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"Last week, I attended a fun event, the 2009 Housewares Design Awards luncheon, sponsored by the International Housewares Association, the trade association for the housewares products industry and HomeWorld Business, the industry&amp;#039;s trade publication. I guess you could say &amp;quot;awards fever&amp;quot; is in the air, with the Academy Award nominations having just been announced in the last week or so, too. And though I won&amp;#039;t be walking the red carpet any time soon, in my world, it&amp;#039;s almost as exciting as winning an Oscar when we find products that not only work well, but look really great doing it. And the ultimate, is when a design innovation not only makes a product look better, but work better and easier to use, as well. Need to be convinced? Think of what Oxo did for the vegetable peeler or Procter &amp;amp;amp; Gamble for the dust mop when they launched Swiffer (which is already 10 years old, do you believe it?). Once we got our hands on these product design innovations, there was no going back. This year at the Design Awards, there were 65 finalists in 13 categories, everything from cookware and bakeware, to floor and laundry care, to lighting and home decor. There was one overall winner in each category, along with a first this year, three Green House Award winners, products thought to meet the needs of eco-conscious consumers with smart, eco-friendly design. Click here for a full list of the nominees and winning products, but I&amp;#039;m happy to share the three &amp;quot;best of the best&amp;quot; winners, gold, silver, and bronze with you. And the winners are:  Best of the Best Gold went to the Microplane Box Grater (left) from the Kitchen Hand Tools category. It&amp;#039;s designed to grate in both directions, and features removable cutting blades for easy access and cleaning. For GHRI&amp;#039;s take on Microplane graters, click here to check out what Sharon Franke, our Kitchen Appliances expert, has to say. Best of the Best Silver went to Dyson&amp;#039;s DC24 Slim Vac (below, right) from the Floor Care Electrics category, the same lightweight   one that we covered in this GHRI review. Its motor is inside the ball and with a low center of gravity, it&amp;#039;s easy to turn and maneuver. The extension wand is stashed in the handle, so those cobwebs on the ceiling are never out of reach. Best of the Best Bronze was awarded to Oxo&amp;#039;s Good Grips POP Containers (below, left) from the Kitchen &amp;amp;amp; Barware category. These containers have a push-button mechanism that creates an airtight seal and serves as a handle. And as you can see, these great-looking, clear, stackable containers will not only keep your pantry beautifully organized, but let you see at a glance what needs replacing.  So from the looks of things, great design is very much top of mind for the housewares industry as we enter 2009, and that&amp;#039;s really good news. Stay tuned for what&amp;#039;s coming later in the year, when I report back on what I uncover at the International Housewares Association Show that I&amp;#039;ll be attending this March, in Chicago. "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.goodhousekeeping.com/institute/a22268/and-the-winner-is/>