January 16th, 2012
Murakami Chair designed by Rochus Jacob
Maybe your grandma has a rocking chair. Maybe she sits on it and crotchets, or reads magazines about crocheting. Or maybe not. But the fact is, rocking chairs ain’t just for grandma anymore. The Murakami Chair offers a modern twist on the age-old furniture piece – it’s a rocker with a built-in OLED (organic light-emitting diode) lamp that’s powered by the rocking of the chair. That’s right – rock this puppy and you get to be a human power plant.
Designed by Rochus Jacob, an award winning product designer based out of New York City with essential interaction and strategy experience, the Murakami Chair brilliantly harnesses the kinetic energy that is created by rocking the chair and utilizes an advanced nano-dynamo technology built into the skids of the chair to power the reading lamp above the rocker’s head. The OLEDs require very little juice to power and if you happen to want to read without rocking, no worries; rock a while and the battery pack will store enough so you can read later while sitting still. Perhaps best of all, the chair looks sleek and cool, and it will never embarrass you. How did such an idea come about? “I was looking for opportunities to generate energy through activities we naturally do,” said Jacob. “The final result is a rocking chair that enables the user to experience production and consumption of electricity in a gentle and rewarding way.” Jacob also stated that in the future, “To have a drastic reduction of consumption the big challenge will be to make consuming less feel like getting more.”
A bit more about Jacob: He holds a master’s degree in product design and design research from the University of Art and Design in Offenbach, Germany. He gained international working experience at HTC Taiwan, One & Co. San Francisco andIDEO Munich by working with clients such as Microsoft, Samsung, P&G, Nike, Steelcase and Google. He uses a holistic and user-oriented approach that is dedicated to developing meaningful service, interaction and products that have a positive impact on peoples’ lives. Undoubtedly, his Murakami Chair embodies his noble work philosophy.
September 8th, 2011
Bamboo is making quite a name for itself as an eco-chic material used in the contemporary bath environments of discerning homeowners. Bamboo’s environmental benefits stem from the fact that it can grow and spread quickly without the need for much water or care. A bamboo grove can release 35 percent more oxygen into the air than a similar-sized lot of trees, and it matures within seven years as opposed to 35-plus years for trees. Furthermore, bamboo can yield 20-times more timber than trees planted in the same-size area. With a heightened awareness among consumers to be green in their bath environment, bamboo is undeniably a great design resource. Of course, bamboo would never fly in the bathroom if didn’t look beautiful, too – and that it does. The Styleture editorial team has zeroed in on some of our favorite bamboo products for the bath:
Xylem Bambu 36″ Vanity in Dark Bamboo
The Xylem Bambu 36" Vanity in Dark Bamboo
The eco-renewable bamboo veneer is the starting point for this versatile and fresh design vanity. Highlighted with natural bamboo accents, it can be wall mounted or floor-standing using either of two floor stands that provide comfortable heights for vessel applications or under-mount lavatory installations. Read the rest of this entry »
August 9th, 2011
The Kerchum Residence in Vancouver, British Columbia
In recent years, Vancouver has become increasingly known for hitting numerous environmental benchmarks, especially in regards to green commercial and residential building. Not long ago, the city’s Vancouver Convention Centre was awarded the highly prestigious LEED Platinum Certification. Now the Kerchum Residence – a single family home within the city limits – has become the first home to earn LEED Platinum Certification in Western Canada. Its modern design is not only environmentally conscious, it is also highly functional and extremely pleasing to the eye. Read the rest of this entry »
July 11th, 2011
Domespace prefabricated homes
Counting among its numerous advantages that it is made of sustainable materials, can withstand typhoons, can potentially survive an 8.0 earthquake better than your average single-family home – and looks significantly cooler – the Domespace prefabricated home is an old idea that is ideal for today’s forward-thinking and environmentally-friendly mindset.
First imagined by architect Patrick Marsilli in the late 1980s, Domespace homes have since been built all over the world including the United States, Europe and Asia. Domespace homes are unique in that they get their inspiration directly from the curvilinear homes found in nature, like shells, seeds, burrow and other kinds of nests. If you think about it, the dome or sphere is present everywhere we look in nature, including the wombs of the mothers who birthed us. Dome style homes also have an air of science-fiction to them, looking rather fantastical and otherworldly, but in reality very similar to what our ancient ancestors envisioned for their home environments. The fact that the homes so commonly built throughout the world today possess sharp right angles and long corridors, actually goes against our nature; they are forms we have nothing in common with.
Domespace exterior
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June 22nd, 2011
PURE Inspired Design
We are never surprised that people have strong feelings about design. What does surprise us is when someone takes their love of design and changes careers completely to follow that passion. We recently spoke with Samantha Cobos of PURE Inspired; a line of eco-conscious fabrics and furnishings that she began in 2001.
We love that you just seemed to jump into eco-friendly fabrics and furnishings. How long were you designing before you decided to really take that plunge?
SC: Well, first of all I gave up my eight year career as a computer programmer to become an interior designer. I opened my own business in 2001 right after completing my design degree. I was successful, but the economy went south starting around 2008 and I had a lot of time on my hands. I started studying eco-friendly design as well as sketching patterns. What I discovered was a true passion for patterns and colors, as well as the need for eco-friendly design options! You might be surprised to know that I’m self-taught – I don’t take classes, I just try to figure things out on my own and I never give up 
Samantha Cobos of PURE Inspired Design
How did you become interested in eco-friendly design?
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May 26th, 2011
Marmol Radziner's prefab desert house in Desert Hot Springs, CA
The Los Angeles based firm of Marmol Radziner – a design-build practice led by Leo Marmol and Ron Radziner – has become widely known for their dynamic architectural, historic restoration, landscape, interior and furniture design projects.
These days, they’re making news for the private Desert Hot Springs residence they built for none other than Mr. Marmol and his wife Alisa Becket, now on the market at $1.2 million. The price, obviously hefty for some and peanuts for others, reflects a significant drop from the $1.85 million price tag the house carried just a year ago. For the limited pool of buyers who seek a home in the remote California desert locale, this Marmol Radziner house is nothing short of a highly compelling opportunity. The prototype prefab home is oriented to capture outstanding views of the San Jacinto peak and San Gorgonio mountain range. Situated on a sweeping five- acre estate, the house extends over significant stretches of the property with covered outdoor living areas, 2,000 square feet of interior living spaces and a detached carport. The ultra-modern desert home utilizes four house modules and six deck modules made of steel framing that can extend up to sixty-four feet in length; interior modules comprise the living spaces like the bedroom and kitchen, exterior modules define the covered spaces and sunshade modules protect occupants from the harsh elements of the desert. The modules all align in a way that an outdoor protected environment is formed, giving way to a private pool and a cozy fire pit perfect for hosting warm gatherings. The home features a plethora of open frames and glass that allow the line between nature and the inner home to be blurred. Furthermore, the home’s design employs both passive and active solar technologies, providing power to all of the home’s electrical fixtures and amenities; concrete floors provide additional passive solar heat gain.
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January 12th, 2011
Sustainable Solutions (SSi) designs eco-friendly products to conserve water and encourage eco-responsible living. Their Penguin faucet – which bears a distinct resemblance to the body of a penguin – is low flow and dispenses water at a rate of 1.5 GPM (gallons per minute). The Penguin faucet does its part to preserve our planet’s most essential resource, while not sacrificing design or quality.
According to SSi, if a faucet maker doesn’t understand the importance of water conservation, who will?
Penguin Faucet by Sustainable Solutions (SSi)
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