Philippe Starck

If the Numi toilet's $6,000 price tag was a bit much for your household budget, good news: Philippe Starck, seen here at the SensoWash launch, will sell you his SensoWash for less than half its price. Quite the bargain, yes?

SensoWash, the shower-toilet by Philippe Starck, includes a number of designer-appropriate features, including LED illumination, a wireless remote, three wash types including the bizarrely named "Lady Wash," a heated toilet seat, water and air dryer, and many more fab features.

The SensoWash Starck is the latest collaboration between Duravit and Philippe Starck. According to Duravit USA President Tim Schroeder, "We analyzed the market and discovered that the shower-toilet seats currently available were more technically oriented, while our customers put great emphasis on design. We set out to meet the challenge of providing these functions as part of a holistic quality and design concept. Technical developments were just one aspect of the work — the greatest time went into creating the right design."

Keep reading for a video of the SensoWash in action.

Have you ever dreamed about staying at a 15th-century monastery? While that wish may be reserved for prospective nuns and monks, a beautifully renovated monastery is another story altogether — especially one filled with incredible modern designs. With the intention of serving as a museum of contemporary 20th century design, Holland's Kruisherenhotel-Maastricht, consisting of the monastery as well as a Gothic church, features designs from Marcel Wanders, Philippe Starck, Piet-Hein Eek, and Le Corbusier, to name only a few of the famous designers on display here. Architect Henk Vos converted the open monastery space into several different levels and installed a glass elevator to connect the church with the monastery. Each of the 60 rooms, as well as the community spaces, has been uniquely decorated with designer pieces. Perhaps my favorite touch is the glowing entrance tunnel that guests must pass through to reach the hotel. Other hotel facilities include a library, coffee bar, restaurant, conference rooms, boutique, and gorgeous hotel gardens. Keep reading to take a complete tour!

In radical reworking news, Philippe Starck has remade L'Air du Temps in his own image. It's a far cry from the pretty glass doves we're all used to, and its stark (haha) modernism might take some fans aback.

A longtime L'Air du Temps wearer, Starck says he decided to take on the project because "there is no difference in making a rocket, a hotel, a motorbike, a museum or a fragrance because the actual object is of no importance . . . So for me, a fragrance, and above all, L'Air du Temps by Nina Ricci, is a matter of vibration. It's getting the air to vibrate in a way that suddenly moves us." So does this new bottle move you?

While I may be a superfan of Philippe Starck's designs, that doesn't mean his furniture fits my budget — especially when you're shopping for not one but six dining chairs. For indoors or out, one of my favorites is Starck's polished recycled aluminum Kong Chair ($2,395), which he designed for Emeco. While the chairs are designed to last 150 years, and are virtually indestructible, I don't think they're classic enough to warrant the purchase at that price. In 100 years, I imagine I'll have a much different style.

Luckily, I know of a much more affordable alternative. Continue reading to see it!

Sit on this: just when you thought the hair-as-art trend was over, it's proving to be bigger than a bouffant. This is PRETTYPRETTY, a collection of hairy chairs by designer Dejana Kabiljo. The follicularly inspired seats with weird, whimsical "hairstyles" have won approval from none other than design guru Philippe Starck, who selected the long-haired bar stool at right for the SLS Hotel in Beverly Hills. Too cool or too weird?

A big thank you to reader Baby Girl, who pointed out in the comments of my latest Guess the Gadget quiz that the gadget in question was featured in Lady Gaga's "Bad Romance" video.

I noticed the Heartbeats earbuds in the video right away, but it wasn't until I took a closer look that I noticed the Phillipe Starck-designed iPod dock in the video's opening scene. There's even a close-up of Gaga herself turning it on, so I guess now we know how it works! I can't believe I missed this before, especially given how much I love talking about my favorite tech-loving superstar. Thanks, Baby Girl!

Have you seen an awesome gadget somewhere that you want to share with the community, or want to tell me which gadgets you can't live without? Create a PopSugar account or log in to your account. Then join the My Favorite Gadgets group to post a list or photos of your must-have gadgets. Here's a detailed guide to posting posts and photos to groups if you are new to the PopSugar Community.

Today, the makers behind the glamorous gold hard drive and the rainbow bright flat cables — LaCie — is announcing its new sleek and sexy desktop hard drive and mobile hard drive. By teaming up with world renowned designer Philippe Starck, LaCie was able to create this new collection of drives which incorporate Starck's iconic design philosophy.

What's unique about the desktop hard drive is its touch-sensitive surface, which you can pre-program to open an application of your choice. So say you want to quickly show off videos on your drive, you can press your finger on the front panel and it will instantly pull up the folder with your video files (or launch iTunes). Both the desktop and the mobile drives are made from aluminum, which makes them nice and durable. They are also both Mac and PC friendly, will easily connect to your laptop's USB port and feature a built-in desktop manager, for quick drive formatting and customization. And best of all, the desktop drive is available in 1TB and 2TB capacities and only costs $130, while the mobile drive is available in 320GB and 500GB capacities for only $100. . . That's one heck of a deal.

To check out more photos of the LaCie Starck desktop hard drive and the LaCie Starck mobile hard drive, just read more

Wallpaper* has called on two titans of the design world, Philippe Starck and Karl Lagerfeld, to guest edit its October issue. Beginning by pushing the boundaries of magazine production, Starck designed the first triple-layered, transparent front cover, while Lagerfeld introduced the first peelable front cover.

As for the editorial, Starck approached scientists, physicists, cosmologists, artists, and activist rock stars, on a "mission to make intelligence sexy." Meanwhile, Lagerfeld brought his photography skills to light, following his new model muse and coverman Baptiste Giabiconi "from Ancient Rome to mid-century Paris," revealing a passion for architecture. I love to see these design icons moving beyond the parameters we're used to seeing them in, not only taking on new roles as editors but showing that they're not one-trick ponies. The issue hits newsstands today, and check out this complementary gallery online.

If I were to purchase every Philippe Starck design I've fallen for, I'd be bankrupt — in a killer house. I already do a good enough job spending money I don't have without the French superstar's help, so really there's got to be an easier way to achieve his design style. They say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, so I doubt Starck would mind if I snatched up a stylish red lamp inspired by his Miss K Table Lamp ($360, on sale for $288). Right? I've got my eye on a great knockoff with a similar Saarinen-shape base and streamlined shade. See it when you read more