Chicken Wisdom

Yes, I admit, I have a thing for chickens. So it’s understandable that this post by Bobulate’s struck a nerve: Chicken Wisdom.

Watching the common chicken can help us understand human behavior, evolution, and ethics:

Watching chickens is a very old human pastime, and the forerunner of psychology, sociology and management theory. Sometimes understanding yourself can be made easier by projection on to others. Watching chickens helps us understand human motivations and interactions, which is doubtless why so many words and phrases in common parlance are redolent of the hen yard: “pecking order”, “cockiness”, “ruffling somebody’s feathers”, “taking somebody under your wing”, “fussing like a mother hen”, “strutting”, a “bantamweight fighter”, “clipping someone’s wings”, “beady eyes”, “chicks”, “to crow”, “to flock”, “get in a flap”, “coming home to roost”, “don’t count your chickens before they’re hatched”, “nest eggs” and “preening”.

Chicken wisdom

Pop Arty Beads

I just received the sweetest hand-written thank you note by one of my readers, Gisela Voss, thanking me for the inspiration she’s getting out of swissmiss. With the note, came a tub filled with these Pop Arty Beads which will make our almost four year old Ella’s head explode when I show it to her tonight!

(thank you Gisela!)

Joy Soda

We all should drink more Joy Soda.

Overcoming Creative Block

Alex of ISO50 asked some of today’s most exciting artists and creators what they do when the ideas aren’t flowing. He left the question fairly open ended and asked, What do you do to inspire your creativity when you find yourself in a rut? As expected, he was presented with an array of strategies, ranging from listening to Boards of Canada in a forest alone, to cooking up a storm (recipe provided) and waiting for the mind to clear: Overcoming Creative Block

Vanity Barcodes

Vanity Barcodes‘ goal is to help businesses take advantage of the little-known marketing potential of decorative — yet functional — UPC barcodes on their products. It’s a great way to add brand value and engage customers in a way that no other graphic design can!

Typographic Mobile



Typography Mobile from Veer: Each set of characters is laser cut from recycled back card and lined with colorful press sheets from Veer’s past marketing pieces. The typeface is Clarendon modified with Baskerville ornamentation.

Dr.Brendan

Back in June, I cracked my iPhone screen and all this time I just couldn’t get myself to pay $200 for a new glass. (Sorry, Apple)

A lovely lady at an AT&T store pointed me to Dr.Brendan, the iPhone Doc here in Manhattan. Last week, I finally managed to meet up with Brendan and watched him do surgery on my beloved iPhone. (We met up in a Hotel Lobby in the Meat Packing district, it felt like some sort of drug deal, ha!)

Brendan is a charming young guy, who kinda fell into this and is now making a living off fixing iPhones. My phone looks like new, works like a charm and it cost me a mere $70. Brendan does house-calls and meets you pretty much anywhere in the city. Does it get any more convenient? Nope.

I can’t recommend Brendan enough. I was disappointed though that he didn’t wear scrubs during the surgery. Ha!

www.drbrendan.com

MIH Watch

Kevin Blanc, a fellow swiss designer here in NYC, who will be renting my desk for the time I am on maternity leave starting next week, is the proud owner of this amazing MIH Watch. I had me gasp. It’s *such* a beauty.

It is the official watch of the Musée International d‘Horlogerie (MIH), the international museum of watchmaking, which is situated in La Chaux-de-Fonds, Switzerland. The watch is unlike any you may have encountered in museum shops. The MIH Watch personifies the mission of the museum, which is to convey to a broader public the importance of horology, and of mechanical watchmaking in particular. The MIH Watch is not being produced by a watch brand on behalf of the museum, nor does it already exist under some other name. It has been designed from the ground up and incorporates a mechanism that you will not find in any other watch. The MIH Watch has a mechanical movement and its casing is fashioned from high-grade titanium.

Absolutely stunning: MIH Watch.

your favorite tee could be a laptop sleeve

HelloRewind.com allows you to recycle your favorite old tee into cozy computer sleeve! Great gift idea, no?

jug THERMOS

jug THERMOS, designed by swiss Jörg Boner, made me look. Thermos is designed as a coffee container for the road, and therefore comes in dimensions that make it fit easily into your pocket. Two cups go with the 0.5 litre container. During transport these are secured in place with a elastic band. When used, the elastic band simply changes function, becoming a handle, while the thermos flask becomes a coffee jug.

The Future Well

Last week, I had the pleasure to run into Jay Parkinson who has rightfully gained lots of recognition and respect for his upside-down thinking when it comes to re-inventing the american healthcare system. Jay told me about his latest venture, The Future Well.

Jay Parkinson and Grant Harrison started the The Future Well with the goals of changing the world’s health with elegantly designed, innovative services and products, new ways of connecting and communicating, and their unending mission to help people feel their best. That’s why Jay went to medical school, spent five years in residency, got his master’s in public health, and created a whole new way of visiting your doctor. And that’s why Grant has worked endlessly for the past 20 years to understand consumers and create innovative new products and services that made their lives better. They are optimistic about the future…very.

The Future Well

Delivered in Beta

Delivered in Beta, a wonderful documentary about Open Design & Innovation.

How are social media changing design? What is the value of a prototype? How are work and play merging? Where is design headed in the 21st century? “Delivered in Beta” begins a conversation on these topics and invites your participation (twitter hashtag #od10beta). This video was created during the Open Design Workshop at the Betahaus
as part of Social Media Week Berlin 2010. Produced by KS12.

(via @socialmediaweek)

TheyMakeApps.com

Looking for someone to code your app? Check out TheyMakeApps.com. Look at it as the Yellow Pages for iPhone Developers.

(thank you olivier)

Superbowl Google Commercial

Saw the above Google Commercial during today’s Superbowl – made me smile. Refreshingly simple and effective.

custom silhouette mug

I think these custom mugs win the award for the coolest custom gift ever. Would love a set of our little family.

swissmister…

“Yep, that’s my bro in there!” (Swissmister, due in 9 days!)

The 99% Conference

Last year’s 99% conference was hands-down the most inspiring and impressive conference day I have ever attended. With the exception of only one speaker all of the presentations were absolutely fantastic. I can’t remember walking away from a conference with such a positive impression ever before. Other conferences should definitely learn from Behance’s style of getting the speaker to focus on talking on an overall topic. Every speaker was asked to incorporate their views and ideas on how they get things done, how they make sure ideas are being executed. Having this ‘red thread’, as we say in german, throughout each presentation really tied the day together. It forces the presenter to share their work philosophies and go beyond the usual ‘here’s what I’ve done’ spiel.

If there’s one conference I would recommend going to, it’s the 99% in April, here in NYC. Check out the currently confirmed speakers: Jack Dorsey (Twitter), Stefan Sagmeister (Sagmeister Inc) Fred Wilson (Union Square Ventures), Eve Blossom (Lulan Artisans), John Maeda (Rhode Island School of Design) and Jay O’Callahan (Storyteller).

See you April 15-16?

Polaroid Frames

Slide your photographs in these “Polaroid Frames” and stick ’em to pretty much any metal surface – the fridge, a cabinet, a locker… you get the picture. Fab idea!

Bathing Beauty Bath

Pardon the surge in baby related posts, but as you can tell, I am coming out of my denial: In about 10 days we will indeed have a newborn in our house. Time to get ready!

So I just discovered this cool and unique looking baby tub for the sink. Wonder how practical it really is but it sure looks smartly designed. I love the fact that it stores flat! (Totally wouldn’t work with our square modern sinks though, I assume)

UPDATE: I purchased one of these and it works like a charm! Gets my swissmiss two thumbs up! And yes, it works in a square sink. *Love* it! And I think tiny Tilo approves as well!

Grass Roots Drying Rack

I love this modern and whimsycal approach to a bottle drying rack. Not sure how practical it would be in day to day use but it sure is cool-looking and doesn’t visually take up much counter-space. Grass Roots Drying Rack.

Balloon Animals & Pump

It’s time I learn how to make these Balloon Animals.

The Missing Google Analytics Manual

Whenever I open Google Analytics my brain seems to go into freeze mode. Sure, I know how to see where my traffic is coming from and how much traffic I get overall but it pretty much stops right there. I find the interface everything but intuitive. I tweeted my frustration and got this recommendation: The Missing Google Analytics Manual Thank you @JeffChasin!

Evolution of Type Taste

Thank you for procrastinating, Jessica, and sharing this Evolution of Type Taste Chart from Grade School to present with us here in the studio! I am glad to see I was not the only one going through a Courier and Typewriter phase. (Please note this is Jessica’s personal evolution of Type Taste.)

Charlie and Lola Puzzle

Our little Ella Joy would fully approve of this Charlie and Lola Puzzle. Not familiar with Charlie and Lola, check them out on youtube.