Funny home cut out stickers.
Those salt and pepper shakers you've had your eye on are on sale. They've knocked $800 off!
iTable. These guys have made a touch-screen table that attaches to an iPhone (basically, the table becomes a giant iPhone).
Hungry, but not sure what to make? Check out photograzing! Browse a boatload of quality food pics to find the perfect meal.
Sandwich coasters that you can set your Brass knuckles coffee mug on.
Cold + Pillow = Chillow. Chillow is fun to say. Chillow.
A lightbulb storage solution to a problem we didn't know we had!
Nice magnetic doorstops Via KK's Cool Tools
Do I really need this thing? Ask yourself these questions while attempting to de-clutter the house.
NY Times articles on the tools you really need to maintain your home.
Pumpkin launchers should enjoy this collection of trebuchet/catapult designs.
NOTICE: Large moosehead wall lights have finally been invented.
360 Modern is a real estate firm in the Pacific Northwest U.S. that specializes in modern homes. Beautiful stuff.
Handy way to skip all the intro crap on DVDs that is usually forced on you when you throw a disc in your player. Apparently the chapters on DVDs that you can't skip (FBI warnings, copyright stuff, etc.) are flagged, on the disc, as UOP, or User Operation Prohibited. This site lists some of the techniques you can try to skip the ennui.
This colour coordinated bookshelf looks cool, but you might have a hard time finding a particular title.
For chewie edge lovers or corner brownie fans - it's the Edge Brownie Pan. All edges, all the time. Via BoingBoing
Puzzle carpet.
This to That is a handy site that will tell you what adhesive to use when attempting to glue various objects together.
Super creative bathroom tiles.
Skinny house in Brazil.
Apparently there are many LED lightbulbs available already. Via TreeHugger
WiiRoomba. YouTube of a guy controlling his Roomba with a Wii remote.
Hardcore Lost fans have a party and repackage the snacks and beer as Dharma Initiative rations. Make your own with the PDFs that they've so generously shared.
Here's a nice set of home improvement videos with the energetic and snappy Eric Stromer.
Faucet Fountain turns your regular faucet into a drinking fountain.
Kids and the Home Office. Here's a list of tips for the parent that works from home.
Save the Internet.
Great Pac-Man bathroom tile work.
Crazy toaster from the future TODAY!
Here is a nice napkin folding howto site with clean pictures and straightforward instructions. I think the shirt's my favourite.
DIY T-Shirt Rack via Instructables.
Stainless steel paint.
Onion goggles.
Batman-esque underground garage with hydraulic lift.
Microsoft to unveil a home server at CES this week in Vegas? This article at Arstechnica discusses the possibility of a machine focused on home automation and entertainment centralization.
Here's a blog full of interesting gifts for under 10 bucks.
WikiHow has a DriCore installation howto available for your edification.
Here is an energy saving tips post from last winter.
The USB humping dog you asked for is in.
Unique DIY photo ornaments.
A table that walks. Finally!
Twist and grow table. Amazing.
Roller toaster.
Make a nice 3D paper snowflake.
Tiny houses from the Tumbleweed Tiny House company.
Post-it note wallpaper made up of four different grey tones which, over time, reveals a usage driven design.
Sweet mug that comes with convenient built-in cookie chamber. Here's a great review of the mug in use.
Great unique gift idea and store thread on Ask Metafilter.
This is one massive bed that measures 12 feet by 10 feet.
Build your very own bottomless pit with this howto (heads up: there is some embedded audio on the site).
Laundry chute turned Cat chute.
PacMan arcade cabinet Halloween costume.
Crazy awesome self assembling robotic chair. Amazing.
DIY Bean bag sofa and/or bed from Instructables.
Another site on transforming household items into other useful (??) household items. Thanks for the tip Paul!
Environmentally friendly home cleaning service. I hadn't realized that there were companies that will clean your home using only animal and environmentally friendly products. This particular company is in the UK, but a quick googling pulls up similar companies in North America as well.
Here are some very unique hand made leaded glass doors, produced using the lead came method, a method in use since the middle ages.
Pumpkin carving. This site has some seriously impressive pumpkin carvings as well as a tutorial, which, although informative, still looks like it requires a lot of artistic ability. Worth a shot though - it's just pumpkin.
Another declutter your home tip page. This one's by FlyLady.net.
USB twister hub with Rubik's cube-like rotating ports.
An outdoor pizza oven party would be a cool alternative to summer barbeques.
Skeeter Bag is a bag that attaches to box fans to catch mosquitos by the thousands.
Lego ice cube tray.
Turn maple leaves into roses with the help of this photo tutorial. Very autumn/thanksgiving.
Interesting Alton Brown video on knife sharpening and maintenance. Instructables also has a step-by-step sharpening howto.
CNN Money article: Middle-class families in worse shape than ever.
Nice and clean magnetic tool rack from Instructables. The nice thing about this organizer is that the actual tool holders can be positioned and rearranged (on the fly) on the metallic backboard.
Designer wood computers handmade in Canada.
Humanoid shaped shelves. Kind of looks like James the doorstop.
How to find a good neighbourhood. MSN article, via Lifehacker.
How to make clear ice cubes.
Use your PC and webcam as a motion activated security camera.
This Old House has made available a very large fall home inspection checklist for your downloading pleasure.
Mike Jagger of Provident security has been on the scene of thousands of residential burglaries and has put together this interesting walkthrough of a typical break-in.
Concrete countertops on Flickr.
This is pretty damn clever. Sizeasy is an online tool that helps you visualize the size of something you're reading about or considering buying online. Punch in your dimensions and see your widget along side things like a deck of cards or a piece of paper.
Here's the skinny on upgrading your home network to Gigabit ethernet. It's probably worth doing simply because "gigabit ethernet" just sounds cool and not at all nerdly.
Greenpeace is getting on Apple's case about their use of certain hazardous chemicals in iPods, iBooks and the like. Greenpeace claims that other manufacturers have discontinued the use of some of the chemicals that are still found in Apple products.
De-Clutter your home to sell it faster. Here's a page with a lot of ways to do just that.
Consumer Reports: 20 Free Ways to Save Energy is a nice list of things you can do, mostly around the house, to save energy and of course, as the two go hand in hand, cash.
Those salt and pepper shakers you've had your eye on are on sale. They've knocked $800 off!
iTable. These guys have made a touch-screen table that attaches to an iPhone (basically, the table becomes a giant iPhone).
Hungry, but not sure what to make? Check out photograzing! Browse a boatload of quality food pics to find the perfect meal.
Sandwich coasters that you can set your Brass knuckles coffee mug on.
Cold + Pillow = Chillow. Chillow is fun to say. Chillow.
A lightbulb storage solution to a problem we didn't know we had!
Nice magnetic doorstops Via KK's Cool Tools
Do I really need this thing? Ask yourself these questions while attempting to de-clutter the house.
NY Times articles on the tools you really need to maintain your home.
Pumpkin launchers should enjoy this collection of trebuchet/catapult designs.
NOTICE: Large moosehead wall lights have finally been invented.
360 Modern is a real estate firm in the Pacific Northwest U.S. that specializes in modern homes. Beautiful stuff.
Handy way to skip all the intro crap on DVDs that is usually forced on you when you throw a disc in your player. Apparently the chapters on DVDs that you can't skip (FBI warnings, copyright stuff, etc.) are flagged, on the disc, as UOP, or User Operation Prohibited. This site lists some of the techniques you can try to skip the ennui.
This colour coordinated bookshelf looks cool, but you might have a hard time finding a particular title.
For chewie edge lovers or corner brownie fans - it's the Edge Brownie Pan. All edges, all the time. Via BoingBoing
Puzzle carpet.
This to That is a handy site that will tell you what adhesive to use when attempting to glue various objects together.
Super creative bathroom tiles.
Skinny house in Brazil.
Apparently there are many LED lightbulbs available already. Via TreeHugger
WiiRoomba. YouTube of a guy controlling his Roomba with a Wii remote.
Hardcore Lost fans have a party and repackage the snacks and beer as Dharma Initiative rations. Make your own with the PDFs that they've so generously shared.
Here's a nice set of home improvement videos with the energetic and snappy Eric Stromer.
Faucet Fountain turns your regular faucet into a drinking fountain.
Kids and the Home Office. Here's a list of tips for the parent that works from home.
Save the Internet.
Great Pac-Man bathroom tile work.
Crazy toaster from the future TODAY!
Here is a nice napkin folding howto site with clean pictures and straightforward instructions. I think the shirt's my favourite.
DIY T-Shirt Rack via Instructables.
Stainless steel paint.
Onion goggles.
Batman-esque underground garage with hydraulic lift.
Microsoft to unveil a home server at CES this week in Vegas? This article at Arstechnica discusses the possibility of a machine focused on home automation and entertainment centralization.
Here's a blog full of interesting gifts for under 10 bucks.
WikiHow has a DriCore installation howto available for your edification.
Here is an energy saving tips post from last winter.
The USB humping dog you asked for is in.
Unique DIY photo ornaments.
A table that walks. Finally!
Twist and grow table. Amazing.
Roller toaster.
Make a nice 3D paper snowflake.
Tiny houses from the Tumbleweed Tiny House company.
Post-it note wallpaper made up of four different grey tones which, over time, reveals a usage driven design.
Sweet mug that comes with convenient built-in cookie chamber. Here's a great review of the mug in use.
Great unique gift idea and store thread on Ask Metafilter.
This is one massive bed that measures 12 feet by 10 feet.
Build your very own bottomless pit with this howto (heads up: there is some embedded audio on the site).
Laundry chute turned Cat chute.
PacMan arcade cabinet Halloween costume.
Crazy awesome self assembling robotic chair. Amazing.
DIY Bean bag sofa and/or bed from Instructables.
Another site on transforming household items into other useful (??) household items. Thanks for the tip Paul!
Environmentally friendly home cleaning service. I hadn't realized that there were companies that will clean your home using only animal and environmentally friendly products. This particular company is in the UK, but a quick googling pulls up similar companies in North America as well.
Here are some very unique hand made leaded glass doors, produced using the lead came method, a method in use since the middle ages.
Pumpkin carving. This site has some seriously impressive pumpkin carvings as well as a tutorial, which, although informative, still looks like it requires a lot of artistic ability. Worth a shot though - it's just pumpkin.
Another declutter your home tip page. This one's by FlyLady.net.
USB twister hub with Rubik's cube-like rotating ports.
An outdoor pizza oven party would be a cool alternative to summer barbeques.
Skeeter Bag is a bag that attaches to box fans to catch mosquitos by the thousands.
Lego ice cube tray.
Turn maple leaves into roses with the help of this photo tutorial. Very autumn/thanksgiving.
Interesting Alton Brown video on knife sharpening and maintenance. Instructables also has a step-by-step sharpening howto.
CNN Money article: Middle-class families in worse shape than ever.
Nice and clean magnetic tool rack from Instructables. The nice thing about this organizer is that the actual tool holders can be positioned and rearranged (on the fly) on the metallic backboard.
Designer wood computers handmade in Canada.
Humanoid shaped shelves. Kind of looks like James the doorstop.
How to find a good neighbourhood. MSN article, via Lifehacker.
How to make clear ice cubes.
Use your PC and webcam as a motion activated security camera.
This Old House has made available a very large fall home inspection checklist for your downloading pleasure.
Mike Jagger of Provident security has been on the scene of thousands of residential burglaries and has put together this interesting walkthrough of a typical break-in.
Concrete countertops on Flickr.
This is pretty damn clever. Sizeasy is an online tool that helps you visualize the size of something you're reading about or considering buying online. Punch in your dimensions and see your widget along side things like a deck of cards or a piece of paper.
Here's the skinny on upgrading your home network to Gigabit ethernet. It's probably worth doing simply because "gigabit ethernet" just sounds cool and not at all nerdly.
Greenpeace is getting on Apple's case about their use of certain hazardous chemicals in iPods, iBooks and the like. Greenpeace claims that other manufacturers have discontinued the use of some of the chemicals that are still found in Apple products.
De-Clutter your home to sell it faster. Here's a page with a lot of ways to do just that.
Consumer Reports: 20 Free Ways to Save Energy is a nice list of things you can do, mostly around the house, to save energy and of course, as the two go hand in hand, cash.
Enviroscaping to Conserve Energy
Enviroscaping to Conserve Energy is an interesting guide on maximizing your home's energy efficiency by modifying various aspects of its immediate environment, or "Microclimate".
A microclimate is any small, local area within which the effects of weather are both relatively uniform and easily modified. Microclimate modification involves the best use of structural and landscape design elements to maximize or limit sunlight, shade and air movement. Structural modifications involve the design of the house and associated construction (walkways, fences, patios). Landscape modifications (enviroscaping) involve the use of plants to further increase or decrease the impact of sun and wind upon the local environment.
This site, which applies mostly to homes in hot weather climates such as Florida, offers a lot of interesting ways that a home owner can creatively reduce energy usage. Some of the suggestions apply to potential home builders, such as home orientation (a house is more energy efficient if it is oriented with the long axis running east-west), however the majority of the tips apply to existing residences.
There are many examples of "enviroscaping" strategies on the site, such as optimal tree placement for maximum shading, tree type (In winter, the sun is low in the southern sky. Southern exposures of a home in north and central Florida can receive free benefits of passive solar heating, provided that deciduous trees are used along the southern exposures. Deciduous trees shed their leaves in the fall, and are bare during the coldest months of the year.), fencing options (fences vary in amount of air circulation), shrub and vine placement along walls, increasing air conditioner efficiency and much more.
Link: Enviroscaping to Conserve Energy: a Guide to Microclimate Modification
A microclimate is any small, local area within which the effects of weather are both relatively uniform and easily modified. Microclimate modification involves the best use of structural and landscape design elements to maximize or limit sunlight, shade and air movement. Structural modifications involve the design of the house and associated construction (walkways, fences, patios). Landscape modifications (enviroscaping) involve the use of plants to further increase or decrease the impact of sun and wind upon the local environment.
This site, which applies mostly to homes in hot weather climates such as Florida, offers a lot of interesting ways that a home owner can creatively reduce energy usage. Some of the suggestions apply to potential home builders, such as home orientation (a house is more energy efficient if it is oriented with the long axis running east-west), however the majority of the tips apply to existing residences.
There are many examples of "enviroscaping" strategies on the site, such as optimal tree placement for maximum shading, tree type (In winter, the sun is low in the southern sky. Southern exposures of a home in north and central Florida can receive free benefits of passive solar heating, provided that deciduous trees are used along the southern exposures. Deciduous trees shed their leaves in the fall, and are bare during the coldest months of the year.), fencing options (fences vary in amount of air circulation), shrub and vine placement along walls, increasing air conditioner efficiency and much more.
Link: Enviroscaping to Conserve Energy: a Guide to Microclimate Modification
eXtreme Gardening via Weed Burners
Are you ever out gardening and realise that, as relaxing as it may be, the whole experience could benefit from a flamethrower? If so, one of these weed torches might fit the bill. From the site:
Use this lightweight burner to clear weeds and their roots in driveways or walkways in summer, or to melt dangerous ice patches in winter. Adjustable regulator valve lets you control flame intensity. Durable, nickel-plated steel and brass burner uses widely available standard 14 oz. propane tank (not included).
These aren't new though: here's a heavier duty unit and a video demonstration of another one in action (although not on weeds, but whatever - you get the idea).
Would it safe to say that people that use these probably aren't the same people that sit on these?
Weed Burner at Amazon.com
Via Toolspotting
Make Your Own Topsy Turvy Tomato Planter
If you like the Topsy Turvy Tomato Planter but don't want to spend the money, why not make your own poor man's version? From the site: There were of course the usual hanging planters that are really nothing more than a regular pot with strings tied to a ceiling hook. These really didn?t appeal to me due to previous experiences where the water of flowed down through the soil and filled the overflow basin at the bottom. Another option is hanging inverted planters which have been around for a very long time. Some in a much older design made from terra cotta in a traditional mexican style and a newer one made of plastic that had internal foam spacers for dirt/water containment. This naturally put my mind into make it myself mode.
With flora becoming so elevated lately, we may never get to try the nifty gardening chair, sadly.
Topsy Turvy Upside Down Tomato Planter
Featured as one of Time Magazine's Best Inventions of 2005, the hanging Topsy Turvy upside down tomato planter produces tomatoes that are bigger, better and easier to grow than with traditional methods. The planter's elevation has the added benefit of preventing certain bacteria and fungus, as well as keeping critters at bay.
Categories: gardening invention idea vegetation gift efficiency yardwork backyard
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Handy Dandy Gardening Chair
Originally intended for milking cows, this height-adjustable, light weight (4 lbs) back and joint saver looks like it would make weeding even the most overgrown garden a bit less crappy. The seat is made of 'sturdy co-polymer'. Sturdy is definitely the word you want to hear when sitting on something like this.via Treehugger
Recent stuff from HouseHacker:
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