Sometimes design is just downright clever and drop dead gorgeous, like this. Here are a few shots of brand-new solar street light that actually generates more power than it needs.

Scotia has put its solar-powered outdoor lighting columns under the scrutiny of some of the world’s leading environmentalists at the Copenhagen Climate Conference, to demonstrate the feasibility of emissions-free lighting even at northern latitudes. The project was conceived to support the Bella Center in its efforts to reduce its carbon footprint in the run up to the UN climate conference, held in Copenhagen December 2009. The goal was to provide Scandinavia’s largest conference centre with an attractive, well-lit outdoor environment – but without contributing any carbon emissions.

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“Good design is as little design as possible.”

Damn right. Words to live by.

Dieter Rams is one of the most influential industrial designers of this past century. Jonathan Ive, Senior Vice President of Industrial Design at Apple, is heavily influenced by Rams’ work. You can see huge similarities between Apple and classic Braun products in their simplicity, beauty and function.

From November 18 – March 14, The Design Museum in London is having an exhibition titled “Dieter Rams Less and More”. The exhibition will showcase Rams’ inspiring designs for Braun and Vitsœ. I might have to head to London just to see this.

To satisfy your fix, here’s a short documentary of Rams, a Dieter Rams Flickr group and a Braun Flickr group showcasing the classic Braun designs.

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When it comes to lifestyle brands, there are two companies that stand out from the rest. One is Apple, the other is a small but awesome company called Nooka. I’ve written about them before and their excellent line of timepieces. The company was born in 1997 by artist and designer, Matthew Waldman. 

Recently Matthew and his team launched a few new products that expand the brand and will change the way you think about other objects. The new products are a Nooka fragrance, Asset Organizer and Strip.

I had the pleasure of sampling the fragrance when I took a tour of the Nooka office and it smells great. The Asset Organizer is a system of containers much like a wallet and the Strip is a belt featuring an innovative snap and release closure system designed and developed by Nooka. What stands out the most from these products is their simplistic design and function and the innovative thinking behind each them. Nooka is slowing becoming my favorite brand and I look forward to future products.

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The exceptionally talented Michael C. Place has designed this damn sexy poster for the new Gary Hustwit documentary Objectified. Sized at 27″ x 39″ and lithographed, it features illustrations of objects created by the designers in the film. The poster will be one sale very soon at the Objectified store.

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The exceptionally talented Michael C. Place has designed this damn sexy poster for the new Gary Hustwit documentary Objectified. Sized at 27″ x 39″ and lithographed, it features illustrations of objects created by the designers in the film. The poster will be one sale very soon at the Objectified store.

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One of my many obsessions is a well designed watch. People that know me personally know that I always have a “weird” watch strapped to my arm. There are a few qualities I look for in a well designed watch. For one it has to have a minimal design and two, the way the time is displayed has to be unique. Nooka creates watches that exhibit both qualities, and exceptionally I might add.

For those not familiar, Nooka was founded by artist and designer, Matthew Waldman, to create a more intuitive way to view time through linear and graphic representations. A company that makes well designed products that work and make sense. Nooka is one of my favorite product companies, right behind Apple, because of their aesthetics and innovation. They just get it.

I personally own a Zub Zenv sg 38 in black. I absolutely love it. Most of the watch is made of a soft, breathable plastic that is extremely comfortable. The new time display takes a few hours to get use to, but once you do you’ll realize that it makes much more sense.

The watch above is the Zub ZenH in Fire Engine Red, which will be available at the end of February. You can pre-order it for $130.

And no, this isn’t paid advertisement. I just love the damn company.

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I’ve been drooling over this Flickr set featuring a bunch of photos of the gorgeous Barbican Identity Guidelines book designed by North. Well done.

Update
Some posted a link to the downloadable PDF of the book. Thanks!

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My good friend Duane King and his uber-talented crew at BBDK have just launched a stunning new site for Italian glassware company Luigi Bormioli. I personally consider this site to be one of the best sites on the web in terms of design, typography, functionally and usability.

The design is ultra-clean and simple and the great use of white space makes it all feel very elegant and sophisticated. Designed on a simple grid, BBDK was able to create an eye pleasing layout that enhances the gorgeous photography. It’s all topped with a precise use of Gotham and Helvetica. How can you go wrong with those wonderful typefaces?

The site is extremely easy to navigate and the slight transitions and interaction points make the it a joy to use, and work harmoniously with the minimal design. This is an excellent example showing that it’s possible to create an engaging site without the use of Flash. Ian Coyle of Superheroes, who designed and developed the amazing ShopComposition site, worked with BBDK to develop the Bormioli site.

If this site isn’t recognized for it’s brilliance, then there is something really wrong with this world.

You can read more about the project over at Thinking for a Living.

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I’m loving these stylish mugs by Vitamin featuring assorted hex patterns. Might have to pick up a set.

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The talented shop Build (Michael C. Place) has just launched a blog where they’ll preview projects, tell you about what they are up to and general nonsense. Sound be fun!

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