When sitting closed on a table the Firebo-x from Schulte looks like an elegant, yet otherwise ordinary, wooden box. Only the box’s metal base hints at what lays within: a miniature fireplace.

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We remember humidifiers from our childhood as those bulky, loud, ugly things over in the corner. There was perhaps no household appliance more in need of a design makeover. And there is perhaps no designer more up to the task than Naoto Fukasawa, a designer with over 40 awards whose work is widely credited with inspiring the best of Apple’s designs. So now your children can have as their humidifier a piece of elegant artwork on a self or bedside table. The Fukasawa Humidifier runs extremely quietly and has the option of adding aromas to the water vapor. It is sold almost exclusively in Japan, but thanks to the folks at the Japan Trend Shop it is available in Europe and North America too. US$319

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There are lots of sofas beds these days that look okay, but most have that damned bar that cuts up into your back when you try to sleep on them. The Book bed from Italian designer Flou does not transform between sofa and bed via the traditional fold out model. Instead, the seat part of the sofa is comprised of three sturdy mini-mattresses. When it is time to sleep on the sofa, wheel out the base, unpile the small mattresses and arrange them in bed form. The Book sofa comes in a variety of styles, including one with retro arm rests (above) and adjustable head-board (below, after the jump).

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Spot Cool Stuff loves to find well-designed versions of products that typically aren’t. Our latest find has a first name: Henry. This air purifier from Swiss designer Matti Walker caught our eye for it’s bold elongated teardrop look. Happily there’s exquisite function to match the form—the Henry purifies air through a highly effective five-stage process that includes a plasma generator, UV light treatment and a blast of cleansing negative ions. There’s also a fragrance holder.

The Henry can purifies air for a room that’s up to 250 square feet. And add style to a room that’s much larger than that.

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There are two cool things about the wallpaper from Dutch designer Jonas Samson:

First, when it is turned off it looks like normal wallpaper — stylish and sophisticated, with flowing floral patterns, but otherwise normal.

Second, this is the sort of wallpaper you can predicate with the phrase “when it is turned off.” When it is turned on light appears from behind the wallpaper as if by magic. The sensation it gives to a room is truly transforming. See more photos below:

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One piece going on display at Artists Space in New York City this month especially caught our eye. Local River is more than a flowerpot-and-aquarium-in-one. It is a symbiotic system: the fish feed off the plants, and the plants drink the water nutrient-rich with fish waste, which in turns purifies the water for the fish. Designers Mathieu Lehanneur and Anthony van den Bossche were inspired by the Locavores movement that encourages locally sustainable lifestyles. We like that Local River eliminates the need for us to feed the fish or clean the fish tank. Catch it at Artists Space from 25 April to 21 June 2008.

LEARN MORE: Mathieu Lehanneur | Artists Space

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