Hasta La Ideas

Fail Army presents a roundup of yoga fail videos, including hilarious pet interruptions and poses gone horribly wrong…(Read…)

When the Imbue tea mug first got posted to Coroflot, I was a bit put off by the heavy proportions of the wooden lid and made some snap judgments about the overall value of the design. (Nothing personal, the Whole Foods/greenwashed vibe has its place.) However, while really savoring a spring flu over the weeks since, I’ve found myself wishing for this exact type of travel mug and realized most of the mobile tea options out there are fairly uncool. So it’s only fair to double back and give it some love.

The Imbue Magnetic Tea Vessel was designed by Ashkon Nima, and its strength isn’t in those Look At Me, I Recycle rustic materials, it’s the dead simple integrated strainer. We’ve beaten the ancient horse of tea straining at home a thousand times over, but making tea on the go can still be messy. Where do you put your teabag? How do you keep from over steeping while you’re sprinting for the train? 

In this case, your unwanted tea leaves just stay inside the magnetic strainer, integrated into the cap. It turns out that bulky cap I found a little ostentatious at first makes more sense—visually and literally—when you realize the mug is also meant to work upside down. 

Steep your tea with the mug upside down and the strainer at the bottom, then flip it up when you’re ready to call it done and use the deep-sided cap to catch drips. I love me a low fuss daily tool, and this delivers without getting into twee (or drippy or clanky) tea ball territory. 

This would be particularly nice to use with my schmancy oolongs and other teas that can be re-steeped for different subtle effects (at least once I get my sense of smell back). The reality of over-steeped tea isn’t going to kill anybody, but having a choice is great.

British architect David Adjaye split opinion in this week’s comments update after being the only architect to be named in Time magazine’s 100 most influential people of 2017.

About time: some readers have described David Adjaye as a role model for black architects, who are underrepresented in the design industry, after the British architect’s accomplishments were noted by Time magazine.

“He is influential because he provides a positive and relatable role model for the many underrepresented black architects,” wrote SophEs. “Not to mention that his buildings articulate an elegant approach to design.”

Some readers said they admire Adjaye but were disappointed that other architects – such as Bjarke Ingels, who made the list last year – were not named.

“He is a brilliant architect, but to label him most influential architect borders on the ridiculous,” said PhilR. “I cannot see how this can possibly be so. Rem, maybe, Herzog and de Meuron, definitely, BIG, certainly, but Adjaye?” agreed GB.

Meanwhile, other commenters congratulated the British architect:

Does Adjaye deserve to be on the list? Let us know in the comments ›

Frakta of the price: luxury fashion brand Balenciaga has outraged readers by selling a £1,705 bag that bears a striking resemblance to IKEA’s iconic blue Frakta bag.

“I’d rather buy 4,262 IKEA bags instead,” wrote Daniel.

“That’s the highest markup I’ve seen on a knockoff bag,” said Aaron, but he did admit that the quality of the leather looked “really good and supple”.

“My laundry wouldn’t know what to do in a Balenciaga,” said Studio.

One commenter noted that the luxury handbag is targeting a different demographic:

Read the comments on this story ›

To build or not to build: is it unethical to design Donald Trump‘s wall across the Mexican border? Commenters are having a debate sparked by Aaron Betsky’s opinion piece on the controversial topic.

“What happened to ethics?” asked Montezaro. “It is all about the money.”

“There are ways to define ethics besides a choice between an endless rabbit-hole or designing everything. Ethics does not demand that we judge our clients, but it does demand that we judge our projects,” countered Raphael.

But some readers argued that there was nothing unethical or unusual about the wall, which they say is in line with standard US immigration policy.

Read the comments on this story ›

Glass houses: readers are decrying Neo Bankside residents for taking legal action against Tate Modern, claiming that visitors to the gallery’s new Herzog & de Meuron-designed extension are peering into their apartments.

“It’s extraordinary but sadly unsurprising that a public viewing platform enjoyed by millions is expected to compromise for the benefit of an elite few,” wrote Tristam.

“People who live in glass houses shouldn’t throw stones,” said regular commenter H-J.

But others felt the residents should not be overlooked simply because they can afford the expensive apartments:

Read the comments on this story ›

The post “Adjaye is influential because he provides a role model for black architects” appeared first on Dezeen.

The site of the former Domino Sugar Factory on the Brooklyn waterfront will open as a public park in 2018, as part of a major redevelopment project.

The derelict patch of land that the red-brick factory sits on – just north of the Williamsburg Bridge – will be transformed by landscape architecture firm James Corner Field Operations, which also worked on New York’s popular High Line park with architects Diller Scofidio + Renfro.

Six acres (2.4 hectares) of parkland will stretch a quarter of a mile (0.4 kilometres) along the East River waterfront, where a new esplanade will be created.

Elements of the old factory building, which was built in the 1880s and was once the largest sugar refinery in the world, will be incorporated into the landscape design.

Field Operations has chosen 21 columns from the Raw Sugar Warehouse, approximately 585 feet (178 metres) of crane tracks and over 30 industrial artefacts to preserve as part of the park.

These include the 36-foot-tall (11-metre) cylindrical tanks that once collected syrup during the refining process.

Sports fields, lawns and gardens with seating options and a children’s play area all form part of the plans.

“The design of Domino Park aims to create a space that will revitalise the beauty of New York City’s incredible waterfront and foster interest in the history of the site and the surrounding neighbourhood,” said Lisa Switkin of James Corner Field Operations.

Developer Two Trees, which will manage the park, is also overhauling the historic factory building to create 380,000 square feet (35,300 square metres) of office space designed by preservation experts Beyer Blinder Belle.

Five new buildings across the site, which measures 11 acres (4.5 hectares) in total, will house 2,800 rental apartments – 700 of which are designated as affordable. Designed by New York firm SHoP Architects, they include a 590-foot-tall (180-metre) tower and a building with a large hole in its centre.

Two Trees has created temporary recreation spaces on the site for the past four summers. The park is due to open permanently summer 2018, ahead of the office campus’ completion, while the first of the residential buildings on the site, at 325 Kent Avenue, is set to open in June 2017.

The post Williamsburg’s Domino Sugar Factory site to become six-acre park by James Corner Field Operations appeared first on Dezeen.

Last year John Heisz replaced his table saw blade with a paper disc, and discovered it could actually cut through wood. This month two different YouTube channels, “The Q” and “Mr. Hacker,” put paper wheels into their angle grinders to see what other materials they could cut through:

While the food stuff is a bit silly, I was surprised to see what clean cuts the paper discs made in the polycarbonate Coke bottle and the corrugated cardboard. I also didn’t think it would penetrate the coconut shell.

Obviously the big problem with a paper blade is blade wander. I was thinking that if they reinforced both sides of the blade with large arbors made of a stiff material, and with a smaller diameter that left just 1/2″ of the blade exposed, that might keep the blade tracking straight; but then you’d lose depth-of-cut. Do you have any ideas for other ways to stiffen the blade?