The Austin Fall Home & Garden Show took over the Austin Convention Center last weekend. Although I no longer own neither a house nor a garden, I still enjoyed looking at the latest trends and technologies. This time I decided to look for items that would be appropriate for downtown living. Here’s what I found:

This CabinetBed is similar to a Murphy bed, except it cleverly folds up into a cabinet. I think this might fit in our apartment if we stack up our existing furniture when we want to use the bed. Hmmm…this might not be such a good idea after all.

Another dual-purpose furniture option is the CordaRoy. As seen on TV!, this oversized bean bag hides an extra mattress. And that cow print version would certainly add a Texas touch to any decor.

The Add-a-Handle uses velcro to attach a plastic hook to things. What a fun way to repurpose a paper towel holder!

The RoboCup is another velcro solution to a problem you didn’t know you had. Apparently, you can never have too many cup holders for your collapsible chair.

Speaking of handy, here’s the Handzy, a plastic handle “designed to carry more items with less effort.” The inventor told me all about his long and expensive road from concept to manufacturing to market. The handle was only $5, so I bought one to lug grocery bags from the car up to our apartment.

Pets also like homes and gardens, so organizations like the Austin Humane Society and Austin Animal Center had booths. Pocket Pets, a catchy name for sugar gliders, was a popular attraction for all ages. I also bought one of these little guys for our apartment. (Just kidding, Bill.)

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