Dock Tray is a minimalist design created by Belgium-based designer Alain Berteau for Objekten. The design was presented at this year’s International Contemporary Furniture Fair in New York City. Objekten displayed its newest and greatest designs including this multifunctional accessory made for the iPad. Objekten produces its products in Europe, and is designed by well-known industrial designers such as Lehanneur, Willenz, and Berteau.

The focus on Objekten is to utilize quality materials while being aware of the shipping and manufacturing processes. With that said, Dock Tray is constructed of varnished natural oak or dark stained oak sourced directly from harvested forests in Germany. The multifunctional aspect of the design is unique in that an iPad, or similar digital device, can be propped upward by the indented crevices on all four sides, or also laid flat and flush with the border of the tray.

The iPad can be propped either vertically or horizontally, depending on which side of the tray is being used. The designer has also allotted additional storage in the middle of the tray to allow users to place phones, wallets, and other small accessories. As an advocate of minimalism, I truly love how simple yet functional a design such as this can be.

Knock Knock is a playful calculator made for children by designer Khalil Klouche. The interactive wooden box lets you “knock” out math problems by using the standard arithmetic symbols displayed on the device. Using an Arduino board, contact microphones, and solenoids, you “knock” the math problem and it sounds the answer back to you.

Watch how:

For example, say you want to subtract two from a number, you knock the ‘minus’ symbol two times and it will then give you the answer in a knocking sound.

Lenovo teamed up with three design teams to create collaborative table stations for their IdeaCentre Horizon Table PC. The idea was that because their high-concept PC created a real-life togetherness and technology, that it would be fun to fuse form and function to showcase the possibilities and use of this type of computer.

IdeaCentre Horizon Table PC

The Treehouse (also top photo)
Designed by Judson Beaumont of Straight Line Designs, Treehouse creates a magical world of whimsy to bring children and people of all ages together.

The Nest
Input Creative Studio designers Brooke Lichtenstein and Yiannos Vrousgos blend a modern take on the nesting table idea with the Lenovo Horizon, redefining family game night.

AT-UM
UM Project designer François Chambard wanted to give people a central hub to power their creation engine with a digital twist.

I can imagine a lot of options for a PC like this, especially when it comes to giving work presentations or demonstrations, classroom learning, and creative uses such as art, movie-making or web development. What would you use it for?

Just recently at the Shanghai Auto Show, Mercedes-Benz pulled back the curtains on its slick new GLA concept. Complete with all of the bells and whistles you’d expect from the company, this SUV packs some additional heat.

For starters, it has a turbocharged 4-cylinder engine with 208 horsepower in tow. Inside, though, is where all of the action is. Aesthetically speaking, the sophisticated interiors are filled with contrasting, hand-stitched leather and galvanized aluminum, not to mention the Plexiglas COMAND system and illuminated air vents. Depending on the set temperature the vents change color. Cool or cheesy? I think it’s pretty cool.

Now let’s get down to business. The GLA’s front headlights are comprised of laser-beam projectors. Bringing together function and the ability to project images and videos on any surface, the SUV takes the drive-in theater idea to a whole new level!

Wait, there’s more. The GLA concept has two HD cameras in its front roof rails that can do more than just take 3D images (yes, I said 3D). They can be removed and attached to, say, a bike helmet to document a mountain biking trip.

Here’s hoping we can actually drive one of these someday.

I’ll admit it, I love WordPress. That’s what we use here on Design Milk and that’s what I’ve been using for the past seven years. So when I finally decided that I wanted to launch a personal website, I didn’t even think twice before using WordPress. However, the thing about WordPress is that it’s just a shell, which is great when you’re building a complex site, but not always ideal when you want something simple. You have to customize and add plugins for just about every little thing you want, and some plugins don’t work with this version or this plugin and so on. There are 500 million website templates to choose from but from experience, many of them are not easy enough to customize and most are a CSS nightmare. Plus, you have to upgrade versions every 3 months. I do it all day every day here with Design Milk, and honestly, it’s tiring. The last thing I want to do after dealing with WordPress all day long is spend my entire evening trying to figure out why this plugin isn’t working correctly or where to change that font in the CSS file. All I want was something super duper simple. I want to drag and drop. I want WYSIWYGs for everything. I want built-in galleries and e-commerce. So I emailed Squarespace to help me get set up with an account.

Squarespace has been a great partner to us at Design Milk showcasing how beautiful their templates are and their latest features. So why not put my money where my mouth is and try them out for my own site. My personal website isn’t a blog so much as it’s a portfolio site for my artwork, and what I liked immediately was that there are gallery options built right into every template.

It was really easy to import my WordPress site that I had started a few months ago, but of course there were things I had to manually re-upload since I had been using custom gallery plugins. But by re-upload, I really mean just dragging and dropping: no formatting or inserting necessary.

I find Squarespace very intuitive to use and I haven’t had to look anything up except maybe a few custom CSS items. Because I’m so anal-retentive, I knew that an out-of-the-box solution wouldn’t be 100% perfect for me and that I’d have to tweak a few things. However, the solutions were easy to find and implement. I didn’t have to install any plugins or worry about finding code locations or anything like that. I’m also pretty excited to get started with the Commerce functionality.

I noticed that sometimes, there’s the occasional crash, freeze or loading issue. But that’ll happen with shared hosting anywhere, and overall I can’t say really say too many bad things about it. I’ll let you know more about my experience as time goes on.

Overall, I’m really happy with the way everything turned out and I’m looking forward to people (other than my mom) visiting my site. So go look!

Then, try Squarespace for free for 14 days right here.

Full disclosure: Squarespace provided me with an account gratis, but I would totally have paid for it!

Luxury phone manufacturer Vertu has once again designed a phone that is truly out of this world. The Verti Ti is unlike anything we’ve ever seen before.

This bad boy combines the powerful Android OS with fine engineering and a forward-thinking design. On top of that, each device is handmade by a single craftsman in Hampshire, England. I’d definitely love to get my hands on one of these.

Instead of using common metals or plastics, Vertu chose to go with a polished titanium case (hence the name Ti) that’s extremely durable and strong without the added weight. It also sports the world’s largest crystal sapphire screen ever engineered, and pure black leather accents. Talk about a sexy phone!

Vertu designed the Ti phone in a way that references the company’s luxury roots with an architectural style that shows the bones of the phone. For example, the exposed watch screws and layout of the titanium accents reference Vertu’s one-of-a-kind and futuristic aesthetic.

All in all, who wouldn’t want to put one of these in their pocket? I’m a believer.

If you’ve got the extra change to spend, the phone starts at €7,900.

I don’t know about your but I hate alarm clocks. I hate setting them to get up at ungodly hours. I hate the blaring alarm sounds that won’t stop as you struggle to find your clock on your bedside table and proceed to knock every single thing off it. I hate that super bright light staring at me all night long reminding me how little sleep I’m going to get. Mostly, I just hate how alarm clocks look. Years ago, I switched to using the alarm on my cell phone so when I spotted Victor Johansson’s Tangible Alarm, I woke right up (heh).

The alarm is a simple panel of wood with three notched out sections that serve specific purposes. When you’re ready to go to sleep, plug your phone in with the attached cord, and using Near Field Communication (NFC) technology, the design becomes your new alarm clock.

Place your phone in the middle slot to set the alarm.

Alarm goes off but not ready to get up yet? Slide your phone to the snooze slot.

When you’re finally ready to face the day, place your phone in the off slot.

TV watching has gradually progressed to a full-time hobby for many but over the years the design of the television remains much the same. Sure, the models are no longer gigantic boxes but for the most part, the exterior looks the same – a black or grey, hard plastic viewing shrine we stare at for hours on end. Designer Robert Bronwasser of Smool began to think outside the box (pun intended) with his new concept Homedia, which turns your television into a piece of home decor.

With TV being such a central part in our lives, it’s most definitely a focal point in the room it sits in, so dressing it up should be a given, right?

The rectangular plastic device is no longer a sore thumb when it’s dressed up in colorful fabric and sitting on a set of legs, making it a pivotal piece in your home’s design and not just a necessity for your TV watching.

Maybe after reading that title, some of you are letting out a little squeal of joy. Finally!—Society6 has released Samsung Galaxy S4 cases! For some reason, I was really craving some fresh fruit, so here are some fruity, summery S4 cases for those of you rocking a Samsung:

Above: Pineapple Pattern by Georgiana Paraschiv

Banana print by Strange Fruit

sunset fruit. by Sara Eshak

Colorful Fruit Cartoon Characters by Little Smilemakers Studio

In an ongoing effort to support independent artists from around the world, Design Milk is proud to partner with Society6 to offer The Design Milk Dairy, a special collection of Society6 artists’ work curated by Design Milk and our readers. Proceeds from the The Design Milk Dairy help us bring Design Milk to you every day.

I was so excited when Chris Piascik agreed to illustrate a quote for our Designer Desktop series in his signature hand-drawn lettering. He chose “Art is never finished, only abandoned” – a quote attributed to Leonardo Da Vinci.

Click on the size below to download:

1024×768 \\\ 1280×1024 \\\ 1680×1050 \\\ 1900×1200 \\\ 2560×1440

BONUS: iPhone 5 \\\ iPad

View and download past Designer Desktops here.

Inspired by the highly stylized, science fiction film Blade Runner, POD Design’s principal Brooks Atwood (remember the NJIT professor who jumps on a trampoline? Yeah, him.) designed a futuristic neon desk lamp called Tetra Light.

The geometric fixture shines a bright, daylight-inspired glow that’s set with a dimmer to allow you to adjust for any mood.

The design, made much the same way as a neon wall light would be, pushes the limits of glass bending by incorporating three bends in the fixture.

I love how all extraneous materials are removed from the light and it’s just the simple tube.

Last week we shared some beautiful abstract pillows and this week we’re taking it to the tech. Plus, get free shipping worldwide on Society6 through Sunday 4/28*.

Above: City Lights by Georgiana Paraschiv

The Letter G by C86 | Matt Lyon

Kick of Freshness by Fimbis

Over Mountains by Efi Tolia

*excludes framed art prints, stretched canvases and throw pillows with insert

In an ongoing effort to support independent artists from around the world, Design Milk is proud to partner with Society6 to offer The Design Milk Dairy, a special collection of Society6 artists’ work curated by Design Milk and our readers. Proceeds from the The Design Milk Dairy help us bring Design Milk to you every day.