On going full circle ~ the toy movement has come back around to stunning luxurious porcelain figurines… French company, Art & Toy, has just started selling the new figures by K. Olin Tribu, who has worked with the finest porcelain sculpture modeler, great artists and designers to manufacture limited edition toys in Limoges porcelain. The beautiful Potamus Anarchy figures in black and red editions is a collaboration between Frank Kozik & K.Olin Tribu. There’s something so awesome about seeing the signature angsty cigarette wielding creatures of Kozik cast in porcelain… anarchy gone fine art? And in such beautiful packaging as well! See lots of detail pics on the next page…

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Filmography 2010 - Amazing youtube video by Genrocks - “This year’s movies have legitimately transformed my idea of what is creatively possible. To commemorate, I’ve remixed 270 of them into one giant ass video.” It is so amazing, i had to share it with you immediately! The incredibly seamless, perfectly timed editing is mind blowing. All 270 film clips is listed here. Wow. Watch it, then watch it again? You can find her on twitter too. Ok, go see the video on the next page!

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Amazing. I’m literally in complete awe as i write this post, under the glow of the Kraken Lamp, while sipping some Kraken Rum on ice. There’s just something too awesome about great things feeding and inspiring each other ~ in this case Kraken Rum coupled with incredible design studio, Dead As We Know It, and launching quite possibly the coolest product line yet! The product line is lustworthy on its own… but still noteworthy, when’s the last time a Rum inspired you to redecorate? Rum inspired housewares, art work, and wearables? Even handkerchiefs for the dandiest fellow on your gift list… Take a peek at some of my favorites from the new Kraken Rum Store on the next page… and i can’t wait to see what else the Kraken will inspire in all of us!

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Gift Guide time! In addition to the NOTCOT Holiday Coupons and the many Holiday Giveaways that will be unfolding daily… and this week’s are sponsored by Starbucks who is celebrating their 12 Days of Sharing with us, hiding fun goodies, which are popping out from behind NOTCOT.org posts!

As for today’s theme, i always do a birthday wishlist of randomness i’ve been loving/craving on the 8th! So here we go… a little of this, a little of that ~ a bunch of stuff that’s caught my eye lately!

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Gift Guide time! In addition to the NOTCOT Holiday Coupons and the many Holiday Giveaways that will be unfolding daily… and today we’re looking at TOYS! And fun things for big kids and little kids… This gift guide is sponsored by Starbucks who is celebrating their 12 Days of Sharing with us; hiding fun goodies, which are popping out from behind NOTCOT.org posts! Now ~ on to the gift guide picks on the next page!

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Aussie company,Knog, is one of my favorite bike accessories companies to watch, and i’m not at all a bike person, but i love watching what they are up to ~ beautifully designed products, playful photography ~ and their latest line of Bike Locks do not disappoint. Functional with a fun use of silicone to top it all off ~ gorgeous color choices ~ and so many options. Take a peek at some of it on the next page. LOVE the pic of one even holding up a CAR!

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Woohoo! Gift Guide time! In addition to the NOTCOT Holiday Coupons and the many Holiday Giveaways that will be unfolding daily… Here’s one of my favorite random ones of an unexpected mix of goodies for the creatives in your life! Ready to see the picks? Check out the gift guide on the next page!

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Gift Guide time! In addition to the NOTCOT Holiday Coupons and the many Holiday Giveaways that will be unfolding daily… here’s my latest gift guide dedicated to beautiful BOOKS! As much as people claim print is dead ~ it’s so so not, and gorgeous glossy coffee table books, surprising analog interactive kids books, stunning magazines, design books, graphically awesome cookbooks and more are still launching constantly. On the next page, you’ll see a pick of some of my favorites for gifting this season!

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Surprise holiday gift arrivals: Jimmyjane’s Little Afterglow Sampler - a beautiful box set of 6 playful minis (that are not so mini!) of their Afterglow massage oil candles. They smell absolutely divine, and come in the prettiest little porcelain containers with perfect pouring spouts. On a side note, does anyone else ever wonder how fun it would be if Jimmyjane went into dinnerware? or vases and votives? It really is so tempting to use these porcelain dishes for dressing on the side or sauces… honey perhaps? Their designs are so subtle yet edgy, and the porcelain is so delicately beautiful in the modern shapes! Ok but back to the unboxing at hand, “this collection provides six enticing scents that explore the essential elements of attraction - WIT, CHARM and KINK. Included Scents: Cucumber Water, Grapefruit, Pink Lotus, Dark Vanilla, Bourbon, Truffle + Gardenia.” And best of all ~ as a gift to encourage experimenting, it even comes with a Experience Guide to help lead you through some of their favorite scent combinations to get you started! Take a peek at all the little design details on the next page!

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Black and white? Wood blocks? Golden Ratio? How could i not give in to it? Besides, a gorgeous desk toy to help distract and inspire while i work my way through the fun and craziness that is the upcoming Holiday Gift Guides and Giveaways… perfect! Swiss company, Naef, makes some of the nicest quality wood toys, and they appeal to the beautiful simplicity of geometric shapes to create unthinkably inspiring complexities. Their description of the Naef Tectus? “Impressive architecture This cube is divided several times in adherence to the golden ratio and surrounded by black shapes. During play, these become foundations, walls or roofs and a player the architect. Everything fits into each other harmoniously.”

Ok i keep getting far too distracted constructing buildings across my desk as i attempt to write this post. So go take a look at the unboxing of this gorgeous Naef Tectus on the next page…

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The Tegu guy made me a castle! With a draw bridge! Out of magnetic wood blocks! LIVE! That was my silly excitement this morning as they let me put in the first request as Tegu LIVE! went… well, live. These playful magnetic wood building blocks made from sustainable tropical hardwoods in Honduras are inspired by the gorgeous european wood toys… with a magnetic twist. While kids of all ages can make anything they can dream up, to help inspire everyone, Tegu and Poke NY have teamed up to build a non stop live stream of a mysterious man in a tegu lab coat of sorts who will take your requests via Twitter, Facebook, and livestream for things to build. And poof just like that, he builds them for you! And then sadly deconstructs them as quickly as they came to be. Though, i’m told not to worry, since all designs will be archived for future viewing! If you’re curious what they are capable of, go make your request at Tegu LIVE!. They sent me a few cases to play with, and their packaging is awesomely fun as well… so take a peek on the next page for the products, packaging, AND my castle in action!

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Lelo INSIGNIA ~ the Swedish brand’s latest line of luxurious pleasure objects launched this week, marked with the triple loop infinity symbol! Taking the pleasure out of the bedroom, they even include a beautiful INSIGNIA Brooch in each gift box, which can easily be worn in plain view, as if part of a secret society, where anyone who responds or reacts to it, you’ll know they too… love… pleasure… and beautiful objects? The symbol also houses the three buttons on each of the objects in the collection (Alia, Isla, and Soraya) and each has a void through the shiny metallic core that you can slip your fingers through to easily grasp them. All are waterproof, powerful, and discreetly quiet, and come in a gift box that looks topographically inspired when the object is removed. See a close up of the design details as i unbox the Soraya on the next page, as well as a peek at the Alia and Isla.

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Oooh, more fun pictures just showed up in the inbox! Gabe Brosbe went by to visit my friends at the Mission Workshop in The Mission in San Francisco! (If they sound familiar ~ it may be because this is founded by the original founders of Chrome Bags!) And he’s been test driving one of their Rambler backpacks for a few weeks on his crazy daily 9 mile bike commute (even through the ridiculous rainy season we’re having in cali these days!)… check out his pics on the next page! I love the oil drums in the interiors! Also awesome? A peek at the adorable soles of their collab with DZR on bike clip in shoes…

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Remember the Stacks Skateboard decks? And the random idea i fixated on to make a fun swing out of a skateboard? Well when popping by ikea, ran into the $14 Ecorre Swing and couldn’t resist using some of the parts with the skateboard… so on silly little experiments ~ here’s a look at trying it out in the tree!

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PORTAL 2 is coming!!! I’m a little excited. The trailer is gorgeous (check it out on the next page), and looks incredibly fun! Valve’s Portal was not only stunning visually, but conceptually innovative (part FPS part puzzle game), gave us “the cake is a lie”, and Still Alive still gets stuck in my head… So, can they do it again? Take it further? We’ll find out soon… but how awesome is the trailer? See the trailer and more pics on the next page!

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