YOUR PLACE FROM TEA KETTLES TO TOILET BRUSHES ARCHITECT-DESIGNER MICHAEL GRAVES' HOUSEWARES ARE RIGHT ON TARGET.Architect Michael Graves is known for his romantic buildings, but he's famous for the Target toilet bowl brush. The 66-year-old Princeton architecture professor has a place card at the head table in the pantheon of contemporary architects. He can sit on the dais with Richard Meier and Frank O. Gehry. More than likely, though, he's down in the basement, tinkering with the toaster See intranet toaster and Video Toaster. (jargon) toaster - 1. The archetypal really stupid application for an embedded microprocessor controller; often used in comments that imply that a scheme is inappropriate technology (but see elevator controller). . A year ago, Graves began his fusillade of redesigned housewares house·wares pl.n. Cooking utensils, dishes, and other small articles used in a household, especially in the kitchen. for Target. Originally there were to be 200 items in the Graves line of spatulas, outdoor furniture, clocks and picture frames. Now, that number has swelled to 500. His outdoor tables and chairs are square and solid, similar to the antique Biedermeiers that he collects - ``except my pieces are comfortable,'' he says. His appliances, though, are quite whimsical. The toaster with its Quonset hut form and little egg-shaped handles looks like an animated creature that could, at any moment, dance across the counter. Graves can be both serious and playful. He doesn't see the difference between designing a tea kettle or a city hall: ``It's the same energy,'' he says. ``When I first began, people would ask me, 'Why design a toilet bowl brush?' and I figured if I needed one, at least 17 other people did, too.'' He went into the Target design project with high expectations. He walked through a Target store in New Jersey and began placing little Post-it Notes on all the products he thought he could design better. After more than 200 Post-it Notes had been applied, he was given the green light. Before he drafted the first redesign, he wanted to know what were considered success stories. ``I wanted to know what was a home run. If there are 1,000 Target stores, and I sold one widget Pronounced "wih-jit," for decades, the term has been a popular word for a generic "thing" when there is no real name for it. It is often used to describe examples of made-up products along with other fictitious names; for example, "10 widgets, 5 frabbits and 2 dingits. , per store, per day, would that be a home run?'' He was told, ``If you sold one per day, you'd soon own the company. One per week, per store, would be good.'' Graves inserts a dramatic pause. ``They sell 5,000 of my toilet bowl brushes a week.'' Graves' architecture and planning business has not suffered the taint taint an unpleasant odor and flavor in a human foodstuff of animal origin. Caused by the ingestion of the substance, commonly a plant such as Hexham scent, or while in storage, e.g. milk stored with pineapples, or as a result of animal metabolism, e.g. boar taint. of Target. Currently, his company is doing four hotels in Egypt, four houses for the children of Arab sheiks, ``a whole corner in Belfast,'' a retail complex in Portugal, athlete housing for the 2004 Olympics in Athens and the U.S. Embassy in Seoul. With this kind of success, it is easy to imagine Graves at the Target controls, going mano a mano ma·no a ma·no n. pl. ma·nos a ma·nos 1. A bullfight in which two rival matadors take turns fighting several bulls each. 2. with Martha Stewart at the helm of Kmart. Although it is difficult to imagine Martha actually shopping at Kmart, Graves says he shops at Target regularly. ``In San Francisco, it was $7 for hotel laundry, and I knew it cost $3.50 for new underwear at Target. I went to Target.'' - Knight Ridder Newspapers CONTEST WIN A MAKE-OVER: As you're contemplating your New Year's resolutions over a cup of coffee, drink in the ambience - and then write about it. Whether it's a cozy little breakfast nook, the sun porch hammock hammock, suspended bed, usually of netting, canvas, or leather. The hammock and its name were introduced to Europeans by Christopher Columbus, who learned of them from Native Americans. or living room easy chair, the Coffee-mate coffee creamer company wants to know. Here's the deal. In 200 words or less, write a short description of your favorite coffee-drinking spot in the home and why you'd like to win a decorating make-over to enhance that room. Coffee-mate will be choosing the most original and enthusiastic entries and turning the decorating projects over to Linens 'N Things Linens 'n Things, Inc., headquartered in Clifton, New Jersey, is the second-largest large-format retailers of home textiles, housewares and decorative home accessories in the United States, behind Bed Bath & Beyond. . The grand prize winner receives a $10,000 gift certificate, plus a personal consultation, a coffeemaker cof·fee·mak·er also coffee maker n. An apparatus used to brew coffee. and a trip to New York City New York City: see New York, city. New York City City (pop., 2000: 8,008,278), southeastern New York, at the mouth of the Hudson River. The largest city in the U.S. , with numerous prizes for runners-up. Deadline is March 15. For contest rules visit www.coffee-mate.com, or send a self-addressed stamped envelope A self-addressed stamped envelope (SASE), or just stamped addressed envelope (SAE) in the UK, is often just that: an envelope with the sender's name and address on it, with affixed paid postage and mailed to a company or private individual. by March 1 to Publicis Dialog, attention ``Redecorate re·dec·o·rate v. re·dec·o·rat·ed, re·dec·o·rat·ing, re·dec·o·rates v.tr. To change the appearance or furnishings of; refurbish. v.intr. To change a decorative scheme. With Coffee-mate'' contest rules, P.O. Box 809014, Dallas, Texas 75380. - Barbara De Witt INDULGENCES MMMM MMMM Marvin's Marvelous Mechanical Museum (band) , WARM TOWELS: You don't have to live in cold climes to appreciate a warm towel. Warmrails Heated Towel Racks keep towels warm and dry. They plug into a wall socket and use about as much electricity as a low-watt light bulb. An electrical element running through the length of the rack keeps it consistently warm - not hot - to the touch. It can be used as a drying rack as well as a towel warmer. Warmrails come in a variety of sizes and styles, in both free-standing and wall-mounted models. They range in price from about $115 to $175, including shipping and handling. For more information or to order, call toll-free (877) 927-6724 or go to warmrails.com. - Wire Services CAPTION(S): 3 photos |
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