Cool Hunting

EcoForms
Though East Coasters are currently experiencing a strangely warm winter, we're already fantasizing about spring planting. For an eco-friendly alternative to plastic with a no-frills look, EcoForms are made from compressed grain husks with natural, water-soluble binding agents. No pollutants are used in the manufacturing process, all byproducts are recycled and at the end of their five-year lifespan, EcoForms will biodegrade completely. Made to...

Eric Scollon Ceramic Sex Toys
Our exploration of SF's Look boutique continues, leading us to local artist Eric Scollon's cock rings and butt plugs made of ceramic in the style of Tang dynasty blue-and-white pieces. The objects flirt "with the distinctions between art and craft, utility and uselessness and the boundaries between the world of art and the “real world.” Each one is unique, painted by hand and available...

Galen Trezise Crocheted Cozies
From the newly-opened Look boutique in SF, these handmade cozies have all the warm appeal of a sweater grandma made with an offbeat Dr. Seuss shape. According to the site, they're intended for vases but we think they'd be well-suited for dressing up a different household object that holds water and plant matter. With unusual colorways, ruffles and perforated weaves, they also hold their...

Poetry Nightstand
A surefire way to impress that guy or girl you take home Friday night is to stack scholarly books on your bedside table, as if you casually dropped them there after breezing through some weighty tome on relational aesthetics or quantum theory. For those without the time or brain capacity, you may consider the Poetry Nightstand, designed by Marian Lassak. Although it's not a...

Squares, Checks and Grids
"Squares, Checks and Grids," the newest title in the Communicating with Pattern series from Rotovision, is an homage to the most linear of shapes. Serving as a sourcebook for designers, the book features 850 inspirational images of squares, checks and grids in a variety of contexts. Dozens of examples of houndstooth, tartans, argyles, ginghams and western plaids explore checks in the context of textiles....

The Rolling Bench
Why do public benches never seem to dry? A simple solution to an age old problem, The Rolling Bench ensures you'll have a dry pad to sit on no matter the conditions. Designed by Korean firm Sungwoo Park and friends, the bench is built on a rotating axle. Just turn the hand crank to unveil the dry side of the seat so you can...