Pencil Vases

The inimitable Elaine Stritch, a crazy cooler, Wired's innovation fellows and more in our weekly look at the web

Designer Tuomas Markunpoika has used pencils as a raw material in a series of surprising vases, suitably dubbed “Amalgamated.” By glueing together hundreds of Faber-Castell pencils into a solid block and then turning it on the lathe, the lead is exposed and a beautifully distinct surface pattern appears. The vases are selling in limited supply from London’s Gallery FUMI, and are available in three different …

Plumen Drop Top Lamp Shade

The innovative lighting brand introduces their first shade design, made of mouth-blown glass

In 2010, the Plumen 001 low-energy lightbulb was introduced, followed in January 2014 by the Plumen 002, a more subtle, organic design. To help display both achievements in an equally elegant housing, the London-based brand has now released their first shade, the Drop Top Lamp Shade. Made of mouth-blown glass, the visually soothing shade matches both bulbs’ sophisticated design without detracting from their ability to …

The Kantar Information is Beautiful Awards 2014

The global data visualization competition is now open for entries

After sharing the stunning works of last year’s winners, we’re pleased to announce this year’s call for entries at the third annual Kantar Information is Beautiful Awards. Co-founder David McCandless (himself a data visualizer) recognized the importance of design infiltrating our digital content—and that conveying information in a clever, striking way often imparts meaning and value into the brain with greater fortitude. These awards, sponsored …