This is the best idea I have seen in 18 years of designing closets, laundry rooms, and garages. I have been looking for something like this for my client's home. Also, myself with a background in Textiles, this process of drying clothing, protects fibers from the heat and tumbling of a dryer and from knits, hanging and stretching out. Amazing, space saving too.

Yeah, it's a good idea, but not a new one. You can find these hanging on walls in many a historic museums here in Minnesota. They look a bit different, but the idea is similar. Look up antique drying rack on ebay if you want to buy one now. (Actually, they used to make ones with arms that radiate from one central point which used even less space.)

I actually have a problem with my underwear and bras falling off our drying rack onto our disgusting basement floor, so I would buy this. God job Rob! Oh! And sweaters, yeah, Sara, I didn't even think of that.

Very nice and convenient design Rob. I could also use it to hang my pants in the closet. Congrats.

Function isn't revolutionary, but materials and aesthetics are. Nice.

http://www.nextag.com/drying-rack-wall/search-html

Love the sculptural presence, not only is it functional but something that one could even enjoy in their living room.

Good thinking. How much?

I would like to suupport this concept and encourage students to support fellow students. I have aproblem with Core 77 limiting voting from one email address as many of my student and all of the faculty have e mail covered by the institutions. I understand the concept of attempting to fair , but is there a way to be inclusive of those doing the correct ethical thing and not excluding us due to the problems caused by the minority?

Love It!!!

I love this! It's stylish and functional. Most of my wardrobe has "lay flat to dry" instructions. I could use a couple of these. Also, I always have clothing I need to wash right away (like biking clothes) and need a place to lay them out for drying. This would be so convenient.

I work at Target and you have no idea how many people are looking for something this simple. Sure other people make them, but not like this. Good job Rob! I would also like to buy one...I am one of those who refuse to hang my undergarments outside for all of madison to see!

@ Patrick: Find any wall mountable ones using sustainable materials? Please link me, I'd like to buy one. @ Anne: I researched ones available overseas, like the Stewie Lift, but most people don't want to install things on their ceilings. Again, if you can find a wall mountable dryer using sustainable materials, please link one here.

Where can you get one: anywhere in Europe. This isn't a new idea, just a variation on a concept that's been around for years. My grandmother had one, my mother has one, I have one ... and the one I have has considerably more flexible and extensive drying space than the one here. Overall, the design suggests that the designer only has lingerie and so on in mind - not a replacement for an electrical dryer.

Looks purty - but an indoor drying rack is not exactly a novel idea. You can find cheaper and more convenient drying racks in just about any major department store - even in the US.

I think you should concentrate on how you can dry large sheets inddoors instead of the tiny langerie you suggest.

A tasteful design that will work for a lot of people. There are lots of pluses: Women often do clothes and under garments in small batches or by hand, it will work well definitely for this. Maybe not perfect for the whole planet, but great for dry cold or hot climates; I am sure that there are thousands of people living in dry cold/hot climates, Colorado for one. Could be installed on cruise ships so that people can dry their clothes in their cabins instead of sending every thing to the ship's

nice concept. marketable. i actually made a series of drying racks for our laundry room and we use them all the time, I'm sure we're not the only ones so there's a market here. design a multi level version as well.

I think this is great! I have a small area next to my dryer that I bet this would fit in nicely (yes, it's an energy efficient dryer, but I'm sure it uses plenty of enery anyway.) I would love to have the benefit of this option, especially in the winter with so many sweaters. I especially like the sustainable and hypoallergenic aspects of your discovery. Do you have a manufacturer in mind?

@ Steve: Actually not. Most homes in cold climates use humidifiers during the winter season when they are all sealed up, because the air is so dry. In the summer, the windows are generally open, or the AC is on, which also removes humidity.

Unfortunately, in a well-sealed modern home, using this drying rack will result in increased humidity and the potential for excess moisture on window frames. This in turn could lead to the development of mold and mildew. The energy cost of using a dehumidifier could negate any energy savings obtained by not using a dryer...

@ Bart: Design brief said consumer electronic device, so I chose to attack the second largest energy consuming appliance, hence making the biggest reduction in energy usage. @ Drew: That would depend on the humidity, temperature, ventilation, and how you arranged the clothing.

It looks great, and the materials are a no brainer... what is the average time for a specific fabrics to dry on this rack?... I know that I wash as large a load of laundry as I can so I can do wash as infrequently as possible. Can the drying time/load side be quantified?

Elegant, yes. But is it a gadget? A gadget is a small technological object (such as a device or an appliance) that has a particular function.

Just excellent; simple, functional design. And also particularly good as a "sock and mitten dryer rack" after a sloppy day in the snow. Nice stuff!

I think this is a great idea. I have one of the older style fold out drying racks and not only does it take up a lot of floor space, but it is not that old and it is already unstable and about to fall apart. I have also noticed that some of the drying rods have mildew spots and I am very cautious about what I hang on the rack. I love that when this product is not in use it will still look nice on the wall, as a sort of functional wall art... I would love to own one of these!

wow, great idea and good choice of space to innovate in... I was wondering, if you had a solution for "high density" clothes drying. For example, in student dorms, there is often very little room for clothes drying and hallways are often unusable for that purpose, due to mildew and fire evacuation concerns. Something that fold outside a window, while still having easy access? Something else? Would love to hear from your idea space...

don't hesitate to sell me one or 2 of this great idea, it will be a pleasure to present it in France.

@Scott: The innovation is the sustainable solution that ships flat, uses zero floor space, zero energy, and provides a place to dry female lingerie, underwear, bras, and sweaters that need to dry flat. It also doesn't look horrible, like most drying racks. Depending on how you want to use it, you can select individual spines to swing up and down, to adjust the airflow or allow you to hang garments from each spine.

@ Someone, as I stated in the slides, clotheslines are not allowed in many communities, and in my user research I found that women will not hang their undergarments out side due to embarassment even if they do have clotheslines.

I have an original of one of these in my Victorian kitchen. I used it when my kids were small for drying (real) nappies/diapers. Upside: sometimes the kitchen smells laundry fresh. Downside: sometimes the clothes smell like curry

Way to go! That is awesome!

you have to be kidding me. There are all kinds of alternatives that take up no floor space and provide far better capacity. I built a replica of a european unit that retracts to the ceiling (the warmest part of the room) provides 35 ft of drying line and takes up zero floor space and uses significantly less materials (10ft of salvaged 2"x2" pine and 40ft of laundry twine) An extra full load of laundry from a high efficiency washing machine dries in 5 hours. We are a family of 7, we

Brandon: This is designed for lingerie, bras, panties, sweaters, suits, and anything else that cannot be thrown into the dryer without damage. Using it on your favorite clothing would help it last longer, as dryer lint is shredded fabric material.

Would the arms snap in to the up position strong enough to hang a few shirts on hangers? Some of our items hang dry on a hanger, and I could see wanting to pull up a few arms to hook multiple hangers on while items dry. Brandon says "you would need a whole room full of these" to be useful. I disagree. My wife and I will wash a load of clothes and have perhaps 25% to 50% of the items needing to hang dry. We end up stringing items across the top of the washer

That is an old idea recycled. Just look at this page http://www.oskari-tuote.fi/tuotteet/index.php?group=00000014

I can't justify using a dryer in SoCal so I don't. A clothes line across my machines works great. Hanging wet jeans in the bathroom helps to humidify and cool things down... But I like this rack. Great idea. Reminds me of the contraptions I'd see in European homes...

This is a great idea, I think it would be better if we cut down on energy-wasting dryer usage and instead used these.

Japanese department stores have entire sections dedicated to apartment living and clothes drying solutions that do 10X the amount in half the space. not sure what the innovation is here.

ever heard of a clothesline?

I like this so much I will steal the idea, and make a simpler version for my home.

umm...really not much of a gadget right? nice redesign of old product but people like to dry clothes in mass. you would need a whole room full of these.

I'd love to have one, too!

ya, nice simple design... efficient and excellent.

This is wonderful for its simplicity and usefulness. I second Mrs. Budfreak and Karl...are you taking orders yet?

Simply FANTASTIC

Bravo!

Great idea, it's like a clothes drying rack. Oh....it is.

What a great idea.

Amazing and innovative design! Won my vote for a reason..

Very cool - pretty and functional...where can we buy?

Impressive. Elegant design and genuinely useful. Well thought out concept, and designed with the critical costly step of delivery to end user integral to the marketing. A serious piece of equipment. When does it go on sale?

this project is far superios from those others presented here for its elegant solution, for various considerations and thorough research, godd luck

I need one of these badly.

Wow, where can I get one?