Gizmodo Australia » umbrellas

Toothpick Umbrella Lamp Makes Use Of Girly Drink Accessories

Rosa Golijan — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 04:30:00 +0000

I wonder if reader Jacob Burghart and Scott Jarvie are drinking buddies, because they each needed about a thousand frilly drinks to get the materials needed for their projects. Regardless, Jacob’s lamp design is beautiful in idea and execution.

This lamp, made for a sculpture class, features over 1000 toothpick umbrellas moulded in a really cool architectural fashion. It’s inarguably the coolest use of Mai Tai accessories we’ve ever posted, so congrats for winning that one. [Thanks, Jacob!]

Shoulderbrella: Because Holding Your Umbrella Is Haaaarrrd

Mark Wilson — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 15:00:00 +0000

Just when you begin to consider the world a cold place where ingenuity couldn’t exist without a touchscreen, a Japanese inventor busts out the Shoulderbrella.

Adhering to the end of any stock umbrella, the $US25 Shoulderbrella is a flexible, pipe-cleaner-like accessory that wraps around your body to hold your umbrella for you while leaving your two hands free for lugging groceries, holding the hands of children or starting bare-knuckle street fights with those other umbrella jerks who are always poking you in the face. The tables have turned, haven’t they Mr. Anatopistic Golf Umbrella? [Shoulderbrella via RedFerret]

Powerbrella to Bridge the Gap Between Nerds and Sunlight

Dan Nosowitz — Wed, 27 May 2009 04:50:00 +0000

Now that it’s summer, us cold-weather-city types want to spend every possible waking moment outdoors. But that separation from technology is sometimes just too hard to bear, which is where the Powerbrella comes in. Its solar panels keep your gadgets charged and ready to go.

The recyclable Powerbrella features solar panels on the top of the umbrella and outlets on the bottom to gather that beautiful sun and use it to power your gear. We’re not really sure how much juice it could really provide, but it should definitely be enough to power, say, an iPod speaker dock. It’s a great idea and one we’d totally use. [via Treehugger]

Shuellas Are Umbrellas For Your Shoes. No, Us Neither

Nick Broughall — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 03:55:45 +0000

From the “So crazy it just might work!” file comes the Shuella, an umbrella for your shoes. Or, more accurately, a raincoat that covers your shoes and legs. Crazy!Obviously targetted at the finer sex, the Shuella promises: “to be easy to put on and take off over your favourite footwear”. They’re specifically designed to handle high heels, with reinforced PVC soles and a slip free base to prevent injuries. Each pair comes with a carry pouch and towel, and they’re available in hot pink or black.

How much would you expect to pay for such a wondrous technological advancement? If you answered $79.95, you’d be spot on. And while you and I would probably prefer to spend that $80 on, let’s say a pair of shoes, your better half might find these irresistible.

[Latestbuy]

Cloud Umbrella Leaves You High and Dry, And By ‘Dry’ I Mean ‘Wet’

Sean Fallon — Mon, 09 Mar 2009 19:40:00 +0000

Kudos to Dutch designer Joonsoo Kim for attempting to give the plain old umbrella a whimsical cumulus makeover. Unfortunately, I think there might be some problems with the concept.

I would expect the rain to collect in the channels and roll underneath the umbrella—soaking the user in the process. Perhaps a mountain umbrella with cloud cover would prove more practical. [Don't Stop Design via DVICE]

Samurai Sword Umbrella: Fight the Rain With Honour

Sean Fallon — Fri, 06 Feb 2009 17:20:00 +0000

Whip out your samurai sword umbrella and do battle with Mother Nature. Should you be defeated, the only honourable way out is seppuku—although that would be especially nasty with an umbrella. [ThinkGeek via Uberreview]

The Umbrella Corporation Umbrella

Mark Wilson — Thu, 15 Jan 2009 16:40:00 +0000

With your run-of-the-mill umbrella, you’re ready for a rainy day. With the $US15 official Umbrella Corporation umbrella, you’re ready for, well, sleet at minimum. [ThinkGeek via Kotaku]

Umbuster Brass Knuckle Umbrella Now For Sale

Sean Fallon — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 18:45:00 +0000

The internet design concept phenomenon known as the Umbuster has finally jumped out of that nightmare you have about an old man beating you to a pulp in the street into cold, hard reality. That’s right—you can start using this knuckle-dusting umbrella to bust up rainclouds and jawbones right now for the equivalent of $US287 (assuming that it is legal to own in your area that is). [Srulirecht]

Japanese Umbrella Is One Huge Speaker

Jesus Diaz — Thu, 06 Nov 2008 14:00:00 +0000

Japanese researchers in Japan have developed a clever way to turn an entire umbrella into one giant speaker. Made of bamboo and paper, the Oto-Shigure uses a built-in amplifier connected to four tiny vibrating motors located on the tips of the umbrella. And before you imagine the streets of Tokyo turned into one giant cacophony of sounds, the cool thing about this invention is that the music can’t be heard by anyone except the person under the umbrella:

As you can see in the graphic, its design produces a three-dimensional sound bubble in the area right in the centre of the Oto-Shigure. The inventors, Yusuke Kamiyama and Mai Tanaka, are now showing the prototype and, if there’s enough interest, they plan to sell it for just $US100. [Pink Tentacle]

Rain Wipe is Slick Solution For Wet Umbrellas

Gizmodo US Edition — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 02:00:00 +0000

Leave it to the Japanese to come up with an environmentally friendly solution to drying wet umbrellas. The new “Rain Wipe” from Annon removes rainwater using a squeegee-like device to pull water from the umbrella into a collecting tray. The tray would only need replacement after about 3000 umbrellas have been squeezed through. It generates less trash than using those plastic umbrella baggies and uses less energy than umbrella blow dryers. Ingenious! [Dvice]