Awesome Design Ideas » module

Ki ecobe – Customizable Self Assembled Footwear by G.D Kim

toma — Tue, 05 Sep 2017 07:51:59 +0000

The Ki ecobe is one of those eye-opening products that you experience once in a few years. Designed with an aim to be socially responsible and sustainable in mind, the Ki ecobe footwear becomes one of the most impressively designed products with an even more impressive list of problems solved through great design application.

The footwear design comes as separate modules that can not just be interchanged for style, but even worn separately for functionality. Rugged when you want it, bare-basic when you need it, and comfortable when you demand it, the Ki ecobe manages to pull off something no one in the shoe industry has dreamed of achieving… Complete, well-articulated modularity that has a strong purpose. Born from a need to make a show that challenges the unsafe sweatshop practices of having people and children work with toxic chemicals, the Ki ecobe doesn’t use a single drop of glue. Rather than presenting itself as a challenge, the absence of glue actually makes the Ki ecobe a vastly better shoe than most.

The Ki ecobe comes as three different styles of footwear. The in-boot is like a good-looking and comfortable pair of foam/fabric indoor shoes and is designed so it can stay on your feet at all times (they’re also washable). A rugged outsole, strap, and laces can be added to the in-boots, turning indoor slipper into outdoor sneaker. Your feet remain guarded always, and the outsole protects the in-boots from getting damaged. You can directly wear the outsole and strap without the in-boots too, like a pair of laced sandals. The outsole comes with a rather unique tread that acts as a Lego brick stud as the strap fits comfortably into it, giving you shoe that’s incredible to look at even from the bottom. Each component comes in a wide array of colors and patterns, giving you the ability to make up to 10,000 different styles… or even 14 different styles if you were to buy two separate Ki ecobes and mix and match between In-boots, Outsoles, Straps, and Laces. You can custom select the color/pattern for each and every component of your Ki ecobe shoe on purchase, along with your size, pretty much allowing you to design/build your own shoe to your personal taste.

Each Ki ecobe takes not more than 5 minutes to be built, unlike shoes/sneakers that require manual labor and an average of 30 minutes per piece of footwear. Since parts are made separately, they can be swapped when they begin experiencing wear and tear, meaning you discard modules and not the shoe itself. The shoes come molded and stitched/knitted; and all the assembly is done through the laces and the press-fit between the outsole and the strap. Not a single drop of glue is used anywhere in the manufacturing process, therefore making workspace conditions much safer for the laborers involved, while also resulting in a shoe that won’t fail you because of build-quality issues.

It’s unsurprising that the Ki ecobe has bagged almost all conceivable design awards for being a shoe that impressively tackles three giants of shoe design, i.e., modularity, unsafe working conditions, and the set-in-its-ways footwear industry. Among many, the footwear design is a recipient of the Red Dot Design Award, the iF Design Award, the Green Good Design Award, and was a finalist at the IDEA Awards. Click below to support the Ki ecobe and be a part of history as it changes the footwear industry for the better… and let’s hope the big shoe companies can “follow this one’s footsteps”!

Design by G.D Kim

BUY NOW: $79.00

Linfa bookcase by Forme di Sophia

toma — Fri, 10 Jan 2014 16:18:16 +0000

Linfa is something more than a bookcase. It touches the very meaning of a “real” metaphor made up of only two essential materials: wood, and books. For the sense of its leaf shape is clear and complete only when the books are actually placed in the appropriate spaces, as key elements of the structure.
Books, therefore, like lifeblood, able to filter and process existence through a spiritual process of photosynthesis, essential to the human spirit.

“MAN IS A BEING DESIGNED FOR THE CONSTRUCTION OF MEANING.”

Goethe

Forme di Sophia | Bologna, Italy

Module-based Shelf by Rapolas Gražys

toma — Fri, 30 Aug 2013 13:59:47 +0000

Module-based shelf “Audžiu” / “Weaves” is designed using Lithuanian ethnic textile ornaments. The user can, depending on his needs, easily change combinations of segments and function zones of the shelf, allowing him to weave his desired composition.

Rapolas Gražys | Vilnius, Lithuania

Triangular shelf by Jaewon Cho

toma — Mon, 22 Jul 2013 10:37:24 +0000

T.SHELF (Triangular shelf) is a modular system that can be built into multiple shapes with various functions. Using the strongest geometric shape, the triangle, the T.SHELF system creates structures that develop into sculptural pieces. The width, the length, and the depth of the T.SHELF system can vary and grow indefinitely. It can be expressed as floor or wall pieces.

Designer Jaewon Cho | J1 studio | Los Angeles , California

Stackable Stool and Chest by Taiji Fujimori

toma — Sat, 13 Apr 2013 13:26:29 +0000

This furniture, named “Myrtle”, is a storage furniture but at the same time, serves as a stool. Alone it is a “stool” with a drawer; when stacked, it transforms into a “chest”. This furniture comes in handy when you want to quickly put away your miscellaneous things or when you need a place to rest your body. “Myrtle” subtly but surly supports our everyday lives.
The functionality associated with such actions as TO SIT, TO STORE and TO STACK, constitutes a humourous appearance of this stool.

Taiji Fujimori | Tokyo, Japan

Concentré de Vie – Modular SOFA by Matali Crasset

toma — Tue, 09 Apr 2013 00:40:47 +0000

The seating object is composed of a box component and five soft elements: two square cushions, two L-shaped cushions and a rectangular pad; all of which can be arranged in a number of configurations to function as an armrest, footstool or pouf, the main structural frame acting as a binding agent that can be used as a single bed.

The soft elements can be used independently from the main box frame.

The two square and L-shaped pillows can be arranged to act as either an armrest, footstool or pouf.

The individual components of “concentré de vie”.

All of the soft elements contained within the box frame form a sofa.

Design by Matali Crasset for Campeggi| Paris. France

X-plus Table by Shi Xiaoxi

toma — Fri, 22 Mar 2013 21:28:29 +0000

Designer Shi Xiaoxi created “X-Plus” table.

He was conceived as a functional sculpture for contemporary living spaces. To achieve the shape, three triangular areas are cut from a single sheet of stainless steel, the sheet is bent into form and the two end points are welded together. The result is a modular object composed of two X shapes that works independently or arranged in a series. In a variety of hues and finishes, the table is adaptable to almost any motif.