CUPPOW! from Paper Fortress on Vimeo.

Every once in awhile a simple idea has been conceived, devised, designed, executed and delivered. You know it's a great because a) it is so very simple; b) you can't believe you didn't think of it; and c) you almost can't believe it doesn't already exist. The Cuppow from Aaron Panone & Joshua Resnikoff is just such an idea. I've long been a fan of using mason jars for storing rice, grains, nuts, sugar, salt and so on in air tight container. When the reckoning of Peak Oil we'll be forced by cost to stop frivolously using petrochemicals for throw-away uses such as containers and energy and start using plastics more wisely and re-thinking truly recyclable and more abundant materials such as glass and steel (though you need energy, aka petrochemicals, to make them so). The humble mason jar and all of its inherent qualities, will be something we return to. I'm not sure if the designers have thought about it, but, if I were an investor I can see possible extensions of this product. A lid with a sealable top, a lid with a sealable top for pouring things like salt, sugar or cooking oil, or a lid, perhaps made of silicone that can act as a seal during pickling or perserving that can be opened and closed without opening the lid. I'm just thought-bombing (apparently "brainstorming" has fallen out of favour due to it's use to describe neurological events… or something). Unlike many good ideas, you can actually order one of these today at Cuppow. Go ahead. See what it's like to hold a good idea in your hand.

Labels: business, design, technology

I have a feeling a product like this would create a lot of buzz at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.



I'm not sure who the designer Thijs Van Stammen is nor am I familiar with his work but he is dangerously and hilariously close to the ultimate European designer stereotype oft mocked round these parts. I admire his dedication to progressive design that would lead to you actually owning and using one of those Frank Schreiner shopping cart chairs.


See more at The Black Cube.

I've always maintained that pre-fab architecture is a little redundant considering a modular system, called "Lumber" already exists. This Japanese Precut Timber Construction project is somewhere in between a house being factory made and delivered and high-end, high-craft hand built home. It's another example of Japanese tradition melding perfectly with Japanese inventiveness.

Precut - Modern Japanese Timber Construction from BAKOKO on Vimeo. Via ArchDaily

I'm going to be blunt and say that I rarely hear anyone ever say "Canadian inventiveness" and clearly, pre-cut log homes don't exactly compare to a house constructed using mostly mortise and tenon joinery. Can you imagine having a home built this way? The framing is almost too beautiful to cover up.