My Life Is Non-Linear

My super-cool husband just sent me a link to the MUJI Awards 02, an international design competition. While a bit may have been lost intranslation, it seems the theme of the current competition, dubbed 'RE', was to explore the objects and activites we use in our daily lives. I was very intrigued by the non-linear day planner, the Chronotebook, by Wong Kok Keong of OrcaDesign. Blank pages with circular designations for AM or PM allow the user to outline portions of the day by adding 'spokes' to the wheel. I'm just not sure if viewing my plans this way would make me feel like my life is spinning along merrily - or out of control !

I also liked the Gold Prize winning entry, an exercise in re-use. Towel With Further Options, by NIIMI of Japan, sounds like the title of a short story. I would love to write a little piece about the life span of this product ... Here is how the entry was described in the competition, " This bath towel moves your mind toward further uses of the product. Towels take every day dirt and gradually become damaged. In accordance with such changes, you can downsize the towel with "further options" from a bath towel to a bath mat, and then to a floor cloth and dust cloth. The towel has a vertical and horizontal textured surface that does not produce pile-fabric waste when cut with scissors. The lines act as a marker for cutting and form square modules that let you imagine other uses, encouraging you to re-use it.". Nice.