Floating Bonsais Trees Look Like Straight Up Magic

The worlds of science fiction and zen have finally collided — and all to create what's bound to be a trend piece for home decor. That's right: floating bonsai trees are now a thing, in case you were interested in making your house guests feel at ease and completely freaked out all at the same time.

The designers over at The Hoshinchu Team in Japan have named their creation "Air Bonsai." The bottom half of the plant is the "energy base," and the top is the "little star," or the floating ball. Each half consists of a magnet that enforces an equal but opposite resistance to one another. Therefore, it gives the illusion that the top half of the tree is actually floating in the air. (A levitating tree? Now that's zen.)

If you were to purchase it from the team of designers themselves, you would be running yourself a bill of about $200. The cost — other than the construction — comes from the traditional Japanese porcelain base. Currently, Air Bonsai is in the middle of a Kickstarter campaign, with the goal of raising $80,000 to lift their project off the ground (get it?) Right now they've raised just under $190,000, if that gives you any idea as to how popular these things are going to be.

In an Air Bonsai kit, which will be sold for $200, you receive a magnetic base (15 cm across by six cm high) as well as a mossy ball (the "little star") to construct the home for your plant. The ball will float two cementers above the base and has a sponge insert where you can place the plant. The downside is that you'll have to purchase it on your own, due to export problems — yet the upside is that you can put whatever you want in there!

There are also kits available for $230, $500 and all the way up to $10,000 (!), which include upgrades such as a pumice planter or a trip to the company's Japanese headquarters to pick up your product (guess what you have to pay for that one — yep, the $10,000). However, there are a few limitations to the product. For example, you would have to keep the base plugged into an outlet at all times (it requires electricity to function) and of course, depending on the size of your kit, there would be weight restrictions to how large the plant could grow. Watering is another issue (you can't do it over the electric base). But I suppose these all seem like a very small price to pay in exchange for a tree that floats in the air... sitting on your coffee table.

Images: The Hoshinchu Team (3)