As fans of any product design that has a double duty, at Chic Tip we are smitten with ’s Labware Lamps. They are both objets d’art and functional lamps. 
You don’t need to be into science to appreciate this kind of beauty: hand-blown glass that has been gently morphed into the shapes of chemistry lab beakers, and then topped with Portuguese corks through which the electric cords stem. The silhouettes of these lamps are sweetly serene. Even more pleasing is the texture of the hand-blown glass, particularly in its ability to distill the aggressive brightness of a light bulb into a warm glow.

We’re not alone in loving these lamps. There was much buzz about the Labware Lamp design — which officially debuted at the 100% Futures exhibition, a spin-off of the 2008 100% Design London, the city’s premiere contemporary interior design event — the last week of September. The Benjamin Hubert Studio even took home top honors, with the 100% Blueprint Award for Most Promising Futures Designer 2008. Several retailers have purchased the Labware Lamps. 

Adding architectural details to a simple room is easier than ever.  Prefabricated elements are very accessible to the public, and at prices that won’t discourage you. These days, you can order pretty much anything online and design has benefited from this, expanding choice and availability.

Today, I would like to introduce you to prefabricated ceiling beams, available in weathered and exotic woods, as well as synthetic resins. With a quick and simple installation, even for the novice DIY-er, these can transform a plain room into a rustic haven. How cool is that? 

Progetti takes the face of a clock, and turns it into Helen of Troy – or if not a face worthy of setting the proverbial ship to sea, than at least of peaking interest in your houseguests.

Take their veritable reinvention of the Cuckoo Clock, for one. Do you the love the kitsch quality of the Cuckoo, but crave a little less noise in the nighttime hours than the bird typically provides? Then Progetti has the clock for you. It’s got light sensors, so the birdie sleeps when you sleep. Gone are the Hansel and Gretel looks of the old house, this bird lives in a chic flat that anyone – feathered or not – would envy.

If functionality is more to your taste, fear not!  They’ve got the clock for you, a work of art, complete with frame. Just when you thought you had clocks down, Progetti surprises and delights even those most staid shopper. 

For most of us urban dwellers the thought of having a backyard with a patch of grass is as much of a dream as a free parking space. It’s not going to happen.

Yet, Imagine Tile dares us all to dream a little bigger, a little brighter. What we’re saying is it’s now possible to have a piece of grass on your apartment patio, or at least the appearance of one. Grass that you won’t have to mow!

The company has developed a process to apply permanent glazes to ceramic tile in much the same way that a printer applies ink to a page. They can reproduce textures, patterns, photos, illustrations, and even three-dimensional images on a single tile or as a mural, indoors or out, on walls or floors, frost- and water-proof, and unaffected by UV, abrasion and chemical resistant.

Just imagine the possibilities! The feeling of the beach could be recreated in your bathroom with a sand-covered floor. Your snapshot of the Duomo in Florence can now be a part of the hallway. You could test out the firmness of cooking fettuccini by throwing a strand against a wall covered in Warhol’s soup cans.
Just when it seemed tiles were outdated, they’re more relevant than ever.

Smokeless fire, it’s all the rage now, and who can blame anyone for taking a closer look. The heat, the beauty, without the hassle. So when we heard Conmoto was taking the smokeless fire on the move we had to know more. 

The technology of smokeless fire combines with a weather resistant powder coating makes the impossible reality – it allows your fire to move out of the fireplace, and even out of your home. TRAVELMATE’s full-value fireplace and source of heat turns any environment into one perfect by firelight. On the carpet, on the dining table, next to the sofa, on the terrace, or in the garden, now the atmosphere of the fireside can be enjoyed anywhere. 

The best of their designs is a fire playfully inside a veritable suitcase – with TRAVELMATE, romance travels. And it plays well with others – the base provided makes the unit secure so you can keep snuggling and stop worrying. 

Where sculpture meets utility, that’s where you’ll find the new outdoor furniture collection by Fontana Arte.  The great doors require seating and lighting of equal majesty and Flora lives up to its name, blending into the scenery with a coquettish charm sure to charm as it brightens the surroundings of your garden party. 

When you’re sanding in front of a room crying out for fresh design, it’s amazing what a couple of thoughtfully placed pillows can do. Acting as subtle accents, with the right colors, the transformation of a space can finally begin. 

My ritual is the same every night. In order to drift off into peaceful sleep, I need to envision a calming, relaxing, idyllic place — which for me is a green meadow covered in daises. Thanks to advancements in printing technology, I could cover the walls of my bedroom with a photo reproduction of this perfect daisy-filled flower field. NumerArt can transform any photograph, any image at any size, into a wall-sized mural. You could affix a desert landscape to the walls of your dining nook; you could transform a historic family portrait into the family-room wallpaper; you could bring the illusion of the outdoors in … only the ceiling is the limit, so to speak!

NumerArt offers clients some striking benefits with its “à la carte mural service”: an order can be placed 24 hours a day and can be delivered within two weeks. On their website, you can cruise the image bank for mural ideas, arranged in categories that cover “Nature,” “Sports,” and “Animals,” just to name a few themes.  The murals generally cost $9 a square foot, so be sure to use the online calculator to tally up your estimated costs before getting too excited because photo reproductions are not cheap. But when compared to original, fine artwork that costs thousands upon thousands of dollars, it’s a relief to know you can dress up your wall(s) with a handful of Benjamins.