Dedicated to inspiring designers, inventors & the creative spirit in all of us.

Scottish-born Robert Gair invented the corrugated box in 1890; that is, pre-cut flat pieces manufactured in bulk that folded into boxes. Gair’s invention, as with so many other great innovations, came about as a result of an accident. Gair was a Brooklyn printer and paper-bag maker during the 1870′s, and one day, while he was printing an order of seed bags, a metal ruler normally used to crease bags shifted in position and cut them. Gair discovered that by cutting and creasing bags in one operation he could make prefabricated paper boxes. Applying this idea to corrugated boxboard was a straightforward development when the material became available. By the start of the 20th century, corrugated boxes began replacing the custom-made wooden crates and boxes previously used for trade.
(Information taken from Wikipedia.com)

Corrugated cardboard is what Lincoln’s famous top hat was made from, along with beaver fur. Everyone has had pizza delivered in a cardboard box. Amazon’s ever-present brown box with smiling logo is corrugated cardboard at its best; shipped worldwide thanks to the lightweight design and structural integrity of this recycled paper wonder. And as you just read, invention can be stumbled upon and its effects can change industry as we know it.

Whether it’s lounging around the lawn or poolside, grilling out or keeping up on lawn care, summer always brings out the best gadgets. Here are a few product designs to get you excited.

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Simple and safe is the way to go with this lighter-fluid-free fire starter. Just load this chimney starter with charcoal, light paper from beneath and then dump out red hot coals within minutes — without the lighter fluid taste! 

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Can’t wait to start your fire? Try this 60-second charcoal starter that uses heat-focused technology to reach temperatures of over 1,200 degrees in seconds! Also a lighter fluid-free design, this electric alternative can have you barbecuing in no time!

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Urban sun bathing can be uncomfortable if you don’t have a lawn, but this grass lawn chair makes it a little more pleasant to soak up some rays atop the concrete.

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Growing a chair is a clever way to create seating in the backyard, too. This simple to assemble design is made of cardboard and then filled with soil, topped off with grass seed and will eventually biodegrade into the earth. I think these would be great built into a circle around a fire pit for a nighttime summer bonfire.

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This roving lawn chair is for moving around the yard to have it made in the shade. Based on the wheel barrow design, the handled chair goes anywhere you want to lounge.

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So, how can you maintain that beautiful landscape? Try using one of these Hovering lawnmowers. They are nothing new; older diesel versions were available in Europe decades ago, but they are still an awesome design.

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Why not extend cool yard design products to man’s best friend? This doggie peeking window is a nice way to allow your dog to see outside of a fence — might even keep him from trying to run through or paw at the gate.

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Keep your garden green by going green. This compost tumbler is a quick and smart way to reuse food waste by composting using an easy spinning action.

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What good is being outside on a hot summer day if you don’t get in the water? Try this underwater pogo stick, the only one of its kind, to make pool time fun.

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Not everyone is game for going under water, so this floating ping-pong tabletop game is a great alternative. Almost anything that is designed to float in a pool goes up a notch on the cool-o-meter, if you ask me.

Apple has dominated the multimedia market with laptops, phones and MP3 players so much that they have opened the doors to a lot of new products and accessories, many of which are carriers, cases and applications. But once you have that protective cover, you buy that favorite song and and want to share that video, where do you go? What do you do to take your media to the next level? Here are two well designed, innovative devices that do just that. 

For the video portion, I love this Pico Projector design. With 12 lumens, up to 60” image projection, 1 GB flash drive and being pocket sized to boot, this is the ultimate iPod accessory right now, as far as I am concerned. It seems to be the perfect accessory to the iPod Touch and iPhone for viewing slideshows and movies. So, if this is the bees knees for watching video from your iPod, what about listening to it?

PodXtreme claims that they have the boost to boast. This lithium battery-operated gadget can produce a sound from your iPod like no other. The speaker charges via USB connection and operates the same way as a quality sub-woofer. Ideally, you could plug in and pound out some loud beats for all to hear, virtually a 21st century boom box.

With the Apple brand designing so many gadgets for the i generation who want to keep their media to themselves, it is nice to see some crowd-pleasing accessories like these. Sharing your video and audio has become easier, cheaper and more accessible to the masses more recently. These two gadgets are good examples of that.

Shoes can be as simple or as complex as a designer’s imagination. Here are 10 unique ways to cover your feet that stand out from the rest.

These Fivefingers are a great way to wear shoes but still have bare feet. Made to wrap around each one of your little piggies, the shoes are made to fit over your feet like a pair of gloves.

These Mion’s have an anatomically shaped foot bed with a layer of foam that customizes to the shape of the wearer’s foot after 12 hours of use, resulting in a personalized fit. Not only do they conform to the user’s feet, but the lacing shoe strings wrap around the entire foot, making 360 degrees of snugness.

Umbrella shoes are the next best thing, right? These high-heeled shoes offer cover for your toes as you walk through light rain showers with class. Unique may be the only word to describe these feet pampering pumps.

Made of 100% recycled material, these lightweight Frisky shoes are made to be breathable as well as mold to the shape of your foot. The hoofed, closed toe design is a feature I have not seen before. It’s like a space-age flip-flop.

Not only do these kid’s shoes come in a variety of standard Kool-Aid colors, they smell like Kool-Aid too. These Kool-Aid kicks are a new twist on shoe design, with a scratch and sniff feature. Yeah, don’t read it twice, these shoes actually are infused with the fragrance of cherry, grape or pink lemonade.

Dada Speaker Shoes are a bit extreme, but who would deny wanting to wear a pair. Made to play music from your MP3 device, these sneakers have built-in speakers for broadcasting whatever sounds you like. I’m thinking either the Harlem Globetrotters tune while you shoot hoops, or maybe Mr. Roboto.

Giraffe high heeled shoes might be the only way to stroll around the zoo with class. Definitely a unique design in the world of shoes, I can truly say I have never seen high-heeled shoes with two legs before.

These cardboard Air Jordans are made from, you guessed it, cardboard.  What more is there to say?

These felt slippers are made to keep your feet nice and toasty, and they do it very well. I have a had a pair of these slippers for a few years now (a gift from my brother’s overseas travels) and can attest to how simple and comfortable they are. They will make your feet sweat on a cold January morning.

3M Canada hosted a design competition and the above are the winning entries, both from students of the Ontario College of Art and Design. The Scotch tape dispenser and post-it note dispensers were awarded the grand prize of actually going into production for the 2010 line of office products. I am in awe at how simple, yet clever the tape dispenser design is. Bravo to the winners!

This award winning design is called Ooob. Considered both a bookend and a doorstop, these colorful things can do whatever you want them to do. The soft, heavy, rubber-skinned design doesn’t leave any scuff marks on the floor, nor does it scratch your door. Completely rounded and weighted with a 1.2 kg steel core, this design will keep any door open and any stack of books upright.

This concept design is a heat wand that toasts your bread one side at a time. Ceramic by design, the inventor made it charge similar to that of electric toothbrushes. As you glide the heated wand over the toast the visual indicator appears to show you that your toasting is complete, this one with images of butterflies and ivy. Now that’s thinking outside of the box…or toaster, whatever. Expect this innovative concept to make it to market some time this year.

A glass artisan on Etsy invented a way to create a second life for beverage bottles. This seller turns any bottle with a painted label into a drinking glass using a unique process. What a great way to give bottles a second use, other than recycling.