My Top5 is about new ways of looking at 'the same old'.

RIBA Awards 2005

+ The Georgian town house extension needed to be inexpensive and fulfill strict conservation rules. At first glance it looks ordinary, but look closely at the "homogeneously clad box" and you'll see sanded Perspex windows. "Each board is painted in a shade of grey, to further conceal the location of 'windows'."

ICFF 2005: More from Day 1 & 2

+ Garden decor tends to be very traditional (fake stone birdbath anyone?) and stuck in the 19th century. Tord Boontje's Flora is a large scale vine-like copper garland for your backyard fence, shed or pergola. You drape it over any of these and over time you'll get that green copper patina. Traditional material, new application, art for your backyard.

The HOME House Project : The Future of Affordable Housing

+ What's a really affordable home? A small one. It costs less to build, heat, maintain, etc. But if you like modern contemporary, where are the small MoCo homes? Answer: unbuilt. You have to build one if you want one. Luckily, they're designed, and there's a whole bunch in The HOME House Project : The Future of Affordable Housing.

Meta MoCo - 05 NOV 05

+ Was it really that hard to invent a clock radio worthy of the MP3 decade? B&O finally makes one. See the BeoSound 3 website, watch the video.

Feel

+ Feel, a grid of 120 soft "molecules" that can be folded and arranged to create multiple seating or reclined positions. Sofas will never be the same (yeah, they will, but they don't have to be...).