Formlabs is reinventing 3D printing with the Form 1, the first affordable, high-resolution desktop 3D printer. Started out of MIT, they're a fast-growing, focused team, having an outsized impact. They do much more than make a machine; they are equipping the community with the best tools, ideas, and knowledge, teaching everyone how to make the digital, physical.

If you're obsessed with instructional design, love to write, and have the visual skills to create beautiful printed-graphics and best-in-class online content, they want you on their team! You'll produce top-notch written and visual content about our world-class products and create the best, most relevant instructional guides and tutorials out there. Don't wait, Apply Today.

With less than a week to go until March, the International Home + Housewares Show is just around the corner—from March 15–18, Chicago's McCormick Place will once again see the latest and greatest in new and improved housewares. From kitchen gadgets to cleaning supplies, the three main exhibition areas will be chock full of practical and playful items for every nook and cranny of your home.

As always, we recommend downloading the app and checking out our past coverage; follow @HousewaresShow or hashtags #IHHS2014 or #IHHSHappenings for the latest from McCormick Place. Whether you'll be in attendance or simply watching this space for updates from McCormick Place, check out the IH+HS Blog and our archive of coverage from 2011, 2012 and 2013... but be warned, you might get sucked into a few hours' worth of browsing products for your home.

When Gregor Bruhn moved his cabinet- and furniture-making business Hand Werk from Germany to Canada, he brought with him tens of thousands of Euros' worth of state-of-the-art German manufacturing machinery. But it was a humble-looking wooden object that most caught the eye of Matthias Wandel, the woodworking scientist behind Woodgears, when he paid Bruhn's shop a visit (and thankfully for us, he shot video). Check out the slick hinge linkage on Bruhn's tool chest and watch what it does:

Amazing, no? And after viewing that video above, where Wandel deconstructs how the hinge works, two young carpenters from Brazil decided to see if they could make their own. David Zimmerman Júnior and his pal Jean Pierre Lana sent their results in to Wandel, who shared it with the rest of us. Check out the video of Zimmerman and Lana's impressive creations that incorporate their version of the dobradiças inteligente:

Calling all designers!

The Dutch government is looking for a new giveaway to distribute in the United States and is inviting designers to submit inventive, quirky, and smart ideas for a functional and affordable small item. The item should be inspired by Dutch Design and fit in the collection of our partner, Kikkerland. For more information please see www.Dutchcultureusa.com.

The competition is open to everyone. Organizers hope that Dutch designers, US designers inspired by Dutch Design, as well as special teams of Dutch and US designers will participate.

The top 10 entries will be selected by a high-profile jury by the beginning of April, and will be printed in 3D by Shapeways. This competition, however, does not require that every part of your design can be printed on a 3D printer. The winner will be anounced mid-April.

See the full Call for Entries and submit today!

With this year's Design Indaba Conference kicking off in two days, we've been catching up on some of last year's talks. As always, the organizers have done a great job bringing together an inspired and inspiring mix of artists and designers. A talk by Berlin-based artist and illustrator Christoph Niemann is perhaps the perfect example, and we can't recommend it highly enough. The trailer barely does it justice:

Check out the full video →

If you want to spread design in an evangelical way, what do you need? A showroom filled with objects? A distribution company to get them from the factory to the end user? A collective of artisans and designers? Workshops to educate consumers about design? In the case of Diego Paccagnella's company Design-Apart, an organization "committed to design as a living process," all four of these things.

Our team brings the process and products of Italian design out of the atelier (art catalog, industrial village, hi-tech laboratory) and directly to customers around the world online and in living showrooms. Advances in technology and methods of production allow us to offer even the most arcane and specialized craftwork at competitive prices. Bespoke, for us, goes beyond handmade and custom. It's a dynamic product of relationships between people, materials and ideas in space.

Check out their sweet video of things being made in Italy:

Growing up, you couldn't get cooler or more stylish than wearing something you created yourself. Proof: I had a short run as a seamstress of sorts after my high school peers saw the pair of ripped denim I brought back to life with a few obnoxiously bright scraps of fabric. It fizzled quickly—self admittedly, I couldn't sew a straight line then and still can't—and so did the DIY fashion trend as we moved on from Friday night football games and prom. Suddenly hot off the runway knock-offs became choice over scrapping together a completely unique statement shirt. OpenKnit is keeping the DIY spirit alive and well, with a very design-savvy production method, of course. While the machine's finished garments may lack a certain je ne sais quoi when it compares to the ready-to-wear market, the style is all in the production method—which is the kind of thing we get excited about.

OpenKnit is a an open-source digital fabrication machine that creates garments on-demand from a mess of yarn to finished sweater. Better yet, it's pretty quick to do so—said sweater can reportedly be completed within an hour. The machine is powered by Knitic (which we previously covered here), making it possible—and easy—for users to design their personalized pattern and feed it into the printer. More on OpenKnit from its website:

As eight million of you saw, Resource Furniture's already got a good grasp on hideaway bedrooms, living spaces and workspaces. So it's no surprise that they're marching through the rest of the house and tackling a more complicated space: The kitchen. They've just announced their new Stealth Kitchen modules, which turn full-sized appliances into unassuming cabinetry at the flip of a few panels.

In as little as six linear feet, Stealth Kitchen incorporates all the necessities of a high-end, modern kitchen—refrigerator, freezer, dishwasher, microwave, oven, cooktop, sink, counter space and abundant storage—all cleverly concealed behind a wall of cabinetry that blends seamlessly into its surroundings.

The product is new enough that as of yet they've only got this teaser video up:

One of the great things about the Design Indaba Conference is that it not only sparks conversations but also puts them on center stage. In this short dialogue between Marian Bantjes and Jessica Hische, the two graphic designers cover everything from mentorship to being the "one designer friend," as well as the secret to design success. (Bantjes, who reveals that she is entirely self-taught, is the Jury Captain for the Visual Communication category of the 2014 Core77 Design Awards.)

Check out the full video →

From the company that brought you such monumental headlines as, "Kitten Thinks of Nothing But Murder All Day," and "Winner Didn't Even Know It Was Pie-Eating Contest", The Onion, America's Finest News Source, is looking for a Technical Project Manager to be in charge of planning, managing, and executing projects big and small.

The project manager will work closely with the SVP of Product to track product requests, scope new projects, define timelines, allocate and manage resources, and oversee relationships with external partners to see each project through from ideation to successful rollout and beyond. The ideal candidate will be intensely motivated to improve process, structure and workflow and is someone who thrives in a collaborative, cross-functional environment. Unlike their hilarious headlines, this is opportunity is for real. Apply Now.

Ti Chang, co-founder of Crave Innovations and industrial designer, is working on a movement. While women have been quietly kicking ass in the ID department for years, there hasn't been a whole lot of coverage on the phenomenon. After realizing the underrepresentation in the form of a Wikipedia list, Chang has been working to create the very first Women in ID show to debut at this year's San Francisco Design Week—and she's looking for designers. More on getting involved from the website:

For one night only, the show will feature 15 designers in two categories—Up+Coming and Professionals. The work can be conceptual, in full production or anything in between. WID's hope is to showcase a wide scope of industrial design work by women in various stages of their careers. Ladies, you know you rock. This is a great opportunity to showcase your work and meet your peers during the excitement of SF Design Week.

Get more information on how to submite your own work here before March 10th for a chance to be featured. To get a better feel for the event and what attendees can expect, read on for our questions and Chang's answers.

In the original story, we referred to this as the first ever show highlighting women's role in ID. We apologize for the mistake and acknowledge that there have been previous shows featuring outstanding work from female ID'ers. We're excited to share another great exhibit shining light on the growing community.

Ti Chang, co-founder of Crave and industrial designer, is working on a movement. While women have been quietly kicking ass in the ID department for years, there hasn't been a whole lot of coverage on the phenomenon (although, our forums did host a discussion on the movement back in 2012). This write-up from GOOD—as penned by our very own Core77 Design Awards Writing & Commentary jury captain, Alissa Walker—is a great look into the issue. After realizing the underrepresentation in the form of a Wikipedia list, Chang has been working to create a "Women in ID" show to debut at this year's San Francisco Design Week—and she's looking for designers. More on getting involved from the website:

For one night only, the show will feature 15 designers in two categories—Up+Coming and Professionals. The work can be conceptual, in full production or anything in between. WID's hope is to showcase a wide scope of industrial design work by women in various stages of their careers. Ladies, you know you rock. This is a great opportunity to showcase your work and meet your peers during the excitement of SF Design Week.

Get more information on how to submit your own work here before March 10th for a chance to be featured. To get a better feel for the event and what attendees can expect, read on for our questions and Chang's answers.

These chairs were grown with 12 separate molds over the course of two weeks

Google "mycotecture" and Phil Ross is the first hit you'll see. For good reason, too. His work features a combination of fungi grown over a number of weeks, burgeoning to become colorful statement pieces of edible furniture and art. That's not even the kicker—not only are they edible, they're biodegradable, flame-retardant and practically bulletproof.

Ross' intrigue with mycotecture isn't just an experiment in food design. His inspiration stems from a lifelong interest in biology and its connection to all aspects of his work history and personal interests. In his words:

While I was terrible in high-school science and math, my education about the life sciences emerged from a wide engagement with materials and practices. Through my work as a chef I began to understand biochemistry and laboratory methods; as a hospice caregiver I worked with life support technologies and environmental controls; and through my interest in wild mushrooms I learned about taxonomies, forest ecology and husbandry.

Ever since spotting that unique, hinged toolbox that Matthias Wandel did a video of, we've been wondering where it came from. The German marque Würth can clearly be seen on Bruhn's box. The Würth Group is a Germany-based global wholesaler of tools and hardware, but it does not appear that they designed the box; a German manufacturer of cabinetmaker's tools callled E.C. Emmerich sells an identical box, as does hardware manufacturer Häfele.

Far as we can tell, it's a German company called Domini Design that actually designed the thing. They call it the Mobilo Box, and it comes in a variety of sizes. The Mobilo Box 43 is the smallest version, "suitable for managers," as Domini says (read: people who don't really need to get their hands dirty):

Core77's Hand-Eye Supply Curiosity Club is making winey waves. Chrissie Manion Zaerpoor of Kookoolan Farms presents MEAD!, an insider's look at the history and future of the world's oldest booze.

Tonight's talk starts at 6pm at the Hand-Eye Supply store in Portland, Oregon. Come early and check out our space or check in with us online for the live broadcast!

Chrissie Manion Zaerpoor of KooKoolan Farms: MEAD!
Hand-Eye Supply
23 NW 4th Ave
Portland, Oregon 97209
Tuesday, Feb. 25th, 6pm PST

Editor: Here in Part 2 of "Accidental Designer's" story, he engages in one of the more unconventional design/build educations we've ever heard of—and unwittingly lays the foundation for a big next step on his way to starting his own company.

If you're behind on this tale, you'll want to catch up with Part 1 first.

It amazes me that those of you in design school learn your craft in four years. Since I had no plan, I spent well over a decade building up my skillset and learned a lot of things the hard way, though I don't regret a day of it.

After graduating high school I had no notion of design as a career, and more immediately I knew college wasn't for me. Neither was staying in my mom's house. So at 18 I moved out, and started living on a derelict wooden sailboat that my brother and I had bought with money we'd saved up working for my dad.

With every dollar we had spent on the boat, there wasn't anything left over for paying for a space to dock the boat. So my brother and I became experts at "the slip-around," where you'd find a slip someone had recently vacated, then dock the boat there. Eventually Harbor Patrol would realize your boat was in a slip that someone had stopped renting, then you'd get towed to the impound dock. But it didn't take a genius to figure out that paying a $35 fine a couple times a month was a helluva lot cheaper than the $300 monthly rental fee.

I supported myself using the skills I'd learned under Mr. Barkington in that hellish Shop class, particularly that last big boat restoration job. I had also taught myself some new tricks through trial and error, and I talked some folks into hiring me to restore their boats. With the money I saved I was able to buy some boats of my own, real junkers, but I'd live in them, restore them, flip them, then buy another, rinse and repeat. That worked out pretty good.

People got to know my face around the marina, and I got hired to do odd jobs around the place. Instead of the Harbor Police writing me tickets, I became the guy they'd call if a boat was sinking in the harbor, and I'd go pump it out. If someone showed up in the middle of the night for an early-morning haul, I'd help them get set up. Because I was there practically 24-7, I became the boatyard's de facto security.

Eventually I caught the attention of the local boatyard. They had this old-school shipwright, a really crusty old-timer who wanted to retire, and he needed an apprentice who could keep the work up. I'll call him Mr. Wright, and I'll tell you that this guy made Mr. Barkington look like a kind, nurturing soul.

But I wasn't there for praise, and apprenticing under an old-school guy like that, who really knew his business, was one of the best educations I could get. Soon I was living in the boatyard with my own, legal, slip. And for the next eight years Mr. Wright taught me proper process and procedure, along with a system of wood joinery that was centuries old. He taught me how to balance following tradition with thinking on your feet. I got to use all kinds of unusual shipwright's tools, like a handplane with a bowed, springy bottom so you could plane concave surfaces, tools the likes of which I never saw before or since. He had this special kind of adjustable "story stick" that he used to measure windows, he called it a "Preacher stick." I asked him why and he looked at me like I was an idiot and said "Because it never lies."

"St Martins in the Fields (1888) William Logsdail"

I stumbled across a historic mash-up of sorts while perusing Reddit the other day. Anytime there's a visually enticing chance to learn a bit about history without opening a musty book or sleeping through a monotoned narration, I'm sold. This series of photographs featuring modern-day London superimposed with old paintings depicting the same scene caught my eye, to say the least.

"Blackman Street London (1885) John Atkinson Grimshaw"

"The 9th of November, 1888 (1890) William Logsdail"

We've landed in Cape Town, 2014 World Design Capital, for this year's Design Indaba Conference, which kicks off today with the likes of Experimental Jetset, Jake Barton and Thomas Heatherwick, to name a few (and that's just on day one!) and will continue through the rest of the week and weekend with the Expo. Stay tuned for reporting live from South Africa, but in the meantime you can check out Daniel Charny's presentation from last year, in which he covers the "Power of Making" exhibition at the V&A to a more recent project called Fixperts.

Check out the full video →

Move fast. Speak up. Decide and own. Drive change. Exceed customer needs.
Are you a creative original thinker who also has a passion for making a difference? Are you ready for the next step in your career? Here is the chance to be a key part of something new. Logitech Design Lab is looking for an Industrial Designer to join their multidisciplinary strategic design team.

Logitech Design Lab has recently been established as an "internal design agency" to service Logitech's broad range of product design and experience needs. In it's state of the art design studio in Cork, Ireland, the lab focuses on strategic projects aimed at leading & disrupting our product portfolio. If you have a proven track record of conceiving & bringing new ideas to life in rapid sketching, visualisation and prototyping, Apply Now.

What purpose does a library serve in a contemporary middle school? Beyond its broad definition as a place to read, relax, explore and discover, we also feel that educational spaces should be designed with the input and ideas from the users—the students themselves. Now, with the help of Studio H and Ms. Nini (Hallie Chen), a cohort of 108 eighth graders at Berkeley's REALM Charter School have done exactly that, and they need your help to make the library of their dreams into a reality.

Besides the bookmarks, stamps and bags, the students have also designed an X-shaped unit of modular shelving, STAX, which is made of low-cost plywood and fabricated with CNC technology, courtesy of Autodesk's Carl Bass. "You can do anything with STAX: you can make your new favorite shelf," reads the project page on Kickstarter. "You can make supports for a table or legs for a bench. You can make a mile long wall if you want. Whatever you do with them, they'll definitely be the coolest piece of furniture you own."

Some of you may also remember that we last spoke to Pilloton during the release of If You Build It, a documentary about their previous project in North Carolina:

First launched in Bertie County, NC and now based at REALM Charter School in Berkeley, CA, Studio H students apply their core subject learning to design and build audacious and socially transformative projects. Students of Studio H have previously dreamed up, designed, and constructed a 2,000-square-foot farmers market pavilion, a pop-up park, laser-etched skateboards, sculptural concrete public furniture, roadside farmstands, and more. Through experimentation, non-stop production, tinkering, and a lot of dirt under their fingernails, students develop the creative capital, critical thinking, and citizenship necessary for their own success and for the future of their communities. Studio H is an initiative of the nonprofit Project H Design.

Check out the Kickstarter Project here