so hot right now...

No Difference

Angel Mine

...portable art

Today we give you these gorgeous mouse pads made by Stella Im Hultberg. Her art is really special, a mix of innocence, sadness and sweetness. Find more about her work here and make sure you get one of the mouse pads above!

see more cute stuff at my favorite mirror.

need a balcony?

...grow one!

As we all know we're living in the age of "open-up-and-use" - that is mobility, dynamism, yada, yada, yada, everything's gotta be as user friendly as possible. And I guess that's exactly what the architects from Hofman Dujardin were thinking when they came up with this great idea of a...OK, brace up!...window/balcony!

It's sooo great: a window that opens up and creates an instant balcony-for-two! Solid enough to carry the weight of people and at the same time elegant, this concept looks very very good - while also adressing space needs in a smart way.

How does it work?

Step 1 - push the button :)

Step 2 - Bloomframe starts "blooming"

Step 3 - in just 15 seconds you've got yourself a great balcony.

(Oooh, I just love the "push the button" phase...)

What else? Bloomframe is still in testing and is expected to be presented officially at the end of this year.

via dexigner.com.

an apple a day...

...keeps your pony in a tail

OK, agree - not the greatest rhyming exercise ever :) ...but I told you about my blue feelings today, so let's let this one pass, what do you say?

The thing is that I just discovered these beautiful ponytail straps and I couldn't resist showing them to you, too. To brighten up one's day (and we know who needs that right now :P), take a look at MaryMo's Penny Ponies. And if you like them so much that you need to see more, check out her blog also.

a matter of taste...

...and trends

Today I've been feeling a bit down, I don't really know why - maybe all this work piling up or something...
Anyway, nothing seems to make me feel better today, not even white tea (which, by the way, is the coolest thing right now - tea-wise)! Because it is made of new growth buds and less mature leaves than green tea, it undergoes less processing, which seems to make it even healthier than its greenish pal.
So, if you really want to be one step ahead, ask for white next time - and your "Could I have some green tea, please?"-blocked friends will have a new thing to obsess about.
The L.A. and N.Y. cool-forward people are already in the know. So hurry!

Get your Organic Chinese White Tea here.

the pretty...

...and the cool

This is an ordinary office chair transformed into a super-duper one, called by the name of Tennis Ball Chair. Each cushion is made out of 25 real tennis balls, contoured to fit the body and carefully trapped in their places by designer wholman.

The idea is so great and it looks really comfortable. Funny though...just a few days ago I was talking with my friends about going to play some tennis...and here it comes! I guess it's a sign...go play!

:)

Found on etsy.

taking inspiration...

...from life

Today I've heard yet again a comment on "being childish" yada, yada, yada... OK, let me put it this way. If childling* is a bad thing, I'll probably change it and become more "responsible", "mature" and so on. But let me just bring some evidence that I think it's not.

Above, just two examples from the work of Paulina Reyes. Who wouldn't want one of these at home? - Rhetorical question, obviously :P

Prove me wrong and I'll -- probably-- join in the adulthood game :)

I rest my case.

*(childing = living like a child)

whatcha eating...

...tomorrow?

I guess more and more people are starting to understand the importance of eating right. But food is more than a health issue, after all. It's important not to underestimate the importance of design either.

That's why we have food designers, that take care of the way our food looks. See ENVIRANCE for example, a company that specializes in offering industrial food & drink solutions. One of their latest ideas, for example, is the noisy bread. Yes, you heard right. How would you like it to chew off a piece of bread and hear sounds like the screech of a seagull, the crackling sound of sand and the waves breaking in the shore?

Pretty nice, I know. But that's not all. While these kind of products are still in testing, Japan (yes, them again! :)) has already brought to light a truly innovative product in the range of cosmeceuticals (or beauty foods). We're talking about Nissin Food Products' Biken Kenshoku collagen soup, said to contain 1000 mg of collagen per serving. Talk about wrinkles or cellulite - they're gonna be washed away with each spoonfull of...soup.

via we-make-money-not-art and nutraingredients-usa.

and it's a...

...goal!

I'm sure every boy will love to have one of these at home. At least I know it's true for a very good friend of mine, that always plays football at home and annoys his neighbours (you know who you are :P). It's a crazy rug that looks exactly like a miniatural football field. Buy it from here and invite all your friends to your place next time you plan to see a game! You'll surely earn their respect and be crowned "king of football". Isn't that what all guys want? :)

via tokyo mango.

think packaging...

...the way only THEY can do it!

From up above:

- panda-seal babies wearing lipstick and swimming in noodles while drinking beer;

- bear-faced caramel corn;

- the pink rabbit-duck Pocky on chocolate bars, advertising the English Language school Nova:

- a bottle of Ramune, the traditional Japanese carbonated soft drink (something like a lemonade).

Ooooh kay! Any more comments on Japanese package design except "I'm in love"?

...

via PingMag.

it's time to...

...take up a sport

...or take a sport up, or whatever...Sorry for the lack of posts these days, but I've been to Frankfurt for some work stuff and I've just come back. I have a sore muscle and I can't move my head to the left too much - so today everything's right for me :)

But speaking of muscles, our friends from Japan just created the Yoga-Cat, one stuffed animal that can make you look trendy though you don't really practice this sport.

Its hands stay suspended all day long and it might even convince you to move a little - if it can do this all the time, surely you can spare a few moments for this!

Today I'm just looking - I have an excuse, my neck hurts :) - but I'm starting to exercise tomorrow. Or Monday...

via tokyo mango.

do you know...

...your decade?

Taking inspiration from oh-so-many places this year, designers can't really decide on a single period to take out of the closet. That's why we'll all have to deal with pieces from the 20's, from the 60's, the 70's and...yes, the 80's, too.

This makes things really interesting - and totally fun! You can surely choose a decade and proudly wear its key-pieces throughout the whole spring-summer season, but I think it might be cooler to tackle each and every style - separately or at the same time, depending on your imagination!

Above - two of the Topshop proposals: Pop and San Francisco.

smells like...

...high-tech spirit

This might look like a memory stick to you, but it's not. It's the newest way of making the area around your computer smell nice. It's an USB powered air freshner that comes in lots of flavours and that even gives you the chance to customize your own.

Pretty cool, huh?

via shiny shiny.

me, woman...you, man...

...me find you very attractive

Do u fancy instant attraction, one-night stands (or lie downs, why not?) and the kind? Then AXE's for you, with its well-known effect. You will get the I-want-to-jump-on-you looks right away...after you spray (no rhyme intended). In the meantime, the towels* above might prove really useful for your ego boost.

*DM pieces via directdaily.

that's soooo...

...fu*kin' sweet :)

Please excuse the language, but today I was just feeling the need to be somewhat bad. Now that I've done that (:P), let's get to more serious stuff.

Valentine's Day is coming, it's here have no fear...'cause we found the perfect gift for you and sweetie. This year, buy something that will bring you closer together (even if just in terms of space). Yes, love is about sharing, and what speaks of sharing better than these great lover gloves from made in design?

They're just like a relationship - each person has a glove of their own (a.k.a. their individual self) and a glove to share (a.k.a. their relationship self). But hey...we're getting a bit philosophically-psychological in here, and, although I know my friend deea_holideea would be proud of me, I'm just gonna stop now.

After all, they're just a cute pair of gloves and hey...they make such a sweet gift!

being floppy...

...is so stylish!

Remember floppy disks? If you're too young (or too cool) for that, here's a reminder. But don't get all fired up! We're not preaching using them again (though it might be fun :)), we're just saying there's a new trend in using them as notebook covers. They look pretty nice and geeky, so we think they'd make a perfect gift for Valentine's - if you've already started to think about that (we know we haven't :) ) and if you have a computer-freak bf or gf.

And, yes, they come in pink also!

Buy them here for 10 $ or make your own at home.

Tip from freshtrend.

yes...

...I am a deeply superficial person

All right, so because of the things I do or say or like from time to time some people think I'm totally superficial. I won't say anything to my defense...my friends know who I really am and they're sticking up for me. Right, guys? Guys?!?!?!

:)

Hmmm...okay...let's move on! The thing is that sometimes being superficial is really cool (notice the "super" in s-u-p-e-r-f-i-c-i-a-l if you please) and I don't think that should ever change. Full stop.

Of, and if I might add, right now I'm twice as superficial - loving the pinkish striped recycled Zara shirt from CubistLiterature, with green felt bunnies on top! And its name, "Contre le sexisme", inspires me to say I'm "Contre les anti-superficielles", too. Real full stop :)

see more at etsy.

generation U...

...is still around


The age of customization is far from being over. It's at is peak and everybody's liking it. We got pretty tired of it, but what the he*k, if consumers like it...
Tuborg is playing this game, too, and offering beer drinkers the chance to sip it up from personalized bottles. Could it be cool to show off in front of your friends by giving them Tuborg bottles with your own name and photo? If you think it's an option...there you go! Just visit dintuborg.dk , order your 30 bottle minimum and enjoy!

via guerrilla-innovation.

i know what you did last night...

...you slept with a beautiful woman

Che magazine keeps things under control and people under (or better yet, on) the cover. Still dreaming of a better world, they gave people a blanket and two pillow covers. We love the idea and it looks great. Every lonely teenager can have fun at night with a gorgeous-down-from-a-magazine-cover style woman. But what if you already have a gf? Or a wife? Does this count as menage a trois?

via bigumiguu.