Social networking sites as business tools

A recent contribution by Russ Nelson of Conifer Research is worth reproducing here:

Enough adults now have profiles on social networking sites–about 35%–that the fear or ick factor is going away.

As a result, social media/web 2.0 technologies are slowly being legitimized as business tools to improve communication, collaboration, and productivity (in part by reducing the amount of email). In my mind, it’s really interesting how technology is now being developed by and for consumers and then trickles into the business world. For so many years, it was the other way around (email, computers, cell phones, etc. all began as business technologies).

putting people first

Uhuru Reclaimed Barrel Table

Some bourbon barrels find second lives moonlighting as flower planters or scotch casks. Some get tossed. And occasionally, a very lucky some make their way to Red Hook, Brooklyn to be up-cycled by Uhuru, an environmentally conscientious furniture company that utilizes the ends of the unwanted barrels to make their Cant End Table (left). Shipped from Bardstown, Kentucky (the bourbon capital of the world), the solid white oak is sturdy and quite stunning after it’s gone through the aging and bourbon-making processes. Add a little black steel and the result is a great table that is just one of the many fine pieces born of Uhuru’s desire to use “reclaimed, recycled, repurposed, reused or otherwise rejected” materials whenever possible. It's also the only way we can be near bourbon without getting a hangover so it's thumbs up from us. (via OZOlife)

See the entire line of reclaimed furniture at uhurudesign.com.

Raw Edges at DesignMiami

One of the many fantastic “design performances” that took place at Design Miami/ and FENDI´s Craft Punk exhibition at the Salone di Mobile was from design duo, Raw Edges.

The Design Miami/ site explains, “ This professional collaboration between Yael Mer & Shay Alkalay began after many years of sharing life, ideas and everything in between. Yael’s main focus includes turning 2-D sheet materials into curvaceous functional forms, whereas Shay is fascinated by how things move, function and react. Together they work under the name Raw-Edges and share a common goal to create objects that have never been seen before.”

Interestingly, Raw Edges chose to work with the DuPont material, Tyvek, during their performance while designer Saskia Diez debuted another Tyvek creation recently which focuses on fashion design, rather than industrial/product design.

Restaurants Clandestins a Paris

La tendance tres anglo-saxonne du diner clandestin a enfin atteind Paris. Le concept est simple reunir des inconnus, dans votre appartemnt et leur faire partager un diner de fins gourmets.


A l'hidden kitchen, Braden Perkins et Laurel Adrian vous acceuillent dans leur appartement et vous propose un menu de 10 plats concocte par leur soins.

Au Lunch in the loft, vous apprenez a dejeuner autrement dans Paris avec Cabri (aka Miss Lunch)


Hidden Kitchen
Le site
Réservations : hkreservations@gmail.com
Prix du dîner : 80€ par personne.

Significant Colour @ Aram Gallery

La Maison Martin Margiela

Martin Margiela a profite du Salone Internazionale del Mobile a Milan pour presenter sa collection deco et confirmer sa volonte de devenir une marque lifestyle. Dans la mouvance utilicraft tres presente a Milan cette année. Le designer nous fait découvrir dans un espace a l'image de la marque, une pyramide de coupes à champagne en plastique tout de blanc, une table recouverte d’une matière blanche, ou encore le fameux gâteau d’anniversaire des vingt ans de la maison. Mais aussi meubles, tapis, stickers, lampes, luminaires, crayons, ...

C'est tout l'univers Margiela que Mat, Satiné, Brillant révèle.

Toutes ces idées devraient prochainement être proposées au grand public. Le tout sera distribué dans des adresses très sélects, à l'image des autres produits Maison Martin Margiela. Dans le cadre de ce développement, des partenariats et des réalisations d’objets en série limitée devraient voir le jour très vite.


A voir aussi: la suite Martin Margiela au Palais de Chaillot

See it Now, Buy it Now

A new trend in fashion is set to hit the catwalks of New York in September 2009, when the newly formed New York Fashion Week Organisation (NYFW), a non-profit charity that benefits children in need, will stage a series of charitable consumer fashion shows.

Fashionistas near and far will be able to purchase their invitation for the exclusive catwalk shows hosted this Fall by NYFW (the Nonprofit Org), but also to buy their favourite designs straight off the runway on their mobile smart phones. Love it or hate it, the consumer is taking control of the fashion industry and events that emphasize the importance of including consumers are rapidly spreading. A shift towards direct-to-consumer marketing will enable customers to become their own fashion buyers." said Production Manager Yvette Gotay.

And these events will not only enable designers to showcase their latest eco friendly cutting edge creations ahead of their competitors, but also to manufacture garments according to consumer demand. Because of this, the new fall venue is attracting industry-wide attention from many high end fashion firms and boutiques, both locally and internationally.

With this kind of demand, the industry is becoming more aware that the end consumer is the real buyer, and so designers are now more willing to sell direct to customers.

About the Organization

The New York Fashion Week Organization is a newly created non-profit charity organization intended to mobilize the fashion apparel, beauty, accessories, home and related industries to help children in distressed situations. The organization is teaming up with eco friendly designers who endorse good labor practices.

For more information please contact: media@nyfw.org

via PRWeb

Tendance Design: Utilitaire

Beasts par Nacho Carbonnell fait parti de l'exposition Craft Punk, une collaboration entre DesignMiami et Fendi. Les designers ont produits des pieces uniques en recyclant le materiel de l'usine.

Photo: Fendi/DesignMiami







Une pleiade de designers (Maarten Baas, Kiki Van Eijk, Joost Van Bleiswijk, Minale-Maeda, Philippe Nigro, Van Eijk & Van der Lubbe, the Campana Brothers, Front, Marc Sadler and Bertjan Pot) pour un nouveau venu dan le monde du design avec une avant premiere a Milan: Skitsch (emotion et design contemporain)
Des objets simple et utile dans des materiaux peu chers comme le carton (The Build Up collection table et chaise par Philippe Nigro) ou la collection haphazard en porcelaine de Baas. Si l'objet perd les materiaux nobles, il gagne en revanche en personalite. En effet tous les prototypes de la collection de Baas ont ete moules a la main et sont donc uniques. Simple, utiles et uniques

Photo: Skitsch







Peut-on planter une chaise? Oui, c’est possible. En Amérique du Nord, au 19e siècle, de jeunes arbres étaient maintenus en forme pendant plusieurs années jusqu’à ce qu’ils adoptent les contours d’une chaise ou d’un fauteuil. Les freres Bouroullec se sont inspires de cette idee pour concevoir leur chaise vegetal en polyamide renforcé à la fibre de verre

Photo: Vitra

Church in Foligno by Doriana & Massimiliano Fuksas

Church in Foligno by Doriana & Massimiliano Fuksas

A presentation of the Church, on the initiative and the City and Diocese of Foligno, and the organization of OICOS REFLECTIONS, will be held on April 24-26, 2009, the event “In the sacred architecture - Three days with the architecture of Massimiliano and Doriana Fuksas “.
Photographs: Moreno Maggi
via ArchDaily

L'hub: the textle route

L’Hub is a new space near the Naviglio Grande dedicated to fabric.

During the Salone del Mobile (22, 23 and 24 April) at the Hub you can enjoy workshops with aperitif included (6 p.m to 10 p.m.). On the 26, there will be a workshop on velvet and damask and lead by bruno Murani from MUNLAB.

L’Hub
Ripa di Porta Ticinese 69
Milano
www.l-hub.it

Photo by Laura Molteni©

via Abitare

Adrien Rovero

Adrian Rovero will be in Milan to present Flip and Mapping the Field.

Flip:

A convertible sofa. The sofa can be transformed into a table by turning the board upside down. Project realised for the Company : Campeggi. Location:CampeggiPAD 12 – Stand C15, Salone Internazonale del Mobile.

© adrien rovero

Mapping the Field is a series of research projects using mapping processes: typical for the car industry to produce fake wooden car interiors, hydro tranfer printing can also be applied to create standard patterns like carbon or marble. On show at Glasgow and Genève are spheres in aluminium and stainless steel, which give the illusion of slightly deformed textures ”questionning industrial processes and our perception of objects and materials. The impression of materials such as marble, wood and carbon are presented as a contemporary ‘Trompe l’oeil’ when applied to the surface of a series of Rovero’s objects.”

Adrien Rovero is the first of a cycle of five Lausanne-based designers at the Lighthouse.

The Lighthouse -Scotland’s Centre for Architecture, Design and the City- in 11 Mitchell Lane, Glasgow, is open Monday, Wednesday to Saturday 10.30-17.00, Tuesdays 11.00-17.00 and Sundays 12.00-17.00.

Galerie Ormond, 21 rue des Bains, 1205 Genève in Switzerland is open Tuesday to Friday from 11.00-18.30 and Saturdays from 10.30-17.00. To know more about Adrien Rovero, read also Abitare’s 2008 October issue.

via Abitare

Milan preview

Top : Tension Bench by Lisa Johansson
Bottom: Giles Miller-Lego®

Crisis Shop - Sold Out

22nd - 27th April '09

Seves glassblock Showroom

Via Lodovico il Moro 25/27, Milan

The RCA’s PLATFORM 10 presents Crisis Shop - Sold out, an exhibition of work focused on handling situations of crisis in our contemporary society.

Featuring a series of products, each offering an opportunity in disguise, the exhibition offers a stimulus to rethink what a crisis actually is.

From candles with suction pads to deal with any emergency, to take-apart cutlery and LEGO® tables, the exhibition invests in the means to respond to crises at large.

To coincide with the exhibition Seves glassblock Showroom will host a series of films and lectures, with critical contributions by Prof. Niko Papastergiadis, Deyan Sudjic, and Richard Wentworth.

www.sevesglassblock.com

Top: Table by REEVESdesign
Below: Bird Houses by Chris Eckersley

Smile: Designersblock

April 22nd - 27th '09

Revel Scalo d’Isola
Via Thaon De Revel,3, Milano (Zona Isola)

Designersblock will be back in Milan this year showcasing a star lineup of established and up-and-coming designers including the like of Chris Eckersley, Puff & Flock, Reevesdesign and our personal favorite Ercol.

To complement the exhibition there will be a full program of screenings, discussions, presentations, performance and lots more taking place throughout the days and evenings of the salone in the Theater section of the venue.

So although it might be slightly off the beaten path, i would definitely include it on my list of must sees in Milan.

www.designersblock.org.uk

via DeTnk.

Brazilian ironwood and polyurethane foam La belle et le clochard table by François Azambourg, Bold chairs by Big-Game

Maple wood and polyurethane foam La belle et le clochard table by François Azambourg,
Bold chairs by Big-Game

Instant tableInstant seat chauffeuse in plywood beech, Arbre table centre by Matali Crasset,
Vapeur lamps by Inga Sempé
and

Left: Bold chairs by Big-Game,

Arbre table centre by Matali Crasset,
Vapeur lamp and suspension by Inga Sempé

Right: Box stool by Big-Game,

large Vapeur lamps and suspension, Armoire souple storage module by Inga Sempé,
Arbre table centre by Matali Crasset

Natural leather Instant seat chauffeuses by Matali Crasset,
Box stools by Big-Game,
Large Vapeur lamp by Inga Sempé

Instant seat chauffeuse and Arbre table centre by Matali Crasset,

Armoire souple storage modules and large Vapeur lamp by Inga Sempé,
Bold chairs and Box stools by Big-Game

Mètre shelf by François Azambourg

Box coffee table and stool by Big-Game,
turquoise leather Instant seat chauffeuses and Arbre table centre by Matali Crasset,
Armoire souple storage modules and large Vapeur lamp by Inga Sempé

Slastic coat rack by Ana Mir + Emili Padros

Why a new home furnishings company?
The idea of a new French company of contemporary home furnishings might seem either odd or gutsy, considering how full the world is with furniture and objects. And if the company in question chooses to work with designers and producers who are close contacts (in every sense of the term—geography, affinity and tastes) whereas globalization seems to be the way of our times, isn’t this a little anachronistic? And if the company’s aim is to build a network based on both complicity and know-how, and if the company believes that between very upscale and standardization there should be a wide range of choices: is this utter madness? Announcing Moustache. Founded and run by Stéphane Arriubergé and Massimiliano Iorio, moreover partners in Domestic, Moustache’s aim is to bring together a group of like-minded designers to nurture the development of innovative and honest furnishings that will stand the test of time.

via Yatzer