fan made out of an old telephone?

Vinyl record replaces the original blade of a fan

Survey update: Sex it up and don't freak out

2004-08-27T22:18:00.000+02:00

We all know that the purpose of surveys is to produce something to hit people in the head with that they already know. So now hear this:

The Washington Post tried to find out if women are more interested in interior decorating than men. Guess what? They are. In spite of this, 88 percent of the men in the survey are involved in doing the actual work. Hmm, I see a power distribution pattern emerging here...

In a survey cited by The Belfast Telegraph, home buyers give you a hint what kind of DIY "improvment" should by avoided if you plan to sell your home some day in Ulster.

When it comes to the fixtures and fittings, the single biggest turn-off is a built-in bar
...
Other furnishing faux pas identified in the Yellow Pages survey included saloon-style swing doors (12%), shell-shaped bathroom suites (8%) and curtain pelmets (3%).

Damn, there goes my weekend home improvement project...

The dictator of living rooms

2004-08-25T15:01:00.000+02:00

What dictates where you sit and how you arrange the furniture in your living room? I would bet in most western homes, it's the TV set. This piece of furniture has held us hostage for decades when it comes to the living room layout. Go to your living room right now and look where all sitting areas are facing. I'm serious. Go! ... See? If you have a large living room, perhaps you have divided it in two of more parts, but I bet at least one part is dedicated to your TV. Some of you have hidden your TV in a closet with doors that opens up to reveal the screen. Nice try, but what happens to the room? A group of chairs and sofas facing a closet!

Ok, so how do we overthrow this dictator of living rooms? I think we are beginning to see a revolution now with the new TV sets that are so thin that you can hang them on the wall. At least the floor space can be liberated with a wall-hung TV. But what about the projector screen TV you say? I'm sorry, I think the projector has a even greater impact on the living room than an ordinary TV. The quality isn't even near a good TV set and many projectors are noisy. You also have to create a movie-theater-like environment with dimmed lights and nobody breaking the light beam.

However, the real revolution will come with the screen wall when you can assign any wall area to display a screen. I'm not talking about the usual one wall solution when you stack a bunch of TV sets on each other and combine the image into one, but the wall itself being a screen. You'll then decide where you want to sit and point your remote to where you want to look. You could use this for a lot of things, for example decorating the room with different images and colors or like a computer desktop running applications and work with them on the wall screen. Pretty neat, huh? The problem is that it only exists in my imagination and from what I see in the video wall business, I wouldn't hold my breath.

Not much room after you video walled your apartment with a bunch of these babies

The IKEA labyrinth

2004-08-23T13:55:00.000+02:00

The largest IKEA store in Stockholm is a perfect example of greed taking over and complicating things for us shoppers. Some time ago IKEA decided to rebuild the whole store, which is like a whole city block. The motto for the renovation seems to have been "The shopper must not be able to just go in, find what she wants and buy it". Some genious probably thought that we suddenly would develop some irresistable urge to buy whatever crap we see trying to find the exit, or perhaps just give up and scream "Ok I'll buy anything you want, just let me out of here!". After a couple of weeks the IKEA people surrendered somewhat to the customer complaints and painted large arrows on the floor to show people how to get out of the maze. Well, that suggests to me that something is terribly wrong with the interior design of the place. But wait, there's more! What if a customer just need one thing, let's say a toilet brush? She would then be able to just go to that level of the store and then go directly to the exit. The IKEA genious: "How about putting the same type of product on different levels? Then they still have to go through the whole store (evil laughter ensues) Mmmwuuuua-ha-ha-ha-haaaaaaaaaaaa". Another interesting "solution" was moving the main entrance from the second floor to the bottom floor and then make all customers take one single escalator up to the second floor anyway to be able to enter the store.

Well, I guess it proves again that it's never too late to fail. Even the largest player in a business with all the resources in the world can lose focus. For starters, this store lost one customer - me.

MTV Cribs. Do they really live there?

2004-08-22T08:46:00.000+02:00

There's no show on TV that reveals more about the lives of movie, music and sports stars than MTV Cribs. Not for what you see when they show you their homes, but for how the stars struggle to give an appearance of something. There are cribs that go with the personality of the inhabitants, but sometimes I see episodes when people just look lost when they lead the camera crew through their houses: "...and this room here to the right is...mmm...the kitchen!" (camera pans over a completely empty hi-tech kitchen with a layer of dust on the stove). After watching a couple of episodes I could Identify at least three types of crib owners:

The crib owners that didn't lift a finger to change anything about their homes after becoming successful enough to get invaded by a MTV camera crew. These impressivly relaxed people are not to be confused with the wanksters that spend hours before the shoot to plant stuff that go with their rough image: "Oh these handcuffs casually entangled in a leather whip on a bed of string bikinis? I have no idea...".
The people that throw money on the problem to make it go away. Some cribs just reek of all-package-interior-design-consultants. They look like visitors in their own homes. Often it's a complete theme park: "Yeah I went all the way with this crazy Arabic style...or like Indian...anyway, I think it's so me. Look at my action figure collection over here...".
The DIY people that wanted something to show to the world and at the same time tap into their abysmal creative resources: "Hey I can play a pretty mean guitar! I can do this!". I've seen some tragic examples: "I just put a white bed in this huge white bedroom with a with a white sheet...look, it got a great red stain on it just like blood...pretty cool, huh?" Yeah, the shock effect last for a couple of minutes while showing it off, then what? Mix it up with a fake cut off horse head?

Snoop Dogg goes Martha Stewart on yo' ass

Metal white ware from hell

2004-08-21T12:23:00.000+02:00

I admit! I'm a sucker for things with an unpolished metal surface. When I first saw the DeLorean car as a kid I was fascinated with the concept that didn't need paint to make it look good.

Still kicking it, the DeLorean:

I guess I share this fascination with a lot of people considering the amount of white ware manufacturers trying to to put a spell on you with kitchen ads looking like something from a Star Trek episode - all metal surface. I even wrestled the metal demon for a while when deciding for white ware for our new kitchen. However, when I saw all these freezers and fridges in real life I realized that they are impossible to keep clean from grease stains. Just imagine what happens when you have kids running around in the kitchen - yep, stains galore.

I succumbed to a tiny metal demon in the bathroom, though, and bought a small lockable metal cabinet. Just one look at it and it's unclean, but it's easy to clean and kids cannot reach it. I did like they used to say in the Old West: "Hang'em high" - the cabinet, that is.

"O Beelzebub, be gone! Thou hast no power over me!"

Follow-up: Outrageous theft...

2004-08-20T08:14:00.000+02:00

Yesterday the stolen tapestry seems to have been found in the trunk of a car in Stockholm. A local resident thought the car was badly parked and decided to investigate further. The loot was considered to be worth at least from millions of USD to priceless. The car wasn't even reported stolen at the time. [metro.se]

Lesson: if you are an asshat thief devoted to pointless thefts, at least learn how to park a car.

Update 12.45:
Well, it turns out it wasn't the bad parking that called the citizen's attention. It was the tapestry rolls sticking out of the car (see image). It took three individual reports to the police before they believed it. Then they claim the had the car under surveillance just in case the thieves were to come back (mmm-yeah-aha-right). [dn.se]

I personally think the buyer read the news and found out that the goods he ordered was shredded by the asshat thieves and just cancelled the order. The thieves then probably just dumped the loot and went looking for other business oportunities.
The car "under tight surveillance":

Outrageous theft of priceless interior in the Old Town

2004-08-19T21:05:00.000+02:00

Last night some ruthless thieves entered the old National Bank house from the year 1680 in the Old Town of Stockholm and literally ripped the tapestry and paintings from the 1750's from the walls in the prestigious building. They didn't even take out the nails before brutally taking the tapestry down, probably leaving with a national treasure full of holes. The also used their not-so-well-honed crow bar skills taking down door frames and tiles from the walls. [svt.se]

Makes me wonder who's the rich sick bastard that would buy this stuff and put it up in some tacky part of his vulgar villa.

The old National Bank "Södra Bancohuset", Stockholm, Sweden:

Interior design software

2004-08-18T21:25:00.000+02:00

Not long ago my wife and I moved into a new apartment. Moving from a small to a large place, suddenly there was actually room for deciding where stuff would look nice, not just squeezing in the sofa where it fits. A the same time I wasn't looking forward to shuffling the furniture around until we were both content (or at each other's throats). Solution: interior design software. I scanned the web for 3D modeling software for interior design. Most of the software I couldn't even download and test without purchasing it (hello > goodbye!), other I couldn't install because of the poor software distribution infrastructure. How many times have I registered for software, downloaded it and then waited in vain for the license key to appear in my inbox? Answer: too many. Finally yesterday I found Artifice's DesignWorkshopLite, which is free and enough for my humble needs. I tried it out and it looks great so far. Try it yourself:
http://www.artifice.com/free/dw_lite.html

One funny detail: after downloading the software I received a welcome mail from Artifice in my own language (Swedish), though the encoding of the mail was in US-ASCII so it looked more like Hungarian. Translations can be tricky also. One phrase in the mail was something like: "There's a lot more to say [about the software], as generations of architecture students from my years as a professor can tell, but I'll just say hi." Well professor, you really got me intrigued there! And talk about old software - "generations"! Perhaps it sounded real nice in English in the beginning.