PETA will love these and so will you (maybe).  Cardboard Safari offers some interesting wall-mountable, recycled, non-toxic cardboard animal figures. The puzzles can be left in their native brown paper or can be decorated with paint or any other odd crafty ideas you may have.  Available in buck, moose, or rhino for you to create your own faux-wild safari.

NOTE:  No animals were harmed in any way during this blog post.

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Betterwall is the source for museum and art exhibition posters. They acquire the street banners from museums around the globe and make them available for purchase through their website - buy purchasing them you are preventing the original works from being lost to landfills and a portion of the purchase goes to the original museum. What better way to get a very large piece of art ( the one pictured was from the Fowler Museum at UCLA - it’s 96” tall!) for a reasonable price - they average around $500US. Since the posters are limited edition - check they site regularly for new offerings.

3Form’s Parametre 3D product is an innovative polyester textile that can be used in a variety of residential and commercial applications. The three dimensional “honeycomb” like material comes in three different patterns and eight colors; use the Parametre to divide up a long room in to mutiple functional areas, create a screen, attach to a wall for a sculptural texture or hang in front of a window for a unique light diffusing screen.

3Form offers them in standard widths of 2’, 4’ and 6’ but will also custom make one for you up 14’ x 16’ —see all the possibilities at 3Form.

Blending a traditional instrument with modern design, Industrial Facility from the UK was challenged with creating a new, outrageous concept for a Yamaha electric piano.  While it’s a fully functioning piano, it’s more of a piece of timeless art than anything.  The piano was on exhibit at the Milano Salone Exhibit in April 2008. 

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We’ve been watching the Cubo radio since we saw it at this years CES in Vegas.  It was the only thing that stood out during that over the top trade show full of crap that people will never buy.

If you are looking for a stylish CD/MP3 clock radio, with all the quality you would associate with German design then check out the three new cubos that Sonoro Audio are launching during CES.

They include:

* An all-in-one clock that contains a slot-in CD/MP3 player.
* Internal iPod docking station with remote control compatibility and recharge function as well as AM/FM radio reception.

If the radio is more your thing they will also be offering a internet/FM radio cubo.

The cubo combines form with functionality as in addition to great care over the design, each of the three cubos are encased in wood to give high quality acoustics with a metal grill located on the top of the product “which enables upward resonance from its powerful full range speaker.” Measuring 8.26-inches x 5.39-inches x 9.05-inches and weighing 8.15-pounds this is a very neat and tidy, yet powerful little unit.

[ credit :  gadgetell ]

Constructed of silkworm cocoons and stainless, designer Angus Hutcheson creates breathtaking lighting fixtures that cast amazing lighting effects.  Floor, table, and pendant lamps are available with materials of silkworm cocoon, rattan wire, or mulberry bark.  Let’s be ONE with nature!

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Call it crazy, call it bold decor, but definitely call it a conversation piece.  Rugs designed by FredriksonStallard are sure to catch some eyes and spark up some interesting convo.  Why not tap into your own psyche or find out what’s going on in everyone else’s!?  Ink blot, the blob, or murder scene, take your pick!

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I love when I come across a company that addresses my only two addictions ... style & gadgets. 
Slide Design out of Italy does just that --- With their perfect blend of high design and a little kitsch, they produce a great line of products made of high grade plastic for indoor and outdoor use. 

See Slide Design ...

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I like to think I have some style when it comes to my own home.  My decor? Modern.  My taste?  Questionable SOMETIMES.

So while in Miami, at the local Kid Robot store in South Beach, I fell in love with the most bizarre thing, the huge Snorkin’ Labbit.

I thought to myself… “What’s a thousand dollars for a limited production piece of ‘art’??”

In my spontaneous way, I snagged the only one they had in the store and asked it to be shipped to my home in Austin. 

Then while on the way back… I started to think again.... “Where in the hell am I going to put this thing?!” and… “How am I going to explain this?”

Details Details.

So here’s the new object of my affection ... and after the jump, you’ll see my excitement (and the the excitement of a friend) over this strange Rabbit Labbit…

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LED’s are so great and eco-fabulous, I just love them!  Try LED flex strips under your platform bed or behind your cabinets for a discreet lighting effect that will really set your room off.  LED flex strips can be purchased from many online LED distributors or a store near you; there are many colors to choose from.  If you need accent lighting outdoors for the deck, you can also weatherproof the strips by coating it in any clear flexible waterproof sealant.

Industrial designer/architect Giovanni Pagnotta’s bold creations capture the benefits of the ultimate lightweight material carbon fiber in his furnishings.  His prototype line of carbon fiber furniture demonstrates what can happen when a material is taken to extreme limits of its strengh-to-weight ratio. His products are layered in plies of carbon fiber to create an extremely thin profile. The Z5 chair for example (chaise pictured below) weighs a mere 14 pounds, with a maximum thickness of half an inch, yet can carry 3,000 pounds with no indication of impending structural failure.  For the price, that chair better see a lot of a*s!

Veterinarians recommend that your pooches eat in the upright position which helps alleviate Gastric Dilation Volvulus (GDV) or bloating (and hopefully prevents your dog from flatulence!).  Now if only that could be true for pet owners!  WETNOZ offers some sleek, luxurious modern pet accessories for your good ol’ pals.  And it will look good in your place too!

A mouse is a mouse is a mouse… is felt? is square?

Check out Joey Roth’s quirky idea of a modern mouse. 

see it here....

We’re counting down the days until we land in NYC for 3 days full of modern & contemporary design.  ICFF (International Contemporary Furniture Fair) is the largest exhibit and trade show of cutting edge lighting, furniture, and fixtures ... and it’s calling our name!  Come back and read our daily updates, product photos, and manufacturer spotlights.  often where we go to get inspired for our private design projects.  Look for our mobile blog to launch the evening of the 17th while we feed pictures from the ICFF opening party!

SCRAPILE does!  Designers Bart Bettencourt and Carlos Salgado have the right concept in mind - Discarded / Recovered / Repurposed.  Both designers take the eco-friendly approach with collecting and repurposing discarded scraps of wood to create exotic pieces of furniture.  Each piece of furniture is unique in design and no two pieces will have the same woodgrain pattern.