When it comes to places to be, it’s personal to everyone. Personally, I love New York. It’s a busy bustling and inspiring place for me to be and I love it when I get chance to spend any amount of time there. That’s why I keep an eye on things that are going on there and blog them here for you as often as I can.

So here’s one that is pure awesome… ness. Yes, awesomeness.

There’s a little coffee bar around the back of Grand Central Terminal that needs to be seen to be believed. It’s set up to look like a library/reading room but turned 90º on it’s side. So lights that hang from the ceiling become seats, and seats become lights that protrude from the wall above the bar.

It’s designed by the talented people at Nema Workshop, a New York based group of Architects, Designers and Thinkers. If you look at their very inspirational site you will see that they have worked on some amazing projects which make you realise that design, once again, is used to give a good feeling and add a little humour to the job in hand. Click on the picture above and you can go to their site to see for yourself just how inspiring it can be.

Everybody says… Brilliant.

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As we’ve said many many times on this blog, and indeed a few others that I write for: Good design is usually simple, fit for purpose and genuinely functional. That formula usually adds up to… genius.

That’s why we’re showing you this today. It’s a Jam Jar (Or peanut butter Jar, or whatever else you want to put in a jar) that allows you to get that last little bit of sweet goodness out of those pesky nooks and crannies that your spoon just can’t reach, and usually when you’ve covered only half a slice of toast too.

Well, with this all you need to do is turn the jar upside down and take the other top off. That’s what designer, Sherwood Forlee did and produced this idea which we think is a wonderfully simple piece of design with a touch of humour that goes on our “Damn I wish I had thought of that list” (currently standing at 32 products.)

The designer himself is a worldly wise man who has travelled extensively around the world, and judging by the bio on his website, has had his fair share of scrapes along the way! He isn’t classically trained in design either, but when you’re talented, you’re talented. What more can you say. If you click on the picture above you can read for yourself about the jar, and have a read about him and see some great photos from his travels.

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It’s back to the world of lighting and product design again and this crossed my radar a few weeks ago but I’ve just not had the time to post it for all of you to see yet.

It’s a beautiful table lamp in the shape of a Loop designed by the talented Finnish designer, Timo Niskanan. Designed to be be timeless it is meant to stand the test of time by remaining classic and stately in it’s form. Using LEDs as a light source means it’s also an efficient piece too.

If you click on the image above you will be taken to Timo’s website, where you can look at his other pieces. We also particularly liked the lamp which switches on when you place a two Euro coin in a slot in it’s base, very nice, called “Change”.

Whilst the loop light is listed on Timo’s website as a prototype it can only be a matter of time before it becomes a production model. Everybody says well done Timo, we really like this and hope it is available soon.

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I always say that if design can make someone smile it works just as well as if it fulfils it’s commercial responsibilities too. That’s why when I was in Israel recently I made a note of a name I saw in reference to shoe designs. It’s not something I would usually look at as I tend to wear trainers most of the time, but these designs made me pay attention, due to the brilliantly humourous way of looking at what a shoe actually could be.

The designer I’m talking about is an Israeli footwear designer called Kobi Levi, a graduate of the Bezalel academy in Jerusalem who has his own practice and has worked on an international basis with high profile companies as a freelancer whilst maintaining his own practice.

The shoe I’ve chosen to show you, above, struck a cord with me as it reminded me of the poster advertisement being run for at least the last 5 years in Rotterdam of chewing gum stuck to a shoe. On closer inspection you see that the chewing gum is actually the heel of this high heeled shoe.

As ever, if you click the picture you will be taken to the website by Kobi, which shows just what he is capable of, from the clever use of bird imagery to the brilliantly risqué “XXX pump”. Well worth 5 minutes of anyone’s time, especially if you like your shoes a little different.

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Living in the Netherlands you can’t help but see the abundance of bikes around. Honestly it isn’t just a joke that everyone has a bike… I know a guy with over 100, but he’s a bit crazy.

So, recently whilst talking to a guy about bikes he pointed me in the direction of this little beauty. A wonderful idea from the MIO company which sells you a flat sheet of steel with the lines cut in it to put a basket on your bike. It’s made from Powder coated steel so should last for a long time, and is laser cut so it sound better when you talk about it. Lord knows we like our laser cutting here at Everybody towers.

Not much more to say other than have a look at the company’s website to see the other brilliant products they have designed and sell. Take your mouse to clickytown on the image above to go straight to the page to buy the pop up bike basket.

Those of you who know our older posts, will be familiar with the fact that we LOVE the idea of Rapid Prototyping, we previously blogged about a desktop prototyper which is available for around $5,000. But recently one of our favourite sources of inspiration, Make Magazine, started to produce their own machine, which in their own inimitable style you have to build from a kit.

Ladies and Gentlemen, what you see above is the Makerbot industries ”Cupcake”, sure it looks a little like you would find it in an evil mastermind’s lair, but truly this is a breakthrough. See, whilst other machines are going to cost you thousands, this will cost you only $750 for the basic kit. That’s right, only $750!

This is a perfect example of what happens when industrious people get inspired and take it upon themselves to make a change. It could be seen as another example of what we call the everybody spirit. Once you move into this realm the possibilities are pretty much endless. Make your own products to sell, unique art-pieces, odd shaped “things” that only you know what they are… open your mind.

Everybody says thank you Makerbot Industries, we really really appreciate the effort you put into inspiring us! Click the image above to be inspired yourself and start to think about how much you could make!

Well, not actually made of Pixels, but the wall is covered with them. The Pixel bar is a new wine and Tapas bar in Brussels, Belgium whose walls are completely covered in soundproofed foam cushions. Over 8,000 of them in total, each made from cubed foam pads in 27 different coloured covers.

When viewed from afar, the image is that of a pixelated countryside scene, close up it is a beautifully abstracted bunch of coloured blocks. As ever the simple ideas are the best, and when executed in such a perfect manner you get something as special as this.

Everybody says great work to the  designer behind the bar, Charles Kaisin… Right, Brussels is about 2 hours from here, Friday afternoon drinks there? 6:30pm anyone?

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There are many of us out there who enjoy building things, lord knows I’m one of them. There are many models around my desk, house and indeed parents’ house that confirm this as fact.

So, recently whilst searching for something else (as ever) I stumbled upon this item on a Chinese website for Geeks… (Ahem, no comments please). This is a made from lots of different sizes and shapes pre-cut pieces of wood and all the necessary pieces of electrical wiring. Now I can’t begin to tell you what the sites says, it’s all in Chinese, but it has lots of pictures. Pictures help. I haven’t even tried to use Google translate to get more details, but it seems it is available the world over for a fair price.

Everybody says well done Chinese Geek fellas, it’s a nice item which we wouldn’t mind on our desks here at Everybody towers.

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I’ll start this in the old way I used to start most of my older blog posts… just because it’s true, so here goes.

Once in a while an item comes along and makes you stand up and pay attention. Here is one of them. This is an attractive looking hen house which is quite extraordinary, if only for it’s external beauty!

The wooden, multi-level hen house is designed to be a place to roost and rest for the (possibly more pampered) chicken(s) in your life. Using principles of architecture in the design of a simple hen house is a stroke of genius and we wonder how long it is before someone starts a study on whether chicken lay more in this than a standard koop.

The designer is Frederik Roijé, who is from the east of the Netherlands. After a prodigious period at the reknowned Eindhoven institute and a couple of internships at famous designers’ in both the Netherlands and Italy, he opened the door on his own design practice in Amsterdam during 2003, specialising in product design. His early flair for “interior items” has been continued through his work for companies such as Droog design and many of his own collections.

We thoroughly recommend a good look around his website to ensure you see all his work, it is very inspirational. Click the image above and you will go to his site to see his works and learn about him and his company.

Everybody thinks this is great work and inspiration to everyone indeed!

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There are still a few of us designers who prefer to draw our ideas out first – or at least scribble them, before we commit to PotatoShop or InDesign. Call us old school, but it is a skill that comes in useful. Everyday.

Anyway. To help us in particular there is a new little thingumajig by an American based supplier called UI STENCILS. UI being short for User Interface, and the stencil bit is, well, because they are stencils. Clever how that works, see.

The great ability to scribble out an idea to scale using elements from the system you are using is a really useful one, as drawing an icon from memory is a pain, especially when working alongside a pedant who points out that the lens on the camera you just drew is wider than the one on screen. This rends a huge hole in that conversation.

You can get a set of different ones from the website itself. And now a bunch of t-shirts are available with the symbols clearly marked.

Everybody says great idea people, wishes we had thought of it, and now needs a new iPad stencil cos we might need to develop something for that platform now! As usual you can click the image above and go to the website to see the other items they have.