Combine variable colors, impeccable taste, insane design abilities, and voila – you have Nordic Studio! This delightful treat is chalk full of charm and charisma. From the contrasting color scheme, to the variety of wall textures and finishes, to the office space’s sliding glass partition wall – turning this small studio into a live/work space […]
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From time to time, it’s good to change things up a bit. Instead of going with a traditional curtain rod, why not try one of the following alternatives for a more creative option?
Image Source: Flickr
Rod-Free Curtains
Curtains don’t have to be hung with rods. Instead of using a store-bought or homemade rod, hammer a line of nails across arched and straight windows. Evenly space the nails and paint them to match the walls or the curtains. Once the paint is dry, loop the curtains over the nails or hang them with ribbons or large hooks. Another unique option is to space old door or cabinet knobs about 12 inches apart along the top of the window; use wood screws or nails to secure them in place. Cut holes in the curtains or use tab top panels and loop them over the knobs. If you’re using brass or metal knobs, paint them to ensure that the curtains won’t be stained should the knobs tarnish. Source: EHow
Coat Hangers
You can use coat hangers as another alternative for curtain rods. Put the coat hooks on the window frames. You can simply attach the curtain to the rods. Or, if you want something really eye-catching, you can use a ribbon to tie the openings of the curtain to the rod. This will add a whimsy appeal to your curtains. This style goes best in the living room or children’s room. You can even paint the coat hangers to make it stand out or blend with the colors of the walls. Source: DoItYourself
Branching Out
Sometimes the perfect object for a lightweight drapery rod may be sitting right outside your window. Branches can make for excellent, sculptural drapery rods with a few simple do-it-yourself updates. Search for a branch with the proper length and width to fit above a window and handle the weight of the chosen drapery panel. Next, cut it to size and spray-paint it in a color which contrasts well against the wall. Lastly, secure standoffs, ready-made drapery rod brackets or L-brackets directly to the wall using plastic drywall anchors, then attach the branch with screws or bailing wire. Source: HGTV
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The post 3 Curtain Rod Alternatives appeared first on Universal Blinds, Shades & Shutters.
At Mobile World Congress in Barcelona this week, Roborace showed off the complete design of its first race car. The vehicle, with its cockpitless design, was penned by Roborace chief designer Daniel Simon, who’s also responsible for the designs in the movies “Tron: Legacy” and “Oblivion.”
The race car weighs roughly 2,150 pounds, yet still about 600 pounds heavier than a Formula 1 car with the driver. The Robocar is 189 inches long and 79 inches wide, which makes it just a bit longer and wider than a Le Mans prototype. Powering the car are four 300-kW electric motors backed by a 540-kW battery.
Top speed is limited to around 200 mph.
NVIDIA is the company providing the chip inside the car – the Drive PX 2 has the artificial intelligence capable of running 24 trillion operations a second. Serving as Robocar’s eyes and ears are five lidar and two radar arrays, 18 ultrasonic sensors, two optical speed sensors, six AI cameras, and a GNSS positioning system.
Roborace will eventually serve as the support series for Formula E. The company has recently ran a demonstration with two of its DevBot development cars earlier this year in Spain, and later in 2017 it will run two Robocars simultaneously on track.
No word yet when a robot racing car championship will be launched.
The article World’s First Autonomous Race Car Looks The Part appeared first on BMW BLOG
Paul McBride during the first round of the 2016 Eisenhower Trophy, Sept. 21, 2016. (Copyright USGA/Steven Gibbons)
Wake Forest's Paul McBride rallied with a closing 67 to finished tied 11th in the Querencia Cabo Collegiate in Mexico.
The 21-year old from The Island slipped from the first round lead to 17th when he added a 76 to his opening 65 at Los Cabos Querencia Country Club in Baja California.
But he surged back to form in the final round, recovering from a double bogey six at his second hole with six birdies and 10 pars for a four-under 67 that left him just four shots behind winner Corey Pereira of Washington on five-under-par.
A serious candidate for a Walker Cup place in Los Angeles later this year, McBride's performance helped Wake Forest into a tie for third with Washington on seven-under.
Oklahoma State — Zachary Olsen T13, Kristoffer Ventura T2, Hayden Wood 6th, Viktor Hovland T21 and Zach Bauchou T2 — won by a huge 10 stroke margin on 19-under-par from Baylor as Pereira edged out a group of four players on nine-under 204 thanks to rounds of 70, 67 and 67.
Scores
Since the 1970’s, the gauge cluster illumination, as well as the rest of the interior instruments, has been a reddish glow. I have fond memories of my E36 BMW‘s red gauges lit up at night, which always looked great. BMW has used the color red for all of its interior illumination for decades now and there’s a good reason for it, not just for aesthetics.
You see, red light is the easiest color light for the human eye to absorb. With a wavelength of 605 nanometers, red-orange lighting is the easiest for the eye to see without tiring, which is important. There’s an in-depth scientific reason as to why, which involves the cones and rods in the human eye, but it scrambles my brain just thinking about it. Basically, if you eyes car look down from the dark road ahead at night, look down at the brightly lit gauges and back up again without with straining or tiring, it makes night driving safer and easier.
More modern BMWs have tinkered with white lighting, as white is the easiest light to distinguish and clearest to see. BMW uses white lighting in its instruments during the day, as the high contrast of white makes them easier to see in daylight. In many of the brand’s cars, those white gauges switch to red at night because white light provides such a high contrast at night that it can hurt your eyes and make going back and forth from looking at the instrument cluster to the road difficult. So BMW has been working on adjusting the brightness and illumination to make it easier to see at night.
To be honest, I hope BMW sticks with red lighting in its instruments at night, as it’s a very cozy and comforting look that many BMW fans have become accustomed to. It’s also become sort of a brand staple and a design element that fans really like. I thought it was just me that appreciated the warm glow of the red gauges at night but apparently there’s a good reason for why and I’m not alone.
[Source: Autoblog]The article Ever wonder why BMW’s gauge cluster lights have always been red? appeared first on BMW BLOG
BMW was the first brand to bring wireless Apple CarPlay to the market, allowing drivers to keep their phone in their pocket and still operate it from the iDrive screen. Having used it recently in the new BMW 5 Series, it works brilliantly. Once the phone is paired with the car, it always remembers it. So ever time you get in, the iPhone automatically pairs and CarPlay can be used. It’s seamless and easy to use, making listening to your own music or receiving text messages as safe and easy as possible.
Apple CarPlay isn’t the only mobile phone system to be offered in modern cars, though. Android Auto is also available on many cars for use with Android-based devices. However, BMW won’t be integrating Android Auto into its vehicles and has no plans to ever do so.
“We offer CarPlay as an option but not Android Auto,” said BMW’s senior vice president of Digital Services and Business Models, Dieter May. “We believe the changes that are coming to the inside of the car and the user experience — like self-driving cars — you have to control the customer interface. That’s part of the brand experience and for that, I don’t want to have an Android screen and I especially want to be able to deeply integrate these systems.”
The problem with Android-based devices and integrates systems is that the Andorid experience is highly customizable. There are many ways to modify and change the interface of an Android device and that can lead to a discrepancy between the device and the car. BMW wants to be able to control the integration of the device’s interface so as to make it as simple and streamlined as possible.
May claims that the future will bring about more personalization and customization but premium brands must control the experience, so as to make it as luxurious and premium as possible. “If you have six screens in the car, you also get gesture control, voice control with a personal assistant, etc.,” he said. “You need to have control over that user experience — maybe you can get away with it if you’re a ‘mass producer,’ but not in the premium segment.”
BMW works incredibly closely with third-party developers to allow for app and software integration to be as perfect as possible. This also speeds up the process of what BMW is able to offer in its cars. The Bavarians are also open to working with multiple companies for various different aspects of in-car tech. For instance, Apple CarPlay is the only phone-based software system it will be working with but has already partnered with Amazon to use Alexa and could look to Google for a search function.
May is also thinking about a completely different business model, which would work almost like the DLC (Downloadable Content) model int he video game industry. So, for instance, you buy a car from the dealer and then if there’s a new software update to the engine that can add 50 horsepower, you can just buy that for your car. It could even work on a subscription basis as well. We’re hoping it doesn’t come to that, as that sort of business model only infuriates the customer base.
[Source: Tech Crunch]The article BMW won’t be offering Android Auto but will work with more developers appeared first on BMW BLOG
Las Vegas meets Munich! BMW i exhibits the BMW i Future Vision Interaction from the 2016 CES in Munich. In addition to the futuristic concept car, the BMW i pavilion exhibits two eye-catching models of the BMW i8 and a BMW 740Le iPerformance.
The BMW i Vision Future Interaction is based on the BMW i8 Concept Sypder. Connectivity, autonomous driving and hybrid performance are the buzzwords of the concept. This car showcases nothing less than the interior of the future. A big 21-inch display dominates the dashboard and extends over almost the entire passenger side. Sensors in front of the display recognize hand movements. The driver (or passenger) operates the display just like a touchscreen. However, the screen doesn’t need to be touched. BMW calls this feature AirTouch.
Key information, such as speed, speed limits and navigation information is provided on a high-resolution head-up display. A three-dimensional display behind the wheel provides additional details about the drive while informing the driver about oncoming vehicles or road traffic ahead.
In addition to the futuristic control system, the BMW i Vision Future Interaction stands also for highly automated driving. Three driving modes can be selected – Pure Drive (driving yourself), Assist (assistance systems intervene actively) and Auto Mode (highly automated operation). Each mode can be selected via the steering wheel.
While the BMWi Vision Future Interaction focuses on the future, the current BMW i model lineup is also present. BMW i presents two models of the i8, featuring Protonic Red and Crystal White as exterior color. Furthermore BMW also has an iPerformance model on stag – the BMW 740Le. A turbocharged 2-liter four-cylinder engine and an electric motor are powering the long-wheelbase model of the luxury plug-in hybrid.
The BMW i pavilion at Lenbachplatz is the company’s flagship store in Munich and is closely located to the pedestrian zone near Stachus. It is open to public and can be visited by anyone who is keen to learn more about BMW and its models.
The article The BMW i Vision Future Interaction arrived at BMW Lenchbachplatz appeared first on BMW BLOG
