A Room of One's Own (sorta)

I found this great little piece in The New York Times yesterday – all about the book cave. Now here is a great idea for those who like to curl up with a book (laptop, PDA, or Palm) – your own private space. The website describes it like this:

A bookcase CAVE provides a private reading space within its form. As a seat height is just above the floor, it gives a feeling of hiding from others standing around it. Books can be stored on both sides of shelves. Therefore, CAVE can also function as a partition of a room. LED reading light is installed at top of the seat.

Sakura Adachi a Milanese furniture designer says she was inspired by pigeons. These birds have a genius for their ability to create private nooks in public spaces. So you get the best of all worlds – you can see the world (and be seen) as it passes by, but still retain an illusion of privacy. Or as Adachi explains it, this is a way to feel simultaneously sheltered and engaged. Her prototype graced the Copenhagen International Furniture Fair cover – talk about wonderful exposure. You can have one simply go to her site to order, be willing to wait 8-12 weeks and have an extra $7,000. A kids version – smaller and cheaper (about $5000) is also available. Now how fun is that!