The Wallpaper* 150

Wallpaper* has announced the results of its Twitter-sourced poll, The Wallpaper 150*. The list is a compilation of 150 people from the creative and lifestyle industries, judged by the magazine's Twitter followers to have come into our daily lives in the past 15 years and made them better in some way.

Imagination Playground by David Rockwell

David Rockwell during the London launch of the Imagination Playground (credit: Susan Smart)

New York based architect and designer David Rockwell was in London yesterday to mark the European launch of his groundbreaking Imagination Playground concept.

With a focus on loose parts, Imagination Playground is an interactive, transformable environment, that prompts children to manipulate their own playspace. The blocks are made from a cross-linked polyethylene foam, and the pieces are soft, lightweight, waterproof, and biodegradable.

The Shop Floor Project: shop launch

The Shop Floor Project, a British online retail brand which sells a variety of homewares from wallpaper and ceramics to books and prints, has opened its first real-life shop -  in the market town of Ulverston, Cumbria, where the brand's headquarters is based.

WGSN-homebuildlife spoke to Denise and Samantha Allen, the mother-and-daughter team behind The Shop Floor Project, to find out more about developing a bricks-and-mortar shop from a digital retail concept.

HBL Book of the Week: Where They Create

Tongue & Groove, Australia, from Where They Create

Where They Create by Paul Barbera and Alexandra Onderwater (Frame, 2011) is the result of blogger and photographer Barbera's journeys around the world, documenting the studios of artist, designers and creatives as he goes. 32 studios and workplaces are included in the book, including Wallpaper*, Acne and the design studios of Matali Crasset. It will be published in September, but is available to pre-order now.

HBL loves: seeing the differences between each studio - from the way employees dress to how things are stored and the personal keepsakes that are kept close to hand.

Season sofa by Piero Lissoni for Viccarbe

Season sofa by Piero Lissoni for Viccarbe - £1804 (UK stockist: Crest Living, 242 Brompton Road, London, SW3 2BB)

Piero Lissoni's new collection for Spanish design brand Viccarbe comprises a series of undulating, upholstered benches designed for contract use. Called Season, the design is available in two versions, with two heights and a number of seating positions possible - and epitomizes a trend we highlighted at Neocon this year.

Urbanized by Gary Hustwit

Footage from "Urbanized" trailer

Urbanized is the latest addition to Gary Hustwit’s design film trilogy, joining Helvetica (2007) and Objectified (2009). The feature-length documentary takes a holistic approach to the exploration of urban design. Hustwit looks at the roles that architects, planners and policymakers play in shaping the design of cities while also considering the great contribution that ordinary citizens make to their urban surroundings.

Home Affairs Bureau Civic Education Resource Centre

 Hong Kong-based branding and communications agency Marc & Chantal Design has taken inspiration from the city's homes to design the Home Affairs Bureau Civic Education Resource Centre.

HBL Blog of the Week: Pattern People

Pattern People's blog

Surface design studio Pattern People (made up of Claudia Brown and Jessie Whipple Vickery) blog from Portland, Oregon, about anything and everything to do with print. Visual inspiration is posted regularly in an attempt to keep "pattern lovers of all ages" satisfied.

HBL loves: the focus on print and pattern, as seen by two professionals in the field.

René Redzepi & Mad Food Camp

Noma founder René Redzepi featured in The Observer this weekend, writing an interesting piece for the British broadsheet which explains his love of local and foraged ingredients, as well as his role in organising the Mad food symposium - an event he describes as the "culinary Glastonbury". Read the full piece here.

Subscribers can read about Redzepi's influence on WGSN-homebuildlife's autumn/winter 2012/13 macrotrend Eco Hedonism here.

Designboom's Ferrari factory tour

Image: designboom

In a new three-part series, designboom brings its readers highlights from a tour of the Ferrari factory. Read the first two parts of the series, which cover the mechanical workshop and assembly line, here and here; and in the third part, you can see how the cars are designed and customised for their users - click here.

HBL Inspiration: Sicily

Sicily, Italy. Photograph: WGSN-homebuildlife

WGSN-homebuildlife observes the vibrant colours and interesting textures that are provided by both man-made structures and natural landscapes in Sicily, Italy.

HBL Retail: A/W 11/12 at Heal's

K Series by Erik Järkill for Heal's autumn/winter 2011/1

WGSN-homebuildlife presents a sneak peek of British retailer Heal's autumn/winter 2011/12 collection.