Author Archives: David

Garbage Bag Art Work trash bags aim to transform Japan’s unsightly neighborhood garbage collection points into instant works of disposable art. Produced by design agency MAQ, the bags come in three patterns — trees, fish and flowers — and they are colored to match Japan’s official color codes for various types of waste, each of which are collected on different days. Green is for recyclable trash, blue is for non-burnable and red is for burnable, so while livening up the appearance of trash heaps, the bags also remind neighbors about what trash day it is. Packs of ten 45-liter bags sell for 380 yen (about $3) at a select few Tokyu Hands and Loft outlets in Tokyo, or they can be purchased online here (Japanese).

To ponder: does making garbage bags prettier encourage people to recycle? Shown above are graphic-coded trash bags – one each for burnable, non-burnable and recyclable trash. Pretty artwork would certainly beautify the pile (we wish you didn’t have that much to dump though) – and this is perhaps much more emotionally engaging than the standard, stark (no doubt clear) coding systems like stark blue, yellow and green color-coded bags. More arty and less town-council-y.

Work done by design agency MAQ. [via Pink Tentacle]

“Poverty wants some things, Luxury many things, Avarice all things” – Benjamin Franklin

While some may see luxury as almost a crime – who are we to deserve such opulence and indulgence – others see it as a benchmark of the ultimate in performance, refinement and design. If you need a dose of how the rich (or, perhaps more commonly nowadays, simply those who are willing to splurge) live their lives, their toys and their fancies, here’s a well-presented blog that focuses solely on designs and developments in the luxury segment – be it high-tech goods, automobile or fashion. It’s in both English and French even!

That’s the Eva Solo Smiley, designed by the Danish duo Claus Jensen and Henrik Holbæk. At first look it reminded me of the humidifier designed by Naoto Fukasawa – another organic, glossy and rounded addition to the home lifestyle product. After taking a closer look at it, however, I got more impressed – it is certainly well-conceived and designed.

Instead of plastic, it is made of several layers of mouth-blown glass layers – that would add a touch of class and elegance in the midst of deeply IKEA-fied lifestyle products. The edge has a cut to on the side that adds much to its functionality: the perfect receptacle for snack wastes like pistachio shells or food wrappings. But it doesn’t stop there – it also leaves a positive feel-good ‘smiley’ on the product – what a way to do all these in literally one stroke!

Great stuff!