One of the more interesting items I spotted at the Home & Housewares show were these unusual hybrid table linens. They come on a roll and are a very thin cotton fabric napkin, perforated to allow you to tear them off as needed... More

This year's Housewares Show featured at least 5 companies claiming smarter, more sustainable baking and cookware, including PFOA-free non-stick skillets, carbon-neutral stainless steel pans, and low-emission ceramic bakeware. More

Why do one function when you can do two... or more? That seemed to be the mantra behind many of the home appliances I saw at Housewares, particularly the humidifiers. Like the Tribest Humio Humidifier and Night Lamp, the Tom humidifier from Swizz Style is also an "air washer." Large rotating discs filter up to 50% of small to medium-sized particles out of the air, while at the same time achieving a humidifying capacity of 3.5 gallon per day—and all on only 19 watts of power!

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I'm used to seeing beautiful designs when I go to tradeshows — attending the big furniture fairs is a crash course in the contemporary aesthetic and high end, cutting edge loveliness. Home & Housewares is the more practical side of the coin; for the most part it's about things that have to perform well, not just look pretty. But that doesn't mean that both design needs can't be met… More

The KOR water bottles, which first launched their ONE bottle in 2008, showcased two new lines last week, the Delta and the Vida. Like the ONE bottle, the Delta is also made of Eastman Tritan, a BPA-free co-polyester material, but the Delta is lighter, and the cap and the spout come apart which makes for much easier cleaner. The Vida is KOR's newest innovation, and their first stainless steel offering. More

The Laundry Pod—a hand-powered washing tub that uses less than 5 gallons of water—had me torn: on the one hand, it's a viable laundry option for small spaces or outdoor lifestyles (camping, boating), it's made from recycled plastic, and easily enables you to reuse greywater; but on the other hand, is it really practical, and does it warrant needing a special contraption for a manual operation that could probably be done in a bathtub? More

The Fuego firelight (which we wrote about here) was also at the Housewares show last week in Chicago. Like the ventless portable fireplaces from Brasa, the Fuego also runs on bioethanol. The Fuego is smaller than the Brasa fireplaces, though, and can sit on a dining room table. (Sort of like a big, fancy candle!) More

I guess I'm buying into a product design stereotype when I say that matte black is associated in my mind with tech-y items such as cameras, televisions and music equipment - not housewares. But if I go with the association just a bit longer, it DOES start to make sense; these are the tech items of the homemaker. More

It's about time! The Reduce Vision Stainless Steel Water Filtration pitcher from Base Brands is the first water filter pitcher to be made out of stainless steel. (Most water filtration pitchers are made out of plastic.) The Vision pitcher comes with one 90 day filter, but it's designed to also fit most major brand filters including Brita and Pur. It'll be available for sale this April. More

The Laundry Pod is a prototype product that had a big presence at the Home & Housewares show this week. The accompanying signage and materials touted it as a solution for many situations, from college dorm use to camping to boating to military life. But it also included small space urban living… More