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August 28, 2007 8:11 PM PDT

Toys for the Filthy Rich?

(Credit: Sci Fi Tech blog)

August is quiet all around...with nearly everyone on vacation, it's hard to get much work done these days.

Yet somehow, it also seems to be the season of great Top __ Lists. (Insert any number in that blank. I was going to go with 10, but they seem to vary a bit.). So this week I'll be featuring some of my favorite Top __ Lists from blogs that inspire me every day.

Let's start with the Sci Fi Tech blog and its "Top 10 Toys for the Filthy Rich." With a title like that, you already know you're dying to have them all. Here's a preview: $1,150 Ultimate Ear headphones that you can use with your $7,500 Vertu phone or $19,000 gold-plate iPod Shuffle.

What products would you put on your own "Top Tech Toys for the Filthy Rich" list? If you had all the money in the world? I think I'd definitely add the sold-out Porsche Design Series 1 Cayman S...and that incredible 007-esque case of designer goodies that comes with it.

... Read more
August 18, 2007 6:15 PM PDT

(Credit: IKEA)
IKEA 2008! The annual catalog is HERE! And for the lazy who need a cliff notes version, or those who need the inspiration to click here to get lost in their digital version of the catalog for a few hours... i've attached a few of my favorite pages to get you going. Their color themed pages were particularly inspiring... loving this black and white, as well as that bowl up there! Also below you will be amazed at the instant living room you can get for a mere $184! As well as some impressive new pet goods, and other color themes.

... Read more
August 2, 2007 2:54 PM PDT
WING Lounge Chair

WING Lounge Chair

(Credit: LYX Furniture and Light)

*phew* Sorry its been a little quiet the last week, ever notice how everything sometimes comes down on you at once? Be it work, personal, business, family, new site launches, etc etc etc, oh how the list goes on. But, i'm back! And have some exciting fun new design finds to share with you.

You know how there's nothing quite like sinking into your temperpedic/memory foam/NASA developed craziness of a mattress? Well imagine that... all around you... in a designer lounge chair and ottoman? I wish i could tell you i was writing this from that chair now, but no such luck. This WING Lounge Chair is designed by Michael Malmborg, and "A reincarnation of the classic wing chair, created for the future. This recliner is made for serious cocooning and is the closest you can get to weightlessness. The upholstery in the Wing Chair is made by open cell visco elastic memory foam"

And as if we needed more reasons to be in complete awe of this wonder: "WING Lounge Chair is the first and only chair ever to be certified by The Space Foundation - tested and recognized by NASA. WING is also the biggest single piece of bendwood ever used to create a chair."

... Read more
July 17, 2007 4:39 PM PDT
Pottery Barn Smart Tech

It's not JUST a bulletin board, it has speakers and chargers!

(Credit: Pottery Barn)

Smart Technology is the innovative new line by Pottery Barn. I couldn't stop laughing when i first saw this over on Cool Hunting... is this the sign that technology has truly become ubiquitous in our everyday? Or have we just redefined what makes something "smart"? Honestly, take a look at this new line of products... classic Pottery Barn styled pieces get more intelligent with the integration of speakers, powerstrips, and holes for cables to come through... Below are a few more pieces from the collection. All of this makes me wonder whether there is a need for the services of someone willing to adapt all of your antique furniture to better house your tech... embedding speakers, powerstrips, wifi boosters, splash pad chargers that work beneath that gorgeous wood inlay?

... Read more
July 16, 2007 6:39 PM PDT

(Credit: Dermond Peterson)
Design*Sponge featured these beautiful pillows from Dermond Peterson's newest Seaside line, and they are the perfect fresh accessories to brighten up your space. I'm personally coveting their black octopus pillows (it fits the my affinity for things black/white and nature based).



The story behind Dermond Peterson Design is quite cute too: "Founded in 2001 by sisters, Sandra Dermond and Susan Peterson, Dermond Peterson Design is an artisan/manufacturing company that combines the rich, tactile qualities of 'fine-art' printmaking techniques with innovative and slyly conceptual design strategies to produce fresh, functional textiles for everyday use at home."

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July 16, 2007 6:20 PM PDT
(Credit: Cappuccio Design)

Just noticed this gorgeous table at MoCo Loco. Cappuccio Design's Louis XXI Table just won first prize at the "Verona Fiere ? Centro servizi distretto del mobile". Designed by Francesco Cappuccio, Bangkok, for a :piece of furniture with a strong ironic connection to classicism in which an image with references to modern art is inserted and an original and functional solution is added." This table, although appearing like a sliced and diced modern table, is really extremely functional at holding those pesky magazines and newspapers you used to leave ON the table, you can now slot IN the table?

... Read more
July 16, 2007 6:07 PM PDT

(Credit: CB2)
It's a foggy grey not quite drizzly day here today, and i just came across this Puddle Pendant Lamp at Crate and Barrel's younger store CB2. And at a low $40 price tag, they aren't kidding when they say its "priced to hang in multiples". Size? 13.25"dia.x9"H ~ and you can see an image of it in context below. They describe it as a "sleek fluid teardrop of handmade iron glossed brite white." Gorgeous isn't it?

... Read more
June 27, 2007 4:46 PM PDT
fans

These 10 fans will blow you away.

(Credit: Jean Aw, NOTCOT)

With the Summer Solstice last week, it's pretty warm out, and that means we're definitely in the midst of fan season. Being a bit tired of the same old designs that we've all seen and probably had since college (come on, you know the types... the floppy cheap drugstore plastic floor fans, or those double fans you close your window over?)... so here are some more aesthetically pleasing options - So you really have NO EXCUSE left to have an ugly fan.

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June 18, 2007 12:36 AM PDT
wall mounts

How do you mount yours?

(Credit: Best Buy Composite)

Happy Father's Day to all the dads out there. Anyone who flipped through the ads in the Sunday Paper would have seen SO many gadgets being pushed for Dads & Grads. There was an underlying guilt that surged through me as i flipped through them over breakfast... I only got my dad a book... and a card. Was i supposed to have gotten him a new phone? laptop? digicam? TV? And then suddenly I was lost browsing the many options of 30-60" plasmas and lcds... 720p vs 1080p... so, I gave up and went and chatted with my dad, the family house is long overdue for some upgrades in the TV sector (we really need about 4 to replace all the ancient ones around). So techy details were discussed, from what size, to what specs, to which brands, to which DirecTV packages would be best, and how installation would be... and so on and so forth... until the designer in me kicked in, and we got stuck wondering How do you hide the cables?

So, browsing all of the various options on BestBuy, and randomly searching the internet for wall mounts, we sat there staring at the perfect place for the future 55", and couldn't decide where the cabling would be run if you didn't want to have it coming out from within the wall. So that got me wondering, where DO people hide them? Do lots of homes have their cables exposed in their multitude of colors which probably don't match the paint job on that wall so nicely? Have magical wireless solutions to this situation shown up yet? Do you simply run a conduit on the wall? What's the cleanest solution to all of this? And if you have that mounted on an empty wall with nothing beneath, where do you put the tivo, dvd, xbox, and so forth... how do you plug things in and out of the back of the TV when its mounted up there and you want to show a slideshow off your camera?

So how do YOU do it? And still have it be gorgeous?

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About Surface : A design blog

Jean Aw is a 24-year-old design addict, shopaholic, tech connoisseur, design writer, world traveler, UX designer, and entrepreneur. While usually in Los Angeles or San Francisco, she is very mobile, hopping around the country and across the globe, entrenching herself in international culture and design hot spots. She often finds the most incredible things in the most unlikely of places and loves bringing them to her readers, often leaving them wondering whether the treasure came in the existence or in the discovery. When not tending to Notcot.com and her network of design sites, you can find her here giving a dose of gorgeous, lust-worthy designer goodness for everyday living.

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