Month: July 2011

Pleasure to the People from Jimmyjane

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Dear Penthouse Forum, I never thought this could happen to me. I am a design blogger and I want to write about an award-winning product line by one of the world’s top industrial designers. The only problem is that it’s a line of vibrators and the subject is a bit … awkward. What should I do? I’ve included a few photos. – designythings Dear designythings, First of all, great blog! You wouldn’t happen to be talking about the Jimmyjane Pleasure to the People line designed by Yves Béhar and Jimmyjane founder Ethan Imboden? That is one classy group of sex toys. Did you know that the Form 4 vibrator introduced in April is the latest of the three products in the line (doesn’t Form 2 remind you of the Starship Enterprise?? I’m just saying.) I see why you find it appealing to write about the collection, and how confused you must be feeling. Is it the fact they are rechargeable and waterproof (even bath safe!) that impresses you? Or the soft medical grade silicone and …

Pure Water Bottle

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Bad water can be as deadly as no water at all, and scientists and designers alike are searching for portable, affordable, and sustainable methods of converting dirty water from a lake, stream, or puddle into something potable. While traveling in Zambia, designer Timothy Whitehead was inspired to develop a simpler and faster way of sterilizing water than the traditional method of waiting 30 minutes for a chlorine or iodine tablet to work. The result of Whitehead’s research is Pure, a water bottle that provides clean drinking water in just two minutes using a wind-up, ultraviolet light to sterilize the water quickly without any distortion to taste common with the use of chlorine or iodine tablets. While ideal for third world countries, the bottle could also be used by hikers, the military, or anytime someone is in a remote location. To get clean water, the user first fills the bottle’s outer chamber with dirty water, which is then plunged (much like a coffee press) and filtered. The clear water is then sterilized for 90 seconds using a …

The Dreamball Project

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Sports help to keep kids out of trouble, while giving them the opportunity to exercize and socialize in a positive setting. Football (the soccer kind, not the American kind) in particular has international appeal — anywhere in the world, kids know the game and the names of the top-tier teams and players. Designed by Kyungchan Hwang, Songkyou Jin, Haksu Lee, Minhyun Han, and Jin Jun, of the Korean design firm Unplug Design, the Dream Ball is a football made of recycled relief boxes. One of the finalists for this year’s INDEX: Award, the project team has redesigned relief packaging with a pattern so that it can be turned into different types of balls depending on the size of the box. Instructions inside of the box guide relief workers who create the origami-like balls. The rest is child’s play.