Five Fabulous: Hardworking Stools

1. Milking Stool, $300 Pops of color and smart, simple design make this clever piece from Brooklyn-based UM Project anything but ordinary. Get it: Voos

2. A_Stool by HALE, $850 Slide this slinky, powder-coated aluminum stool up to your worktable or under the counter. Get it: Supermarket

3. Eames Walnut Stools, $829 We’re dying to see if these versatile pieces will show up on Mad Men in the Time-Life Building, where the fictitious firm Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce just moved. (Ray Eames created them for the building’s lobby.) Get it: Herman Miller

4. The Camping Stool from Normann Copenhagen, $2,600 Let this molded beech wood design by Jesper K. Thomsen serve as extra seating or an easy side table. Get it: Velocity Art and Design

5. Capelli Stool, $529 Carol Catalano designed this graceful stool after being inspired by the shape of her own entwined fingers. Get it: Herman Miller

A Portable Home Office

I came across this office in a box (albeit a very large box) on Design Milk. What do you think? Doesn’t look terribly ergonomic! But the concept is a strong one. It is designed by Tim Vinke.

High Five

Where we’ve been this week…

1. Cool Tools A good friend sent me this link. He wanted me to check out the 10 best magazine articles. That story was good but the whole site is worth a look. The editors recommend the best/cheapest tools available. Tools? Yep. “Tools are defined broadly as anything that can be useful. This includes hand tools, machines, books, software, gadgets, websites, maps, and even ideas. All reviews are positive raves written by real users. We don’t bother with negative reviews because our intent is to only offer the best.” Where to start: A rather nice review of our very own Aeron.

2. The House Vote You get to have your say – every day – on residential design. The tally is ever changing and the items to vote on are inevitably well chosen. Where to start: At the top…it’s oddly satisfying to click and see your vote instantly calculated.

3. I Dreamed I Saw Because sometimes it’s nice to read an opinionated writer who also has great taste. Where to start: A post on little houses - could be some good home offices in there.

4. Fieldguided This is the design blog of a 31 year old woman in Toronto who blushes easily and has two black and white cats. And this is one of the reasons I love the net. You get a sneak peek into the inner workings of people you’d never come across in your day-to-day life. Where to start: Melinda Josie’s home in the This is Where I Live series.

5. Neither Fish nor Fowl The blog of talented illustrator Jim Datz. Where to start: At the beginning…I can’t click on separate posts to give you a link. Make sure you scroll down to the piece on the free desktop wallpaper Datz designed.

Inspiration: Technologist Chris Pirillo

Seattle-based Chris Pirillo calls himself a technologist. He is certainly at home in the online world. His work includes gigs as a television host, magazine columnist, blogger, author, and entrepreneur. He is the founder and publisher of LockerGnome.com, a technology website and content publishing company. He launched The Chris Pirillo Show online audio broadcast for tech enthusiasts from around the world. He also has two very cute dogs (see below). Here we get a tour of his real-life world.

How long have you worked from home? And where is home? I’ve been working from home most of my adult life. It all began with the Lockergnome newsletter - wherein I shared tips, tricks, and hints with fellow geeks. That has now grown into a blogging network where we have people regularly writing about a wide array of subjects.

While I’m addicted to gadgets and technology in general, my passion lies in bringing people together and helping them realize their goals and dreams. This happens in places such as my blog, our social community, my live video stream, and our newly-launched questions and answers service.

Describe your style? How would you define your aesthetic? Simple. Clean. Black or silver whenever possible. I don’t do frou-frou! I want my environment to be comfortable, but I also remain well-organized. I tend not to keep my my workspace cluttered with unnecessary items. If you look at my home office, you’ll notice that most of the things on or around my desk flow together nicely. This makes it easier for me to do what ”must be done” and not have to worry about searching for whatever it is I might need.

How do you keep your office organized? I’m thinking here of the physical  space but also your computer. Are there any particular programs you find really  useful? Everything is easily accessible, and typically organized by function – even on my computer systems. I keep a minimal amount of applications running on any given screen, and my Mac OS X dock has very few icons in it other than what might be running at the time. If I’m not using something, I usually shelve it – or give it away to friends or my community supporters. Can’t really do that with software, mind you.

When you were setting up your home office what did you keep in mind? “Accessibility” was number one on my list, with comfort being a very close second. When you spend as many hours every day in that chair as I do, you need to have important items within reach. Why waste time having to hunt things down or get up to fetch them constantly? Now, if only I could figure out a way to have a coffee barista over in the corner, I’d have it made.

People look at my desk and want to know where I picked it up – all the way down to the types of lights I used in my hutch. What’s interesting is that I never planned to accommodate those lights when I first assembled the desk. They just… fit.

What’s even more interesting is just how many people have done their best to emulate my entire work environment and live video feed “look and feel” for their own rooms: check here – and that’s not even the full list! And yes, people ALWAYS ask about my chair.

Is there any piece of home office furniture you covet? Honestly, if I need something, I figure out a way to get ahold of it – even if it means having to sell something I’m not using as much anymore. I even have a video game arcade cabinet in here… if that counts as furniture?

What is a desk accessory you can’t do without? I’d have to say that would be my USB hub. I am a USB accessory junkie, and I cannot begin to imagine where I’d be without my hub to keep everything connected!

What would you change about your own workspace? Hardwood floors. Right now, I’m rolling over carpet… and I much prefer a surface which doesn’t demand constant vacuuming.

What do you most love about your space? It’s perfect for me in the way I’ve set it up. In a traditional office environment, you never come close to what you need, what you want, how you want it to be - no matter how much you rearrange things or add items. It’s always just an office created by someone else for you to use. For me, my space is ME – through and through.

What inspires you? Oh, there are many things that keep me going… good design, good people, good coffee. Well, coffee doesn’t inspire me as much as it helps me get ready to be inspired.

Below is a Lego version of Chris’s office.

Unplggd: Stylish Laptop Cases at Target

“Our friends at Poketo just sent this small collection of preview images of their upcoming line of fall season accessories for Target, all embellished with artwork from 21 international artists and available next month. Notable for the fashionable Unplggd crowd are the various totes, messenger bags and laptop cases that bring Poketo’s philosophy of “art for your everyday” to your tech travel needs. Stay tuned for more information over at Poketo; on August 2nd the team over at Poketo launch a preview site (currently it’s just a teaser), followed by the Target line’s official launch on August 10th.

By Gregory Han.”

The Playlist: François Chambard of UM Project

François Chambard has never owned an iPod. Nor has he ever had a CD, a tape, or a record collection. But this founder of Brooklyn’s UM Project sure does know how to make a mean music mix. Check it out some of his recommendations (we think it’s the perfect list for the summertime).

What do you listen to while you work? All kinds of music. My tastes are very eclectic, but maybe “eclectic” is too much of a fancy word. A mish-mash really. I have never been a music guy so I am not sure if I am a good reference. I do not have an iPod, never had CDs, cassettes or LPs. I guess I never had the patience and time to grow and groom a music collection.

How do you listen? From the computer with speakers. Above is a picture of how we tried to make to look our cheap speakers look fancy with a piece of leftover bent ply (pictured top).

Do you have any favorite music websites/providers? I love the convenience and accessibility of Internet radio. I always end up listening to Radio Nova from Paris. I often go to Wefunk from Montréal and other Internet stations. One of my recent favorites is Attention Span, a jazz station.

Does music influence your work? It is hard to speak about a direct influence. It is more about energy level. I spend most of my time at the studio. Sometimes I need a boost; sometimes I need to be soothed. Just two random examples: The Specials will pump me up when I start to get tired. Beth Orton will help me stay in the zone, in that very special moment when you are so absorbed with your own work that you lose sense of time.

If your work was a song or a musician, what or who would it be? I am not sure which musician or song it would be, but there are specific instruments or sounds that I really relate to. Often those are sounds that have a spatial and spacey quality. In other words, sounds that have almost a 3D quality, which define a space in which I want to live and dream. For example, there is a recent version of “Summer Madness” by Kool and the Gang with a deep, floating synthesizer sound. I am totally addicted to it. I want to be part of that space. In Paris, there is this giant sphere at the Museum of Science and Industry (La Villette) with an ever-changing space-age sound rotating around it, composed by genius sound designer Louis Dandrel. The sound bounces back on the sphere and on the reflecting water pool around it and it is totally mesmerizing. Again, it defines more of a space than a sound, and I’d love my work (and myself) to be in it and not come back.

FRANÇOIS’ PLAYLIST

Everybody Loves the Sunshine, Roy Ayers

Mellow, Prince

Je Bois, Boris Vian

Aeroplanes, Serge Gainsbourg

Reality and Fantasy, Raphael Galuzzi/Gilles Peterson

Too Young To Die, Jamiroquai

Ashes To Ashes, David Bowie

Dear God 2.0, Roots/Monster of Folk

L’irréel, Alain Bashung

Blue Monday, New Order

Lady Day and John Coltrane (and the most of the “The Revolution Will Not Be Televised” album), Gil Scott-Heron

Private Life, Grace Jones

You Can Have Watergate Just Gimme Some Bucks And I’ll Be Straight, Fred Wesley & The J.B.’s

Images: Francis Dzikowski / Esto

Unplggd: Weird and Wonderful USB Flash Drives

“For a while we thought that USB flash drives were on their way out, but it’s quite the contrary. We use our USB drive every single day and couldn’t imagine not having one. Of course, wireless is the most convenient way to go, but if you don’t have that option — stick with the USB.

USB flash drives come in many different shapes and sizes and that’s what makes them so fun. We’ve rounded up our 5 favorite flash drives:

• imm Living Hand Sign USB Drives
• DIY: Pink Eraser USB Flash Drive Hiding Data In Plain Sight
• Customizable Mugo MP3 Player & USB Flash Drive
• LaCie USB Drive “Keys” Camouflage On Keyrings
• DIY Project: The USB Lipstick

By Kristen Lubbe.”

Inspiration: Graphic Designer Theo Rosendorf

Theo Rosendorf, author of “The Typographic Desk Reference,” is a design consultant whose client’s range from AT&T and Coca-Cola to Nintendo and Mercedes. Here he shares his home office.

How long have you worked from home? And where is home? Home is Atlanta Georgia, where I’ve worked as a graphic designer for just about twenty years. The bulk of my work has been as a consultant working out of my home office, though temporary stints commandeering client conference rooms is common. My company, Matador, takes an editorial approach to graphic design with a focus on typography for all media. By that I mean graphic design that starts with the content and works out to a finished product my clients can take to market. We do graphic design, but there’s a bit of writing to it as well. Some folks we’ve worked with: AT&T, Coke, IBM, ING, Mercedes AMG, Nintendo, and Time Warner.

Typography plays a major role in the practice beyond simply picking a font or knowing a particular brand’s guidelines. Every typeface has unique requirements in that it has to be set just so. It’s up to the graphic designer to understand what a particular typeface wants. We work within those bounds to let type communicate as it was intended. Everything else follows.

Being so enamored with type, I took time off from 2006 to 2009 to write  The Typographic Desk Reference (TDR), a dictionary of typographic terms and form. The TDR’s in its third printing and we’re looking to start localized versions before long. At the moment, we’re on the hunt for a European publisher.

Describe your style? How would you define your aesthetic? Initially I’d have to say I don’t have a specific style. My work requires adapting an aesthetic to the company or product I work for. But it could be said I have a modernist aesthetic. I don’t do postmodern, but if a client wants it I have a stack of postmodernist resumes I can haphazardly pick through. That’s a joke… well sort of. Postmodernist clients usually call back in five years, wanting to trade for a modern approach. Overall I’d have to say my approach is typographic, which could be considered an aesthetic at times.

How do you keep your office organized? I’m thinking here of the physical space but also your computer. Are there any particular programs you find really useful? I have some Bouroullec Valise boxes I use to file work documents. For archiving print work, I use some very refreshing plain white (with no advertisements) file boxes from the Container Store. Larger work gets tube rolled.

I have a server which gets backed up redundantly. Network user accounts get backed up to the server automatically, so adding a new MacBook is just a matter of logging in to the server with it. My music is on the server too—all 100 days of it.

For project management I use the 37 Signals Basecamp and Highrise apps. Nothing is proprietary, so the logistics of working with talent in Osaka is the same for someone in Copenhagen, or my printer here in Atlanta.

When you were designing your home office what did you keep in mind? I start with a book called Human Dimension & Interior Space by Julius Panero and Martin Zelnik. After brushing up on a little physical anthropology, I get to work realizing the space. Designing a physical space is no different than graphic design or typography where size, proportion, and space are equally considered. I’d say well placed furniture makes for high performance, but more importantly a better quality of life.

Is there any piece of home office furniture you most enjoy? My Eames Soft Pad Group Executive chair. I’ve had it for ten years and it just gets better with age. It doesn’t wear out, it wears in. Second would come my Eames Oval Table. It’s the only desk I’ve had that, placed diagonally, functions error free. I’ve just started to break-in my Ikea Billy bookcases. We’ll see how that goes.

What is a desk accessory you can’t do without? Where does the accessory end and the tool start? What often find their way back to the desk are my Pantone fan books. These are what I’d consider desk accessories to keep color organized, lest I imagine there’d be loose color all over my desk.

As difficult as it is, I try to keep things off the desk. My sideboard drawers are filled with little fiddly stuff like pens, paperclips and whatnot. This is a “desk accessory” I can’t do without. Open one of these drawers and you’ll clearly hear the theme music to Sanford & Son.

Oh, and my Leica D-Lux 3 camera. Best camera I’ve owned.

What would you change about your own workspace? The office is just big enough to fit two people comfortably, so I’d make it bigger, add more open space, and a half kitchen. A chaise for naps would be nice. I’d also like it to be detached from the house to slightly de-blur the work/home aspect. While we’re at it, just make the whole thing aluminum and glass and resurrect Donald Judd to design it.

What do you most love about your space? The view of the backyard through the sliding glass. The windows let in lots of natural light which is ideal for reviewing proofs and picking colors. It’s also good for the eyes to focus on something far away after staring at the computer screen.

What inspires you? For work related inspiration I look outside of graphic design to architecture, industrial design, music, and literature. And nothing beats traveling to see how other people do things.

High Five

Where we’ve been this week…

1. Grist An interesting take on environmental news. Where to start: Tips on dealing with the summer heat when you work from home.

2. Color Collective You’ve got to love a simple idea that’s been beautifully executed. Here Portland-based artist Lauren Willhite takes photographs and art as inspiration and breaks each image down into 5 essential colors. Where to start: Go straight to the interiors category for some home office inspiration.

3. Ill Seen, Ill Said Jane Flanagan is an Irish woman living in Toronto with a wonderful eye for design and a very nice turn of phrase. Where to start: The post on following your heart when it comes to designing your home..

4. Mid Century Modernist A recent redesign has improved this site beyond belief. If you have even the faintest interest in mid century design head straight to this site – immediately! Where to start: Our very own Lifework contributor (and editor of Grain Edit) Dave Cuzner’s house tour.

5. Houzz An excellent picture-driven architecture site filled to the brim with interesting houses. Where to start: Type home office into the search box and you’ll find yourself wading through over 4000 images of compelling spaces.

Five Fabulous: Door Stops

1. Wedge Door Stop, $14 Made from untreated European oak and sporting a hint of color on its painted edge, this small, simple piece is the definition of chic. Get it: Gretel

2. Josh Owen Door Stop, $20 The smart horseshoe shape conveniently loops over doorknobs when not in use. Get it: Switch Modern

3. Blue Plaid Door Stop, $48.50 Make good on your open-door policy with a classic stop dressed up in Harris Tweed. Get it: fieldytweed at etsy.com

4. Ooob Doorstop, $39.95 This award-winning design combines aesthetics, ergonomics, and functionality. Get it: Headsprung

5. Gold Bar, £41 Play like Richie Rich with this flashy-fun find designed by Arik Levy for Eno. Get it: twentytwentyone

Images linked to their sources within the numbered text