toby's secret society

One of my fave designers ever, Gary Baseman, recently released his own 3" series with Kidrobot, Toby's Secret Society. It features the ever-present Toby (who's been around the world and back) and his secret society of "11 spirits and brethren".

Hubby brought me my first ones back from Cape Town, and I love 'em!

Now to find Veritas, my missing truth, and hopefully, the others.

barbie is a babe!

Not all Barbies which obviously offend a lot of people's sense of feminism, body image expectation etc. But for this one, I'd make an exception!
Favourite designer tokidoki has landed a massive coup - he's designed a limited edition Barbie and they've been brave enough to do something they've never done before - give her tattoos!
She comes clad in typical tokidoki gear, right down to pet dog Bastardino.

Also, she's totally and completely sold out. So this is probably as close as you're going to get to her.

swatch it to me

kidrobot vs swatch

custom labbit show

On Saturday 6 August, ToiToy in Cape Town will be holding their second custom vinyl toy show, this time using Frank Kozik's iconic Smorkin Labbit - and I'm super excited!

Not just because I love toys, and I do, but because I've been actively involved in this one, selecting some of the designers that would get to customise the 10" bunny-with-an-addiction.

The pieces will go on display on Saturday 6 August at 10.00 in the ToiToy store on Kloof St, but will only be available for purchase from the ToiToy website (for the benefit of international customers).

Here are the ones done by designers I chose:

Board Brain by Paul Oxborrow

Commander Jin by David Maclennan

Trash Magnet by Hilton Qiu

Senor DeMario by Ivana Raguz

Say My Name by Hannah Hughes

You can get a sneak peek of the rest of the customs here.

today's the day!

Dunny 2011 is launched.
At Kidrobot stores around the world, people will be gathering to rip open little boxes and ooh and aah at their contents. Dunny 2011 looks like a fantastic series, and I can't wait to get my paws on some of them.

kidrobot vs swatch

A while back i saw a release blog post of a Kidrobot and Swatch collaboration with this beautiful watch and dunny by Tara McPherson. Each watch comes with a custom dunny, and you can only buy the two together.

Desperately searching for where to buy this one, I found this - it's a bazooka of a watch collection and I want it!

There are eight watches in the collection, with a dunny for each, as well as an 8 inch Frank Kozik dunny.  Other designers include Gary Baseman, Joe Ledbetter, Tilt, SSUR, Jeremyville and MADL.
Only 300 sets will be available worldwide.

Let the search begin!

inspiring tv

I have never been a fan of reality TV - not any form of it. But recently I find myself wrapped up in two particular shows. What's different about these, is the spirit in which they're done. Even though they both focus on the contestant's skills or talents, and choosing who's best, there's no need to break people down for TV ratings. Like Idols. It also isn't just mindless entertainment, like Big Brother.

My new addictions are Project Runway and Masterchef Australia. Masterchef Australia I find absolutely awe-inspiring as a TV show! The positivity that simply GUSHES out of those presenters and hosts is astounding. They don't criticise for TV's sake, they're not mean to make a point or to live up to some scripted characterization. They really are interested in fostering the best chef potentials they can find. And their habit of giving contestants a leg up in the industry - even those who fall out early in the game, proves that. It really isn't TV we've seen before. And the fact that it's so successful shows you don't always have to have a bully to make good reality TV. And on a purely human level, I think it shows that us as an audience are capable of enjoying a show where people aren't being beaten down. Well done Aussies. Well done us.

Then Project Runway. Wow. How did I miss this for 6 seasons? I'm truly glued to that show. The creations are mind blowing, the talent extraordinary. I would give my left arm to be able to create what these people do. But then I wouldn't be able to do it properly. So I won't.
But it really is an inspiring show, and what these people are able to create in one day... I'm jealous. I'm a bit behind on the broadcast and am watching it on PVR, so no spoilers please, but right now my favourite is Seth Aaron. In the episode I watched last night he created a coat of the "New York sky at night". It's all black leather swirls and sweeps. Beautiful! I would love me a Seth Aaron masterpiece in my coat collection. Love love.

ultimate sewing table

This glorious table will be launched at this year's design Salone. It's not just a table - it has a comfy chair built in too. Co.Design mention uses like waiting rooms, airports and libraries, but this would make the most fantastic craft/sewing table, where you need oodles of flat space, but smetimes you also just need somewhere to plonk your derriere.

glam glass

Shopping in NY early last year, I was thrilled to discover a bottle of Evian water at a Paul Smith counter - designed by Paul Smith!

And so starts another collection that's just too beautiful to pass up - glass bottles of Evian by some of the world's top designers. Also in the collection is this simply gorgeous one from Issey Miyake, the one and only:

Other designers in the range include Jean Paul Gaultier and Christian Lacroix.

- Posted from my iPad

cute overload

The Captains of Cute, Tado, who are widely known for their characters and designs dripping in cute with their big bright eyes have now done a collab with UK brand Gola. There are gorgeous shoes for men and women, a clothing range and bags that are screaming to be turned in to a collection. Think my wardrobe is in trouble...

pedal power!

This one's for all the cyclists out there - or for those who know cyclists. I never dreamed I'd be amongst that group, but there you have it. My hubby is a cyclist, and apparently I'm a cycling widow :)

Apple has once again filed one of those patents that get everyone all excited and hot under the collar with expectation. We've seen music in your pants, music in your shoes, now they're bringing music to your bike! And so, so much more.

The Apple smart bike promises to integrate not only your bike and your tunes - but all the metrics riders are so keen on measuring on each ride - how far did I go, how high did I climb, what was my heart rate? All the things that right now they measure with crappy little Garmin devices.

There's even a patent mention of, ahem, a holographic or 3D display. Curious. But then Apple always are.

objecthunt

A popular design blog, NOTCOT, recently put together an inspired competition for New York Design week - the first time I've seen twitter used so well, while staying in touch with the brand/ethos running the project. Welcome to #OBJECTHUNT.

Using silhouettes of recognisable objects in design (think the Aarnio puppy, Gehry's wiggle chair, Swiss army knife) NOTCOT created stickers which they posted around New York City for the week that New York Design Week was running. The idea was to track down the stickers and tweet an image of it along with the hashtag #OBJECTHUNT - every new object you tweeted was an entry in to the competition for some great prizes - weekends away, hotel stays and one of the design objects featured.

What's really incredible about this competition is that they've managed to tie a social platform in to real life in a creative way. It'll stick in people's minds, and they'll associate the brands involved with cool, fun and edgy. The key is to reinvent a platform everyone thinks they know so well.

Check out the #OBJECTHUNT stickers in the wild...

Written for Don't Look Down and Hit Refresh.

sleep mobility

taken from Hit Refresh blog:

"Ok, this has nothing to do with technology, tv or new media but sometimes a guy just wants to have some fun and what better way than hitting the great outdoors in a suit you can run around and sleep in! I personally hate sleeping bags – they’re restrictive and uncomfortable and once you’re finally snug and in, turning around feels like you’re in a cotton coffin. The fact that you can get into this padded bodysuit without having to tuck in, means a lot more time for tequila around the fire – heck, you can even pass out on the spot…

And yes Ulindi, they come in different colours."

written by Robin

rock on

Save electricity! Make your own!

Sometimes easier said than done, but Rochus Jacob’s Murakami Chair helps you do just that. As well as being a comfortable, rocking, reading chair, the chair generates its own energy from the reader’s rocking, lighting its own reading light. So simple. So obvious. So ingenious.

Says Jacob:”I was looking for opportunities to generate energy through activities we naturally do. The final result is a rocking chair that enables the user to experience production and consumption of electricity in a gentle and rewarding way.”

Rock on!

dunny doppelganger

My new dunny arrived in the mail this weekend - woo-hoo! And it's quite a curious one. It's from David Horvath's 2 Faced dunny series, which does two things I've not seen before - a) the artist has included himself and partner (Sun-Min Kim) in the series as dunnies, and b) there's a story to the series. This is David as he sees himself dunniefied:

@samthepenguin (a fellow dunny collector) has his very own custom dunny of himself, created by @lunarseablythe and it's too cute! Would love to see a series where the designers put themselves in to dunny form.

scavenger hunt

Since I discovered Kathie Olivas in Paris (yay for Artoyz!) I've been determined to find more of her figures. But they've been quite a rare species, bordering on extinct, with all online stores sold out of everything she's ever made.
In my recent eBay obsession though (which I'll elaborate on another time), I've managed to pick up some gems! (and at excellent prices, for those who suffer from shopping locally too)
These are the two latest additions to my collection: a rare (200 pieces worldwide) pink Masao (i like pink!) and Daisey from series 2.  

I'm also waiting on a limited edition blue Beaumont, and an orange Cosmic Penny.  *excited*

poor little fishy

Years ago I read a factoid that said every time you flush the loo, you're using 22 litres of water. 22 litres. Exactly. The number stuck with me, and I'm very aware every time I use the bathroom now of just how much water I'm flushing away. If hubby flushes a piece of tissue paper, it freaks me out. It's such a waste of water for something that could go in the bin. Little things stick and they help.

And thats the idea behind Poor Little Fish, a washing basin that makes you quite aware of how much water you're using every time you turn on the tap. Above the basin is a fish bowl with a little goldfish swimming in it. As you let the water run, some very clever piping makes fishy's water level go down in sync with your water use. Use too much, and fishy drowns! (if he can drown in air that is? suffocates?)

The water you're washing your hands with isn't the same as the water in the bowl, but its quantities are perfectly tied, so you cannot get away from the affect you're having on little fishy. Check out how it works here. It's very smart, and actually quite pretty. I'd put this in my restaurant bathroom...

rainy day dunny

A quick post on a dunny I never knew I wanted... This is Jon Burgerman's Rainy Day Dunny, released as a special item by Kid Robot, and only availble in stores on rainy days. How cool is that!?! Burgerman had already designed a rain-themed dunny for his contribution to the Ye Olde English series in 2009, and just introduced a deviation in colour, with some stylistic changes.

I so would have kept my galoshes by the door in the hopes of rain so that I could run out and get one. There are only 1000 of him out there, so if you stumble on one, you know where to send him :)  He's lovely.

cool hunter local

Recently I read a post on The Cool Hunter site that featured none other than our very own Mother City! Well, specifically, it featured a masterpiece of architecture designed and built for a "prestigious African client". I hate them already and I don't even know them :)

This is a sneak peek of one of the interiors I loved (on the left), but be sure to check out the almost-airport-like house itself on The Cool Hunter - it's somethng else.

dunny delight!

They've arrived! My new dunnies from Vinyl Destination (thanks Simon) are here. From left to right we have:
Clutter from the Ye Olde English series, Lady Aiko from the Femme Fatale series, and Tado also from the Ye Olde English collection.