RUGenius checked out the Shin Tanaka, Paper Craft Exhibition put on by LessRain in Berlin last night, and there are some impressive pieces! So before i show you more, this post is dedicated to just taking in how amazing the body of work shown is.
Another week has flown right by - and here are this weeks digitally picked .org selections by Colin. Our theme seems to be very eco and park like - grass everywhere you go, park benches out of bike racks, flower fonts, and some ghosts!
oO posted this over at .org and i can’t stop playing with it - so it’s here for those who missed it. Click the pic already!
Hey how rad is this Futura wall lamp by Rob Zinn? Reminds me of the cover art by Peter Saville for Joy Division’s Unknown Pleasures album… just a little bit. It comes in four different color schemes: Cool, Warm, Major, and Minor.
Here’s some more info on how the color effect is achieved from the blankblank.net site:
The shade consists of 5 white plastic planes whose reverse sides are printed with vivid colors to reflect colored light onto the preceding planes.
I’m thinking these would look so sweet all lined up in a row along an entire wall. (Pardon the bad photoshop job…)
Suspension of Disbelief: a magical world of mischief, memory, and imagination… over at Volume One, is my official 2am zone out happy/trippy/”hang-in-there” flash to stare at tonight. This new season from Matt Owens (thanks!). Check out the movie and print aspects of this great project as well… you can’t afford to miss seeing all of these!
Our fun intern Caroline and I played with the Beerclip (think money clip + bottler opener) - and overall we think - great concept, mediocre execution, but it WOULD be handy when you need one and don’t have a bottle opener around.
Here are her thoughts - “When you first see the BeerClip, all you can think of is: why didn’t anybody think of this sooner? This is an example of the rare novelty gift that will actually get some use out of it. The design is simple and clean – a little wedge has been removed from a smooth stainless steel money clip, and it can be personalized for free with three initials, eleven different graphics or beer brands. Though the BeerClip is recommended for use as a promotional tool or a gift for groomsmen, fraternity brothers, etc. we say, you don’t need an excuse to give this to the people in your life. Plus, you can make a lot of dirty words using just three letters.”
My take on it? The leverage is lacking, its kind of ok with a wad of malleable cash, but put a few credit cards in there and its just hard to use. And you’re not about to take everything out of the clip when you use it are you? And the angle you need to get at it properly is a little tough. BUT it DOES work. And i think its nice to have as backup - leave it in the car or something. Nice and flat and discreet.
Baldguy Greetings have the guts to say the things you don’t. OR they at least make it harder for the recipient to see it coming, because this isn’t your usual kind of greeting card - on the inside. I know this made its way around already, but Shade Elaine and i helped get their site together, and as i was cleaning through my desk, i realized that in working on it for a while, we forgot to post about how much we loved them! With adorable cards like “I value our friendship - and by ‘value our friendship’ I mean i’m never going to sleep with you. Happy Birthday.” and “So you broke up. It’d going to get better. - I mean, it kind of has to. This is rock bottom for you, right?” how can you go wrong? There are some things a card manages to get away with that just don’t work as well in person - and for those moments, we have the Baldguys.
Free Tshirts over at Bank Of America - I forgot how silly shirts in cubes were - and how fun it was to open them. Also the fact that it says “I <3 Helping People”.
Another Berlin installment, as i clean out my inbox from RUGenius ~ She came across a T-shirt shop named “fleischerei” which translates to Butcher Shop. And it really is an old butcher shop, using the old meat cases and all! So more pictures below… if anyone knows more, let me know and i’ll update this post, but for now, it seemed worth sharing the pics.
RUGenius has an eye for street art ~ and she sent me a ton of images showing me some of the better pieces she stumbled upon, so if you’re curious about the street scene in Berlin, check out some of her finds below.
Happy Saturday everyone, in my many attempts at have less computer time, here is a glimpse at the latest batch of shirts. We have kids tees, Girls Summer Tees (LOVE these, they actually fit so nicely, esp with the wider neck and sheer jersey), and classic tees in men and womens. And one day i messed up and made an inverted screen - so made a gym bag… For anyone lost, see previous post on this here. (Click pic to see bigger.)
RUGenius is off and running around in Berlin this week - and has been sending in pics of her finds… Colin Rundel armed with her notes and laptop has this to say :
Our first installment is on a brilliant and unique shopping experience that has popped up around Berlin, the Kwikshop where everything for sale is in stacked cucbicles in the large front window and can be purchased from a clerk via a small hatch. These tiny storefronts shops specialize in catering to window-shoppers and the immediate needs of the populace. The ultimate in convenience for both the shopper and seller as the stock can easily be switched around to suit the current climate / needs / mood. Raining out? Put out the galoshes and umbrellas. Had a little too much fun the night before? A Kwikshop can set you right with a clean set of underwear and toothbrush/toothpaste. Even if you need something as obscure as german golden and diamond ring rubber stamps, they have what you need, when you need it. The whole idea is just great and completely random but brilliant.
So John Varvatos and Converse are responsible for that whole slip on/laces-free chuck taylor phenomena that won’t seem to go away. (Love it - Hate it - its inescapable). So with their use of hidden elastic to mess with people heads, i simply had to post up the new Crazy Laces, where i’m assuming they leave out the elastic on the inside, for the elastic laces you see. Slightly messy, kind of fun. Especially those mini eyelets. Looks like Rubin over at CoolHunting got his hands on a pair - i might have to pop over and check them out at the store later.
p.s. can you believe that Varvatos and Converse also did a full clothing line together? [Fall 06 Lookbook]
Blushing from the nice words and mention Grace Bonney (aka Design*Sponge) gave NOTCOT over at her House & Garden gig. She’s one of the first blogs i started reading regularly what feels like forever ago… or maybe that really was merely a year and a half ago? Also a nice roundup of what i consider the “usuals” for quality design sites - the ones you hit when you only have a few minutes. (MoCoLoco, Reluct, Josh Spear, TreeHugger, Apt Therapy)
And while it feels like the blog roundup kind of day - here are a few other essentials on my list :: Core77 + DesignBoom + Ektopia + DesignSpotter + Fabulist + VinylPulse +… well this list could go on for a while, but those are just a few! [Feel free to suggest more in the notes?]
