Not totally the same as the principle that “one plus one is two”, Hong Kong-based designer Li Jianye’s Telescup is a clever combination of two drinking glasses, which coordinate to become a smart and functional telescope. So maybe when out of mathematics, especially in the design fields, any principles would find their new values.

Designer: Li Jianye

【Source】

Light appearing on your cellphone screen or laptop screen annoys you from time to time? Get rid of it then, with Nippon Electric Glass Co Ltd’s “Invisible Glass”. Exhibited it at FPD International 2011, the new glass can reduce the reflection of light by forming an anti-reflection film on both the front and back sides of the glass substrate. As a result, only about 0.1% of the light is reflected on it, which means you can see almost no light on the glass substrate. Moreover, the glass is even invisible if you don’t see carefully. Wow, watch out on your way if these glass is applied everywhere one day.

Designer: Nippon Electric Glass

Creativity is everywhere, and it even appears in your messy kitchen. So here we’d like to share some creative cutting boards with you guys, and hopefully they would add some fun to your dull cooking hours.

【VW Bus Cutting Board】

【Chop-n-Scoop Board】

【MacBook Cutting Board】

【Glass Cutting Board】

【Cheese Board】

【Pac-Man Cutting Board】

【Cleaver Cutting Board】

【Domino Cutting Board】

【Cloud Cutting Board】

【Ruler Cutting Board】

【Transfer Cutting Board】

【iPad Cutting Board】

【Puzzle Cutting Board】

Via

Researchers from the University of Southampton have recently developed a new type of nanostructured glass that can optically store data forever.

The new material for data storage was made with a complicated process. Firstly, the research team imprinted some monolithic glass space-variant polarization converters on silicon glass, to alter the polarization of light passing through them. These pulses then processed to create some tiny dots called “voxels” (which are sort of like 3D pixels) into the glass. After that, the glass was “read” by a laser, the voxels produced tiny whirlpools of light and then allowed the users to write, wipe or rewrite some data into the molecular structure of the glass. Compared with common disk drives, the storage capability of this new material is pretty good and a piece of silicon glass that measures the same as your cellphone screen can store data of up to 50GB.

The University of Southampton is now working with Lithuanian company Altechna, to commercialize the technology. So we bet soon you’ll step into a new age using silicon glass for data storage.

They’re not ordinary glasses as they look. With detailed calibration on their bodies, these glasses can be used to play music when they’re filled with expected amounts of liquid. So interesting.

Selling Price: 23.5Euro (A Couple)

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Everyone loves transparent items, from the Bubble Tent to this Italy-based Glass House. Built by the sea, it is made almost entirely with a variety of ultra-clear and strong glass. So when you look at the house, you’ll directly see its interior and may feel like that all its furniture is floating in the air. Fabulous!

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Transparency is obviously a main trend of modern designs and we’ve come up with transparent cellphones, transparent shoes and transparent sculptures in the past few months. And soon we’ll see a transparent television.

Designed by Michael Friebe, the new TV set has a frameless glass surface and that has made it to completely bend into the environment when not in use. But when set to work, the television will produce “non-transparent / solid moving pictures with rich color reproduction and full contrast range from solid black to pristine white” as it utilizes a creative combination of conventional LCD and the latest TOLED display technology.

Designer: Michael Friebe

Valentine’s Day is soon coming. So what have you prepared for your girlfriends? If you’ve gotten no idea, you may just try putting yourself into a bottle and make that as a present. Haa, that’s just for kidding, because you can have such “Boyfriend in a Bottle” to represent you.

Selling Price: $10.99

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One may guess the power of the sunlight over the hottest and driest days in summer, while Eric Jacqmain takes on an experiment to find a more accurate answer by building a fiberglass satellite dish with 5,800 tiny mirror tiles.

At last he makes his ‘death ray’, something that can melt steel, vaporize aluminum, boil concrete, and obliterate any organic material within a few minutes. That’s really awesome. But Eric is not so content with his experiment and the 19-year-old claims to build a new one with 32000 mirror tiles in the future.

Designer: Eric Jacqmain

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“What you want to sit on is nothing–like you’re supported by air”, sticking to that concept, Ben Alun-jones comes up with the Affinity Chair that features invisibility. The chair is not really invisible, but reflects its surroundings with the help of plastic acrylic sheets in conjunction with one-way mirror film. It is also built with ultrasonic sensors activate pulsing LEDs, which acts faster as the visitors come nearer while stops glowing when someone sits onto it.

Designer: Ben Alun-jones

No one would believe that glass can be stronger and tougher than steel, if they hadn’t seen the new type of damage-tolerant metallic glass collaborated by Berkeley Lab and the California Institute of Technology.

The metallic glass contains palladium, a material that helps the glass to bend rather than crack in response to the external force. That outstanding feature not only enlarges glass’ scope of application, but will ensure people a safety use of glass.

At the Eco Products 2010 exhibition Sony showcased these ‘Flower Power’ Solar Windows that can convert sunlight into electrical energy. Compared with other solar windows on the market, the ‘Flower Power’ not only features an aesthetic design but can be specially customized according to the consumer’s preference. So what do you think?

What if your glass windows can work as speakers? That sounds really amazing, right? But before that, you should firstly learn something about the “Glass Speaker”. Measuring four feet tall and weighing 80 pounds each, the transparent speaker can produce a full 360° of sound and that’s about as perfect as other speakers. So how does the speaker work? According to the folks from Greensound, the base of each speaker can vibrate and the different areas of the glass slabs can create different frequencies of sounds, and hence a 360° of sound is produced. As mentioned above, you may one day see the window act as a speaker, too. Let’s just wait and see.

Designer: Greensound Technology

Unlike humans, birds cannot see transparent glass and they’re always in danger of flying towards such “open areas” at a high speed. So to reduce bird-strikes, glass specialists from Arnold Glas have invented a new type of glass that features reflective UV coating. Although practically transparent for humans, the UV reflective coating is clearly visible to birds and therefore helping them to avoid the obstacles.

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The sunlight filters through clouds, glints through the leaves, and finally shines bright on a girl’s faces, dancing on her eyelids and hairs… That sounds wonderful, right? But the beautiful scene wasn’t seen in the wild country where are full of trees, but in a white box with a few square meter footprint. So welcome to the Unlimited Urban Woods, an illusory forest installed by DUS Architects in a public plaza in Oosterdokskade, Amsterdam, using a series of strategically angled mirrors and one single full-size tree. Really magical! And we bet the forest inside the box is no less unusual than the Wonderland that Alice has come across.

There is nothing special about the Light-Filled Glass Studio itself, because we’ve covered many buildings that use transparent glass as main material. It is odd that the glass architecture is designed for a school of Japan where earthquakes frequently occur, while the studio features no earthquake-resistant walls! But there is no call for you to worry over the studio’s stability, coz the designers have adopted 305 pillars to support the whole building. Made mostly of glass, the studio not only lets in enough light during the daytime, but shines like a diamond when the lights are on in the night.

Designer: Junya Ishigami and Associates

Tornado and vase seem to be unrelated to each other. But the French design studio A+A cooren has proved they do have some relevance, with the Tourbillon Vortex Vase. It has two parts, an inner vessel that is shaped like a spiraling vortex and a small cup on the bottom to receive the water.

The vase is made from borosilicate glass and comes in a limited edition of 21 pieces.

Designer: A+A cooren

Wall-mounted radiators have gradually taken the place of the ugly traditional ones, but that’s not the end. Look at these Glass Art Radiators from Tell Me First, they’re obviously the most beautiful alternatives we’ve ever seen. With high flexibility and endless possibilities to be fitted into the existing heating systems, these radiators allow the users to easily change the images shown on the glass. But do make sure that the images are large, high quality, and look good on the radiators.

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Charm your guests with our Double Sided Vase. The interesting vase created by Endrit Hajno can serve in two different ways: it holds a bunch of flowers at one end while  merely accommodates one single flower when flipped upside down.

A guaranteed conversation starter for you and your guests.

Designer: Endrit Hajno

The future of home decorations has arrived! Try the Glass² tiles and go for a greener life at once. These tiles are made from 99% recycled glass, having no glue or chemicals, and therefore they’re totally environmentally friendly. Heat-resistant, scratch-resistant and easy to fabricate, Glass² would fit in perfect to your living rooms, kitchens, and bathrooms. Also, they can be used for outdoors, since they could be easily cut into different shapes. So in a word, this is really a good step towards tomorrow’s green homes.

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An upside down decanter by Sebastian Bergne, inspired by the stories of “Alice in wonderland”, not only beautiful, but also practical.

With water in it, everything becomes enlarged and exaggerated, which gives us an amazing visual impression.

Selling Price: £255

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Hey, kids in front of the screen, see what we’ve prepared for you today…the “Head’s Up Juice Glasses”! It features retro styled faces that look like a kid and an aged man when you flip the glass. Each set includes 2 10 ounce glasses, with an acceptable price of $9.99. So you like it? Aha, “Bottoms Up Shot Glass” for dads, and the “Head’s Up Juice Glasses” for moms and kids.

Selling Price: $9.99

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When I was pouring wine into the goblet, the weirdest thing happened: some water is leaking from the bottom…Sounds like astonishing tricks by magicians? Then everyone could become a professional magician only if he/she owns the Leaky Goblet. It looks really attractive and interesting with the base shaped like a puddle. But do keep certain distance from your audience when performing because the puddle is not real. Note my warning.

I bet you’ll  love the perfect concept behind the Bottoms Up Shot Glass: drink up, drunk down. Simply flip the glass over, you’ll find the word ‘drink’ change into another word ‘drunk’. The magic glass is mainly based on a calligraphic design—ambigram, which makes one word to be read as more words from different angles.

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Since every year over 87,000 fights in Britain are caused by drinking, the local designers have been committed to developing a new range of glasses that are more difficult to smash. At present, two prototypes have been finished: the Twin Wall and the Glass Plus. Announced by their creator DesignBridge, the first prototype is inspired by car windscreens and is made by using resin to stick two thin walled glasses together. As for the second design, it features a thin film of bio-resin coated inside the glass. Experiments showed that neither of the two kinds of glasses will be broken into sharp fragments when dropped onto the floor. Therefore, they will reduce the injuries caused by bar fights.

Designer: DesignBridge

The Twin Wall will be on the market in about one year’ time, DesignBridge says, but the Glass Plus still needs to be further studied.

What you’ve seen in the picture is not water, but Liquid Glass designed by the German company Nanopool. Anything will be kept away from bacteria and dirt if they’re covered with merely a 1000th-of-an-inch-thick layer of the stuff. Even better is that the Liquid Glass is also waterproof and resists UV rays. You’ll find the clothes and shoes are much easier to clean if they’re sprayed with Liquid Glass. The Liquid Glass also works as good as the bleaching cream, if you use hot water to clean those items. Best of all, the stuff is totally eco-friendly and results no harm to the environment.

【Nanopool】

The Center for Architecture Science and Ecology (CASE) has finally developed the stylish solar power glass after lengthy years of research. The system is constructed of rows of pyramid-shaped glass receptors, which will change their directions all the time to keep track of the sunlight. All the energy is stored in a small photovoltaic cell built in the center of each pyramid. The transparent design not only makes the system eye-pleasing and attractive, but means light could pass through the system more effectively for energy storage.

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Nothing is special about the milk box except that it is a transparent one made from glass. But if you have a look at the picture again, you’ll then feel the strong visual impact it results. After all, using transparent box to contain white milk will absolutely make the milk seem much purer. We love the Transparent Milk Boxes just because we love the free feeling it brings to us.

Almost every kid loves to blow bubbles a lot, e.g. by blowing onto a film of soapy water. We still miss that game a lot when we grow up, and the designer has thought of a new way to play the same game: to blow glass bubbles into a transparent coffee table. It looks really amazing but also fragile. Anyhow, it is the idea rather than the product itself that amuses us. Hopefully you like it, too.

Change happens all the time and nothing stays the same for long. Maybe that’s also a key principle to designers, and they’ve come up with a unique set of glasses as shown here. Seemingly like two or three glasses are laid on top of each other, it’s actually just one glass. If you’re looking for something creative and distinctive, we’d like to strongly recommend the innovative collection of glasses and bowls to you.

I’ve said the bottle and cup are made of glass? OH MY GOD, I’ve finally been right on this one as I really couldn’t help regarding them as plastic products since the very moment I saw them. So have you been treated by their appearance, too?

Selling Price: $34

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The idea behind the ordinary-looking cups will impress you a lot. A full cup of beer, that answer will definitely hit everyone when they see the picture at the first glance, due to its foam-shaped cap and the yellow color. Those who like to play pranks on people are sure to love these beer cups. Cheers!

Selling Price: $25

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Uh…who would ever suppose that the odd item is actually a wineglass? And what is more surprising is that the wine doesn’t spill out at all. You know why? Check the pictures below, and you’ll find that’s due to the equivalent atmospheric pressure inside the left spherical vessel and the glass on the right.

Designer: Kyouei Design

We’ve been used to seeing through the windows from time to time, because in that way, we could learn clearly what is happening outside. And maybe that’s why windows are made of translucent glass. But this piece of glass not only tells us what is happening outside, but also what will happen in the future. Powered by solar energy, the cute gadget will show you any needed information when it is wirelessly connected to your computer. So next time you need weather reports, dates and flight information, check them out on your windows.

Designer: Kenny Hopper

Don’t take these colorful dots merely as decorations, what they really do would astonish you a lot. You don’t think so? Well, pour in some beverage into, and see what it will do…Look out! Some words gradually appear among the dots, in the same color as the drink. In that way, white words for milk, yellow for orange, brown for coca cola, then, what is for water?

It works in a way like this: those seemingly irregularly-place dots are designedly arranged. So if the liquid you pour into it matches any kind of the pre-determined acceptable liquids, the colorful dots will go transparent, and certain words will then appear.

Designer: Damjan Stanković

Wanna to keep the world under your feet? Hey, that sounds crazy, huh? But I’m not kidding. Follow me to the Sears Tower’s new glass balconies on the 103^rd floor, and you will find…wow, the first step is really hard, as you’ll be floating over Chicago! Almost everything there is made of glass, look, transparent walls, floor and ceilings. Of course you needn’t worry about your safety, because the floor measures 3.8cm, and therefore supports a weight of up to 5t. So next time try something exciting, go to Chicago!

Who says sunglasses merely defend sunlight? The Japanese Self-Defense Force Sunglasses argued that, they still defend 6.55mm-diameter objects at a speed of 171km/h as well as a 500g shaft of iron dropped from 1.27m…wow, cool! What? Do they withstand a speeding bullet? Oh, man, that only happens in the advertisements.

Selling Price: $317

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People nowadays have been keen on personalization and they would make use of almost everything to create a distinctive personal belonging. For example, having your white shoes color-painted, or sticking markers to your cups. And here is a new option, the Vacu Vin Glass Markers! Available in various colors and shapes, the cute collection of glass markers would make an ordinary cup striking and attracting. So which is your favorite?

Selling Price: $ 7

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Designer Agnieszka Bar has recently come up with a range of bottles with collapsed bases, which are known for distorted forms. The bottles are all hand-made from glass. When filled with liquids like water, olive oil and vinegar, they look really beautiful and elegant. Just awesome!

Designer: Agnieszka Bar

What do you think these flattened glass bottles are used for? Obviously they couldn’t serve to pack beverage, huh? In fact, they’re pieces of tableware that can be used as either cup pads or small dishes. How clever it is to reuse the discarded glass bottles and I really love them!

What’s this?

It seems kinda like an embroidered pillow, simple but exquisite. Actually it’s Dagmar Pánková’s handmade glass pillow bowl that is produced in a special process. Isn’t it both the most comfortable glass pillow and the most elegant dish you’ve ever seen? Just get it now.

Designer: Dagmar Pánková
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Well, in fact, you may go with some difficulty to find out that the vase is actually a water glass if you don’t pay much attention to it. You merely need to place the shapely metal over a table edge, put a water glass behind it and you then get a visually unique vase.

Price: $10
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Are you a night owl that always works late with your computers? Have you ever felt that your eyes are no longer fine as before? If you choose “yes” to both questions, you are just the one our Wink Glasses designed for. It is more than a USB peripheral clipped to a computer, because it can fog up your shades to remind you of a snap whenever your wearer doesn’t blink every five seconds.

Made in the shape of an ox horn, the porcelain wineglass cannot stand on table unless it is place in a special base. If you’re served wine in such a delicate glass, won’t you feel like more vintage wine? It’s certainly yes. So why not get it and have a cozy time with your family?

Life is all about choices, and the OLED DIY wall decoration now provides you with a new one. As it allows you to paint on the decoration glass freely, you can redesign it whenever you’re tired of the existing one. What makes the wall decoration unique may lie in its different appearances during the day, which looks hyaline in the daytime and turns to be colorized glass when it is charged in the night.

Designer: Shane Crozier

PS: OLED (Organic Light Emitting Display), which is called “dreamlike display”, is a new type of cell phone LCD and it shows some difference with the traditional LCD in display mode. On one hand, it makes use of the thin organic materials and glass coatings instead of backlights, so the organic materials will shine as the current passes by. On the other hand, the OLED display screen can be made miniature with a much bigger visual angle and saves up more electricity.

If you’ve been tired of the traditional wine glasses, why not try the latest apple glasses? Carve a hole in apples, pour into some wine, and now you can enjoy a genuine and original apple wine. Isn’t it the drinking way that is closest to nature?

If you like beer, I bet you gotta like this interesting thing. It seems like a glass of beer which can pick up your appetite. But you may disappoint, because it is actually an empty glass with beer pattern printed on it. What’s more the cap is also in the shape of overflowing foam.

Price: $25
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Ironing is a process to make your clothing smoother. Because of lacking direct visual contact with the part of the clothing that is being ironed, your clothing may not be ironed smooth. The soleplate of this so-called B-IRON is made of tempered glass and so you can see through it.

Designer: Lee Dongseok & Jung Jihyung

Fish tanks are usually made from transparent material, glass is an example, and so it is a good innovative element which could be integrate into other furniture. The Moody Aquarium Sink comes with a sand bed and built-in lighting and filtration to keep your fish happy and healthy. Absolutely, you will happy and healthy too.

Price: $4700

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Juice is sure popular, but if you get a cup with the pattern like this, I mean, it seems like a cup of pee. You still like this cup of juice?