If you had to make a list of the five greatest inventions ever, you can rest assured that somewhere in the top five, cushions would make a surprise appearance. They may not be as important to civilization as the wheel or the shoehorn, but they’re up there. Luckily, for other folks who realize the importance of cushions, there’s Emma Jay Designs. Founded by ex-performer Emma Goody out of frustration with the lifestyle of an entertainer and “a lust for texture, a respect for simplicity and an affinity for interiors,” the Melbourne, Australia-based home furnishings brand has an astonishingly wide variety of designs on all things comforting. At their website you can view and order from a seemingly endless array of prints and textures for products such as floor cushions, scatter cushions, bean bags, and wall panels that would be at home in any abode. If we’re comforted just looking at all of these soft items, imagine how comfortable you’ll be owning them.

In the days of yore, the tree of knowledge was located in the very remote Garden of Eden and the worst things around were a snake and an apple. These days we have a new tree of knowledge called the Internet, with an infinite number of branches housing an equal amount of sordid temptation and earthly delights digitally encoded for our viewing pleasure or penchant for debauchery. It's this ever-expanding tree of information which serves as the inspiration behind Dutch designer Nienke Sybrandy's ASCII Code Curtains. Her unique curtain design utilizes the common language representing text in both computers and other communication equipment to create a super sweet geek chic rendering of the new tree from which all knowledge is shared.

Via Freshome

A while back we told you about the eco-friendly bedding designers at Amenity, who turn bedrooms into green rooms by making bedding from only organic and sustainable materials like hemp and organic cotton. Formed by longtime friends Kristina de Corpo and Nicole Chiala to provide an air of the rural tranquility of their youths to their urban adult environs, Amenity specializes in creating “monochromatic toned large-scale botanical silhouettes” that seem to please both the male and female aesthetic sensibilities. Luckily for those of us who are in need of bedding and having our aesthetic sensibilities appealed to, Amenity has a new line of nature-inspired bedspreads linens and pillows for Spring ‘08 that are sure to make you feel close to the Mother Nature while being nice to her at the same time.

There are times where I really have to restrain myself in the soft furnishing acquisition department (like the week after I get paid, but before I pay rent) but I don’t know if I’ll be able to after coming across Swigg, Stephanie Wenzel’s Brooklyn-based company which specializes in graphic design, pillow production, furniture collaborations and all-around goodness. From her fun vinyl Swigg Stars to her one-of-a-kind Land of Moria collection, Stephanie’s creations conjure whimsical childhood visions without being overly girlie or cutesy while being totally fun — meaning they’re safe, perhaps even admirable, for masculine-type purchasing. Now, all I need to do is explain to my landlord why my rent may be late this month…

This type of green design blows my mind. Online design mag de zeen has a story about designer Greetje van Tiem who has managed to created usable yarn created from newspapers. And better still, Tiem has managed to get 20 meters per PAGE out of the substance!

The article has pictures demonstrating the yarn used to make floor mats, hanging drapes, and even what appears to be a stool. And, if you look closely, you can still pick up bits and pieces of information and color from the original page, creating an odd mosaic of colors and whites. She calls the project “Indruk”, but unfortunately I can’t read her portfolio page to share more information.

It certainly has a unique look that I could see fitting in very well in some of the more modern homes that have cropped up lately, and, of course, it would make the perfect addition to a green home. Hopefully its use will take off!

Why is it that only children’s bedding gets to be fun and playful? After all, don’t adults do more “playing” in bed than kids do? And yet, it’s still massively difficult to find fun bedding with something, other than superheroes or race cars adorning the spread. Or it was until now. Australia-based No One You Know has created a remedy for that with their light-hearted approach to declaring a bed-mate.

Their stark white quilts feature the symbols for men and women (think restroom signs, not the weird circle/arrow deals) side by side. Or, if it’s more your style, you can opt for two of the same. Either way, No One You Know has finally come up with a stylish, yet humorous take on bedroom decorations for those of us who are bored with solids and stripes. Have a look at their robes and tees as well, especially if you’re looking to make a “special announcement” without having to send out little pink and blue cards to your friends.

So much for hiding your cables: Britta Böhne’s Cable Carpet integrates them into a plush white pile to display them prominently on your floor, saving you not only from pitching face first over those pesky whatever-gaming-device-makes-you-gooey-this-week cords, but also from silent ridicule of your generic-slash-ugly-Ikea-rug from people who are both design snobs and also mean. Like me.

via GeekSugar

My inability to motivate myself out of bed this morning had nothing to do with the sinus infection I’ve been battling for the last week, the presence of some Adonis-like character (or any man, for that matter) there with me or even just pure and utter exhaustion; it had everything to do with my brand new set of Legna linens. My interest was initially piqued with the line because of the use of Lyocell — a cellulose fibre derived from wood pulp, noted for its sustainable and green qualities — but I was absolutely blown away after feeling the sheets and chancing upon such thoughtful details as subtly embroidered buttons at the pillowcase closures. Generally, I’m a die-hard high-TC cotton linen person, but now that I’ve discovered the buttery, silky goodness of Legna, I doubt I’ll go back. Same thing goes for the towels, which along with being oversized enough to fit almost two people (not that you’d want to, though), are super-absorbant, ultra fluffy and feature gorgeous rounded corners, which lends fantastic draping qualities and look just as good hanging off the back of your bathroom door as they do covering up your nakedness. SDH offers a myriad of other lines, including several for babies and children, and judging by the quality and workmanship of Legna alone, they’re definitely worth checking out. you can find a store locator on their site here, and my fellow NYCers can peep SDH’s goods at Gracious Home and ACB Carpet and Home. Who’d've thought such luxury could come from something as humble as wood pulp?

Now that I’m finally settling into my digs here in Sao Paulo, I’ve been looking around for pieces to spruce up my place and unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on your point of view), there’s no IKEA here to help. But this past weekend while attending ResFest I discovered ALGO and already am making plans on where in my apartment I can put their gorgeous decorative pillows. Members the ALGO collective (who count fashion, photography and animation among their interests) silk-screen leftover fabric with quirky graphics such as lobsters over unique abstract patterns. The result is an irreverent, colorful take on home decor as well as great conversation pieces for a housewarming party — and they probably look great when used as weapons in a pillow fight, too!

The throw pillows come in four sizes, from a round tube ($25) to square at 20 x 20 inches ($50). Since the project is so new, the pillows are only available by e-mailing them or in person at bazaars held at ALGO member Michael Arms. ALGO will soon be expanding their line to include sleeping masks and pillow cases.

We’re big fans of these one-of-a-kind multiple-use holiday cards crafted from real wood veneer by Thing Farm. The front of the card has a removable ornament, and while we only know Christmas day as the best day to travel besides Easter, we still think this is pretty nifty. Like snowflakes, no two cards are alike– and they’re only $6.00. Don’t get caught giving Hallmark cards this year! Via Grassroots Modern

Marimekko is a Finnish company that produces clothing, bags and interior textile products with notably striking, large scale, graphic prints. Founded by Armi Ratia and her husband Viljo back in 1951, they fulfilled their dream with a simple strategy: Hire young designers to adorn their textiles with compelling graphics. Jacqueline Kennedy brought them into the mainstream consciousness of America when she wore their dresses back in the 60s. Big in the 60s and 70s, Marimekko is making a serious comeback now, opening stores across the globe. The good news is they still retain much of the same look as before, with its magnified prints and patterns aptly applied for today. Looking for something a little unusual with a Finnish twist? Some of the retro style textile patterns are just incredible. Check them out!

Stockholm raised and now San Francisco dwelling Lotta Jansdotter has some great work. She has done custom design work for Herman Miller in Chicago, Barney’s in Tokyo, and more. She has a lot of very simple and clean screen printing on textiles and designs on ceramics. Her designs are simple yet most are fun and effective.

Brilliant textile design work by Dutch Textile Design. Coating, relief printing, embossing, needle punching, laster cutting, ultrasonic welding (that sounds damn cool), pleating, and host of other fascinating procedures lead to some very impressive textile works like the ones shown. Three independent studios all based in the Netherlands present there works on the site; for interior textiles, wall coverings, automotive textiles, and the occasional fashion, paper, ceramic, or plastics. Needless to say they’re all enormously talented individuals.

Got Crypton?

Crypton Fabric call their products Super Fabric , claiming their fabric is the only fabric that is stain, moisture, odor and bacteria resistant. Sounds scary, is it soft, or did they give up on comfort in exchange for a sterile enviorment—sounds like they created a vacuum to me. A majority of the patterns are pretty bland, but the idea is good and it looks like they might have nailed the technology. They even offer Luxury “Velvet” they call Velese. Maybe they should team up with a textile designer like Maharam, or someone to get some good patterns going on. I'd like a Crypton Paul Smith Bespoke Stripe couch please.