Scandinavian designs hot in furniture and household itemsIt is not difficult to detect a notable trend in the living section in department stores and in design magazines: a lot of things have gone extremely simple, eco-friendly, with few vivid accent colors. Because most of the popular furniture and warm and cozy household items like lamps and rugs with such designs are made by brands based in northern European countries, they are summed up as “Scandinavian” or “Nordic” designs and are stirring

BRNO, Czech Republic (AP) ― It was completed in 1930, a Modernist masterpiece by legendary German architect Ludwig Mies van der Rohe.But Villa Tugendhat’s early history was rocked by the turbulence of the 20th Century: The Nazis seized it, then came World War II bombardments that smashed its windows. When the Soviet troops liberated Czechoslovakia, living space became a large stable. It has languished in disrepair ever since.Now, a two-year renovation that cost $9 million is almost complete. In

LOS ANGELES ― Chef Suzanne Tracht is quietly elegant; her teenage daughter is beautiful and casually fashionable in black leggings. Their kitchen? Kind of like grandma’s house ― and that’s just how they like it.Tracht doesn’t want to spend her off hours in a modern, stainless-steel kitchen that feels like the kitchens at her restaurant, the Beverly Boulevard chophouse Jar.“I don’t want to come home from work and see that,” she says.The atmosphere was set when she moved to the house in Beverlywoo

Warm and heated IT accessories enable smartphone-control easier in winterIt takes courage to pull your bare hands out of your pockets in an icy wind just to answer a phone call or check a message. Thankfully, several companies have invented cozy or heated IT accessories that prevent the user’s hands reddening while ensuring their social life doesn’t suffer. ETD Design has produced “Touch Plus,” a glove made of electrostatic fiber that works with smart phone touchscreens just as bare skin would.I

Every Christmas Eve my grandma would open her gifts ever-so-carefully, making sure not to rip the wrapping paper. It took foooorrreevvverr as she diligently folded every piece into a neat pile to use the next year. We all thought she was crazy. Turns out she was on to something.Americans generate 25 percent more garbage than average ― an extra 1 million tons a week ― during the holidays, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. Most of that waste is gift wrap and bags. In fact, the amou

Terrariums are totally trendy again.So says Southern Living magazine in its November issue. So say garden centers, which are increasingly creating and showcasing them as miniature ways to garden on tabletops.Terrariums take up little space, and require minimal care. In fact, they thrive on neglect. Just give them a little moisture every few weeks, and keep them away from direct sunlight.These glorious glass gardens take just a few minutes to assemble. Even kids can help make them for teachers’ g

MINNEAPOLIS ― Most people who update their homes want them to look bigger, better and newer. But Brita Hansen and Eric Hazen wanted their remodeled Minneapolis home to look like its small, 1880s self.“We really liked the proportions of the original house and the gables,” Hansen said.They bought the

“Creative Korea is a slogan that I have thought of for the future of Korea,” said Kim Young-se, who is regarded as a rock star of design in Korea.Speaking with The Korea Herald at iDEA Herald Design Forum in Seoul on Thursday, chief of Inno Design Kim said that the conference had a deeper meaning th

Interesting questions were followed by thought-provoking answers. The finale of the Herald Design Forum 2011 was a special session titled “Design and Dream” which enabled the 800-member audience of diverse backgrounds and also those who could not attend the forum in person all over the world to fulf