food

on off coffeee mug

Thought of the week: If pennies did not exist, would we be more productive hence actually save more money?

On/Off coffee Mug– color changing Mug from off to On.
Procrastination Flowchat
Behind the Scenes: A look into tricks and tips of the industry
ElfYourSelf: The classic ElfYourSelf web card I sent out to friends last year!
The naked teddy bear suit.
Severn Suzuki giving an incredible speech on the environment at age 12 in 1992!
10 most expensive cities to live in. Tokyo drops out of top 10!

weekend links

What an exhausting fun filled thanksgiving week/end! I was out in the Vegas area with family and friends pounding out hours of non-stop eating, mahjong, wii-ing, casino visits, shows, shopping, and many goofy hours with my many cousins in arcades (punch the duck game above) and everything else. Good times!

I’ve only returned to find out that a parking ticket I appealed 3 months ago got declined for no reason. I had pictures etc supporting the wrongful ticket, yet they will only let me dispute it in court, meaning take a day off from work, or pay the crummy $50. I really don’t understand why they don’t fix their system. Sure this system makes people pay more tickets, but when a wrongful ticket is given, the only choice is to pay rather than take a day off.

Design Note: Making money can be a sign of a great business, but sneaky tricks will lower the brand trust and the longevity in a business. Users come first in my world… always! Don’t you love those brands that just fix things without asking questions, then hate the ones that do ask!
Now for the links:
Pancaking a truck video!
Amazon.com launches “kindle”, their e-book/ink reader.
Cool Torn graffiti work by Alexandre Farto
Creative IKEA ads… I wonder if these layouts would be good?
Swims: Rubber slip-on booties for your nice shoes.
Popcorn Fork!
Cool origami folds using bills!
What hundreds of thin paint layers look like stacked!
An Interview with Jim Gromen on the rebirth of MadBalls!
Another Eco Friendly Powerstrip!
Google Android (G-phone) emerges!

Heineken wobo glass bottle to brick sustainable concept

Sweet goodness! What a great idea. Manufacturing Beer bottles to convert to brick structures for later use. This reminds me of the POM bottles that can be used as regular glass cups for home use. Why can’t this come back to reality! The amount of bottles tossed each year is absurd. Makes me want to ask photographer Chris Jordan to make a visual map of it for his “Running Numbers” series! (Did ya know in the USA alone we go through 106,000 aluminum cans every 30 seconds! It’s absurd!) There’s also the “66 Beer Bottle= a cheap solar water heater” direction.

Upcycling is a 21st century term, coined by Cradle to Cradle authors William McDonough and Michael Braungart, but the idea of turning waste into useful products came to life brilliantly in 1963 with the Heineken WOBO (world bottle). Envisioned by beer brewer Alfred Heineken and designed by Dutch architect John Habraken, the “brick that holds beer” was ahead of its ecodesign time, letting beer lovers and builders alike drink and design all in one sitting.

Mr. Heineken’s idea came after a visit to the Caribbean where he saw two problems: beaches littered with bottles and a lack of affordable building materials. The WOBO became his vision to solve both the recycling and housing challenges that he had witnessed on the islands.”

I want I want!!! It’s like buying Lego’s with your beer bottle as an adult! or you can just reuse what you have laying around much like the students at Western Washington University.(their show is in Seattle today, Nov 10th, 5-7pm)

via inhabitat

silhouette wine glass

I swear, this ideas been sitting in my sketchbook for the last 6 years, but again, someone beats me to the market (my design is still a bit slicker I think). Anyhoots, yeah, check out these Silhouette Wine glasses with a voided space allowing ya to drink wine without the need to tilt your head all the way back. The voided space also lets ya dig your sniffling nose right down to the wine as well as creates a keyed position for the wine head to sit on when poured. I’m not sure if I’d cough up the $54 price tag for each glass, but it’s cool to see this idea in the market.

via Gizmodo
Source: GreatWineGlass.com (with semi cheesy sales video, but cool manufacturing video)

rocket bike jet bike gadgetoff 2007

Woa, bang, boom, yikes, aha! That about sums up my experience at Gadgetoff 2007. What a mind torching adventure with a surplus of surprises, ear wrenching explosions, curious minds, and a safari into a wonderful world of gadgets we all love to geek about! Everything from flame throwing bbq’s, rocket bikes, robotics on wheels, and hybrid cars roamed every corner while gaming devices, weird toys, numbing food items, interactive screens, musical instruments, and hot air balloons filled up the rest of this landscape of greatness with people from all ages and disciplines.

Gadgetoff’s spontaneous flow of events kept you on your feet, jumping from boats, to buildings, into a rustic railroad house, and a cool science museum while somehow getting us all to sit calmly in an auditorium for several intellectually stimulating lectures. We were a geek fest storming the town in fashion with electronics in every pocket, Segways leading the crowd, and individuals rifling with excitement on anything cool and usually out of the ordinary.

I’ll post a few pictures on my adventure after the jump with notes, otherwise, hit up Gadgetoff.com, their blog, or a bunch of their YouTube Videos thanks to Michael (co-founder)

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Ted Talks Poster List

“Two weeks ago, TED.com hit a milestone: posting our 150th TEDTalk. To help you keep track of all the TEDTalks you’ve watched and want to watch, here’s a simple, low-tech tool: a list of all the TEDTalks posted to TED.com so far, in the order they were posted.”

Nice, a master list! via TED

Other inspirational conference video sources:
GEL videos
POP!TECH PopCasts
GadgetOff
All Things Digital 

RISD by Design weekend 2007

It’s that sweet time of year again when RISD takes over Providence with their 3 day RISD by Design Weekend festival hosting a variety of events including the very popular Alumni Sale with Live Music, good food, good times, arts&crafts, the Waterfire, and frantic dizzy freshmen RISD students wondering “What did I get myself into” while rubbing their dusty rusty charcoal mustaches off and stressing over their chess set projects, 200 self-portraits, gouche projects, Chuck Close paintings, and more while prancing through the alumni sale after an all nighter or three seeking the Balls(Basketball), Nads(hockey), or Sacs(Soccer) games!(RISD sports) RISD Rocks!

I’ll be there, rock’n out the sale, digging the fire, partying in the museum, and meeting a ton of friends for our 2002 five year reunion!!! If you’ve been planning to visit RISD, this is the weekend to do so!

RISD by Design 2007 Webpage and PDF Brochure!

restaurant up high

I’ve seen my share of products and services that go out of their way to make an experience more memorable than the products themselves (Dinner in the Sky, Total Darkness Restaurant, Fish Pedicure, Catch Your Own Sushi Restaurant, Unusual hotels), but when I was sent photos of this restaurant (perhaps just a temple) on the peak of a mountain side I freaked!!! I would have never guessed the pathway to get food food to be terrifying. Personally, I’m scared of heights, though I love pushing myself to fight it, but after seeing these pictures, I’d wonder how safe (crazy) this experience would be just for some food up high. I don’t see any safety nets or belts… doesn’t wood rot?

A bunch of crazy pictures documenting the pathway to this crazy restaurant up high.(thanks yoyo)
Update: a video.(also after jump)

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helvetica coffee cup mug veer

If ya love Helvetica and Coffee, I think you’ll like this Helvetica mug. I wonder if your font type relates to how you like your coffee. Personally, I’ve cut down on my coffee addiction and prefer Helvetica Standard Light Neue. This mug was made in part to the fabulous documentary “Helvetica” which I briefly mentioned earlier. Enjoy!

Buy here via Veer
Helvetica the Film

(I’m in in Detroit now Test Driving GM cars and finding out more about GM’s future perspective in sustainability, branding, and a new group dedicated to Social Media Communications. Also go-karting in an empty golf course. Will have a report later this week)

Smiley Bowl Eva Solo

Designers Claus Jensen and Henrik Holbaek bring us these very delightful smiling double bowls for Eva Solo. Stash your nuts or candied goodies up top, and leave the bottom for the shells, wrappers, or perhaps olive pits. Even if you don’t use them that often, these colorful glass bowls smile at you. This is just a reminder when you put a bit of personality into a product, it’s more liked. Two more close up pics after the jump.

via yankodesign Continue Reading

Sumo wrestlers stretching

Above: picture of sumo wrestlers stretching.
Close chip bags without clips and just folds.
10 signals for fresh fish at the market.
Universal phone chargers: Finally they agree on a standard!
– MEIKO music, webpage or myspace.
Amazing absorbing material with egg drop test. From the same makers of the Soft Magnets.
– A marriage prank video you should never do!

Dog Can I Eat Flow Chart

In the design world exists the ever lasting User Experience Flowchart which I’ve created for a multitude of projects giving great visuals to holes and steps within the entire methodology of a task. Well, not as long, but just as informational comes the simple “Dog: Can I Eat” Flowchart. Good stuff.via SwissMiss (source Subtraction with more text about the chart)