A lightweight nylon-and-bamboo frigate that sails the skies on windy days, this whimsical kite from Brooklyn-based Haptic Lab is easy to assemble and operate.

Fischer and Haptic Lab also create kites, from classic diamond-shaped kites with a patchwork tail, to innovative sailing ship kites. Fischer explains, “An interesting quality of haptics is the ability of our body's sense of touch to be extended—it's actually our only physical sense that can be extended beyond our body. For example, when someone uses a cane to guide themselves safely down a sidewalk, the tip of that cane acts like the tip of their finger. Similarly, kites allow us to experience the sensation of flight.”

Brooklyn-based Haptic Lab designs a range of textile items, from intricate quilts to one-of-a-kind kites. The handmade Sailing Ship Kite is designed by Haptic Lab in collaboration with Balinese artisans. This kite is a modern take on a classic toy that savvy kids will love.

Sailing Ship Kite, $40 at the Dwell Store The Sailing Ship Kite is handmade and is designed by Haptic Lab in collaboration with Balinese artisans. This kite flies best in a very strong wind on a beach or a hilltop, but also makes a distinctive decoration indoors. During the winter months, kids can feature this kite in their rooms, and come spring, let it fly.

The Sailing Ship Kite from Brooklyn–based Haptic Lab is an eye-catching, handmade kite inspired by historic sailing vessels. The whimsical piece will standout among traditional kites on a summer day at the park.

Haptic Lab continues to expand its offerings, including its new coastal quilt series, which will feature even more designs for the holiday season. Says the designer, “I want to privilege the real, physical world our bodies occupy through design; to make someone put down their iPhone for a moment, to play, and to experience a profound feeling of embodiment.”

Originally funded via Kickstarter, the Constellation Quilt revels in the mysteries of the universe with its design of the Milky Way. Designed by Emily Fischer, this quilt is 5 feet by 5 feeet, 100% cotton, and is from Haptic Lab.

Although from afar this ivory quilt looks simple, up close, the quilt has detailed neighborhoods like New York City’s Battery Park and Los Angeles’s Studio City. Available at the Dwell Store, $450

Haptic Lab is comprised of a small group of artisans and designers. An architect by trade, Fischer strove to move away from the strictly visual tendencies of architecture. “My mom was diagnosed with glaucoma and macular degeneration while I was studying architecture at the University of Michigan back in 2002," Fischer says. "As a design student, it occurred to me that architects and designers always privilege the visual over the tactile; design should ideally satisfy a wide range of sensation.”

The above image shows a close-up of the planning that goes into a City Map Quilt. “City Quilts are a sort of bridge between my architectural education and the craft skills I learned growing up in rural Wisconsin," Fischer says. "I use GIS data, satellite imagery, and USGS and NOAA charts to design each quilt pattern. But the quilts aren't just translations of maps—I'm not a big fan of the ‘maps on stuff’ design trend—because they are hand-quilted and subject to idiosyncrasies scaled to the human hand.” Haptic Lab also designed and created the Constellation Quilt, which features the night’s sky.

Haptic Lab is a Brooklyn design studio that creates quilts, kites, and other textiles. The Deneb Kite is crafted from screen-printed kite fabric in Brooklyn, and is cut and assembled in Williamsport, Pennsylvania. The Deneb Kite features Haptic Lab’s signature ten-foot-long patchwork kite tail and includes kite twine and flying instructions.

A playful gift for children and adults alike, the Deneb Diamond Kite from Brooklyn’s Haptic Lab is a colorful outdoor accessory that makes a distinctive wall hanging when not in use.

Bell Labs (Holmdel, New Jersey: 1957) History: As Silicon Valley titans like Apple seek to create their own corporate superstructures, it’s instructive to look back at Bell Labs, not merely a birthplace of American ingenuity but also a masterclass in corporate construction by Eero Saarinen. The man behind “the Versailles of Industry,” (the GM Tech Center), Saarinen built this ahead-if-its-time tech incubator with interconnected skyways and a mirrored ball exterior, a 472-acre campus where an impressive number of scientific discoveries took place. Status: Shuttered in 2007, the campus is owned by Somerset Development, which is trying to figure out ways to redevelop the site. Plans that have been floated over the past few years include scenarios that replace this iconic office complex with upscale homes. What You Can Do: Late last fall, Somerset committed to a $100 restoration plan, promising to develop the largest vacant office building in the country with a preservationist mindset, conserving features like the architect’s conversation pits while turning it into a more elaborate live-work space with medial offices, a library, restaurants, offices, and cafes. Looks like now may be the time to invest in your own Saarinen-designed office space. Image Credit: Lee Beaumont, Creative Commons

The Deneb Diamond Kite from Haptic Lab is the ideal companion to a lazy afternoon in the park. The boldly patterned kite features fabrics that are screen-printed by hand in Brooklyn, and later cut and assembled in Williamsport, PA. Due to the handmade nature of the kites, each Deneb is slightly different from the next, making it a one-of-a-kind piece. The kite includes Haptic Lab’s signature ten-foot-long patchwork kite tail, and also includes basic kite twine and flying instructions.

A custom steel and red oak ship ladder in the main living area is another space-saving solution. The door is Douglas fir and the shelving is mesquite wood; an Eames lounge chair can be seen in the master bedroom.

The more planning you do and the fewer changes you make, the higher chance you have of staying within your budget. Take the time to figure out what the scope of the project is and get a sense of how much work is needed so that you can make educated decisions when presented with options.

Lebbeus Woods, Photon Kite, from the series Centricity, 1988; graphite on paper; 24 in. x 22 in. (60.96 cm x 55.88 cm); Collection SFMOMA, purchase through a gift of the Members of the Architecture + Design Forum, SFMOMA Architecture and Design Accessions Committee, and the architecture and design community in honor of Aaron Betsky, Curator of Architecture, Design and Digital Projects, 1995–2001; © Estate of Lebbeus Woods

It takes approximately four hours of handiwork to weave the chair's seat.

The BetaBox mobile prototyping lab is outfitted with a 3D printer, a CNC mill, a laser cutter, and other tools for innovating.

The look of the BetaBox was a collaboration between Nicholas Sailer, BetaVersity's director of creative, who studied industrial design at the College of Design in Raleigh, North Carolina; and Michael Hobgood, an architectural designer and the company's director of operations.

Lewis descends a metal-tube set of stairs fabricated by a maker of ship’s ladders. A bannister from the original restaurant stairway serves as a railing for the sleeping loft.

The spiral stairs were fabricated in the Bay Area and shipped in the same container as the furniture.

With white-board walls, the BetaBox is set up to encourage creative thinking.

Students at work in the BetaBox on the Duke University campus in 2014.

A WWII ship as seen on Dazzle Camouflage.

Sugar cubes “printed” by the Sugar Lab for 3D Systems.

The Spar Floor Light is a statement lamp that is defined by its large stature and angular silhouette. The cantilevered lamp was inspired by classic sailing ships—the triangular shapes created are reminiscent of sails, and the use of the tensioned electrical cable to support the structure is a call to nautical ropes and masts.

Rich Brilliant Willing’s Delta Floor Lamp is a flawless marrying of traditional and modern design. Utilizing the established box pleat technique, Delta is comprised of folded fabric in a unique silhouette that creates a more contemporary look of the familiar lampshade. Inspired by a rocket engine—notice the octagonal, rounded shape of the shade—the lamp was named after an astrodynamic number (Delta-v).

Eero Aarnio designed Artek’s Rocket Stool in 1995. It blends a simple circular seat and cylindrical body with legs that resemble the base of a rocket ship. A playful design, the Rocket Stool will make for a thoughtful design gift. Also available in Baby Rocket Stool.

Brooklyn-based Haptic Lab designs intricate quilts of well-known cities across the world. With its Brooklyn City Quilt Throw, Haptic Lab celebrates the neighborhoods of New York’s most populous borough, from Coney Island to Greenpoint. Each Brooklyn Throw Blanket is hand-quilted by Haptic Lab’s partners in India and is made of 100% natural cotton. Haptic Lab also makes a larger Soft Map City Quilt of several international cities, from Boston to Paris.

Hangar Meeting Table for MG LAB – This table premiered in 2012. It was designed with a space underneath the tabletop to stow away electronic devices that need to be close at hand without contributing to tabletop clutter.

The concrete floor takes on a silky appearance in the kitchen and dining areas. The Gideå table is from IKEA, the Karim Rashid Oh chairs are from Umbra, and the Erik Magnussen kerosene Ship’s lamp is by Stelton.

Made using the box pleat technique, the Delta Floor Lamp is comprised of folded fabric in a unique silhouette. Inspired by a rocket engine—notice the octagonal, rounded shape of the shade—the lamp was named after an astrodynamic number (Delta-v).

Dado Labs has developed a user-friendly smartphone interface that helps connect users to their home appliances. The company's first partnerships are with Char-Broil and Saber grills and the coffee-maker company Behmor.

Giulio Iacchetti's barware will be displayed at WantedDesign 2014 as part of the Alessi Design Lab exhibit. Photo by Miroza and Olimpia Zagnoli.