Fi the Imaginator!

We Need Change!

2009-10-15T04:21:00.000-07:00

So, Today (Thursday 15 Oct) is Blog Action Day! It is a day when the world's blogging community comes together to discuss an issue, to raise awareness and to create some togetherness. This year the issue is 'Climate Change' and as part of Blog Action Day we worked with Vectortuts+ to create a very special environmentally themed desktop wallpaper, now available from their site. Our design illustrates the changing climate situation through the concept of 'melting' and serves as a warning to start making changes now to ward off further climate problems.

Our good ol' buddies at Thunderchunky are also taking part in this special event by pulling together a load of wonderful artists and designers from around the globe to share their tips on how we, as designers, can make a difference! Have a read through their brilliant ideas!

So if you have a blog or somewhere you can spread the goodness and message of change, do it, you'll feel much better for it and so will our planet.

3m Giant Rabbit Invades Garden!

2009-10-02T07:40:00.001-07:00

I'm always a little bit dubious about sculptural things for the garden, and am very rarely impressed with big steel things but these wonderful giant rabbits by Fitzroy based sculptor, Peter McLisky are grand beyond belief! Created from laser-cut mild steel these not-so-fluffy bunnies are available in a minimum size of 60cm through to a maximum size of 3m!! Super size mine, thank you! They can also be cut with a base (as pictured above) or with a blackened shadow, which looks really effective. Peter's creations don't just stop at rabbits, take a leisurely browse at his website for many other super creations for your outdoor spaces.

Love by Honey!

2009-09-29T03:11:00.000-07:00

Love by Honey, couldn't sound sweeter and as far as I'm concerned the above brooches couldn't look any sweeter! Created by Melbourne designer Geneine Honey for her fashion label "Love", Honey uses her drawings inspired by childhood imaginary worlds, innocence and romance as the inspiration for her wonderful pieces made from a variety of materials such as articulated wood veneer, acrylic, anodised aluminium, stainless steel and sterling silver. There is a huge selection of stunning designs, and I have featured just two of my personal favourites above, "Holiday Brooch Set" and "Girl On Swing Necklace". I not only love the beautiful whimsical subjects of these two brooches but the ingenious way they attach and hang, beautiful stuff.

Things Never Felt This Good!

2009-08-12T07:11:00.001-07:00

Searching through the hundreds of talented artists, designers and makers on Supermarket HQ, I was struck by the felty goodness of Papaver Vert, a small creative studio in Northern California headed by the felt maestro-ess Patty Benson. Patty creates these beauties by using various techniques including crocheting and wet-felting using high quality wools and mohairs in colours bold and striking! Her caress-able range of products include (as featured above) felted vases, lovely felted-wool nesting bowls and these ever-so-squeezable podlets. There are so many more beautiful pieces to sink your eyes into on her store, I promise her felt goodies will make you feel good!

HipHopsicles!

2009-08-11T00:03:00.000-07:00

What more can I say! I could lead with a lame Vanilla Ice gag but I'll spare you. These super-fresh HipHop flavoured ice blocks brought to you by the gang at San Franciso's Gama-Go are as cool as you can get (sorry). I want some, no I'm sorry I NEED some and now I can finally invite The Beastie boys over for that well-earned glass of lemonade.

Joseph Joseph kitchenware so nice, you need to say it twice!

2009-08-07T06:19:00.000-07:00

I am on the constant look out for well-designed, well-conceived, colourful kitchenware that doesn't break the bank and force you to a monthly menu of baked beans and potatoes for dinner whilst you pay it off! Then, alas, along come twin brothers, design duo Richard and Antony Joseph, and their sleek kitchenware brand Joseph Joseph. Along with beautifully shaped and coloured items, the products have been incredibly well designed and with some of the classics being re-designed. I have featured a few of my favourites above, the ingenious wooden chopping board with the lovely catch tray below perfect for catching veg before sliding them into your pan or alternatively catching peels and offcuts for your compost! The super little herb chopper with a blade that slides into its base for easy storage and the stack of mixing bowls and measuring cups above that would make Rainbow Brite green with envy, they just make me want to whip up a storm in the kitchen using as many bowls as possible just so I can look like some mad foodie professor!

All of the Joseph Joseph products are available from their site and are really reasonably priced ranging from £3.00 to £42.00, so no excuses for holding on to those boring chipped bowls at the bottom of your cupboard!

I want a pony!

2009-07-20T03:21:00.000-07:00

If our child ever tells us they want a pony for Christmas, I'm looking forward to the expression on their face when they walk into their room and find one of these plush beauties, instead of the neighing variety I'm sure they were hoping for! Designed by Adelta design icon, Eero Aarnio, waaaay back in 1973, ooze lusciousness and stylish curves. Looking like an overdimensional toy, children are attracted to the bright colours and climb-ability! Made from moulded foam and upholstered in brilliantly colourful stretch fabric it would make a super addition to any children's room or any room for that matter.

"A chair is a chair, is a chair, is a chair ... but a seat does not necessarily have to be a chair. It can be anything as it is ergonomically correct. A seat could even be a small and soft Pony on which you can 'ride' or sit sideways." Eero Aarnio

Footloose and Fancy Forest Huts!

2009-06-15T08:26:00.000-07:00

Kolarbyn is an awe-inspiring adventure eco-lodge located by the glade of the stunning lake Skärsjön. It is Sweden's most primitive hotel, no electricity, water collected from the spring, sheep skin rugs for warmth, candles and a crackling fire to help you drift off to sleep. You will be awakened by songbirds and a crisp dip in the lake to set you off on your day full of moose safaris, forest walks, canoeing, mushroom and berry picking. If it's all sounding a little strenuous, never fear, all of that outdoor adventure-ism will soon be blissed away by a bonfire BBQ and a steamy sauna in their sauna that floats on the lake! You may ask what this has to do with design, but in fact I think Kolarbyn is at the true essence of design: simple, mindful and oozing with natural charm and style.

Listen to Something Rootsy!

2009-06-12T01:46:00.000-07:00

I stumbled across these beautiful, simplistic Magno Wooden Radio's while flicking through an interiors magazine. I immediately fell in love with the natural tones and curves and just like the bamboo bike I previously posted about, I adore the use of natural elements with a technological product. We are so used to seeing radios/sound systems looking very high tech, cold, plastic, stainless it was very refreshing to see one in such an organic form, in fact it has re-sparked my love of handmade products, not in a crafty way, but to see beautifully hand-crafted items, that have had love, attention and pure skill poured into them is a real honour. Each Magno radio is made by hand as a single piece and takes 16 hours to make, ecologically and in a social fair manner. The Magno radio combines the most current mp3 player compatible electronics with sustainably grown woods. I was happy to hear that it has won the British Design Award for 2009, well deserved I say.

You Need To Meet Miss Jones!

2009-06-11T02:17:00.000-07:00

Jennifer Jones of "Have You Met Miss Jones" has a stunning collection of bone china, clay pottery, capiz shell, metal and woodwork that she carefully handpicks and scrutinizes from various spots around the globe. Miss Jones has a very fine eye for detail and her current collection is full to the brim with delectable crisp white bone china pieces including these cute-as-a-button plates (as shown above), absolutely perfect for a slice of lemon meringue pie, although you will have to excuse the crumbs... Jennifer's wonderful finds can be found on her online homewares store. Pay her a visit.

Wheely Nice Bamboo!

2009-06-09T03:15:00.000-07:00

Industrial designer Ross Lovegrove, better known for his groundbreaking design work for Sony Walkman and Apple iMac, let his creative brilliance loose with this innovative bike design "Bamboo" created exclusively for Biomega. Bamboo growth is fast and prolific and apparently tougher than steel when used correctly and the combination of cold hard steel and natural radiant bamboo creates a really beautiful design aesthetic. I was really inspired by Biomega's philosophy of wanting to create the ideal city, clean, peaceful, stunning. A more pure environment where we are more in tune with the natural world. It's this dream that drives them to create their urban-landscape-changing bikes. Biomega's range include other superb designs by designers of the likes of Marc Newson and Karim Rashid, but I think this particular design by Ross really encapsulates their design ethics.

Milk Gone Bad, But Looks So Good!

2009-06-08T07:39:00.001-07:00

If only my milk looked so good when it went bad! These genius creations are a culmination of two great minds, that of industrial design studio Anatomicfactory and Italian illustrator Bombo. Milk Gone Bad is a collection of 8 cute lamps, each built like a milk carton and the magical part...the illustration is can only be seen once the light is switched on, revealing the secret world of mould that lies inside! They consider their product to be half way between a toy and furnishing, but I think that these lovely little lamps would light up any room in more ways than one.

Bananas About The String Republic

2009-06-08T03:19:00.000-07:00

I find it really refreshing when designers take an old (and perhaps a little tired) design like the espadrille and give it a new lease of life. Stephane Bucco a graphic artist of the young French company Dead Sexy, has done just that with this super artist customised espadrilles range The String Republic! Stephane wanted to illustrate what happens when graphic art and daily life merge and I think here it has worked perfectly, the espadrille was invigorated yet the soul and essence of the design was not lost. So far, The String Republic have collaborated with a great array of artists and designers from around the globe including a few of my favourites Sauerkids, Alberto Cerriteno, Masa and Paulo Arraiano.

Style Will Save Us

2009-05-01T03:28:00.000-07:00

Ethical fashion doesn't need to mean off-white hemp t-shirts or have to be bought a "good-vibe" festival. It also comes in the form of gorgeous, beautifully designed clothing by ethical fashion label Gorman. "Sustainable" is a word Gorman have truly embraced and put into real action throughout their business. Some of the positive steps they have already taken include increasing the use of sustainable yarns and fabrics, developed innovative organic fabrics such as an australian organic wool, opting for water-based printing and azo-free dyes, reduced garment packaging by 90%, switched to 100% accredited green power plus so much more. Gorman have even extended their green values through to their customers by offering discounts to customers who ride their bikes to their stores and donating 49c to Friends Of The Earth everytime a customer rejects a bag. All of this, plus the many other sustainable and 'green' actions they have taken make Gorman a wonderfully inspiring business model, with much more substance on their business bones then the size 0 models of the fashion industry we are used to!

On May 3rd, the Gorman 'Ship Shop', a super shipping container turned boutique (as pictured above) will be docked at the City Of Stonnington's 'Sustainable Living Expo' where inside you can learn more about ethical fashion and even try on their new 100% merino organic wool and organic collection! If you live in Melbourne, be sure to take a lovely bike round to the Ship Shop, you might need to invest in a little bike trailer to take home all of your goodies though!

I want to live in Cartonlandia!

2009-04-14T01:54:00.000-07:00

I love papercrafters, there is something very beautiful, intricate and delicate about creating sculptural pieces with an everyday item that we usually take for granted. Thanks to some great photos of the "Papershapers" show in LA by the great papercrafting man himself, Matt Hawkins, I was lucky enough to spot the eye-popping, heart-stopping papershaping work of Ana Serrano. In particular her wonderful, colourful, paperful "Cartonlandia" (pictured above), this piece measures 62 x 48 x 54 inches and is made from a lovely collision of acrylic, collage and mixed media on cardboard. I absolutely adore the tiny details, house numbers, photographs of people sitting on balconies and the incredible use of bright colours, Cartonlandia sparks something inside me, something that wishes I could shrink down and take a magical paper bus tour around Cartonlandia, care to join me?

If you are lucky enough to live in or near LA take write these details down on a piece of paper....

Papershapers, a group show curated by the super Giant Robot, April 11 - May 2 at Scion space

Too Cool For School!

2009-04-02T07:08:00.000-07:00

Beci Orpin is an incredibly inspirational lady hailing from my hometown of Melbourne, don't they all! ha! She has had a wonderfully vast and varied illustration and design career spanning from commissioned work for Cookie, Genki, Gorman + more, through to her own clothing line better known as Princess Tina. She has recently put all of this on the backburner to place focus on her unbelievably cute and cool childrens' clothing line 'Tiny Mammoth'. The clothes are for children 0-6 years and are all high quality, long-lasting and ethically made, not to forget special, quirky and undeniably stylish! Oh to be 5 again! There is also a homeware line in the pipeline for Beci, I'm sure we won't be disappointed! Please do yourself a favour and check out everything by Beci, I promise you'll be inspired!

Homemaker You Maker My Home Lovely!

2009-03-03T07:45:00.000-08:00

I had always admired, from afar, the ultra-fresh stylings of the superlative design classic "Homemaker" but it was not until my lovely Mother-in-law, Janice, was kind enough to bestow-upon-me several Homemaker plates and tea sets that I truly fell cup over saucer in love with these timeless designs. Homemaker was created in 1956 by Enid Seeney who was working for Ridgway Potteries in Staffordshire at the time, creating pottery painted with simple motifs based on actual pieces of furniture and domestic equipment of her time. Homemaker quickly became a very popular design of Post-War Britain and was originally sold exclusively in Woolworths to the house-proud design conscious folk of the 1950's. Well, Woolworths is no longer with us *sigh* but Homemaker is immortalised forever more as a design classic that all budding designers should aspire to.

A Little Bit Of This & A Little Bit Of That

2009-03-03T06:52:00.000-08:00

Prolific font foundry, House Industries have created a beautiful range of products and wears that really let their spectacular font mastery shine through. One of my favorite pieces, as it combines two of my loves kitchenware and fonts, is this super Ampersand Solid Maple Butchers Block! Approx 18" x 18" in size at a $110 you wouldn't want to be using it to grate your beetroot on but giving it pride of place alongside your Philippe Starck 'Juicy Salif' might be more in order.

The More I See, The More I Like

2009-02-19T02:10:00.001-08:00

When we were in Paris a few months back, we were super keen to visit the well acclaimed design store, Colette. When we finally arrived at where the store should have been, a gentleman handed us a flyer re-directing us to their tiny little make-shift store around the block whilst they renovated the store to make it even bigger and better! Disappointed that we'd miss out on having a good old oooh and aahhh at what was in store, we were, however very impressed by the fresh, clean and slightly tongue-in-cheek stylings of all of their signage and flyers. Little did I know then, that they were in fact penned by none other than the illustrious designer Anthony Burrill. Much more recently I have become quite the fan of his clean and clever graphical style. Now living and working out of The Isle of Oxney, Kent, he has designed campaigns for London Underground, Playstation and online work for Kraftwerk. He also created the BUPA advertising campaigns which I have to say is one ad campaign that I find very inspiring. Anthony's work is also currently available for purchase at Concrete Hermit.

Hey St Jude

2009-02-10T08:59:00.000-08:00

St Jude's, founded by printmaker Angie Lewin and her husband Simon, is a fabulous fabric house that work alongside a range of eclectic designers creating incredible screen printed textiles and stationery. The style is modern british with a whimsical fifties-style edge! They like to keep things local and print all of their fabrics in Britain. A really special piece you should really take a squizz at is their Ernest Race Rocking Chair upholstered in their fabric. I really love the way their fabrics reminisce a time of impeccable styling, yet take it all to another level of cool.

How Too Doo A Chaboo!

2009-02-10T07:56:00.000-08:00

Project Chaboo is a wonderful creative project developed by Ken Tomita of Tomita Designs, Portland Oregon. Ken invited a diverse range of designers and fine artists to reinterpretate and customise his bamboo Chaboo design and with awesome results! "Chaboo" was a word Ken created from the traditional Japanese word "Chabudai" which means low table. The project emerged from Ken's desire to build community and collaboration between artists, designers and consumers. I have pictured 2 of the designs with the top image being the wonder-duo husband and wife team Apak Studios with their Chaboo titled "Coming Home" and Jennifer Mercede with her brilliant creation. If you happened to be in Portland Between March 5-7 you can head to the exhibition at Gallery Homeland and view of all of the bamboo beauties in full glory!

The Artful Lodger!

2009-01-28T02:18:00.000-08:00

Hotel Fox in Copenhagen, Denmark opened it's doors to 21 different artists to help them celebrate the launch of the new Volkswagen, by creating what is now one of the world's most exciting and creative hotels! Artists include (and pictured above in this order) Genevieve Gauckler, Friends With You and Rinzen. Each artist was asked to create specialised themed rooms from graphical designs to street art and Japanese Manga. The result in my eyes is very inspiring and I think this sort of project should take place a lot more often, lord know Travel Lodge could use a hand! On a serious note this opens up a lot of scope to artists and designers giving them a wonderful all encompassing canvas to work with and in turn creates a wonderful, desirable hotel for the business owners. We would give our right arm to take part in the next one, so Hotel Fox if you're listening....

Find A Friend In Pepe!

2009-01-28T01:24:00.000-08:00

We all like friends that are handy in the kitchen, and these ones are that and then some! Pepe and Friends, Created by Ceramic designer Camila Prada of Vinila Designs, is a wonderful family of cute ceramic creatures including, "Rif and Raf" Salt and Pepper shakers, "Big Daddy" Cookie Jar and "Pablo" the honey pot, whom we couldn't resist and had to buy one which is now proudly sitting on our kitchen table alongside our plastic tomato. Camila, a Canadian artist now based in Stoke-On-Trent is inspired by traveling to different cities and when designing new characters has a test called The Smile Test - if it makes you smile, then it's going in the right direction. Well Camila, I'm smiling, in fact I'm grinning from ear to ear.

Okido Is OkeeDokee!

2009-01-22T03:38:00.000-08:00

I have wanted to post something about Okido for some time now because, well, quite simply, it's brilliant! Okido is the brainchild of multimedia designer and scientist, Sophie Dauvois and illustrator Rachel Ortas, and is beautifully illustrated by contemporary artists and designers. We even had the absolute pleasure of creating a very special and exclusive Speakerdog Paper Toy that appeared in a previous issue of the wonderful little magazine. Okido is published quarterly and is aimed at children aged 3-7, but don't let that stop you picking up a copy I guarantee you will also fall in love with it and be making courgette rockets in no time! Please also take a look over the website it's full of great things to read and do!

All hits at MissPrint!

2009-01-22T02:50:00.000-08:00

Super design duo Yvonne and Rebecca Drury of MissPrint Productions have created a stunning collection of contemporary interior products. All the lovely products inclusive of wallpapers, cushions, lampshades and vinyl wall kits are designed and hand printed in their small East London Studio. Be sure to pay their website a visit and beautify your home.

Ekobo Bamboozle!

2009-01-22T02:05:00.000-08:00

A great design from Ekobo. The new range of "Multifaceted Organisers" made from bamboo, available in 2 sizes and in a variety of beautiful colours: smoke, tomato, mandarin, lime, white and black. They are the perfect place to store your utensils or anything else for that matter!
Ekobo, based in France, combine their wonderful contemporary designs with a lovely ethical way of working. Bruno Louis and his wife Boo (with the help of other product designers) have developed a range now 250 products strong all made from 100% bamboo + 200% design and available in eye-popping zingy colours! Working alongside over 100 families from bamboo villages in Vietnam, Ekobo work directly with the local craftsmen, cutting out middlemen and resulting in well paid artisans and carefully monitored working conditions. Brilliant.

Happy Reading!

2008-06-05T03:21:00.001-07:00

I had the pleasure of sitting down to a cup of tea and a happy browse through Anorak, a wonderful publication printed 4 times per year and dedicated to boys and girls aged 5-9. Covering all sorts of fun and interesting topics, aiming to encourage the little tykes to make their own decisions and give them a medium to amplify their voices. It's full o' fresh illustrations by contemporary artists making it an incredibly visually stimulating magazine and I'm sure I even learnt something new even though I'm just slightly out of the age bracket!

The world needs more of these types of publications: fresh, inspiring and optimistic, hear hear!

Wave to the animals....

2008-06-05T03:07:00.000-07:00

Everyone needs at least one of these super acrylic silhouette animal farm stylee rings brought to you by Soop. Take more than one and you can start creating your vert own landscape and animal scene, who needs a trip to the countryside??! Soop is a London based design studio headed by top chef Wai-Lian Scannell. She's forever rustling up new recipes in the Soop kitchen (literally). You can sample a few flavours here in Soop's Etsy shop or see more soop-ie goodness here! Knuckle Dusters have never been so cute!

Pretty Hungry!

2008-05-01T00:32:00.000-07:00

Who ever thought hungry could be so pretty! Here are 2 fabulous Cook Books created by Rachel Pitts, Leah Holscher and Katherine Bird - The Hungry Girls! . They have combined their love of food to write, photograph and illustrate and have concocted The Hungry Girls' Cookbooks. These three young women have self-published and handmade these special cookbooks and filled them with exciting recipes for the home cook. Each edition is lined with cloth and sewn together by hand, making them more like works of art than regular recipe books! Get one while they're still hot!

The Pilgrimage of Plush - Speakerdog Softies haul it to St. Louis!!

2008-04-29T01:32:00.000-07:00

Yes siree, thats correct, Speakerdog Softies got accepted to take part in the super Crammed Organisms "worlds largest plush show" all the way over in St Louis! This crazazy show is being put on by the lovely folk at Cranky Yellow, and will be a travelling exhibition at a variety of indie stores around St Louis for the month of June. There will also be a book to document the event and the artists taking part, oh me oh my its gonna be one super event! The theme for the exhibition is Fairy, Folk and Fable so I have been sewing like mad creating 4 super special softies for the event, stay tuned for photos! Ben created a special print to celebrate the voyage of the Speakerdog Softies (above)!

Super Speakerdog Softies!

2008-03-26T09:59:00.000-07:00

Our warm and fuzzy Speakerdog Softies now have their very own home, you can take a little visit here!

Sunshine & Smiles (pictured above) is one of several special little critters specially hand-crafted by me, check them out and get a little buddy of your own to take home!

Feets to the streets!

2008-02-19T00:42:00.000-08:00

Mathieu Missiaen is a man with a mission and that is to change the the way the world thinks of fashion. His brand is NDEUR; he paints on canvas, walls, anything and everything he get his hands on basically. His new venture is hand painting and customising vintage ladies shoes! With an edge of street/graf in his designs, he will seriously turn your shoes into a 'piece' of their own!

He has a wonderfully inspiring and mouthwatering etsy store that you can visit here at Ndeur Shoes!

Also until 3 March 08, you can sneak a pair of custom heels for a cool $180 (US) rather than the normal price of $250. Only a couple of weeks left so quick step it!

Go Go Speakerdog!

2008-02-14T08:08:00.000-08:00

We are super stoked to be holding a fantastic Speakerdog exhibition at Go Go Plastic in the wonderful creative hub of Birmingham!

Go Go Plastic is an ace new vinyl toy and art store in the heart of Birmingham's coolest spot, The Custard Factory.

Our second British exhibition will be filled to the brim with art prints and custom vinyl toys by Ben the Illustrator and super Speakerdog Softies by me! We may even show you some brand new paper toy designs too!

The exhibition will open to the public from Saturday 23rd February through to 13th March, so get yourselves to The Custard Factory and enjoy the show!

Exhibition opening times -

Mon - closed.
Tues-Sat 10am-6pm
Sunday 11am-4pm

Go Go Plastic, 6 Gibb Terrace, The Custard Factory, Gibb Street, Digbeth, Birmingham,
B9 4AA. United Kingdom

Akanbe - anything you want!

2008-02-14T07:57:00.000-08:00

This is a super-cute felt multi-use basket designed by acclaimed Japanese designer Takashi Hojo, which is great for both outdoors and in. Indoors it can be used as a magazine holder, for storing bits and bobs, and can then open up as a floor covering. Outdoors it can be used as a cute handbag or picnic basket and then will open out as your picnic blanket...clever eh! Also available in sand and grey colours and is available from Ochigo!

Orla Keily!

2008-02-14T07:28:00.000-08:00

Orla Keily is one of my favourites in both clothing and homeware design. Her delicious textile designs are to drool over and by stroke of luck I had the chance to visit the Orla Keily concept store in London (pictured above) which had me woozy in the knees for weeks. Now I just need to save some pennies to buy that cushion or perhaps her own range of camping gear, I mean, sheesh I''d live in that tent if I had to!

Please do check out Orla's beautiful textiles here... or if you are lucky enough visit her concept stores in London, Paris or Hong Kong do so!

Pecans and Pandacake!

2008-02-14T05:22:00.000-08:00

Just two of the little lovelies created by Superduo artists Noferin!

Noferin have been busily creating some beautiful little hand-painted toys that are set to be launched into the world mid 2008 and befriended by us all!! There is currently 5 in the range with a limited production of 200 of each. You can find yourself a little buddy in Claudius, Pecan, Pandacake, Jac Jac or Fanelli! Keep your eyes peeled for these, they're magic!

Set the Pigeons alight!

2008-02-14T05:16:00.000-08:00

Every home needs a pigeon light I say.....

Wall-mounted light made from 3mm vacuum-formed Acrylic.

They are Available in white (with white flex), grey (white or orange flex), pink (white flex), orange (white flex), yellow (white flex) and black (black flex) and are made in England!

You can peck one up from Thorsten Van Elten!

Put your money where your gami is!

2008-02-14T05:08:00.000-08:00

We somehow stumbled across this ace Money folding extravaganza otherwise known as Moneygami and thought it was just too good not to share! Very cleverly folded using markings on the bills as parts of the design. See more Moneygami creations here...

The woods are the goods!

2008-02-14T04:37:00.000-08:00

The Stash goes to Avoriaz! The first giant ecological snow park to come to Europe, it's a new generation of 100% natural snow playgrounds.

A new concept in snowparks imported from the Californian resort of North Star, it was developed by Jake Burton himself, famous for his visions on the future of the snowboard.

Burton’s philosophy was to create an area in the middle of the forest that caters for a mixture of freeride and freestyle, whilst simultaneously transmitting messages about environmental protection.

This place rocks! Not that I have had the opportunity to get there yet, and I stress yet, but it is certainly on our list of must go places for 2008!

Terre a Terre (my translation: yum a yum!)

2008-02-14T03:32:00.000-08:00

Okay so it's been a long time between drinks so I thought it was only right to make my first post for the year food/drink related!! A few weeks back I had the absolute pleasure of having a mind-blowingly awesome lunch at the beautiful Terre a Terre in Brighton. Now, it is a Vegetarian restaurant but believe me when I say there is absolutely nothing missing in flavour, texture, smell and presentation! I could really go as far as saying it is probably some of the best food I have had in a very long time! Incredibly interesting and exciting colours and flavours you really do need to take a visit and experience it for yourself and whatever your beef about being a vegetarian is – for them it’s about challenge and chutzpah.

Terre a Terre can be found at 71 East Street, Brighton, East Sussex.

Speakerdog Softies!!

2007-11-28T03:08:00.000-08:00

I couldn't resist turning our lil buddy Speakerdog into his own genuine plush toy! Each Speakerdog Softie has been hand sewn with love by me out of felt, wool and buttons! They are currently on display at the First Ever Speakerdog Exhibition at Kitch-en but if you can't get yourself to Middlesborough then they are soon to hit our online store, plus many more lovely pieces including "The Grateful Ted" a super-60's inspired fabo hand-customised TeddyTroop by Ben (pictured below)!

Sweetness in Seattle!

2007-11-09T12:06:00.000-08:00

This is one of the two new Noferin pieces being exhibited as part of the Suite 100 Gallery's "Sweet 100" in Seattle. Part of the proceeds from the Sweet 100 show will be donated to Child's Play Charity. Showing from November 9th thru December 21st. Super sweet and super wonderful!

Mountains with snow-caps and coats!

2007-11-02T06:18:00.000-07:00

Inspired by excess material from Brave Space's cut sheets, they’ve exposed the maple interior signifying the snow-capped mountain peaks of the Grand Tetons. In contrast with the dark tones of the walnut, this coat hook brings a functional, natural landscape into your home. The mountain range’s four available hanging peaks enable you to hang four or more items. Connect them end to end to extend your range. Made of FSC certified maple and walnut veneer, and finished with a durable water-based varnish. Size: 30”L x 1.5”W x 9"H. Hike it Vitamin D!

Josh Jakus Eco Felt beauties...

2007-11-02T04:13:00.000-07:00

This fabo felt Tote is hand-made by Josh Jakus in Oakland, California! Made from 100% industrial wool felt (made from felt scraps) they are not only very beautiful but also eco!! Each tote unzips into one wonderful flat piece. Also available is a purse and clutch plus many other super sweet pieces made by Josh available at Eco friendly store Branch!.

Josh also creates wonderful felt bits and bobs for the home like the awesome Eggflat piece below. Buy something for you and/or your home and not only look super fresh but do something handy for our environment!

Well we do have two feet...

2007-11-01T06:50:00.000-07:00

So... I thought it couldnt hurt having another sneaker post for you all to drool over... Another super pair of Adidas kicks where old school meets the new. Surely if you slipped these babies on you would be miraculously able to break dance right?? Well its worth a try.... treat the feet here..

Stylee Sneaks...

2007-11-01T05:36:00.000-07:00

The adidas high top Adria is a super classic canvas shoe! You can get yourself a pair from here!

Tilt - Thought Bubble Jumper!!

2007-10-31T03:17:00.000-07:00

Hmmm....if I had this jumper my thought bubble would read..."check out my ace jumper" haha! This super jumper is designed by French artist Tilt exclusively for KidRobot. This is a man's jumper, but surely he wont notice that its missing for a day....or two!

Check it out in its full fluro glory here...

Noferin - got me hook, line and ink-er!

2007-10-22T04:39:00.000-07:00

Noferin (from Australia) have created these beautiful, beautiful pen and ink pieces on lovely thick cream coloured paper for an exhibition at Gallery 1988 in San Fran. If you are in the area you would be incredibly silly to not make a little visit and see them for real! Go here for more details.

Te Invito A Mi Fiesta!

2007-10-18T06:08:00.000-07:00

Damn it I think I might have a party just so I can use these invites! ha! ultra cute vintage mexican invites also from All-Pop! B.Y.O pinata!

Apron Strings attached!

2007-10-18T05:59:00.000-07:00

This is a supersweet Apron made from classic vintage oil-cloth. I discovered it on All-Pop a store based in the LA area, specializing in pop culture, plastic tchotchkes and imported knick knacks. Heaps of wonderful stuff to fossick through even if it is just at the online store!

New work from Paulo Arraiano!!

2007-10-17T03:16:00.001-07:00

One of my fave artists of the moment is Paulo Arraiano. He creates incredible colourful work for Magazines, Clothing labels and creates mind-blowing pieces on skate parks. You have to see more... check it here

We were also fortunate enough for Paulo to design a Speakerdog Paper Toy for Series 3. You can find his design (featured above) here, enjoy!

Chapolito!!

2007-10-17T02:52:00.000-07:00

This Colourtastic work is by Jesse Capo a freelance artist and designer living and working in Sydney, Australia. See more here

Josh Keyes

2007-10-16T03:15:00.000-07:00

Wonderful work by Josh Keyes. Raised in Tacoma, Washington, Keyes grew up surrounded by forests, and witnessed their decimation by the logging industry. Josh earned a bachelor's degree from The School of the Art Institute of Chicago and a master's degree in Fine Arts from Yale University. His work has been published in New American Painters and exhibited in galleries in San Francisco, Los Angeles, and New York. See more of his work here

The Team Colours Kick Off!

2007-10-15T03:52:00.000-07:00

Woohoo! Today marks the day when we officially launch the Team Colours!

Having worked with an abundance of great artists on the Speakerdog Paper Toys, Ben and I found that there were some very special people we shared a love with, the love of colour! So... we formed a team, The Team Colours!

A very exciting collective of Six colour-loving artists that play nice with colour!

Ben the Illustrator, Drunk Park, Emily Glaubinger, Lorin Brown, Meni Tzima and Project Detonate will be producing sets of prints and products for your enjoyment, spreading colour around the world, exhibiting, inhabiting and incubating colour!

To mark the launch of The Team Colours, each artist has produced a print for a set entitled 'Team' (pictured above and shown in their full glory here!)

Check out The Team Colours Website, Blog and Store!

'Post' Modernism...

2007-10-14T12:21:00.001-07:00

Ben found a little inspiration in our fluro post-it-notes and created these super wonderful mini artworks!!! I love them!!!

Dy-no-mite Junior!

2007-10-14T12:15:00.000-07:00

HAH! this kills me! enjoy!

DY-NO-MITE!!

2007-10-14T12:13:00.000-07:00

Haha! does anyone remember JJ from the Good Times?? Here's a little reminder!

DYNOMITE!

Ghost Patrol!

2007-10-14T11:56:00.000-07:00

This is only a snippet of an absolutely beautiful wall in Fitzroy, Melbourne painted by the incredibly innovative Graffiti writer Ghost Patrol. He sculpts, paints, draws and sews. GP works with whatever media he can find or afford to purchase including but not limited to spray cans, paper, pens, markers, wood and clay. Please delve deeper into the world of Ghost Patrol.

The First Ever Speakerdog Exhibition!!

2007-10-14T11:46:00.000-07:00

We are super proud and excited to announce that the long-awaited first solo Speakerdog exhibition is to take place in November at Kitch-en in Middlesbrough, Tees Valley, UK.

The exhibition will show a wonderful selection of new work including illustrated prints, paper toys, customised vinyl toys, hand-painted canvasses, wood and mirrors!

Private View - Wednesday 7th November 2007. Exhibition opening - Thursday 8th November. Exhibition closing - Friday 30th November.

Gallery opening times: Wednesday - Saturday. 11am - 4pm. (Appointments at any other time).

Polka Labbit Hoodie!

2007-10-14T11:40:00.000-07:00

Bejezus I love this hoodie!!! It's available from Kid Robot for $165.00 check it out here. hmmm...If anyone is wondering what to get me for Christmas??? nudge nudge wink wink.....

Raymond Gems Adrian Porcupencil!

2007-10-14T11:17:00.000-07:00

If you didn't already know we have just released Series 4 of the Speakerdog Paper Toys. This ace design was created by Raymond Gems Adrian, It is well and truly going to find a place on my desk for one very special HB! Check out the other amazing designs by artists Adolfo Serra, Aybs, Castleforte, Cherdpong Sikkhajareon, Chocolate Log, David Huyck, Dundoland, Emily Glaubinger, Fixeuno, Grapheart, Jawa, Joe Scarano, Kenn Munk, Marshall Alexander, Mephisto Jones, Mike Stoneroad, Phil Corbett, Rawlyn Farley, Raymond Gems Adrian, Shin Tanaka, Tommy FFF and Tubbypaws here.

Tell Phibs!

2007-10-14T09:51:00.000-07:00

Phibs is an old friend of mine from my days back in Melburn! One of my fave new-school Graf artists by far, incredibly talented... his speed, line precision and colour use just blows me away. When I owned my cafe/gallery I was lucky enough for him and a couple of other Melbourne Graf artists to fill my courtyard with some awesome pieces! you can see more of Phibs work here

We love Elsie!

2007-10-14T08:32:00.000-07:00

Ah Elsie brought us such joy..... We had the absolute pleasure of driving around Cornwall in Elsie. She is part of an awesome fleet of Retro Campers available for hire from Snail Trail a wonderful small and friendly UK based company lead by Lucy and Steven Lord. If you haven't already driven around in one of these, I can't recommend it enough, hit the road jack.

P.S. Keep your eye out for a special little header illustration created especially for the Snail Trail website by Ben!

Brace Yourself!

2007-10-14T07:42:00.000-07:00

For those not quite ready to make the big leap into wearing a real pair of braces, this ace jumper by "Scorned by their Mother" takes you that one step closer! Australian designer Cyd Joyce Cornall of Scorned by their Mother has created a great collection of stripey knits and checkered pinnys to make your heart melt and want to whip out that credit card faster than greasy lightening! From what I can see the stockists are all located in OZ but the collection is also available online at http://www.maubourg.com.au/.

Trev and Will do the Timebomb!

2007-10-14T07:23:00.000-07:00

Now, if you found the Flight of the Conchords funny then our friends Trev & Will are going to kill you with laughter i'm afraid.... You will no doubt get your funny bone tickled beyond control with this awesome music video they created for Beck's new track "Timebomb". See more Trev&Will.

Hiphopopotamus vs. Rhymenoceros!!

2007-10-14T07:09:00.000-07:00

Okay, just a little something to get you all in the right frame of mind for my blog and hopefully get a fully blown belly laugh out of you!

I think perhaps one of the funniest and most enjoyable things I have EVER seen.

The Flight of the Conchords - a wonderfully wicked comedy duo hailing all the way from the land of the Kiwi fruit. If you haven't had the pleasure of their work check out http://www.conchords.co.nz/ for details!