After a month easing yourself back into work after the Christmas break, it makes sense that now would be a good time to start your spring cleaning in time for the summer months. Sadly, we don’t have anything to make the task of cleaning easier, but we have found some lovely products to make your living space look a little nicer and a little brighter once you’ve finished:
Air Bonsai
In a nutshell… A cute floating bonsai tree.
Having blown past its initial funding goal by a factor of 7 (and with over 3 weeks still to go!), it goes without saying that there seems to be a market for these cute hovering trees. Bonsai have often been a popular choice of plant for the home as they look lovely and tend to be low maintenance, so it makes sense that this is the case. The Air Bonsai kit includes a ‘little star’ moss ball for transplanting your favourite plant as well as the magnetic energy base that makes it float. There’s no power source required so you can use the Air Bonsai wherever you like to – great for some portable, well-placed calm.
Lumir C
In a nutshell… A candle powered LED lamp.
The Lumir C is an LED lamp powered by the heat of a single tealight – quite impressive no? There’s no power-supply required (other than the candle) so the Lumir C is relatively eco-friendly and can be used in the home, in the garden…anywhere really! It comes in a variety of different colours and supports scented candles so you can set the mood too with relative ease.
Microscape
In a nutshell… 1:5000 scale architectural cityscape models.
You can own the city with Microscapes, durable architectural models of major cities from around the world. Microscapes are 3D printed using up-to-date aerial scan data – this means that they are as up-to-date as humanly possible and can also include buildings currently under construction or even still in planning! The team decided to focus on New York first as it is a complex city with a substantial amount of detail required to be included. Initially, Microscapes will cover major cities around the world but time and resources permitting (it can current take up to a day of machine time to print just one!) may develop to include custom maps.
Paperesk
In a nutshell… Eye-catching decorative papercraft models
Hailing from Leipzig, Germany Paperesk are paper models a little different to what you’d normally find. Rather than cubic cut-outs, Paperesks are well-crafted and eye-catching. This doesn’t mean their any more difficult to set up though as clear and simple instructions are included with each and the only tools required are glue and a craft knife. Our personal favourite is the paper cat (front and centre in the video above) but any of the models would be a quirky addition to your home.
Tack
In a nutshell… A sustainable mobile light ideal for flats and small homes.
For those of you on the go or with a small room that needs to be well lit, the Tack is a conveniently portable lamp that features a simple and tool-less installation. After being frustrated by traditional table task lights and ceiling lights being unable to sufficiently light his work, Matthew Lim developed the Tack. As well as being great for desk lighting it also works for small rooms and cupboards. In spite of its small size, Tack lights up with a stunning 1200 lumens – this can be turned on/off with a tap or adjusted with a long press. Another convenient feature is that when Tack is turned off the switch glows blue – becoming a simple nightlight and also meaning you won’t be fumbling for the switch in the dark.
Orison
In a nutshell… The world’s first plug in home battery system
Although Tesla’s PowerWall has taken much of the media attention over recent months, the Orison looks to be a worthy albeit pared-down competitor. Selling itself as the world’s first plug-and-play energy storage system is fairly bold claim, but underneath is a potentially solid product. The Orison will allow you to store electricity when utility rates are low (i.e. overnight) and re-use it when rates get a bit more expensive. It also helps to mitigate the issue of renewable energy being intermittent by storing energy while renewable sources are in use, think Solar Panels during the day, and storing it for use when they are unavailable. As with almost every new tech product it comes with an accompanying app which will allow you to control when you store and use your power as well as keeping track of the amount you save by doing so.
And there you have it, another round-up of some pretty nifty Kickstarters. Did we miss any? Would any actually look terrible in your home? Let us know in the comments below.