New Triflow Concepts Faucet Design

Triflow Concepts commissioned pre-eminent architect, Zaha Hadid, to explore the capabilities of brassware technology in designing the tap of the future.

Hadid employs the latest in 3-D software to create a touch-sensitive faucet with a unique body that bends and twists like liquid mercury.

The triflow faucet has two spouts, one for filtered water and the other for unfiltered hot and cold water. A green halo light comes on when the touch filtration button is activated. The light turns red when the filter cartridge needs replacing.

The cost of the filter cartridges is unknown but the Designer Triflow Faucet is $7,000. Finish choices for the faucet are gold, nickel, chrome and pewter.

February 18, 2009

Flea Market Ideas

If you love finding new ways to use old things, you’ll enjoys these two creative ideas from the Better Homes and Gardens Do It Yourself Website for repurposing items you may have lying around or can easily find at a salvage sale.

Inserting heavy-gauge wire mesh in a painted door and suspending it from the ceiling with metal chains creates additional storage for pots and pans.

Turning an old light fixture on its head and filling it with fresh flowers creates an electrifying display. If the collar on your light does not have this attractive patina paint it with metallic paint to achieve a bronze or copper patina.

February 9, 2009

Hunter Fan Concert Breeze

Another great product recently shown at the International Builder’s Show in Las Vegas is Hunter Fan’s Concert Breeze fan featuring 360 degrees of high-def audio.

Hunter and Soundolier partnered together to create the first and only ceiling fan sound system.

Paul Schleipfer, marketing manager for Soundolier, which is the wireless audio division of the Mitek Electronics and Communications Group.

“When distributing sound, audio coming from overhead has an all-encompassing effect that fills a room more naturally,” said Paul Schleipfer, marketing manager for Soundolier, which is the wireless audio division of the Mitek Electronics and Communications Group.

To accomplish this, the Concert Breeze utilizes a proprietary 2.4GHz wireless audio system. Without the hassle and expense of running wires, the Concert Breeze receives full-range digital-quality audio from any source, up to 300 feet away. The Soundolier Maestro wireless transmitter can be connected at any audio source – TV, MP3 player, etc. – through speaker level or 3.5mm input jack and send stereo summed DSP audio to the Concert Breeze.

Four selectable stereo signal channels virtually eliminate interference, and one transmitter can send the signal to other receiver devices within the signal range.

My favorite thing about the Concert Breeze is that it can be installed outdoors. This gives people living in multi-family buildings and high rises a way to add inconspicuous sound, light and moving air to their porches or lanais, as we call them in Florida, without having to run unsightly metal conduit on the surface of the concrete ceiling.

Look for it around June for $449.

February 7, 2009

Amana Refrigerators

Amana first let us add color to the kitchen with their Jot refrigerator featuring doors with a dry erase finish.

Just recently at the International Builder’s Show Amana showed 10 new possible decorative finishes for their top-mount freezer model.

Unfortunately, ten different designs are too many to actually produce, so Amana is soliciting your input on which models you like best.

You can rate the designs from most to least favorite, and in return they’ll give you a personality profile based on your choices.

I’m a type 10 on their survey.
“Content in your own skin and intensely avid about your interests, you are proud of your self-sufficiency and intelligence…”

If you don’t agree with the survey results or have multiple personalities, as Amana puts it, you can retake the survey.