ID's Best of 2009

Before I move on to the New Year, I thought I'd do a little recapping of the fabulous world of design and the companies that broke new ground with their products. In honor of their work, they were rewarded with the Interior Design 2009 Best of Year award. Here are just a few of the amazing products that came to be in the last year - and many of them are not just innovative in their designs, but also in their corporate practices, creating beautiful AND eco-conscious products.



Ranging in categories, the ID Product Design awards are basically in recognition of exemplary design and innovation. I've displayed a bunch of images below of the wonderful products that were honored with this award, in no particular order. For the complete list of items that were awarded during the December ceremony at the Guggenheim, visit Interior Design's website.

Check out this totally incredible lounge from Royal Botania made from steel and perforated fabric. Looks damn good right about now...

Maya Romanoff is probably one of my favorite wall covering companies, and for good reason. Not only is their product award winning (i.e. their Meditations collection won for 2009's ID awards), but they're truly beautiful, interesting, and imaginative - not your boring old florals. What's more, many of their products are environmentally friendly, using recycled and/or non-toxic content, reducing waste and wastewater. The Meditations wallcovering is made from Lotka fiber, a rapidly renewable resource, and is made with low VOC adhesives.

Sina Pearson Textiles is another company that is not only recognized for its outstanding designs, but their effort to be sustainable in everything they do. Forward-thinking and bold is reflected in their actions AND their designs - I love the colors and strong lines of the collections below.

And what about this totally funky Kelp fabric by Bart Halpern? Definitely a new way of looking at fabrics!

The Kitchen is probably one of those places that to me embody the concept of design innovation - from the look and shape of the faucet and sink, to how the water actually comes out of them. Dornbracht, recognized for its Tara Faucet below, is a favorite of mine for its clean and classic look. And in the image next to it is an uber sleek sink from Blanco - to me the epitome of modern with its angled sink and micro-edge.

And for those of you who like filtered water but can't put in an integrated system, how about this adorable table top option from Aquaovo, the OvoPur eco-friendly water filter? Super cute!

So I happen to greatly dislike most contract carpeting - for some reason, nothing ruins the design of a hotel or corporate space for me more than bad carpeting. Luckily, companies, both residential and commercial, are finding a whole new way to make a statement underfoot. The first image is of a very cool and very versatile carpet-tile system, allowing you to pick and choose the pieces and in turn, the design of your flooring. And who but the company that's been doing this for decades should be awarded in 2009? Tandus' Landscape collection of modular carpeting is stylish and sustainable, made with their specialized eco-friendly backing and recycled content.

And for the residential uses, Designtex, in collaboration with Arzu rugs, have developed these beautiful, unique, and natural and hand made rugs - and with names like Humanity, Unity and Prosperity, who wouldn't want one?

And what about non-carpet? Well, Bolon took the award for that one with their very funky Twilight (and no, it's not named that because of the vampire series) vinyl flooring. I'm not sure if this product line is green itself, but the company is ISO 14001 certified and they have worked to develop 'Green Vinyl.' And for those who want a bit more of the soft and subtle, Shaw Carpets were awarded for their Couture collection carpeting.

So probably my favorite group of items awarded were the furniture category, featuring the sleek and beautifully crafted rocker from Thos. Moser, the low-profile and chic Visualizm AV Unit by IZM, the uber fabulous Bernhardt Design Atlantic Chair (Greenguard certified so you don't have to worry that it's emitting toxins into the air), and the Altura Duette table with solid Oregon Walnut plank tops, creating the organic edge and high style. What can I say, they're all fantastic!

This last one that I'm going to write about really peaked my interest mainly because of the company name - Big Ass Fans. And they ain't kidding. This baby is huge. And energy efficient. And, it's not ugly - who knew that was possible?!

And a few more images just for fun!