Float by Benjamin Hubert for Unique Copenhagen. The lamps are hand-turned out of Portuguese agglomerate cork blocks, the waste bits from the production of wine stoppers. Even the high volume of waste from creating the lamps can be converted back into blocks and turned again.  The cork emits a wonderfully warm glow when lit and the simplicity of the shape suits the agglomerated pattern of the material. http://www.benjaminhubert.co.uk

Cobu  Suspension Lamp by Giorgio Biscaro “I have always been fascinated by cork. It’s obtained from a plant whose life is not interrupted by this extraction, and this for me would be sufficient to declare it a great material. Moreover, cork has great qualities of insulation and mechanical resistance, so I thought it could be perfect for a lamp. The cork base in fact, sustain a glass screen, trough which the cables descend. The light is not direct, but is deflected by the ceiling and the colour of the cork warms this light in a special way. I played with different shapes and finishes, so you will find clear glass, smoked glass and varnished glass to choose from. I tried to endow this lamp with a strong sense of deja-vu, like recollection of bottle glasses, because I wanted it to be a warm, friendly, reassuring object.” http://www.seemantic.com/

 Plug by Tomas Kral is a range of products that transform the image of a simple cork bottle stopper. The principle of PLUG. The work is around the connection between glass as a hard and compact material and the cork, perfect porous material.The glass parts were done using free glass blowing. The cork parts were made out of the sheets of agglomerated cork which were milled using CNC. The corks parts used the marks from the CNC milling tool as a part of theirs construction. The idea is to build 3D objects by milling using 2D drawings. The objects function are simple. Side table, lamps, boxes, bowls. The idea was to put more attention on the connection between glass and the cork. 

Cork range by Hetta There’s nothing particularly radical about the range its just a  well done contemporary update . Simple graphic prints on tableware, its a no brain-er. Ahh the simplest of ideas ….one of those  why didn’t I do that… www..hetta.se 

Incidentally, to my shame I wrote this post accompanied by a screw top bottle of red….

Do we have too much….stuff? Are our wardrobes bursting at the seams, all manner of clothing bits and bobs tumbling out? I have to confess, I would love to say I have everything neat and ordered, shoes boxed and labelled, but … no, in my dreams! 

Muscle by Giorgio Biscaro is a storage unit that shamelessly flaunts your happiness with organised chaos. The metal top and bottom are joined by elastic threads that you stretch to push your belongings in. There are no doors or sides to hide and contain your mess.   

 ”You can fill the inner part of the container as you like it, even more than what the bases can accept, because even if protruding, objects won’t fall thanks to the elastic wall, recalling a bulging biceps.” For more of Giorgio’s work  www.seemantic.com

 Soft Wardrobe by Katharina Ludwig

Katharina wardrobe does at least allow you to hide the extent of your untidiness  

“The soft wardrobe is supported and shaped by the strength and volume of the things put inside.
Its walls are not hard and supporting, but  soft like the clothes and flexible. They react in a certain way to the content and the way you fill the wardrobe.. Like this it changes its character according to the filling and becomes more alive.” For more of Kathy’s work http://www.kathyludwig.com/

Zak n2 Shelving by Casimir Meubelen.

Ahh the plastic bag…it can be stuffed with a whole host of things and they conveniently expand as we cram more and more in. With this everyday object in mind Casimir have built on the concept – literally. The bags have a sturdy oak frame and the plastic has been replaced with leather, which is perhaps not quite as stretchy but at least it won’t suddenly split and spill the contents across the floor.

Not on the storage theme but certainly a design that’s bursting out at you is Puff and Flock’s Spiky shower curtain. Rather than look at ways to contain the spoils of our over consumption, Elisabeth Buecher looked at how to discourages us from consuming too much. Her work explores the environmental issues of over consumption of water and is aimed at provoking debate rather than a serious product proposal.

The shower curtain allows the user 4 minutes to shower before gradually bursting out at you and leaving you no space left to shower in. So you stop.

Its interesting that since hearing about this design, each time I shower I’ve started to think “how long have I been in here?…. must stop…must stop…”   www.puffandflock.com