Talk about form meeting function! A wonderfully whimsical wooden light bulb designed by artist Ryosuke Fukusada combines traditional woodworking techniques and LED lighting technology.

Unlit, the bulb appears to have been carved from a solid block of wood. In actuality it was created using the Japanese rokuro wood turning technique to shape the extremely thin and flexible, yet strong, wooden shell.

When turned on, the LED produces a soft glow effect through the wooden bulb.  Keeping with its green theme, Fukusada's wooden LED light bulb incorporates a recyclable aluminum socket.

No surprise the wooden light bulb took top honors in the Kyoto renaissance design competition.

The fact that the LED generates little heat, minimizes fire risk. I point this out because I can't say the same for the black light that my brother Ken and I put in our bedroom ceiling light in our teen years. Man, did that sucker get hot! We knew we had left it on too long when we smelled paint burning.

Needless to say, our parents would have been much happier if we had had one of Fukusada's wooden LED light bulbs instead, though I doubt it would have created the required mood lighting for our black velvet Jimi Hendrix poster.