Tag Archives: Living

A coffee table that holds an electric fireplace is the ultimate winter essential

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A fully electric hearth puts a modern spin on an ancient household fixture.

Fire and light have always been at the center of homes, be it a TV or a fireplace. The latter has, of course, become less practical these days, and its absence from many homes has also resulted in a shift in family interaction. “Hearth and home” is a phrase that still carries some meaning today, and a designer is bringing back that long-forgotten home centerpiece by making it not only more practical but also safe as well.

Designer: Maximillian Burton

The fireplace and the kitchen stove once started out as a single and critical part of the house. The hearth provided not only heat but also fire to cook the family’s meal. Because of those life-essential functions, the hearth also became the focal point for families to gather and connect over a warm fire and hearty food.

Those are the practical and social functions that designer Max Burton is seeking to return to modern households with a coffee table appropriately named “Hearth.” At first glance, it looks like a stylish but normal table with a black tabletop and a shuttered base. Even in this dormant state, it already functions as a beautiful centerpiece for people to gather, but that’s just the tip of the iceberg.

Twist that tabletop clockwise like a giant dial, and the slanted fins at the base open up, revealing the electric heater inside. The twisting motion might remind some of a more advanced thermostat, and it almost offers the same capability. Once opened, the Hearth sucks in air from hidden ducts on its underside and then blows heated air out the fins, warming the entire room evenly in all directions.

While its top is reminiscent of a thermostat dial, the Hearth’s tapered and shuttered base is meant to evoke images of rising temperatures and fire. The glow that comes from the heater inside definitely helps that visualization and provides a warm and soft light that feels like an open invitation for families and friends to huddle and connect with each other, just like what people in ancient times did on cold Winter days.

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This minimalist wooden board offers a interior-friendly way to control your home with Alexa

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The last thing you probably expected is for a beautiful piece of wood to be your control dashboard for your smart home.

The Internet of Things has slowly but surely invaded our homes in the guise of smart lighting, dynamic photo frames, and, of course, smart speakers. While many of these are designed to look stylish and handsome, most of them carry an aesthetic that often clashes with minimalist rooms or decor. Smart speakers are perhaps the biggest culprits in this regard, but a Japanese company has found a solution that lets you put Alexa-powered smart speakers out of sight.

Designer: mui Lab

mui looks like an unassuming block of wood, but it’s actually just as talented as a smart speaker. Actually, it can do more than what most voice-only speakers can, like the Amazon Echo, because it has a touch panel on its front surface. Unlike a busy and overwhelming touch screen, however, the mui board presents visual feedback as monochromatic icons and text in a dot-matrix style that matches the board’s minimalist aesthetic.

More than just being a novel way to present a smart home hub, mui offers an equally unique approach to mixing nature and technology. Rather than the usual cold elements of a tablet, a phone, or even a smart speaker, the wooden board adds a warm and almost human touch to interact with devices and appliances. Its designers want to evoke joy and calm, feelings that should be associated with the home in the first place.

Despite its minimalist appearance, the mui is by no means minimal in features. In addition to its own mobile app, mui Lab is introducing a new “calm” interface that turns the board into a visual interface for connected Amazon Alexa speakers. That’s in addition to the original mui Platform’s compatibility with the new Matter smart home platform.




Inspired by Taoist philosophy, the mui board offers a refreshing spin on how we interact with our smart homes, basically by doing or showing almost nothing. It’s not going to appeal to people who prefer seeing everything in one go, but this design will definitely go well with rooms and furniture that try to hide the tech behind soothing organic materials.

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Razer’s all-in-one modular gaming desk design is a sci-fi dream come to life

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If you find yourself having trouble juggling different desks for your different roles, then Razer’s latest dream might be yours as well.

All of us have different roles to play in life. Some of those are easily compartmentalized, thanks to being confined to a specific location. With new arrangements that have left many people stuck at home, however, the boundaries between work, study, and play have started to get muddled. While there are those that advocate keeping different spaces and even desks for different tasks, most people probably have to live with just one at home. If Razer’s Project Sophia concept ever becomes a reality, however, that will be a problem of the very distant past.

Designer: Razer

Whether you have one desk or three, you most likely have different setups for the different roles you play. Work might require you to be professional and productive, but video or audio streaming requires specialized tools to keep quality up and noise down. Switching between setups and desks will always be a chore, and it would be nice if a single desk could reconfigure itself depending on the task at hand. While an autonomous workspace is probably still a fantasy, Razer is envisioning the next best thing.

Project Sophia is an all-in-one modular desk concept that employs strong magnets and crafty electronics to reconfigure its functionality, depending on the task at hand. The desk itself is actually a computer in disguise, powered by an Intel processor and NVIDIA graphics to drive the modular system. There’s even a huge OLED screen, either 66 or 77 inches, so you really have a complete computer setup even without the modules.

Those modules, however, are the magic sauce to Project Sophia. These snap beneath the desk’s glass surface and offer a wide variety of functionality for different use cases. The idea is that you can quickly swap out modules when you switch from work to play to your other work as a streamer, no need to leave your desk. Except perhaps to get the modules you need and reconfigure the desk.

Razer said that there are 13 separate modules, including a programmable hotkey, media controls, system monitors, and a wireless charger. The company even says there’s even a cup warmer module available for avid coffee fans. And, in typical Razer fashion, there is an RGB LED strip lining the desk that people can customize to fit the mood.

If these images make you fantasize about futuristic dashboards and cockpits, you wouldn’t really be far from the truth. Just like how most of those are fantasy, Razer’s Project Sophia is sadly still just a concept at this point, but it’s an exciting concept nonetheless, especially for those who find themselves with different shoes to fill in a single day.

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This cabinet on wheels can fetch you things like a loyal canine

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There’s finally a robot for the home that’s not just for sucking up dirt on the floor.

Robots are coming, whether we like it or not. They may not be the kind that’s negatively portrayed in movies, at least not yet, but few of them can be considered “friendly,” even in appearance. Today’s robots also seem to stand on two opposite ends of a spectrum, with sophisticated but nightmarish Spots on one end and simplistic but single-purpose Roombas on the other. Few other robots are designed for home use, but a company backed by Roomba maker iRobot and the Amazon Alexa Fund is aiming to change that in the simplest but most useful way possible.

Designer: Labrador Systems

At first glance, this robot looks nothing like the typical robots you see both in homes (on the floor) and in factories. When it isn’t active, it looks more like a tall shelf with an open box compartment. In fact, the faux wooden sides of that compartment, available in Light Maple and Warm Teak colors, seem to be designed to blend with your furniture and masquerade as a simple shelf.

It’s anything but simple, of course, and this shelf on wheels can move around your house on its own at your beck and call. You can tell it to bring you your medicine or the plates for setting the table, or you can tell it to accompany you to the laundry room while it carries the washing load for you. Appropriately, this robot is named the Labrador Retriever.

In some cases, this robot is powered by some of the same technologies that robot vacuum cleaners use to navigate your house. After learning the lay of the land, it uses 3D vision to drive itself to or away from you, avoiding obstacles along its path. It can be controlled manually, through an app, or by voice, specifically through Amazon Alexa. It also has some special tricks of its own, like sliding a specially-designed Labrador-branded tray of food or medicine onto its shelf without any human intervention.

Unlike robot vacuum cleaners, the Labrador Retriever and its smaller sibling, the Labrador Caddie, aren’t just designed to make life easier. In fact, they were primarily envisioned to empower those with physical difficulties or handicaps to be productive and live normal lives. Of course, that means that these robots need to have designs that won’t haunt your dreams, and thankfully, the Labrador Retriever is as inconspicuous as a modern minimalist cabinet, contrary to what its name might suggest.

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A tiny glass cabin lets you enjoy Finnish nature in warmth and safety

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For those who dream of living with nature but worry they might not have the stomach for it, this cabin in Finland might have the perfect answer.

Congested cities, crowded spaces, and COVID-19 may have had some people thinking about escaping to the great outdoors. Even the biggest technophiles will probably admit to being in awe in the face of the splendor of nature. Few, however, might have the heart to really camp out and give up on modern amenities for even just a day. An architectural firm in Finland has thought of the perfect solution, presuming you have no qualms about living in a tiny cabin that has glass for its roof and walls.

Designer: Luauri Solo/Pirinen Salo Oy

The Smart Lucia gives a whole new meaning to “living in a glass house,” though the glass, in this case, is far from the fragile material that the idiom implies. The glass here serves as more than just a safe viewing window into Finland’s majestic greenery. The thermal glass, along with glass and floor heating, will save you from frostbite during the country’s notoriously unforgiving winters. Then again, there might not be much to see during that season anyway, unless you’re the type that does enjoy frozen sceneries.

The glass allows natural light, be it from the sun or stars, to be the main lighting source for the cabin, though artificial lighting is also integrated into the structure’s slim steel structures. This has the combined effect of adding layers of lighting that seem almost magical, especially when the glass acts like a prism to break sunlight into its component colors.

In keeping with Finnish tastes, the Smart Lucia espouses a minimalist design even indoors. But where most houses make the living room or the dining table the centerpiece of the home, the bedroom or rather the bed is the pivotal element inside this tiny house. While the glass house is situated and oriented to capture the best views of nature at that location, you can really enjoy that view only when you’re lying in bed.

Of course, privacy can become an issue with a house that has glass for walls, and there are definitely options to address those concerns. Darkened or mirrored glass is available, but that could affect one’s unmarred view of the outside world. The simplest solution would be to have curtains that cover only the lower half of the house, obscuring only portions of the vista when the need calls for it.

Pirinen Salo Oy’s Smart Lucia is perhaps a dream come true for minimalists looking in search of tiny homes in the heart of nature. It probably won’t be the most efficient tiny home and is unlikely to be accessible to most people, even those living in Finland. Its design and concept, however, do spark the imagination and open up possibilities for enjoying the majesty of nature in a safe, comfortable, and modern but hopefully still environment-friendly environment.

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This minimal seating design functions as a personal enclosed pod + provides you with privacy!

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Most of us stay in shared spaces with our family and friends, and as wholesome and comforting as that can be, sometimes all one truly needs is some privacy! In an attempt to “create personal space and sanctuary in shared spaces”, Megan Yeo designed ‘Mado’. Mado is more than just a piece of furniture or a partitioning system, it functions as a frame for our mannerisms and body language, helping us express our boundaries.

The minimal piece was created via a quick ideation process involving cardboard models, sketching, and a metal fabrication process consisting pipe bending, drilling and 3D printing of parts. The end result was a malleable design that can be transformed according to your needs.

In its open form, the wings of Mado are folded back, allowing people to sit, interact, and socialise. Whereas, in its enclosed state, Mado performs the opposite function. The wings can be folded inwards to create a private and comfortable pod, wherein one can sit and enjoy their own personal space. Mado’s height can also be adjusted, so it can switch between a low and high back seat, whenever necessary. The curved seating platform encourages us to sit in the centre, and lay in positions that are comfy and restful.

The seat has been designed to be low, drawing influence from the floor chairs in Japanese culture. It allows you to sit closer to the ground, and is said to promote relaxation and meditation – two things we all need a little more of in our lives!

Designer: Megan Yeo

The post This minimal seating design functions as a personal enclosed pod + provides you with privacy! first appeared on Yanko Design.

A transforming and multifunctional television set featuring a retractable screen doubles up as a bookcase!

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Giro is a multifunctional television with a retractable display screen that slinks away to transform the TV set into a simple bookshelf.

Living rooms are more like multipurpose rooms. We use our living rooms for everything from watching television to working out, and from eating dinner to doing homework. Taking a traditional living room setup, sometimes it’s not the space, but the single-purpose appliances within the space that limit all of the living room’s potential. South Korea-based designer Park Yoo Jung has developed Giro, a television that transforms its facade according to users’ changing needs.

To help facilitate all that our living rooms can provide, Giro morphs from a conventional smart television into a simple bookcase with the click of a button. Recognized by the Red Dot Design Awards in its Best of the Best category, Giro is the multifunctional living room appliance that creates customizable spaces as your needs change.

For the occasional living room workout between your lunch hour and the night shift, Giro maintains its initial form as a smart television so users can broadcast exercise classes to follow. Of course, Giro operates as an everyday television when needed, projecting movies and television shows chosen from a programmed catalog.

When users would like to transform their Giro television into a screenless bookcase, the rotating projector slinks behind the main platform to remain out of view for evenings spent reading in the armchair or beneath the bay windows. Once the projector screen is retracted, users will find a minimal, yet sturdy bookcase where they place artworks and books on display.

Designer: Park Yoo Jung

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Revisit the ancient art of woodturning with this line of furniture that gives a modern take to traditional design!

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“A different turn,” is a line of furniture pieces created by Koen Boersma from the art of woodturning, an ancient craft that’s Boersma revives through modern design and traditional tools.

The craft of woodturning has been around for centuries, but today, the art is slowly dying out. For as long as it’s been in use, the art of woodturning has varied in form over the years. Only requiring a few woodworking tools, like a lathe and cutters, woodturning can transform wood blocks into an array of different shapes and patterns. Returning to the ancient craft to design their new series of furniture, Koen Boersma created “A different turn,” a line of furniture produced from Boersma’s modern take on woodturning.

Starting out with a rectangular block of wood, Boersma spins each piece into alternating patterns of round and square shapes. Boersma describes the process, “When making this series, the rectangular shape of the starting piece was used, and patterns were developed from this shape.” Spurred by the Netherlands’ specific love for and connection to the craft of woodturning, Boersma turned to traditional tools and cultural building methods for the foundation of “A different turn.”

Beginning with a single, rectangular block of wood, Boersma creates undulating patterns to expose the wood block’s natural, unstained grooves and grains. In showcasing each block of wood’s natural grain, each piece of furniture is unique in its own light. Describing this in their own words, Boersma explains, “The patterns on the straight, black flat sides of the objects flow into the soft, round shapes of the turned away wood. A confluence of the designer’s signature, and the natural beauty of the wood itself.”

Designer: Koen Boersma

The post Revisit the ancient art of woodturning with this line of furniture that gives a modern take to traditional design! first appeared on Yanko Design.

IKEA Japan’s new Tiny Homes campaign rents out a furnished 10sqm micro-apartment for only $1 per month!

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IKEA Japan launched a Tiny Homes campaign that finds a 10sqm apartment in Tokyo’s Shinjuku district to make full use of its floor plan through space-saving furniture and a vertical layout.

All over the world, micro-living accommodations have made staying in even the busiest of cities possible. Tokyo, the most populous city in the world, has made strides in micro-living accommodations, from capsule hotels to shared living spaces.

Considering Tokyo’s populace of 14 million, it’s safe to say the city’s residents are familiar with tiny living solutions. As part of its Tiny Homes campaign, IKEA Japan has debuted a completely furnished 10sqm tiny apartment in the city’s Shinjuku district.

Known for its multifunctional furniture and convenient assembly, the IKEA brand’s living solutions come in all forms. Through its new Tiny Homes campaign, IKEA utilizes its collection of storage compartments and modular furniture to make the most out of tiny apartment spaces.

In the Shinjuku district, IKEA’s 10sqm apartment is organized vertically to make use of the floor plan’s lofty heights and furnished with an array of various space-saving furniture. Dividing the apartment into two levels, residents are greeted by the entryway, kitchenette, bathroom, and laundry machine.

Bringing residents to the apartment’s sleeping mezzanine area, a step ladder connects the first level to the second. Throughout the home, storage pieces like the IVAR storage system and SKÅDIS shelf unit outfit the apartment’s desk to make full use out of the home’s working area. Customizable by design, the IVAR storage system makes it easy for residents to transform the desk to fit their taste, by adding and removing storage modules as needed. Other pieces, like a sleeper sofa and furniture on wheels, morph the tiny apartment into a space for entertaining, sleeping, or working.

Designer: IKEA Japan

The post IKEA Japan’s new Tiny Homes campaign rents out a furnished 10sqm micro-apartment for only $1 per month! first appeared on Yanko Design.

LEGO’s first-ever wooden homeware collection is the fun + functional element you need in your living space!

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I love LEGO! There’s something so fun, cheerful, and quirky about LEGO. I wouldn’t mind living in a LEGO home if I could. Though that may not be possible, I can still add a touch of LEGO with LEGO GROUP’s first-ever collection of wooden home accessories! LEGo recently teamed up with the Danish design brand Room Copenhagen to create a warm and minimal homeware collection that includes wall hangers, picture frames, desk drawers, and book racks.

Room Copenhagen and LEGO have worked together earlier to create LEGO Originals Wooden Minifigure. And, this new venture seems right up their ally as well. Jacob Eberhard, CEO at Room Copenhagen, comments: “Room Copenhagen is well versed in creating and producing upscaled LEGO bricks for children’s storage and organization in the home and this launch takes our collaboration with the LEGO Group to the next level, in terms of expanding the product line to target adults. We trialed it with the launch of the LEGO Originals Wooden Minifigure and the success of that product inspired us to bring out an entire range in the same material.”

The entire collection is crafted from FSC-certified red oak, and each product is available in two variants – a soaped oak and a dark stained oak finish. Every product is almost a recreation of the original LEGO brick design. They’re like super-sized LEGO with light and dark alter egos! They are designed to scale and follow the original brick dimensions, hence they can even be stacked! The products mimick quite a few of the iconic LEGO elements – from the single stud to other easily recognizable pieces. And of course, all the items have been embellished with the iconic LEGO lettering! The full collection consists of a Wall Hanger Set (set of three), a picture frame, a book rack, two Desk Drawer options – 2×2 and 2×4.

LEGO’s latest homeware collection is an absolute delight for all LEGO lovers. You can now incorporate LEGO elements into your living space in the most ”adulting’ manner possible! These products are the definition of fun yet functional!

Designer: LEGO x Room Copenhagen

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