The Art of the Unfriend

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Poking. Friending. De-friending. Messaging. Posting. Tagging. Liking. Ignoring.

frog Senior Interaction Designer Kevin Hutchinson confesses that our social power is evolving due to our presence on online social networks because we are able to find, reach, and communicate with people at a greater speed. But with this new amplified social connectivity comes a new set of expectations for increased engagement. Social networking etiquette is still evolving and it can be difficult to decipher what is appropriate in this hyper-social online space.

Hutchinson believes that, we as social creatures, should take some cues from other forms of communication. You wouldn’t text, call, or knock on someone’s door several times a day to tell them how much you enjoyed what they were reading, doing, or saying, so why comment or “like”, everything they post on their Facebook wall. Right? How does one create social boundaries on their networks and how do we not take it so, er, personally when someone does not befriend us?

Listen to the show, over at designmind.frogdesign.com

Papercuts goodness

Film for NZ Book Council Produced by Colenso BBDO Animated by Andersen M Studio

(thank you kirsti)

Bearded Man

bearded man
bearded man

I have just discovered and fallen in love with this awesome barded man by Matilde Beldroega.

(Loja de Estar is a portuguese online shop that gathers objects from a variety of Portuguese designers. “Loja de Estar” is the result of combining “living room” with “store” so it stands for something close to “living store”. Cute!)

Optical Illusion

Watch what happens with these diamonds (no camera tricks or special effects used here…just an optical illusion).

(via atenepopular)

Pop Up Office

Pop Up from abw on Vimeo.

(thank you spencer)

Winter Wonderland

The swiss do whatever it takes to make your vacation perfect.

Made me smile!

Happy Thanksgiving

chicken

Happy Thanksgiving everyone. What about a plush chicken/turkey?

(thanks jon)

Townhouse Bedside Lamp

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Mr. Fries and Mr. Zumbühl in action

Townhouse Zurich teamed up with Zurich based design office Fries&Zumbühl and created this modern bedside lamp. The Townhouse lamp can be set up in three different positions to regulate the light intensity and can thus be used as a reading, mood or night light. Like Japanese Origami the lamp is folded from a singular sheet of metal and held together without any screws. A 2 mm plexiglas is inserted to ensure a soft glow. Manufactured 100% in Switzerland, energy saving bulb included. Design by Fries&Zumbühl exclusively for Townhouse.

Serif Tote Bag

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Gasp for air. This Serif Tote Bag is *Brilliant*!

(Thanks Burks)

art+commerce image of the day

stefan ruiz

Today’s art+commerce image of the day was picked by moi. Isn’t that one cute little car? Made me smile. Image by Stefan Ruiz.

BassJump

bassjump

Designed exclusively for MacBook, BassJump is a USB-powered subwoofer that turns your MacBook into a mini sound system. One single USB cable delivers power and sound. Custom software blends the music coming out of your built-in speakers with the sound output of the BassJump for dramatically enhanced audio performance.

Jez Burrows | new site

jezzburrows.comjezburrows

I am a big fan of Jez Burrow’s design work. Happy to see he just launched a new site. His redesign announcement on twitter made me chuckle:

twitter announcement

The Jimmies

Last week I had the pleasure to meet Ashley, the charming lead singer of The Jimmies, a NYC based rock-band for little ones. She handed me one of their latest DVD’s and now our little Ella is completely addicted. Check out the amazing videos below. (Bedhead is hilarious.) Support The Jimmies by buying their CD or DVD.

(Every time Ella watches Spanimals Ella cracks up and says: “Mommy, she has grapes on her head”)

Extreme Crowdsourcing

crowdsourcing

Two nights ago, G and I were discussing potential boy’s names for our little unborn son. I spontaneously said: “Why don’t we ask the twittersphere for some ideas?” Within seconds of posting my quest for a cool 4 letter boy’s name suggestions came pouring in. We just sat there refreshing Tweetie and couldn’t believe the amazing and most of all international name suggestions we got.

Crowdsourcing at its best!

I would like to extend this experiment to my blog readers. Have any cool suggestions for a rather unique 4 letter boy’s name for our unborn son? If so, indulge in this extreme crowdsourcing experiment with me and share in a comment below.

Again, the only condition: it has to be a 4 Letter Boys Name.

Typographic Chest Hair

chesthair

My studio mate Jessica Hische just walked in with the *best* t-shirt ever, sporting typographic chest hair. Available at Veer. Made me smile.

Underground Signs

underground signs

Always loved the New York Subway Signs and wanted to own one? Now you can get it customized to your liking! Underground Signs will create a custom NYC Subway sign for you. Hello there, awesome type-driven holiday gift? Also a really cool decorating idea for any kid’s room. (Oh, this would look great in our studio! swissmiss avenue?)

(via stilsucht)

My Parents Were Awesome

my parents were awesome
my parents were awesome

The blog called “My Parents Were Awesome” put a huge smile on my face. Wish I had an archive of photos of my parents I could dig through and submit one myself.

(via chesley)

Ioline Changing Trunk

ioline changing table

Now that my belly is getting HUGE I am starting to get out of my denial and am actually starting to think about how we will set up the apartment once swissmisster arrives mid february. I can’t stand changing tables and will refuse to put one in our apartment, so this Ioline Changing Trunk made me rejoice. What a brilliant idea! I love furniture that has a double purpose and grows with your kid. It’s basically a changing table on the floor that turns into seating for your tot as well. It’s made from 100% natural, non-toxic and sustainable materials. (And yes, I will only dream of owning one of these as the pricetag is a little steep.)

(via minordetails)

Cafe Moomah Collage Builder

Two weeks ago G, Ella and I checked out Cafe Moomah in Manhattan and we were impressed. It’s a beautifully designed space for children and their parents. It’s a cozy cafe and an art oasis for little ones. While G and I enjoyed yumme brunch with friends, Ella did a fun art project under the guidance of an art teacher. (She was able to pick from 7 different art projects, which cost around $14) Ella was in heaven, and so were we. I just checked out Moomah’s site and discovered this online collage builder and drawing tool which I can’t wait to show Ella tonight:

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If you have a little one, go and check out Moomah on 161 Hudson Street in New York!

Griffin + Threadless = one awesome case.

Add original art from the Threadless community of designers to smooth, sleek shells designed by Griffin and you’ve got one-of-a-kind cases for your iPhone.

Big Rabbit’s Bad Mood

big rabbit's bad mood 1DurandA

Here’s a Children’s Book I meant to write about for a few weeks now and I was just remembered of it while perusing StickersAndStuff.

Big Rabbit’s Bad Mood is illustrated by Delphine Durand and written by Ramona Badescu. This Big Rabbit is putting a huge smile on my face!

This will make it under our Christmas Tree. I must order now.

Bus Tickets

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A blog post on Bus Tickets. Lovely.

Typography by Ronnie Bruce

Matias Corea shared this video with us at today’s CreativeMorning:

Poem by Taylor Mali.

Super Epic Rainbow Cake

Rainbow_1_by_bittykate

How fabulous is this Super Epic Rainbow Cake?

(thank you jessi)