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The machine is everything you want a coffee maker to be: functional, easy to use, reliable, and attractive. At a glance, it looks like a more colorful version of an average consumer espresso machine with all the parts you’d expect to find, including a hopper, brewer assembly, and water tank. Turn it around and you’ll find that all the typically mysterious interior parts are visible and clearly labeled, including the water pump, flow meter, thermoblock, and power adapter.

Each module has intuitive interaction points so it’s easy to see how to pull it out and reattach it. Aligning magnets ensure that each component fits securely into place, and a repair drawer includes all the tools a user needs to disassemble the machine completely (as well as a few spare parts like extra screws and water pipes).

The Kara uses only one type of screw with two different lengths, both color-coded so it’s easy to tell exactly where they go. The water pipes running from one component to another are visible so you can physically see if there’s a problem. When you do need to self-service, the same touchscreen on the front that lets you choose how the machine brews your beverage also guides you through the repair process.

“Repairing the most common failure points does not require specialized tools and can be done easily and safely by a layman even without much technical knowledge,” says Mair. “The housing is designed so every part can be 3D printed if you don’t have access to original replacement parts, and technical components can be replaced or substituted because they are part of an open system.”

Mair’s vision of more sustainable consumer appliances isn’t just repair-oriented — it also incorporates the ability to substitute parts as needed. He calls for industry-standard parts and components that can be switched out easily by the end user. If mainboards in washing machines, dishwashers, and other appliances were universal, for instance, they could all be easily repurposed.

When possible, components should be made of a single material to make them more recyclable when they do break down. Parts like knobs and buttons should be designed so their replacements can be 3D printed or laser-cut while still offering the same performance. All objects should also be built to last, so we don’t have to replace them constantly.

The Kara is a brilliant proof-of-concept, demonstrating that sustainable consumer appliances aren’t actually that hard to produce. We’ve all just been suckered into a form of consumerism that finds disposability not just acceptable but desirable.

The corporations that manufacture all the things we use every day count on us throwing away the old version in favor of the new on a regular basis. While it’s unlikely that those companies will voluntarily switch to a system like Mair’s, which would probably net them fewer profits in the long run, perhaps future legislation will put consumers and the environment first. One can dream, anyway.

The post Kara: The Sustainable Coffee Machine That Lasts a Lifetime first appeared on Dornob.

From the outset, the MO Bakery owners knew they wanted a space that presented their baked goods as the stars of the show, highlighting them like precious jewels in a display case. Masquespacio honed in on water as a theme after realizing it’s one of the main ingredients in both baked goods and coffee, dividing the space into three different areas that each represent a different phase in the process of baking and brewing.

The first zone is dedicated to the liquid state, where water makes the dough start to come together. Next is the bar zone, where a massive waterfall-like installation made of sandblasted glass tubes hovers overhead. The front of the bar features the “solid-state” zone, with lamps representing ice. The third zone is the “gaseous state,” where a series of fire bulbs represent the moment when the pastry is baked in the oven.

Throughout the interiors, custom seating ranging from low lounges to high stools offers comfortable vantage points to take it all in. The various metallic finishes were designed to generate reflections mimicking the distortion that occurs when viewing objects through water. The scale of the space encourages people to stay a while, gazing up at everything and taking in the scents of the bakery’s goods.

“On the other hand, the lighting incorporates fully controllable RGB lighting to set moods that could convert the space to a different status, being able to represent a ‘different space’ within a space, in campaigns, engagements, or talks, which is also extended by the reflections of the space in chrome fabrics, tables, and spheres [that create] another level of optical fusion,” say the designers. “This space is not solid. It is interchangeable and dynamic following what the brand has to say. Welcome to the new mood branding.”

With decor and lighting that moody, the MO Bakery almost feels like a bar or nightclub instead of a daytime-oriented café. Which begs the question: why don’t we have more cool spaces to hang out in that aren’t bars or nightclubs? Masquespacio is onto something here.

MO Bakery wanted to stand out from its competition, and it’s probably safe to say they’ve successfully done so with this imaginative interior design. Check out three previous projects that capture Masquespacio’s creative approach to design: a vivid and playful Mango teen store in Milan, Italy; a lavender-hued sunglasses store in Bogotá, Colombia; and a pastel Bun burger restaurant on Milan’s Via Dell’Orso.

The post Masquespacio’s Retrofuturistic Bakery Inspired by Flowing Liquids first appeared on Dornob.

“What if Starbucks could create a new, global digital community — a community defined by collaboration, experiences, and shared ownership — all centered around coffee to start, and then perhaps expanded into the many areas Starbucks has played in over the years as a coffeehouse: art, music, books, and beyond?” the company writes on its blog.

“Emerging technologies associated with what is commonly called ‘Web3’ now enable this aspiration in a way that extends who Starbucks has always been at our core. Web3 refers to many things in the blockchain space, but the particular technology that has captured our imagination is NFTs (non-fungible tokens).”

The post expresses the company’s fascination with the way NFTs allow people to own a programmable, “brandable” digital asset that doubles as an access pass. That could lead to a new way to foster loyalty among customers through unique experiences, community building, and storytelling. Starbucks plans to create a series of branded NFT collections with various themes to encourage buy-in among its 27 million active Rewards members in the U.S.

What could customers expect to see once the new Starbucks “digital third place” is ready for primetime later this year? The answer is a little unclear, and it appears that Starbucks isn’t quite sure either. Addressing employees in an Open Forum, Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz cited the company’s “treasure trove of assets” ranging from “collectibles to the entire heritage of the company,” whatever that means.

Starbucks’ entry into the NFT market comes alongside news that sales for NFTs have plummeted 92 percent since September 2021, with some news outlets going so far as to call it a “collapse.” Active wallets used to store NFTs also dropped by 88 percent, and online interest in the technology fell by 89 percent since peaking in January 2022. The meaning and value of NFTs has always been a little nebulous, of course. The tokens are speculative assets that often point to a piece of digital art, a photo, or other media and act as a digital receipt for the purchase.

As huge companies like Starbucks attempt to use NFTs to boost their profit margins, the cultural value of NFTs could shift. What might have felt like something new and exciting as recently as last year could quickly become stale as it’s commercialized on a mass scale.

Do Starbucks customers really care about gaining digital assets alongside their daily frappuccino and using them to access a digital loyalty club? That remains to be seen, but the company points to its historic role as an accessible initiator to new technologies like mobile payments, mobile ordering, and access to Wi-Fi as proof that it could help make buying NFTs as mundane as tapping your debit card to pay at the drive-thru window.

The post Starbucks to Launch its Own NFTs as Part of New Digital Loyalty Program first appeared on Dornob.

Designed by Beijing-based DAGA Architects, the Metal Hands Coffee house was intended to be an “immersive space café journey.”

The firm describes the background in detail to give patrons the full picture. “Interstellar passengers have traveled the vastness of space and the infinity of time in search of a new home for humanity to escape from a devastated Earth. Finally, awakened from hibernation by an alarm. Climbing out of the fallen space capsule, the world was uncannily familiar, with Earth-like plants and oxygen to breathe. Everything was so beautiful, but there was a vague sense of something different.”

“Cutting through the trees, instead of the familiar wood fibers, is a smooth, mirror-like metallic substance. The trees float in the air, eerie cross-sections reflecting this wonderful but strange world. Eventually, the frustrating reality is discovered: there are no humans here, and no nature either, this is not real-world, everything is unreal.”

The main focal point of the 970-square-foot shop is the giant metal space capsule with its flipped-up hatch. Customers can climb inside with their steaming cups and study the peeling aluminum wall panels and the vines and flora that have started to grown in-between all the ship’s cracks, taking over its mechanical attachments.

A large, metallic column supports the pod on the inside, while the exterior is adorned with electrical ports that look just right for R2D2 or BB8 to come along and tap. The capsule’s hatch has been converted into an overhead light, delivering a comfortable wash of illumination over the nearby folding chairs and crate-like coffee tables.

Another soft glow is added to the room by the split log situated along one section of the floor-to-ceiling windows. Half of the log is suspended from above with rods and includes a bank of LED lighting to brighten its lower half, which is floating above the ground at bar height. Its mirrored surface reflects the beams above, and low-backed barstools make it a perfect sipping spot. The dissected tree trunk also frames a view of the modern high-rise skyline just outside.

Orbs of organic material mimic the shape of the abandoned capsule and hang from the ceiling at random lengths, creating a mini solar system of greenery to soften the sterility of the space motif.

The DAGA Architect group was founded in Beijing in 2015 and has since designed, renovated, or constructed over 90 projects in 25 cities worldwide. A quote from Albert Einstein tops their website’s About Us page, reading “creativity is intelligence having fun.” The firm seems to have integrated that idea into their work on the Metal Hands Coffee job as well.

“It is a journey through time, where all one has to do is sip coffee, empty oneself, and enjoy a moment of peace in the universe,” the company says of its latest build. “The design incorporates exploration and consideration of time, taking people away from the worries of life and voyaging in their thoughts.”

The post Shanghai’s Metal Hands Coffee Offers an Immersive Trip Through Time and Space first appeared on Dornob.

Created for the 2021 Creative Expo Taiwan in the Songshan Cultural and Creative Park, the bright white, laboratory-like space presents experimental test tubes, the iDrip machines, and a selection of coffee beans from various sources against a backdrop of illustrations inspired by Leonardo da Vinci. Steel plates are assembled into a “lab bench” where guests can select, grind, and brew their coffee beans using the new iDrip Da Vinci Code model. Custom tea and coffee bags are also on display, including “Charcoal Roasted Oolong Tea” designed and developed by Michelin chef André Chiang and “Blend Papa Rich” coffee by 2014 World Coffee Roasting Champion Jacky Lai.

“Emulating the ‘spirit of science’ and ‘art of coffee,’ the coffee lab was designed after many trials and tribulations, giving birth to a perfect environment emphasizing the notion that ‘every drip is science,’” explain the designers. “Come and experience the charm of coffee made by the iDrip Smart Pour-over Coffeemaker. A luminous, transparent display rack is placed on the side of the exhibition area to exhibit the coffee filter bags created by over 21 barista champions from more than 15 countries. Each filter bag tells the baristas’ personal stories and exemplifies their unique coffee making techniques and taste.”

It’s a scene that will delight and inspire anyone who’s really serious about their coffee. Can you imagine walking into a laboratory like this and custom-crafting such precise blends exactly to your tastes or to satisfy your curiosity? Along with the expert baristas and gourmet coffee selections, the iDrip machine is what makes that possible. While a classic pour-over setup requires no more than a filter and a cone-shaped funnel placed over a mug, the iDrip lets you configure professional parameters to decide exactly how your beans are brewed, including water temperature, flow speed, flow path, pour frequency, and bloom time.

The designers add that “iDrip is the world’s first OTA-enabled coffee machine that can update its firmware directly through the internet to let you enjoy more new and diverse functions. Just like Tesla in the automotive industry and iPhone in the smartphone industry, iDrip, the smartest coffee machine in the coffee industry, was revealed to the world. You will not only enjoy a coffee machine but also an AI coffee brewing system that advances with technological development, offering you an immersive, scintillating coffee experience.”

“Use iDrip in conjunction with pour-over coffee sachets prepared by baristas from around the world; simply touch the brew button on the coffee machine, and it will automatically scan the sachet and apply the appropriate brewing technique. Programs inside the iDrip Da Vinci’s IOT-enabled AI chip are designed to complement the exclusive pour-over coffee sachets produced by baristas to accurately recreate the baristas’ techniques.”

The post 3+2 Design Studio and iDrip Crack the Code of Perfectly Brewed Coffee with Science first appeared on Dornob.

When Los Angeles-based Wick Architecture & Design was approached to creatively outfit a small L-shaped café on the bottom floor of an office building in Newport Beach, California, principle architect David Wick knew he’d need to find a creative way to make the relatively unremarkable space pop for visitors. What he came up with may not rival the Sistine Chapel, but it’s a beautiful way to bring some freshness and modernity to the classic ceiling fresco.

Teaming up with landscape design firm LAND, which handled the exterior portions facing a shared courtyard, Wick produced a pretty incredible space. The bottom half of the fittingly named Stereoscope Café looks like a fairly ordinary coffee shop, but when you look up, you get quite a treat. Not only is the ceiling covered in Renaissance imagery, but it’s in 3D, giving it a fun look even if you aren’t wearing special glasses (but honestly, why not bring some if you plan on visiting?).

Wick explains that “Granite Properties approached us to create a ‘statement’ coffee shop for Stereoscope Coffee in Newport Beach, CA. The 672-square-foot L-shaped space is located on the ground floor of their six-story office building. The tall and narrow space allowed for a unique design opportunity. Referencing Italian masterpieces like Correggio’s Assumption of the Virgin in Parma or Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel in Rome, Nashville based artist / photographer Christy Lee Rogers, purveyor of modern baroque underwater photography, was selected to cover the ceiling and walls.”

“Her piece, The Reunion of Cathryn Carrie and Jean was translated by Wick A+D into a 3D art piece placed on the ceiling and gradating to the white as it flows down the walls. The art is viewed by donning retro 3D glasses that line the white oak shelves. The baroque, minimalist aesthetic is completed with white oak bench seating, white matte tile, and Blue Orca marble.”

The result is cool enough to make it worth a stop in Newport Beach, even if you’re not a coffee drinker. The way the imagery fades down the walls of the café to join the understated, gallery-like feel of the rest of the space gives it a little something extra.

Rogers’ underwater works are truly spectacular, and worth a look for their own sake. The Hawaii-born artist creates her effects using refraction of light “through a fragile process of experimentation,” building “elaborate scenes of coalesced colors and entangled bodies that exalt the human character as one of vigor and warmth, while also capturing the beauty and vulnerability of the tragic experience that is the human condition.” You can check out her behind-the-scenes process of creation and buy her pieces in the form of oversized art scarves at her website.

The post Stereoscope: Part Café, Part 3D Viewing Experience first appeared on Dornob.

Made with a base of blue-black glaze dotted with oily-looking spots, the bowls were likely unappreciated in China, where rainbows were considered unlucky. Somehow, a number of them made their way to Japan, where they were prized by collectors and valued for use in tea ceremonies. The style was eventually recreated by Japanese ceramicists, but today only a small number of artists still work with the style.

The beautiful crystalline patterns on the bowls appear spontaneously during the firing process, which are different from the “oil spots” found on other forms of pottery baked in the Jian kilns of China. Modern potters, for all their new techniques and technology, can’t seem to replicate the workmanship of the originals.

A new crowdfunding campaign called “TENMO” pays tribute to their uniqueness while enhancing the qualities that make them look like “the cosmos in a cup.”

The campaign’s official Kickstarter page reads: “Tenmoku, also known as Jian Ware, is a legendary, precious type of porcelain that produces unique designs that are both mystical and unpredictable. It’s impossible to produce two identical Tenmoku porcelains. The name of Tenmoku comes from the word ‘Tenmo(天目).’ It means the eyes of the sky in Chinese and Japanese.”

TENMO founder Tom Fu adds that “other than just being a cultural symbol, many elderly people from China and Japan appreciate Tenmoku for its potential ability to soften water and enhance flavor thanks to the special clay and glaze used to produce [it]. One time when I was getting my morning cup of coffee, I serendipitously used a Tenmoku teacup for my coffee instead of my normal coffee cups. The feeling I got when drinking my coffee out of the Tenmoku was unlike anything else I had experienced with common coffee cups.”

“Drinking my morning coffee out of the Tenmoku that day made me realize that there are no authentic Tenmoku coffee cups on the market currently and that the delicate and exquisite designs of Tenmoku perfectly match the elegant and fine flavors of coffee.”

The result is a Kickstarter campaign aiming to revive the tradition, created by an engineer of magnetic materials in collaboration with master ceramicist Sun Whenzha. They’re made of the very same natural iron-rich clay from Fujian, China that created the originals, and they feature a nano-porous surface that’s believed to enhance the flavor of coffee and tea.

The TENMO campaign page contains lots of fascinating details about the science behind the clay and why its iron content affects the glaze in a way that produces these gorgeous nebula-like patterns. And while the campaign itself may have already ended, you can still follow the project to be notified when the cups are made available to the public.

The post TENMO: Cosmic Coffee Cups Revive an Ancient Chinese Craft first appeared on Dornob.

For all the strange and wonderful Brutalist buildings that have sprouted up all over the world, the style has rarely translated to functional design objects that are usable in real-world contexts. A Brutalist chair, for instance, might consist of solid concrete blocks set within a steel frame — not exactly comfortable. It tends to be more successful when it manifests as sculpture, lighting, or inert decorative objects. Now, this espresso machine is here to destroy our preconceptions about what Brutalism can look like in the home, using concrete to a surprisingly beautiful effect.

San Francisco Bay Area design studio Montaag presents the AnZa Espresso Machine, an appliance unlike any you’ve ever seen. Born in its creators’ Berkeley backyard shed, the AnZa is more than just the sum of its parts. Its origins lie in the unusual pairing of a design studio and an espresso repair shop sharing the same workspace.

The studio believes that “every designer has the responsibility to bring something new to the table. In a sea of coffee machines, we asked ourselves: if something is made from the same material and produces the same quality coffee as other machines in its price point — then where is the added value? AnZa’s added value comes through its material choices, thoughtfully rendered and completely real, and its accessible functionality. Combined, AnZa delivers a café-quality experience, truly earning a bit of valuable real estate on your home countertop, and in a fashion unlike any other appliance.”

Along with the concrete model, the AnZa is also available in glossy white Corian. Both machines will be equipped with connectivity, so users can remotely program them and integrate them into their smart home systems. While many unconventional high-end design objects remain intangible concepts or prototypes, never becoming available to the public, Montaag began crowdfunding for the AnZa just last week, and the machines are expected go up for sale to the broader public in early 2018.

“After several years of design, prototypes, and refinements we’re ready to hit GO! on full-scale manufacturing,” says the company. “This campaign will secure the funds to do just that.”

It’s chic, it’s minimalist, and it’s a seemingly solid hunk of concrete on your kitchen counter. Don’t worry, though, the concrete is actually just a veneer. In reality, the AnZa isn’t much heavier than a conventional coffee machine. Plus, it appears to be just as serviceable. Hoping to snag one for yourself? You can stay updated on its progress by signing up for emails on the AnZa website.

The post Brutalist Espresso Maker Made of Concrete first appeared on Dornob.

The Seattle-based coffee giant may have eliminated most single-use plastic straws at its stores, but its new “cold cup” lids that don’t require straws aren’t necessarily much better. They’re still made of plastic derived from fossil fuels, after all, and they’re not recyclable everywhere. Other supposedly recyclable or compostable materials (like the cups themselves) must be processed in industrial facilities that remain rare.

Considering that most consumers are still demanding convenient disposable products, what’s the answer to this ongoing problem? A new offering called the Unocup probably isn’t it, but it certainly takes a step in the right direction. Its makers say the plastic lid invented in the 1960s is an outdated model that requires two parts when in reality, we’ve only ever needed one.

This paper cup makes it easy to protect your beverage and drink on the go just like a plastic lid, but it does so using a unique folding design. The top folds into its own built-in lid in just a few motions — just fold over each flap and insert the tab. That’s less time than it takes to fiddle with a plastic lid, firmly pressing it down on all sides to ensure you don’t end up with your beverage all over your lap. Its creators also claim they’ve shaken, stirred, and even run with the closed cups without any spills.

It seems like a folding paper cup would easily collapse in your hand, but Unocup says its “uniform structure” creates a “strong and consistent body” that will hold up to your grip and fit easily within your hand. The drinking spout is curved and free of sharp edges, but you can also just fold back the flaps to drink from the open cup if you prefer.

The Unocup Kickstarter page reads: “Customers desperately want a cup which they feel will contribute to waste reduction, while having no compromise to the drinking experience. Unocup uses a well-tested patent-pending folding design to create its own lid as an integrated top. The cup is a breeze to fold, hold, drink from, cheaper, and of course, a lot more sustainable.”

“Unocup’s design is optimized for mass-production using existing cup-making machinery. Using Unocup will yield significant cost and energy savings in manufacturing, storage, and transportation that would otherwise be spent on plastic lids.”

This cup feels a bit like an in-between design that could help us reduce pollution on the path to something better. The problem, of course, is that it’s still disposable, and there’s no mention on the project’s Kickstarter of options for recycling or composting in facilities that already exist.

A real solution would require collaborative efforts between consumers, government bodies, and businesses, with most of the onus on the latter. Companies should be held responsible for the endgame of the goods they produce and innovate accordingly. Imagine what it would be like, for instance, if to-go cups were made of environmentally safe biomaterials that dissolved over time.

The post Folding Paper Cup Makes Plastic Lids a Thing of the Past first appeared on Dornob.

Oprah fans will never forget the halcyon days when the talk show host sprung her annual “Oprah’s Favorite Things” segment on her studio audience, giving them items from that year’s list for free. While the segment traditionally aired during Thanksgiving week, it was always filmed in advance, and producers never announced when the special episode would be taped. Lucky audience members won everything from luxury leather handbags and fancy cooking gadgets from Williams-Sonoma to brand new Volkswagen Beetles.

While The Oprah Winfrey Show stopped filming in 2011, Oprah still creates an annual gift inspiration list, either on her television network O.W.N., through Oprah Magazine, or on her website. Released in early November, Oprah’s Favorite Things 2019 features items split into the following categories: “beauty gifts,” “cozy gifts,” “foodie finds,” “online exclusives,” “stylish gifts,” “tech gadgets,” “for the kitchen,” “for the family” and “for the pets.”

Of course, it’s the tech here that’s really drawing attention, especially since Oprah has historically shied away from having too many gadgets on her list in any given year. Oprah’s picks for 2019 include a few interesting standouts:

The Apple Watch Series 5

As Oprah points out, a primary reason to invest in the latest $799 Apple Watch is to take advantage of its health-tracking features.

Beats Powerbeats Pro

These $250 high-performance wireless earbuds are sweatproof, waterproof, fit more securely than Apple’s Airpods, and get nine hours of play time per charge.

Echo Dot Kids Edition

The kid-friendly version of Amazon’s Echo Dot aims to get the next generation hooked on its Alexa virtual assistant early. It comes in a new limited edition rainbow pattern and costs $80.

Sony XB12 Extra Bass Portable Bluetooth Speaker

These lightweight $60 waterproof speakers offer “deep, punchy sound” and a battery life of up to 16 hours.

Flywheel Home Bike with Built-In Tablet

Why go to spin classes when you can get the same workout at home with this $1,999 tech-integrated stationary bike, which allows you to stream classes right to a built-in tablet?

De’Longhi Dynamica Fully Automatic Coffee and Espresso Machine

While this one’s technically in the “kitchen” section of Oprah’s list, it still qualifies. The $899.99 machine lets you brew hot or iced coffee in seconds that’s said to be comparable to what you get at your favorite coffee shop.

“You know it’s Favorite Things time when the O team starts taste-testing — among many other treats —chocolate babka, tomato pie, gravlax, peanut butter cups, salami, caramels, and truffle mustard,” Oprah writes on the Oprah Magazine website. “Did I mention that was all in one sitting? I’m pleased to report we survived to touch, try on, sniff, fall in love with, and narrow down a vast array of goodies until we were left with what I believe are the perfect presents of 2019. Ahead, you’ll find 79 gifts, plus an online exclusive, I think are just great — from a makeup kit by Lady Gaga to the perfect pancake maker to the softest hoodie you’ll ever wear.”

Winfrey adds: “The holidays, of course, aren’t all about what’s wrapped in a bow, but also, the gift of time. Personally, I delight in Christmas Day, when we do a brunch buffet of everything from fresh blueberry muffins to shakshuka, which is sort of like huevos rancheros with a Tunisian passport. Our gathering is mellow and fun and exactly how I want to wind down the year. This holiday season, I wish you excellent health, genuine happiness, and joyful days.”

The post Standout Tech Gadgets on Oprah’s “Favorite Things 2019” List first appeared on Dornob.

Coffee is an American pastime like football and barbecuing burgers. Most of us are not human without our first cup of Joe. But when it comes to coffeemaker design, we typically think … Italian. Or German. Wrong. Norway is where it’s at. Norway has a huge coffee culture; not the artisanal espresso brews that have swept our nation as of late, but black, classic filtered coffee. Cue Wilfa.

This Nordic electrical appliance company designs gorgeous coffee makers such as the Wilfa Svart Manuell. Winner of the Award for Design Excellence from the Norwegian Design Council, it is an object crafted – in cooperation with super barista and coffee connoisseur par excellence Tim Wendelboe – for pour-over style, manual hand-brewing. This process invites to slow down and be in the moment, because you pour the water over the ground coffee yourself. Even better, it doesn’t create as much waste as the popular pod and K-cup machines. The kettle holds 1.2 liters, and you can use regular Melitta filters.

If that’s too much effort on a bleary-eyed morning, check out Wilfa’s Precision Coffee Maker, an elegant automatic filter brewer. Aficionados of this award-winning coffee maker rave about its precision temperature and water control, and the fact that it brews a “coffee to the Golden Cup standard of the Specialty Coffee Associations of America (SCAA) and Europe (SCAE).” It’s available in sleek aluminum and stylish black. Learn more at www.wilfa.no and shop at www.williams-sonoma.com.

“I have spent a lot of time over the past 2 years together with Wilfa giving them feedback and teaching them about coffee. The first result was the manual brewer “Svart Manuell”, but that was meant as a teaser and a tool for the coffee geek to play with while we waited for the automatic version. There is a lot of technology and work put in to this pretty coffee brewer, and I think it looks awesome. It also brews really good filter coffee, but still you need to get your basics right like any other brewing techniques:

• Use traceable and freshly roasted and ground coffee of high quality
• Use clean fresh water with low mineral content (Tap water in Norway is perfect in most cases)
• Use precise measurements. I recommend 60-70g per litre of water depending on how strong you want it. Use a scale to measure.
• Make sure you grind the coffee to the right particle size. Too coarse will give you a watery and sour taste. Too fine will lead to bitter tastes.”

The post Nordic Precision: Wilfa Coffee Maker first appeared on Dornob.

Striking and evocative, tables that blend wooden elements with a blue-tinted resin make you feel like you’re gazing at the sea. With the pale wood tones standing in for sand and seaside rocks, the resin appears lighter when it’s poured in a shallow layer and darker as it gets thicker for a realistic watery effect.

Design firm Shift Perspective takes a unique approach to this technique. Slices of shaped plywood are stacked on top of each other to form the topography of a specific place that’s highly relevant to the history of the studio’s home, South Africa. Called “Robben Island” after the land mass it depicts, the coffee table aims to give us an idea of just how remote and isolated the famous prison where Nelson Mandela was held really is.

The company explains: “The island itself is secluded from the mainland and served as a medium and maximum security facility during the Apartheid regime. Political prisoners of Apartheid were held here until the facility closed in 1991. After his release, Nelson Mandela went on to become the first president of the Republic of South Africa and remains an iconic revolutionist to this day. Mandela spent 18 of his 27 years imprisonment in the Robben Island prison. That’s why we’re only producing 18 tables to commemorate each year that Mandela spent on Robben Island.”

The table creates a sculptural map of Robben Island and the sea floor around it, with engravings on the little wooden “island” marking the location of the prison and other landmarks. It might be hard to discern the scale of the island if not for a cool addition: three tiny sterling silver ships, which can be moved around on the surface. When a light shines onto the table from overhead, the ships cast a deep shadow in the “water.”

Based in Cape Town, Shift Perspective was born when founder Ollie de Wit started designing and making his own furniture as a hobby in 2013. Indeed, Ollie takes an experimental approach that usually pays off. While he often collaborates with expert craftspeople to manufacture his designs, sometimes it’s hard to find people who know exactly how to bring his vision to life.

In the case of the Robben Island Table, Ollie realized he’d have to take on the production of the table himself, despite the fact that he’d never worked with resin before.

“This can be a daunting task, as we have to learn something we know nothing about with hours of researching followed by hours of trial and error. We partnered with professionals every step we could, but could not find any professionals that could cast resin onto wood. We took this part of the manufacturing process onto ourselves, which took two and a half years of trial and error.”

With an end result this beautiful, it’s safe to say that effort was definitely worthwhile.

Loving the look of this aquatic resin and wood table? Check out “Lagoon 55,” a beautiful custom piece by designer Alexandre Chapelin of La Table, in which textural sand-colored marble dotted with natural pits and holes mimics the look of a real coastline.

The post Resin Coffee Table Offers a Map of South Africa’s Robben Island first appeared on Dornob.

The Voyager Kettle does all that and more. This highly portable kettle can go virtually anywhere you do, making it easy to boil water within minutes whether you’re at the office or out on a backcountry trail. While it’s not the first collapsible kettle made of food-grade silicone, it’s the first one that doesn’t require an accompanying hot plate or stove.

The Voyager features a 1000W heating element that can be powered by either a 110- or 220-volt current, which means you can use all sorts of different charging devices to power it up, including your car, without the need for an inverter.

The kettle’s coolest feature (other than its collapsibility, of course) is the fact that it will hold your water at the selected temperature for as long as 30 minutes. No more boiling a kettle of water, stepping away for a few minutes, and coming back to find that the water isn’t hot enough.

A digital screen displays the temperature inside the kettle, and you can either choose from 10 preset temperature options or set your own to get things brewing. True tea and coffee aficionados will love that feature, since different types of tea leaves and beans can require different brewing temperatures for optimal flavor. Just remember that the next time you use the kettle, it will automatically heat up to the temperature you last used unless you specify otherwise.

If there’s one caveat to the Voyager, it’s the fact that you still have to plug it into an outlet or charger. A truly portable electric kettle would actually be battery powered so you wouldn’t have to fuss with cords or power supplies while on the go. But perhaps making it self-contained would add too much bulk to the base and defeat the purpose.

The Voyager Kettle recently completed a successful round of crowdfunding on Kickstarter, raising over $43,000 to go into production. With any luck, it should be available to the public in the near future.

The kettle’s Kickstarter page reads: “My company, Nomad Joe, introduces Voyager Kettle to make your time away from home feel more like home. It is our mission to bring people worldwide a simple solution for making coffee or tea while traveling.”

“If you want to have your coffee just the way you like it, why not make it yourself, no matter where you are? People need a simple solution for making coffee or tea while traveling. Whether you’re a world voyager or you just want to make a decent cup of coffee in your office, dorm room, or Airbnb, you need a portable coffee-making option to help you get your fix.”

The post Flat-Pack Voyager Tea Kettle Collapses For Easy Travel first appeared on Dornob.

The question is whether it’s a coffee table, refrigerator, smart home hub, or a charging station. The answer is yes. Coosno is an all-in-one piece of living room furniture that will entertain guests, provide refreshments, and listen when you talk.

Refrigerator

Sleek and modern by every definition, the Coosno hides a big surprise inside. With a simple voice command or the push of a button, the upper portion of the coffee table lifts to reveal a built-in refrigerator section, whose rounded interior can fit a wide assortment of beverages and snacks. Even better, the table’s Lazy Susan-style design allows you to rotate the selection within to deliver your drink to you without having to get up and walk around it.

As a matter of fact, a coffee table with a built-in fridge just might keep you from having to get up at all. Especially one that holds up to 68 cans of beer.

Stereo System

You can also connect your favorite Spotify playlist to Coosno via Bluetooth and hear your tunes through an impressive six-speaker system. Plus, the tempered-glass tabletop lights up to the beat for an eye-catching club-like vibe.

LED Tabletop

The Coosno app actually controls all types of lighting effects to create the ambiance of your choosing. Colored LED lights can be set to flash, ripple, or remain solid or slow moving. You decide. Just open the app and drag the settings to fit your mood. The app also controls the refrigerator, so you can turn the temperature up or down from anywhere in the house.

Charging Station

There’s no need to fuss with wall chargers and charging cords any longer. Coosno has a built-in charging chip that keeps your phone or computer at full power whenever its placed on one of the tabletop’s two charging stations. Of course, there are also outlets tucked inside the table for your additional electrical needs.

Voice Control

Coosno connects to Google Home so it’s always ready to recite a cocktail recipe, share the weather, or give you a sports update. It can even solve the debate you’re having with your friends by running a quick internet search for you.

Along with the Google Home features, Coosno is also ready to listen whenever you tell it to open or close the fridge or turn up the music.

Storage

Like any good piece of furniture, the Coosno also offers some storage in the form of a pull-out drawer located below the refrigerator section. The drawer is compartmentalized for easy organization, too, so you can decide whether it’s the best place for the remote, the dog treats, or your cocktail straws.

Coosno is currently trending on Indiegogo, with a campaign that’s open until the third week in August. It’s currently in the prototype phase, but the company hopes to move into production with the funds raised from the campaign. The final product is expected to be available in two sizes and two color options with a ship date of February 2020.

The Coosno Home is 19.7 inches and can be used as a coffee table or small office assistant and snack bar. The Coosno Bar measures 27.6 inches. Both models come complete with no assembly required. Simply plug them in and set up the app to get the party started.

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