Newest Architectural Jewel To Join Lower Mill Estates Is A $382,000. Doghouse

Yep, it's true. The modern dog palace has been commissioned by an unidentified female surgeon, for her pampered pooches, two Great Danes, at the exclusive 550-acre Lower Mill Estate on the Cotswolds Water Park, near Cirencester.


Lower Mill Estates (above) is a collection of landmark homes designed by various architects and includes the unusual and amazing Orchid House, Watermark House, Sundance Villa and more.

Now, a $382,469.oo USD dog house will join these.


architect Andy Ramus
Andy Ramus Design Studio

It has been designed by leading British architect Andy Ramus and will be built from materials such as zinc, glass and limestone. When completed, it will be a quarter of the size of the main three-bed house.

Inside, the dogs will sleep on sheepskin-lined, temperature-controlled beds, soothe their aches in a specially built spa, howl along to a state-of-the-art sound system and watch dog-friendly programs on a 52-inch plasma TV.

Automatic dispensers will ensure that chilled, filtered water and deluxe dry food are always available.

The two dogs will each have a bedroom with large windows which overlook their own private playground.

'Dog-vision' webcams allow their owner to monitor their activity 24 hours a day, while climate control ensures they are kept warm.

There will be a sophisticated retina scanner installed at the front door to stop any other dogs getting in - something the Great Danes may view as a bit of a party pooper.


Click on the above image to enlarge

Plans for the kennel, and for an adjoining house for the dogs' mistress, have been approved and building work is to begin at the Lower Mill Estate in the spring.

The work is expected to begin on the main three-bedroom house near Cirencester in spring.

The dogs will have some unusual neighbours on the 500-acre estate in the shape of 12 beaver kits, which appeared after three pairs were successfully reintroduced more than 13 years ago.

Lower Mill's publicist Dee McCourt said today: "It's amazing. This lady obviously cares an awful lot about her dogs. We offer a bespoke service but it is the first animal request we've had.

"We've got outline planning permission and the dogs' quarters have been designed with all their needs in mind."

Estate owner Jeremy Paxton told the Gloucestershire Echo: "It's a very interesting house with fabulous architecture and unusual requirements. "Most houses are built with human specifics in mind then animals fit in around that, but this is the other way round."

The Great Dane Adoption Society said the breed was demanding and should not be left alone for more than four hours at a time.

Lower Mill is a sustainable housing complex with homes designed by 30 of the world's leading architects.

Here are some of the stand-outs:

The Orchid House (This year a mystery bidder paid £7.2 million for the Orchid House - a world record for a country home.):

The Watermark House

The Boat House

See more Lower Mill Estates Landmark Homes here.
special thanks to The UK's Mirror and Daily Mail for info and images

If they need a dog crate for their 'unruly dog friend visitors', may I suggest the modern and pricey (at $11,000.00 USD) Gilded 22.5k Gold eiCrate Designed by Peter Pracilio?

Bear Your Love Inside Your Chest: Tattoo Your Heart

I wrote a long post about the fun, viral phony product launch of the Pomegranate Phone a ways back and am still amazed at the number of people out there who think it's a real product.

Chances are, same thing will occur with this entertaining phony 'medical tattooing of the human heart service' to launch the music video of "Some People" by the pop band Vikunja.




They promise to tattoo the actual human heart, complete with staff, price list and medical procedure video... as a rouse to launch a pop band and their latest music video. Below is the clever packaging in which the DVD was sent out:




Packaging is great, site design is great and the whole concept is unique, if not a little nauseating.



By creating a company that performs the medical procedure of actually 'tattooing' the human heart, they have managed to pique the interest of the ink loving audience while simultaneously launching a music video for a fairly obscure band, Vikunja.


Above: Vikunju
visit their myspace page here






Here's their hilarious welcome letter:

True love tattoos offers you a brand new way to really express your love for that special someone.

Don’t ink your skin like everyone else, ink your heart. or as we refer to it, your soul-canvas. so, do you really love your partner as much as you say?

Here's your chance to prove it.

sincerely,
dr. valentin vikunjevski

and their phony medical 'staff':


Even their phony FAQs are fun:

Q: does the ink fade with time?
A: there are case studies indicating that falling out of love may have a slight fading effect on the ink, apart from that, this baby is for life.

Q: can i still be a heart donor?
A: yes you can. however, be aware that research suggest that the new owner of your heart tend to get an unexplainable crush on the person whose name is tattooed on the heart.

Q: how will i prove to my loved one that i hounered him or her with a true love tattoo?
A: you will recieve one (1) polaroid picture of your tattoo on place, and also a video recording of the whole procedure. by the way, this video comes with a great soundtrack from new amazing rock band vikunja.

NOTE:
Do not get a tlt if you have a weak heart, are ink intollerant or if you’re not sure you’re really in love. avoid getting a tlt if you have a newly broken heart. let it heal for at least 3 months. laser erase surgery is available but not recommended. we also supply a special divorce discount if you can prove your partner cheated on you. in some cases we recomend you cover up your old tattoo with a new one, we are especially skilled in making football team crests.

Here's a behind the scenes shot of the music video shoot:

Vikunja's music site.

And finally, here's the music video the site was created to launch:


The viral site.

Credits:
Advertising Agency: Le Bureau
Art Directors / Copywriters: Jonas Wittenmark & Tobias Carlson

The 2009 Artist Beach Towels Are Here!

It's that time of year again. And no, I don't mean Christmas, I mean the release of the latest collection of artist beach towels from the Art Production Fund and Works On Whatever.

Once again, the four limited edition beach towels will be carried by Target (online only) and also available online in two other places. Links to purchase are at the end of this post.

This year, 2009, the collection features contemporary artwork by Karen Kilimnik, Raymond Pettibon, Julian Schnabel and Ed Ruscha reproduced on large soft 100% cotton, 50" x 60" beach towels.

Karen Kilimnik:

Raymond Pettibon:

Ed Ruscha:


Julian Schnabel:

The new beach towels will be on view at the Raleigh Hotel and at the Standard Spa during Art Basel Miami Beach, Dec. 4-7, 2008.




About WOW (Works on Towels): Artist Towel Series 2009 is part of Art Production Fund's WOW (Works on Whatever) project. a unique collection of everyday items designed by artists. APF invites artists to experiment with the latest commercial materials and techniques to bring art off the walls and into homes as everyday objects. WOW introduces contemporary art to a larger community with revenues from sales supporting our non-profit mission. WOW works conceptually with APF's program of expanding art audiences and helps fund additional major civic artworks.


To see the artist towels series from 2008 and 2007, click here.

To purchase them (and they go quickly) you can buy each of the $50.00 USD towels at:
• the Standard Hotels online store here. (plus shipping)
• Or at Target online here. (free shipping now)
• Or directly from WOW -(10$ shipping) where you can find some of the others from 2007 and 2008.

100% of the profits go to support public art and they are so much fun, they make a fabulous and worthwhile gift.

Some Of This Weekend's Hippest Online Coupon Deals: W Hotel, Apple, DWR & Calvin Klein

Here are a few awesome deals for your online shopping at some of the hippest stores this holiday weekend:


40 % off at The W Hotel online store, use coupon code L9TCD




20% off the Calvin Klein online store, use code EEP4K88


15% off Design Within Reach, 4 days only, use code DWRFF8



Apple's 1 day shopping event

The 15 Best 2009 Calendars: From Pentagram To Pirelli

THE BEST CALENDARS OF 2009
Every year, several wonderful design blogs do round-ups of the best and most beautiful yearly calendars. Many of them are the lovely artful letter pressed and silk screened calendars made by talented artists available on etsy. In addition to those, individual artists and photographers sell their own calendars on 'make your own' sites like Zazzle, Cafe Press and Australia's Red Bubble, many worth checking out.

The 15 calendars I've chosen to share with you today are all either beautifully shot, designed, illustrated and/or produced. Most are available for sale, but some were produced by companies only for their clients and large account holders, like the well-known and highly coveted Lavazza and Pirelli calendars.

In any case, they are all worth looking at. Please note due to some artful nudity, this post may be considered NSFW (Not Safe For Work) depending upon your place of business.

Annie Leibovitz's Lavazza 2009 Calendar:

Another phenomenal calendar by Italy's Lavazza who, for the past 17 years, has put out one of the most respected and sought-after calendars.
Not for sale.
See my complete blog post on this amazing calendar here.

Peter Beard's 2009 Pirelli calendar:


The 2009 edition of the Pirelli Calendar, cult object for more than forty years among connoisseurs of photography, beauty and cultural evolution, was shot by the legendary Peter Beard. Known for his wonderful African wildlife shots and his portraits of beautiful barely-clad women- he combines both of these genres for Pirelli.

The calendar features many outtakes and much of Peter's collage style.

The setting for the 36th "Cal" is the landscape of Botswana, where famed photographer Peter Beard spent ten days immortalizing seven internationally renowned models. Beard, who lived in Kenya for thirty years, is one of the world's greatest interpreters of the mystery and charm of Africa.

Above: Peter at work in Botswana

The final result is a calendar/diary that Peter Beard describes as "a living sculpture". The 56 plates of the new Cal are a rich collage of images, quotations, observations by the artist on the environment, climate change and global warming, overpopulation and the depletion of natural resources. "My real concern", says the photographer "is the destruction of nature on a global scale. We've totally lost track of what evolution is based on, and how important diversity is in nature. This concept is the very foundation of survival ".

Throughout the shooting and production of the Calendar, a number of measures were taken to minimize its environmental impact. In keeping with Peter Beard's message, the Pirelli Calendar and the gala presentation of the 2009 edition will be Zero Impact®.

Pirelli, in cooperation with a LifeGate initiative, will contribute to the creation and protection of a forested area in Costa Rica capable of absorbing the same quantity of CO2 emissions generated by the production and printing of the Calendar and by the presentation gala. Additionally, the Calendar will be printed on natural, lead-free paper.

Models include: Daria Werbowy, Emanuela De Paula, Isabeli Fontana, Lara Stone, Mariacarla Boscono, Rianne Ten Haken, Malgosia Bela
Not for sale.

See all 56 images here.
See Peter Beard's site here.

Germany's Top Model 2009 VW Scirocco calendar:

The new Volkswagen Scirocco calendar, a spin-off of the German automaker's link to Germany's Next Top Model TV show, is one hot property. And while Volkswagen dealers are giving it away in Europe, it's not coming to these parts.

"There are no plans to get the Scirocco or the calendar (in the U.S.)," Volkswagen of America spokesman Keith Price told Inside Line.

The calendar is one of the fruits of VW's relationship with the Germany's Next Top Model show, featuring Heidi Klum. The winner of the German version of the popular TV show, Jennifer Hof, got a new Scirocco sport hatchback as part of her prize package. In an interesting footnote, the runners-up got Volkswagen CrossPolos.

Beautifully composed, shot and art directed, I have no idea who to credit. If you know, please tell me. The VW Scirocco went on sale this past summer in Europe. Already Sold out. Try ebay.

Click above to enlarge
Not For sale.

42° Hot Car Wash 2009 from Christ Car Wash Systems


Christ Car Wash Systems customers, business associates and friends can look forward to rising temperatures in the fourth version of the "Hot Car Wash 2009".

This year's Calendar motto is "Splish, Splash". The perfect motto for photo shootings in sunny California. The photographer, Christian Holzknecht, lives and works in Los Angeles - just the right background for the Rock`n Roll style artwork created especially for Christ's Hot Car Wash Calendar 2009.

His flashy style of portraying people has risen the eyebrows of media majors such as the German Playboy for whom he is currently working on a photo shooting. Not to mention the several lifestyle magazines: GQ, Maxim and Playboy, as well as, diverse TV formats such as Pro7, Sat1, RTL and VOX who are avid appreciators of his artwork.

What began as a gift for business clientele has become a cult object. Each new Hot Car Wash Calendar edition is handled as a much sought-after collector's item. This not for sale calendar is bestowed to customers, company associates and friends. An additional 2000 calendars are available in Auto Jet wash tunnels (Germanywide) and can be obtained in a promotional activity by purchasing a 10er wash card. There is a total limited edition of 7.000 calendars.
Photographer: Christian Holzknecht Production: Otto Christ AG, Memmingen
Not for sale.

Mike Stimpson's Classic Lego® 2009 Calendar

Artist and photographer Mike Stimpson is known in certain circles for his fun photographic reproduction of classic color and black and white photographs made with Lego characters. Now he has made them into a 2009 wall calendar available for sale at Red Bubble (where the individual prints are available for purchase as well).

Below, I have placed some of his images next to the originals (however, the calendar does not depict the original photos after which Mike's were designed):

Buy it here.

Kitsmumma Limited Edition Fine Art Photography Calendars by Sylvia Baxter:

These themed calendars by Kitsmumma feature a wonderful collection of fine art images. These high quality calendars are printed on an HP Indigo 5000. Each page is a satin-coated prints on 170gsm high quality art paper. The calendars have a hanger and white wire binding with satin-coated prints on high quality art paper. They’re A3 size (that’s 297x420mm, or 11.69x16.54").

See them all and buy them here.

Artist Camilla Engman's 2009 Wall Calendar

Artist Camilla Engman's illustrative works always make a beautiful wall calendar, and this years is no exception.

Size: The calender is 6,3 x 11,7 inches (16,3 x 29,7 cm). Paper: Inlay - 0,28 Ib (130g), Munken Lynx. Cover - 0,66 Ib (300g), Munken Lynx. Wirebinding for wallhanging. Offset printed. Cardboard back. Price: 28 $
Buy it here.
See Camilla Engman's site here

Taschen's Julian Shulman Calendars; wall, desk and book:
The Day To Day Desk calendar

above: Shulman, Modernism Rediscovered - 2009
Pad on plastic tray, 13 x 11 cm (5.1 x 4.3 in.), 640 pages, $ 13.99
ISBN: 978-3-8365-0617-5
Multilingual Edition: English, French, German
buy it here

The Wall calendar:


Shulman, Modernism Rediscovered - 2009
Laminated cover, 30 x 30 cm (11.8 x 11.8 in.), 24 pages, $ 13.99
ISBN: 978-3-8365-0619-9
Multilingual Edition: English, French, German
buy it here.

And hardback bound calendar:

above: Shulman, Modernism Rediscovered - 2009
Hardcover, 17.4 x 22 cm (6.9 x 8.7 in.), 128 pages, $ 29.99
ISBN: 978-3-8365-0616-8
Multilingual Edition: English, French, German
buy it here.

Classic Design Favorites: Stendig, Pentagram & Calendreco:

The Classic designer favorites from Stendig and Pentagram always make my list and this year I've added the Caledndreco perpetual calendar.

The Stendig wall calendar was designed by Massimo Vignelli in 1966 and remains a classic. Measures 3' x 4' and the pages alternate between white on black and black and white pages:


buy it here.

The Typography Calendar by Pentagram

The Pentagram calendar features 12 different typefaces chosen by 12 of Pentagram's design partners. The calendar is available in two sizes, a supersize 33-by-23 inch version suitable for wall hanging and a smaller 18-by-12 inch version appropriate for desk use. Both versions are available at museum shops across the US and at Ken Knight. Supersize calendar is $38 and the smaller desk/wall calendar is $24. Please note that prices do not include shipping and currently Ken Knight will only ship to the lower 48 states. Buy it here.

The Calendreco Perpetual Calendar

Calendreco™ is printed on a premium brilliant white, double-thick, alkaline pH* cover paper, buffered for longevity**. It is made with responsibly sourced pulps, 100% renewable electrical energy, and clean water. Manufactured carbon neutral and chlorine free, this paper is one of the most chemical-free papers available today. The inks are non-toxic and vegetable-based. Finally, the calendar is 100% recyclable.

buy it here.

Lotta Jansdotter's fabric wall calendar:

2009 fabric calendar, 19 x 19", 100% linen. Lotta's fabric calendars are without a doubt lovely collectors items, and sell out in lightning speed every year. Available in three colors, buy them here. $28.00

Four Seasons Calendar by Elum Designs:

Size: 6"x9"
our Four Seasons calendar is letterpress printed on 270 gm 100% cotton rag archival paper. each quarter celebrates the beginning and end of the season; Winter 2009 - Fall 2009 (January - December). the set of four calendars is packaged in a clear sleeve and includes 4 stand up adhesive easel backs.

$20.00, Buy it here.

Contemporary realist painter Patricia Chidlaw's wall calendar.

Although not printed on heavy stock and I wish it were larger, it's nice to see a collection of her fabulous paintings as a calendar. The 12 paintings are part of her wonderful exhibit happening now at Terrence Rogers Gallery:

Order the Patricia Chidlaw calendar here

Another lovely calendar is this wall one from Paper Source:

Twelve exclusive Paper Source designs make this monthly calendar a distinctive and elegant addition to any wall. On the back of each beautiful page are templates to cut and fold creating wonderful pillow boxes, hang tags, gift tags, bookmarks, and file folders. 100% recycled with 30% post-consumer waste and completely reuseable, this calendar is about as earth friendly as you can get.

Size: 13 1/4" x 19 1/4" , $26.00, buy it here.

Be sure to check all the lovely letter press calendars by various artists at Etsy.

At the beginning of this post I mentioned the numerous Calendar round-ups done by other bloggers which tend to feature indie art calendars. Rather than duplicate their efforts and posts, here are links to some of the best 2009 calendar round-ups online.

DECOR8

POPPY TALK

CREATURE COMFORTS

DESIGN CRUSH

BONUS Calendar: I almost forgot the Bubble Calendar you can pop! Second year available, this one is addictive:



horizontal or vertical formats are available:


Bubble 2009 Calendar. Just like everyone loves to pop the bubbles in bubble wrap, every day gets marked off this wall calendar with a "pop". Black Helvetica print on thick acetate. Weekends are in bold for easy identification and major holidays are also marked. Handmade in the USA.
Dimension: 48 in. W x 18 in. H

Buy it here.

Vitamin's Urban Gnomes Go "Street" With These Limited Editions

You may be familiar with Vitamin's line of 'urban gnomes', sweet little bone china gnomes that stand 8" tall and are decorated on front and back with various designs.



But now they have limited edition versions decorated with 'street style' imagery. The "street Style" editions are handmade of bone china, 8" tall and tattooed with 11 different graphic designs, and are exclusive to generate.










Buy them here while they last.

1800 Tequila Bottles; First By Artists... Now By You.

1800® Tequila Essential Artists Campaign -- Earlier this year 1800® Tequila launched an inspired campaign featuring nine cutting-edge artists it considers to be Essential.

These artists and their artwork were featured as part of a national advertising campaign including print, billboards, internet, and radio, and now each piece of artwork is featured on 1800® limited edition tequila bottles, available nationwide in stores now (or online here )



Below are the artists, their bios and their bottles from the Essential Artists collection. I have to tell you, the photos don't do them justice. I was generously sent the Hannah Stouffer bottle shown below, and it's just stunning!

Hannah Stouffer:
San Francisco-based illustrator and designer Hannah Stouffer constantly strives to define the term "classic" and explores how it relates to our modern attractions. She draws inspiration from traditional notions of luxury and elegance, and engages them as the basis for her work. Her self-taught design sense and style of illustration, combined with her themes of Victorian imagery, royalty and pop culture, distinguish her as a definition of classic contemporary.
Stouffer defines her illustration style as an exploration and embellishment of subcultures- and her work clearly presents that combination. The study of subcultures, their symbolism, and their unification with contrasting, unconventional imagery and decoration create the compositions in Hannah’s work. She draws inspiration from historical eras, lapsing all the way from Antiquity, through the Middle Ages, to Modern times- all the while maintaining an awareness of current attractions and tendencies. It is her skill at engaging these together that provides the basis of her work.

Jorge Alderete:
Pop illustrator, who uses trash culture, 50's science fiction films, wrestling and surf music imagery in his psychotronic illustrations, animations and comics. He graduated from the School of Fine Arts in the Universidad Nacional de La Plata, Argentina, as a Designer in Visual Communication.
As an independent animator, he has worked for MTV Latin America and Japan, Nickelodeon Latin America and Brazil. He has been coordinator of the animation section on the internet for MTV Latin America. Also he has been a jury of the MTV On-line Prizes 2001 (animation category) and One Show 2004 (design category) in New York. His work has been published in several specialized anthologies for example: Illustration Now (Taschen); Illusive, Pictoplasma, Los Logos, Dos Logos, Latino, Play Loud, (Die Gestalten Verlag); Place (Actar); Tatto Icon 3 (Victionary); Iconography II (idN) etc. etc.
He is the co-owner of the independent record label Isotonic Records, specialized in instrumental rock.

In 2006 he joins up with Clarisa Moura, Quique Ollervides y Cha! to open Kong, the first design store and gallery in Mexico speciailzed in international graphic design, illustration and street art. From 2006 he is the curator of the Terraza space in the Cultural Center of Spain in Mexico. In 2007, with Andres Amaya, he forms Plan B, the first Urban vinyl toy production company in Mexico. Currently he mostly works as an illustrator, for different publishing and media ventures in Argentina, Mexico, Spain, Italy, Germany, Portugal, USA, Switzerland, Finland, etc. He works in his lab at Mexico City.

Glenn Barr
Barr is one of Detroit's most celebrated and successful underground artists. His paintings have appeared in galleries from LA, Seattle and San Francisco to New York City, Germany and Italy. Barr's work has been featured in a variety of comics and graphic novels from Mad, DC Comics and Paradox Press as well as in a successful series of self-published books called HEEP. Barr's contributions to animation include background styling for The Ren and Stimpy Show, Bjork's I Miss You video, and The New Woody Woodpecker Show to name a few. His paintings have been reproduced in the periodicals Big, Film Threat, Hi Fructose and NY Times. The 2003 book, Lowlife Paradise: The Works of Glenn Barr, published by La Luz de Jesus Press & Last Gasp was met with great success. This book had a brother born at the same time entitled The Lowlife Companion: Selected Drawings from Glenn Barr. His latest book which is already in it’s second printing is a comprehensive collection of paintings, drawings and photographs entitled Glenn Barr’s "HAUNTED PARADISE". This collection spans 4 years of work were the previous book left off and is also published by La Luz de Jesus & Last Gasp.

Glenn Barr's surreal creatures, specters and tragic characters live in a seedy universe, drenched in the grit and haze of a post-apocalyptic urban dreamscape. His Detroit work has been labeled Pop Surrealism, Lowbrow, Regional, Outsider, Ashcan or as he coins the phrase “B Culture-ism”. Barr finds inspiration in the city streets as well as from pop and counter cultures that infuse a familiarity in his many parallel realities. With a nod to old master painting, pulp art, and cartooning, Barr's paintings are mesmerizing in their narrative complexities and technical depth.

Josh Ellingson
Josh Ellingson relocated to the California from Flint, Michigan during the "dot com boom" of the late '90s. Moving on from web production art, Josh found a niche in illustrating for various technology related magazines. Today Josh Ellingson contributes to various international publications and participates in art exhibitions nation-wide. His work has been featured on everything from handheld games to custom vinyl toys. When not managing his studio in San Francisco, Josh likes to travel and sketch. He has participated in shows at Gallery1988 SF, KidRobot SF,Space Gallery, The Local 303, Studio Gallery, Super7, and The Artist X-Change.

UrbanMedium
Is UrbanMedium a one man outfit? A team of designers? Perhaps a corporate giant masquerading in an attempt to infiltrate the minds of urban youth? None of the above…
UrbanMedium is a husband and wife design duo (Derek and Heather) with a knack for creating sweet eye candy. Born out of a daydream back in 2000 and fueled by the frustration of the 9 to 5 grind, UrbanMedium creates the kind of art they want to hang on their walls, wear on their bodies, and plaster on their environments…and you’ll want to as well. Derek and Heather got their start in Los Angeles and now reside in the heart of the ‘dirty south', Atlanta.

Artillery
Artillery’s creativity is drawn from the aggressive energy of the drum and bass, dub step and metal constantly pouring through his headphones. Armed with some stolen X-acto blades, almost every color of Montana spray paint and his wry sense of humor, he has created an arsenal of hand-cut stencil designs featuring candy-coated colors and an almost Warhol-esque twist on banal imagery. He currently curates street art shows in Chicago’s eclectic Wicker Park neighborhood, giving an outlet to up-and-coming artists. Artillery's latest works can also been seen on the street signs, buildings and bridges of Chicago—because even though he’s quickly becoming so much more than a “street artist,” that boy just can’t resist the urge to “get up.”

Jeremy Bacharach
Originally from Long Island, NY, Jeremy Bacharach moved to Chicago to attend The School of the Art Institute of Chicago. At SAIC he was Art Director of F News Magazine, winning several national design awards. By day, Jeremy works in interactive design for one of the largest agencies in the world, while also maintaining a small boutique practice designing for indie bands, cafes, and the like. By night, Jeremy creates in a variety of methods—painting, drawing, photography, and digital media. Inspiration often comes from vintage pop culture and from frequent trips to Mexico with his wife Ana, a writer. Many ideas are sparked by their creative collaboration, and an earlier version of Sirena del Desierto was made for her.

Dosa Kim
Dosa moved to Atlanta during his freshman year in high school. He went on to study graphic design at the Art Institute of Atlanta. After working at a local design studio for a year, he continued his education at the University of Georgia, studying Digital Media and Computer Animation. Since then he has been exploring the content of his art rather than limiting his designs to the selling of products or services. Commenting on current social issues, Dosa's art can be best described as whimsical, dark and sometimes minimal. Although much of Dosa's work has shadowy undertones, he emphasizes the notion of hope, the notion that outside forces will carry the subject matter and the viewer to his/her enlightened destination. This ideal is represented in numerous metaphorical ways and is carried out through his logo which bears the text: “Some of us will find our way home.”Dosa has shown at various galleries such as the High Museum of Art in Atlanta, and was a finalist in the NYC Cut and Paste Competition in 2007.

Chris Dean
Chris Dean’s synthesis of offbeat imagery and stereoscopic process has brought the nostalgic of medium of lenticular pictures to a new level of artistry. The 40-year-old Detroit native began working with stereo images during his time at San Jose State University in the 1990s and sees a future of artistic opportunity for those working with related technologies. Humor is seen as a force for good in Dean’s work, which often revels itself through the user interaction required by lenticular imagery. The odd historical context of lenticular work is embraced by Dean who often references popular culture himself. “While not underselling meaning, I consider fun to be a primary concern,” states Dean. Dean currently lives in the small community of Ferndale, north of Detroit, with his wife Heather and children Jasper and Otto.

Think you can do better? Well, now's your chance to prove it.

Now 1800® is on the search for the next essential artists, via an innovative interactive project taking place on www.1800tequila.com . Any aspiring artist or fan can upload their art on a custom 1800® bottle and join the competition to win $10,000 and be featured in a national advertising campaign.

The site allows fans to log in and in 3 simple steps join the competition and also spread the word through a custom artwork widget to embed on their site. Connoisseurs can also view the gallery and vote on the thousands of submissions. Fans can upload up to 5 pieces of art until the contest ends in mid-December.

Below are screen grabs so you can see how easy the interface is designed for you to make and share your own bottle art (notice how soon they are going to let you design your own kicks too!)





Some examples of your competition:




and example of the widget you can embed on your site to show off your bottle design:


Visit the site and design your bottle now!

Assouline & Coach Collaborate To Create 'The Library'

Topping my 'Christmas List' this year is the amazing collaboration between luxury book publishers Assouline and Coach leather. This Coach Library case holds 40 of Assouline's signature art and fashion books. It's crafted of white leather exterior, red leather interior and has typical brass Coach hardware and detailing.

Limited to 100, it's very pricey at $2,500.oo USD, but man.. what a fabulous collection and way to house it.





Elegant and chic, this portable and contemporary library case holds 40 of Assouline’s ‘must-have’ Memoirs books on art, fashion, design and architecture. The distinctive saddle-stitched white leather library case, lined with red suede, tastefully displays Assouline’s logo on a small metal plaque in front.

leather and hardware details:





LIBRARY BY COACH
$ 2500.00

- Custom-made by Coach, exclusively for Assouline, limited to 100.
- White leather with black saddle stitch
- Lined with red suede
- Includes 40 of Assouline's signature Memoire books

19.3 x 9.5 x 7 in. in
ISBN : 9782843234903

buy it here (for me! lol)

When An Ordinary Churro Just Doesn't Cut It: Xooro; Gourmet Spanish Fritters

I wish I'd never discovered these, for reasons only my hips understand. Xooro (pronounced 'sure-oh' ) is the premium spanish dessert that has been voted Best In LA and garnered other epicurean awards.




They are fancy gourmet versions of the traditional Spanish fritter (or doughnut), the Churro:




Of course they carry the Original (vanilla creme filled, coated with sugar and cinnamon), A Chocolate original, a Gluten-free original, and custom-filled originals.




In addition to those, they have the following various (and some super unique) flavors such as:

• Triple chocolate (dark chocolate filled, dark chocolate coating and stripes)
• Peanut Butter Lover (peanut butter filled, chocolate peanut butter coating, dark chocolate stripes)
• Rasberry (rasberry filling with white chocolate coating)
• Turkish hazelnut (hazelnut creme with milk chocolate coating and white chocolate stripes)
• Maple Bacon (that's right, maple-creme filled coated with bacon bits)
• Black and White (white chocolate filling, dark chocolate coating, white chocolate stripes)
• Pistacchio (pistachio filing with carmelized pistachio and dark chocolate)
• White Chocolate Coconut (white chocolate filled, white chocolate coated and shredded coconut)
• Dulce de Leche (dulche de leche filling with white chocolate coating)
• Mississipi (peanut butter filled with dark chocolate coating and chopped peanuts)
• Tiramisu (tiramisu cofee creme filling, milk choclate coated and dark chocolate stripes)
• Turron (Toasted almond Spanish candy filling, dark chocolate coating)
• Tortoise (dulce de leche filled, mil choclate coated and chopped pecans)
• Jordan's (Nutella filled with white chocolate coating and dark chocolate stripes)
• Mango (mango creme filled with white chocolate coating)




Unfortunately, at this time, they are only available in the Los Angeles area, with their flagship store in Santa Monica and a delivery service available to the surrounding communities. That's right, they deliver these delicious puppies with a minimum order of 12 and at least 24 hours advanced notice and with some other limitations- for more info on that please write to orders@xooro.com or fax them at 310- 260-2919.

But they are set to be open several new locations soon; in Orlando, San Antonio, Los Angeles and San Diego.



Located at 125 Broadway in Santa Monica (one block east of Ocean Blvd), California, 90401

Ototo's Balloon Doggy Bank Exclusive Sale- SOLD OUT

I will be selling some limited edition design items in very limited quantities that are very hard to find in the US.

I'm starting with this fabulous Doggy Bank by Ototo Design Studio of Israel.

This ceramic doggy bank is glazed in high polish gold and has a slot for coins with a removable plug on the bottom. It's a nice large size, 12.5" from the tip of the nose to the tip of the tail and stands 8" tall, and looks wonderful on a mantel or shelf. Sculpted to resemble a Balloon dog, it makes a great gift for children or adults. It even has felt pads for the feet to protect any surface. Comes in the manufacturer's box, safely packaged.

Suggested retail is $74.00 and the least expensive I could find it was for $57.00 +$25.00 shipping here, so this is an excellent deal. The bank will ship priority mail (so no PO boxes) beginning Friday, December 5th and arrive in 2-3 days.

sorry, but these have sold out.

It's A Lamp. It's A Speaker. It's The Amplamp By Futuros

Is it a table lamp? Is it an audio speaker?



The truth is that the amplamp is a unique combination of both. The amplamp is hand-crafted by Dominic Bromley, one of the UK's most successful lighting and ceramics designers - and the guy behind Scabetti.

what does it look like?
Available in black or white and with your choice of shade.




How does it work?

Amplamp delivers a unique sonic experience that easily compares to the most advanced consumer audio products. The sound combines tightly controlled deep bass with crystal clear presence, accuracy and precision.




By using a unique configuration of Airsound drivers and a transparent NXT panel speaker, the Amplamp is able to create a 360 degree spatial sound with realistic staging. The listener is enveloped in exquisite stereo sound, regardless of wherever they are in the room.



With the shade in place, the unit delivers above 20kHz, which is higher than you can hear - the domain of cats and bats. And at the same time it reaches down to less than 40Hz - lower than the lowest note on a bass guitar. So you really will not miss a thing.


Features include:

• On-board amplifier - 80 watts including sub woofer
• Spatial stereo from one amplamp
• NXT and Airsound technologies
• Optional docking station controls and charges your iPod


An exceptional speaker- The amplamp takes the speaker out of the conventional black box. An active speaker for an iPod, MP3 player or any other sound source, the amplamp uses cutting edge technology to produce a precision, room-filling stereo sound from a single unit.



The listener is enveloped in exquisite stereo sound, regardless of where they are in the room. A powerful, vertical-firing, bass sub woofer adds a depth and richness only found in larger, higher specification, hi-fi systems.




About NXT technology:

NXT's technologies are unique and based on harnessing the natural modes of vibration in a panel to reproduce sound. These technologies are derived from a profound understanding of bending wave physics and its applications to sound generation.

Traditional speakers act like a piston, pumping air with a rigid cone. NXT speakers are different. A transducer is used to excite a carefully designed panel, which vibrates, & converts the mechanical energy into sound pressure waves over the entire surface area. It is the same principle that makes an acoustic guitar or violin make its sound.

An additional characteristic is that the sound volume does not decay over distance like a standard speaker. This allows users to set a volume that is comfortable whilst they are sitting close to the unit while also being sufficient to fill the whole room with sound.

A powerful, vertical-firing, bass sub woofer adds a depth and richness only found in larger, high-specification, hi-fi systems.



About airsound technology:
It works by using small side firing speakers to reproduce spatial information contained within a stereo input signal. The resulting sound is used to interact with & modify the mono sound field generated by a forward facing NXT panel speaker.

Pre-order yours now here. Or call: +44 (0)1249 700 643
Read about Dominic and Frances Bromley of Scabetti here.


Other wild audio speakers worth checking out:

Ross Lovegrove's KEF Muon Speakers

Tons of unusual and amazing audio speakers

The G1 Giya speakers

the wireless Ferrari speakers

Symbio Design's Loud speakers

Artcoustic wall speakers

Mini-Gods speakers from Marka27

It's About Time Someone Created Hip Watch Winders: SwissKubiK.

Up until now, most of the automatic watch winders I've ever seen were very conservative and traditional in their styling. But now I've found SwissKubiK of Geneva, Switzerland who makes a much more youthful and hip, but equally functional, watch winder for those of you with automatic watches.



In addition to a large selection of colored anodized aluminum ones, wood ones and leather ones, they have a limited edition (200 of each) 'pop art' collection by artist Andrew McCarthy which features legendary actors and actresses like Audrey Hepburn, Sophia Loren, Marilyn Monroe and Steve McQueen printed upon leather:




Above: the "pop art" collection; legends on leather

The SwissKubiK watch winder has been entirely conceived and produced in Geneva, fully respecting Swiss quality tradition, in order to satisfy the most exacting requirements imposed by the highest-quality Swiss Watch Manufacturers.



The SwissKubiK watch winder distinguishes itself by its modern design, housed within the minimal space of a compact square cube 3.937 inches (10 cm), exclusively dedicated to the continuous rewinding of automatic mechanical timepieces.


The SwissKubiK watch winder is available in numerous colors and materials: - anodized aluminum, leather saddle style stitching, precious wood or stingray skinodized.



Versions of the watch winder are available for 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, 9, 12 or 15 watches. You may add acrylic glass hinged 'window' to each watchwinder for dust protection if so desired.





The custom 'Python', created to hold 24 watches and clad in genuine python leather:



A very special limited edition, the Joker, contains over 3, 500 full cut diamonds and is housed in 18k white gold:





• Personalized special orders can also be accommodated with specific colors or materials or for a larger collection of watches.

• For antique watches, collection timepieces or watches with specific requirements recommended by the watch manufacturers, the SwissKubiK watch winder can be programmed using the optional USB computer interface cable.

• The SwissKubiK watch winder is guaranteed 3 years from the date of purchase.



Swiss KubiK SA was founded by Philippe Subilia in December of 1998 to create, design and manufacture watches and horological products.


57 Rue de Rhone
1204 Geneve
Tel + 41 22 310 79 19
Fax + 41 22 310 79 20

Steven Meisel's 'Patterns' Photographs Spawn A Limited Edition Jigsaw Puzzle

If you didn't catch Fashion photographer Steve Meisel's amazing photos for the 'Patterns' editorial in last Spring's Italian Vogue, take a look at them here (courtesy of art+commerce):


Above: the cover















Above: Stylist: Edward Enninful, Hair: Guido, Make up: Pat McGrath

And what better way to commemorate the piece than with a limited edition jigsaw puzzle?

Steven Meisel Jigsaw Puzzle :

1000-piece jigsaw puzzle
Edition of 1000
Signed and numbered
Puzzle: 20 x 28’’ (50 x 70 cm)
Box: 8.5 x 12 x 2’’ (21.5 x 30 x 5 cm)
$750


Above: detail of meisel photo of model Meghan Collison

Looking for a gift for the artsy fashionista who has everything? Then this might be just the thing.

Legendary fashion photographer Steven Meisel has released a signed, limited-edition jigsaw puzzle of an image from his stunning 'Patterns' story he photographed for Italian Vogue last spring. The 1000-piece puzzles are packaged in a custom box and are signed and numbered by Steven Meisel. They have been produced in an edition of 1000 and are $750 each.

This limited-edition jigsaw puzzle features a pattern-on-pattern photograph of model Meghan Collison as a tattooed pin-up. The image originally appeared in Vogue Italia, a publication for which Meisel has created every cover and lead editorial story for nearly two decades.

Each custom-made cloth box is signed and numbered by Steven Meisel. The jigsaw puzzle is manufactured by Editions Ricordi, makers of high-quality jigsaw puzzles since 1808.

Puzzles are $750 each and may be purchased by credit card on this site or by calling 212-524-5519. Email inquiries should be directed to: shop@artandcommerce.com.

Puzzles are also available at Colette in Paris, at Barneys New York, and at 10 Corso Como in Milan.

See other Editions Ricordi jigsaw puzzles here. And here.

The Air Poo: Tech Satire From New York's LOLZ

The creative folks at New York's LOLZ (a self described "Digital Whatever" agency) had some fun a few months back when Apple's Air Book was launched. They created a micro site touting the Air Poo (trademarked, of course), the most convenient way to surf the net while seated comfortably and enjoying surround sound, all while ridding yourself of excess waste.

If you didn't catch this Poonovation (their word) the first time it made the rounds, you can catch it here. It's well done, very humorous and... the sort of concept, that if every actually produced, probably would have longer waiting lists than the iPhone did.







See the mock site here.
See more of their fun and engaging work and learn about LOLZ LLC here

Artists & Designers Make Scents; Six of Them. Series One.

Six Scents
Curated by Joseph Quartana (Seven New York), Six Scents: Series One, is a collection of scents that were created by six renowned perfumers working with six celebrated designers.


These are not mainstream designers – they are all on the cutting edge, each with a unique vision. Each pairing created a fragrance that will be offered in a limited quantity of 2,000 units, with individually numbered, custom packaging.



Like the fashions these designers create, these fragrances are not geared for the mass market – each team worked with an artistic concept in mind – not a target demographic. A percent of the net proceeds will go towards awareness and funding for the Designers Against AIDS (DAA), International AIDS Awareness Education Center in Antwerp.

Series One
No.1 - Alexandre Herchcovitch & Joachim Correl:



No.2 - Bernhard Willhelm & Lucas Sieuzac:



No.3 - Cosmic Wonder & Philippe Paparella-Paris:



No.4 - Gareth Pugh & Emilie Coppermann:



No.5 - Jeremy Scott & Philippe Roques:



No.6 - Preen & Mark Buxton


Buy them here at Seven
or Buy them here at Lucky Scents.

Gucci's New White Tattoo Heart Collection Benefits Unicef

With ads featuring Rihanna, Gucci has just launched a new 'white' tattoo heart collection, 25% of whose sales will benefit Unicef. The collection features various handbags, shoes, a necklace, a scarf, a dop kit, and a cosmetic bag. See all the images below:



















Shop the new Gucci tattoo collection here.

Pleo for the Pedia Set: Playskool's Kota The Triceratops

Above: Kota The Triceratops Animatronic Dino For Kids

First off, the good and the bad news: He doesn't actually walk (he moves his head, opens his mouth, roars and responds to certain stimuli like touch and sounds).

This is good for parents who don't have to worry about the dino and passenger falling down stairs, leaving the room or accidentally plowing into an expensive piece of furniture.

This is bad for those who thought who were absolutely wowed at the thought of a walking dinosaur upon which toddlers could 'ride'.

Either way, this is Pleo For the Pedia set. And yes, I bought one for my nephews today.


Hasbro's PLAYSKOOL goes prehistoric with the introduction of the KOTA The Triceratops Dinosaur. Featuring sophisticated electronics, animatronics and design, this 'life-size' baby dinosaur 'comes to life' creating a magical experience for preschoolers.



Measuring over 40-inches long KOTA The Triceratops reacts to touch and sound with realistic dinosaur noises and movements.

Featuring sensors in eleven areas on his body, KOTA will react to touch by moving his head, tail and horns or giving a friendly dino roar.



With KOTA The Triceratops children will enjoy the simulated experience of 'riding' a dinosaur; kids can ride comfortably on his back in a spring-loaded seat, holding onto a handle hidden behind the dinosaur's head.

To enhance the fantasy play of going for an adventure on a triceratops, while 'riding' KOTA children will hear fun jungle sounds and a kid-friendly 'roar'.

toy description: It’s fossil-sized fun standing just over 2.5 feet tall. A hidden handle helps kids hold on once they climb onto the dinosaur’s back. Realistic stomping sounds add to the make-believe fun as kids bounce in place on the spring seat. Talk to KOTA the Triceratops and he roars back with expressive tail, head, eye, mouth and horn movements. Touch his nose with your hand and KOTA “sniffs” it! In fact, it’s easy to trigger all of his sensitive spots – try tickling his belly or chin to make KOTA “laugh”. And when you think this pretend dinosaur has worked up an appetite, be sure to “feed” KOTA his leafy snack – it really sounds like he’s munching on it! Four different adventure-themed tunes set the mood for your child’s wild imagination as he embarks on a dino-filled "rides." But don’t worry! A convenient volume control switch lets you adjust the level or turn it off. KOTA the Triceratops may look thick-skinned, but just one stroke on his scaly-like fabric “hide” will prove he’s really a soft and snuggable playmate who’s ready for all of your child’s dino-roarin’ escapades.

Dinosaur figure comes with leafy snack and instructions.
Requires 6 “D” batteries (not included).

Retail price is set at $299, but as of yesterday, the best online deal I could find was at Amazon for $239.00 and free super saver shipping.

Buy it here from Amazon. Or here from Hasbro.

Epos & Visa Have 100 Worldwide Artists Design Credit Cards

Over at NOTCOT, I spotted a post by Rice Candy about some artist designed credit cards. Unfortunately there was no link to the gallery of 100 designs created for the Japanese financial institution, Epos. After some scouring around, I finally found it. So, now I'll share with you some more information and designs as well as a link to the site where you can see all 100 designs for yourself.




Visa and various international designers from all over the world have launched 100 beautifully designed credit cards for Epos International of Japan. Styles include everything from photography to hand scribbled graffiti by such artists and designers as Friends With you, Touma, Julian Picaud and Tristan Eaton.

The project is a collaboration with the Bleed Design, Visa and Japan's leading fashion stores Marui Co. The cards launched this past September 2008 and will be available until October 2009.

Here are several of my personal favorites:



















To see all 100 designs along with artist information, check out the gallery here.

Jura's New ENA 5, The World's Slimmest Coffee/Espresso Machine Comes In 7 Colors

The new ENA from JURA is a slim 23.8 cm wide (that's less than 10" wide), which makes it easy to accommodate even when space is at a premium. The ENA is compact, comes in multiple colors and is easy to operate. Makes coffee or espresso.

* 5-stage powerful conical burr grinder
* Direction and heigt adjustable coffee spout
* CLARIS plus filter cartridge for ENA
* Easy Cappuccino Frother
* Connector System©
* Programmable to 3 strengths, 1-16 ounces, and two brewing temperatures.
* Grinder with 5 fineness settings
* Stainless thermoblock heater
* 37 ounce water reservoir
* 7-ounce bean hopper
* Water filtration built in.
* 1450 watts
* 14 in. high, 9 in. wide, 17 in. long
* Weighs 20 lb.



This patented innovation disconnects the machine entirely from the electrical mains. This means ENA does not consume any energy in standby mode.

Zero Energy Switch: JURA is totally redefining the compact class with the slender fully automatic machine for espressos and coffee specialities.




Direction and height-adjustable coffee spout: The coffee spout of the ENA5 can be set for preparing either one or two cups simply by turning it. It goes without saying that its height can also be adjusted smoothly from 65 to 111 mm in order to adapt to the height of cup.


Multicolour plain text display: The ENA is equipped with a 3-colour plain text display. The colours display the status of the ENA.





One-switch philosophy:
Turn, press, enjoy. No-one could wish for any more intuitive and straightforward operation.




And comes in 7 different colors:



Learn more about it at the special Jura Ena site here.

The Gap Mixes It Up For Christmas: Remixed Classics With Singing Celebs

In an effort to engage people in online shopping this holiday season (since the economic outlook is so bleak), several retailers are turning to fun 'promotional' devices.

The Gap division of Gap Inc., is bringing out a campaign featuring celebrities in brightly colored outfits one can 'mix'. Drawing on the parallel between mixing the separates from the Gap store, you can enjoy the re'mixed' holiday classics sung by music, tv and movie celebrities. Or make your own 'mix' of a classic holiday song at their online site here.



“As everything progressed, we decided something lighter in tone would be fitting for the times,” said Trey Laird, president and creative director at Laird & Partners in New York, the Gap agency.

“Definitely, it’s going to be promotional out there,” Mr. Laird said, using the retail term for a climate in which price-cutting predominates, “but you’ve got to engage people, too, because there’s so many promotions out there.”

Gap will also offer a Gap Movie Card promotion for filmgoers at 1,000 theaters owned by chains like AMC, Cinemark and Regal. The cards, to be given free to ticket buyers, will be good for 15 percent or 20 percent off merchandise at Gap stores.

The NY times is quoted as saying the following:

The celebrities in the Gap campaign include Jon Hamm of “Mad Men,” the TV series about advertising in the 1960s, with his girlfriend, the actress Jennifer Westfeldt; cast members of “Saturday Night Live”; the Dixie Chicks; actors like Jason Bateman, Jason Biggs, Freddy Rodriguez and Rainn Wilson; and actresses like Jennifer Hudson, Milla Jovovich and Mary-Louise Parker

But I found different celebrities (shown below). Perhaps the others will be joining them or featured on other elements of the campaign like broadcast tv spots or print ads.


Above: Jingle Bells featuring the Gap Christmas Cast


Above: We Three Kingz featuring Freddy Rodriguez, Romany Malco and Jason Biggs


Above: Jingle Bells featuring Flo Rida and Trey Songz



Above: Deck The Halls featuring the Dixie Chicks and Sandra Bernhard


Above: Winter Wonderland featuring Jon Heder and Janelle Monaé


Above: Baby It's Cold Outside featuring Rainn Wilson and Selma Blair


And lastly, you can watch the original 'remix' sung by all or make your own mix on the site here.

It's no Elf Yourself (which by the way is back this year and now with a bigger Office Max logo and the opportunity to make printed greeting cards and other photo goodies) and the folks over at adfreak have made their opinion known.

But go check it out for yourself and you decide.

Caleido's Newest Rockin' Wall Radiators; The Metacrilati Collection

Caleido has introduced the new Metacrilati version in their Fine Design range of radiators. Consisting of four different models available in a slew of colors; Flora, Scuba, Wall and Rain – the innovative radiators designed by James di Marco are characterized by an unusual methacrylate-on-steel combination.

Very cool.. er, warm. Take a look.

RAIN:



WALL:



Besides the new material, Caleido incorporates a new concept - a decorative and functional element all in one. The perforated plates in methacrylate radiators provide numerous points for hanging towels and bathrobes.

SCUBA:




FLORA:



To see more of their radiator and towel warmers, visit their site here.



If you like hip radiator designs, be sure to see these too:


Cool Designs To Keep you Warm



It's A Sculpture. It's Art. No, It's A Radiator.

Showtime's Serial Killer, Dexter, Inspires Some Bloody Interesting Items You Can Own

above: NEW added Dexter items, link to buy at the end of this post!




This past summer, as part of a month long, groundbreaking print and television partnership, a celebrated group of designers transformed a beautiful Grammercy Park townhouse into a luxurious beacon of modernism inspired by the top six original hit series from Showtime.


Above: Showtime's Original series, Dexter, stars Michael C. Hall

This post is focusing on the wonderful DEXTER dining room created by Amy Lau design and DEXTER kitchen by Johnny Grey and the products now available for purchase as a result of that project.



The dining room features a table ready for a sit down dinner for twelve. All the items from the dishes to the lighting are inspired by the macabre tv show and were produced in limited editions.


Above: Amy Lau's sketch of the room for the project



Above: the completed room

Setting the mood are Amy Lau's chairs, elegant but wounded, walls splattered with 'blood' and place settings that might quell hunger rather than provoke it.





The table is surrounded by Steven Antonson’s candlesticks, reminiscent of vertebrae and filled with blood red candles. Wine and water glasses from Thomas Fuchs/Otium designed glassware have luminous 'blood -filled' stems and ominous fingerprints.



Savor the delectable dinner while challenged by Steve Butcher's dismembered flatware, a fascinating and disturbing set.



Nadeige Choplet's handmade ceramic plates celebrate the love of blood via an intricate pattern of blood splatters, veins and capillaries under a delicate porcelain skin; and finally dessert can be enjoyed on Klein Reid's fine porcelain, served with the fine trace of a fingerprint.



All this is presented under the sensual lighting by Grégoire Abrial of Amy Lau Design, a baroque cacophony of wine glasses and pure white; and surrounded by fantastic works as Jane D'Arensbourg's Coronal Section, the glass installation reminiscent of flowing organic cells and brain patterns; and Angelica Bergamini's elixir of life an airy curtain that truly gives life to the light that floods the room.



So, what can you own? All of the following macabre items:

DEXTER! chairs
dexter dining chairs designed by amy lau design



white lacquered wood frame upholstered in white ultraleather
hand-embroidered with blood design
10 side chairs each $ 2500
2 arm chairs signed by michael c hall, each $ 5000
manufacturer: martin albert interiors, inc

DEXTER! fingerprint glasses by Thomas Fuchs



A collection of hand-blown DEXTER inspired stemmed glasses, consisting of white wine, red wine and water goblets.



The glasses appear fairly benign but after closer inspection you will see the blood red glass running through the stem of the glass and then the subtle fingerprints on the bowl of the glass obviously left from the serial killer.


details: dimensions 8 inches tall, material clear mouth blown glass with a drop of red glass into the stem with sandblasted fingerprints, edition of 16, $137.50 each

DEXTER! fingerprint plates by KleinReid



KleinReid's are hand thrown and trimmed porcelain plates with unique tell-tale embossed fingerprints each plate is gloss glazed and high-fired in an special edition of only 17


details: dimensions approx. 9", weight approx. 1.5 lbs, each $250.00

DEXTER! Dinner Plates By Nadeige Choplet
he.ma.to.la.gnia - love of blood:



Above: The starter/dessert plate is a delectable combination of veins and broken capillaries under a layer of porcelain skin.


Above: The main course plate offers a refreshing splash of blood accompanied by the origin of the wound.


Above: The charger plates are a cross section of the human body.

one of a kind place setting chargers, dinner and dessert plates.
details: high-fired ceramic chargers 14.5" diameter $135
dinner plates 11" diameter $75
dessert plates 8" diameter $60
edition of 12, each piece is hand made and coloration, shape and patterning can vary.

DEXTER! dismembered flatware (classic, modern or antique) by steve butcher
Wonderfully disturbing flatware in classic, modern or antique styles, each 'silced and dismembered but still functional. Each piece is hand crafted and each setting has it's own character - numbered and initialed.


Above: antique - $500/place setting


Above: classic - $450/place setting


above: modern - $400/place setting

the details: 5 piece place classic silver plated setting - engraved knife, fork, salad/desert fork, spoon, coffee/desert spoon.

DEXTER! finn candlesticks by Stephen Antonson



The white resin candlesticks with red candles were inspired by human anatomy, specifically vertebrae. The scale is such that one’s fingers, or in this case case Dexter’s digits, fit perfectly into the candlesticks’ curves. details: materials resin candlesticks with red candles, edition of 12. The candlesticks come in three sizes; small - $125, medium - $250, and large - $375

DEXTER! Coronal Section installations by Jane D’Arensbourg
Even the various "Coronal Section" glass sculptures are available. This installation was inspired by cross sections of the brain. also vein patterns in the body. Jane has a fascination with blood and veins, as Dexter does. Her fascination is in nature, and pattern.




details: 12 ft x 10 ft. approx, 12 inches x 7 inches each individual piece., material: glass, edition of 23, each piece $750, whole installation of 23 pieces $17,000.00 approx.


The above items shown can be purchased here.

The Kitchen:

THE KITCHEN(above) by Johnny Grey

Harnessing the softer side of our serial killer, Johnny Grey draws his inspiration from Dexter’s South Florida lifestyle rather than his murderous profession. The artful kitchen reflects Miami’s tropical locale and famed Art Deco architecture. Finally a space where Dexter can focus on slicing and dicing veggies — and only veggies.



Part of a team renowned for its edgy kitchen design, Grey and Chuck Wheelock (design director for the U.K.-based firm, Johnny Grey Studios) have a worldwide client roster that includes rock star Sting and Apple founder Steve Jobs.

So many talented people were involved in the project, it's only fair to share with you more of their work, so below are links to most (not all) of the artists who created items for the Showtime Metropolitan Dexter dining room and kitchen:

Amy Lau Design by Gregoire Abrial
Light installation
www.amylaudesign.com
www.gregoire-abrial.net

Stephen Antonson
Consoles and mirrors
www.stephenantonson.com

Marcus Tremonto
Wall art sconces
www.treluce.com

Jane D'Arensbourg
Glass sculpture wall hanging
www.janedarensbourg.com

Aranda/Lasch for Johnson Trading Gallery
Cabinet
www.johnsontradinggallery.com

Gregoire Abrial
Taped floor installation
www.gregoire-abrial.net

Dustin Yellin
Resin art skull sculptures
www.dustinyellin.com

Amy Lau Design
Chairs
www.amylaudesign.com
Embroidered by Leah Picker
212.982.6000
Upholstered by Martin Albert Interiors
www.martinalbert.com

Otium Nyc by Thomas Fuchs
Glassware
www.otium-nyc.com

Steve Butcher
Flatware
www.spring3d.net

KleinReid
Commemorative plates
www.kleinreid.com

Nadeige Choplet
Chargers, dinner and dessert plates
www.choplet.com

Stephen Antonson
Candlesticks
www.stephenantonson.com

Also available for Dexter fans are these items designed by SCAD (the Savannah College of Art & Design) for the premiere and are available through their online store:

Above: Throw pillow, $75.00



Above: The Five Finger Discount Mug, $15.00


Above: Body Part earrings, $60.00


Above: paper Dexter monster coasters, $10.00
shop SCAD



The following items are available at the Showtime Dexter Online store:


Above: glass printed Dexter coasters in commemorative box.


Above: Shephard Fairey's Dexter Poster
Buy a shepard fairey signed version of the poster here.

UPDATE: New Dexter action figures, including a special one for this year's 2009 Comic-Con have just been released:

buy this limited exclusive edition here.


buy the Dexter Action figure here.


Above: The Dexter Bobblehead Doll, buy it here.



shop the Showtime Dexter online store.


The official Dexter site.

After Months of Promotion, The Sony Ericsson New Xperia X1 Is Here

PRNewswire/ — Sony Ericsson North America announced the arrival of the highly anticipated Xperia(TM) X1 to the U.S. marketplace. The Xperia(TM) X1 delivers a range of multimedia and communication experiences that have long been coveted and in demand by consumers

The Xperia X1 will be available unlocked through Sony Electronics and its authorized retailers beginning on "Black Friday," November 28. This premium device will be sold unlocked for the MSRP of $799.99, giving consumers the freedom to choose their own mobile operator and data plan. You can pre-order it now from the link at the end of this post.



The Xperia X1's unique panel user interface is at the heart of the device's ability to create and adapt consumers' personal choices. With up to 9 panels, it's easy to find and enjoy the information and entertainment content they want. Sony Ericsson is busy working with third-party developers to create a wealth of new applications and new panels that will soon be available for download.

By incorporating the Windows Mobile(R) 6.1 Professional operating system, the Xperia X1 frees consumers from their home and office, allowing them connectivity to their content wherever they are.



As Sony Ericsson's most advanced phone to date, the Xperia X1 brings together a large, 3-inch wide VGA display touchscreen and a full QWERTY keyboard all wrapped into a sleek silver metal- finished arc slider handset. The Xperia X1 supports fast 3G networks, enabling audio and video streaming, high-speed internet surfing, multimedia messaging and email on the go. In addition to delivering 3G mobile broadband speeds, the Xperia X1 supports WiFi to meet the needs of consumers' always connected lifestyles.

In the tradition of Sony Ericsson, the Xperia X1 offers consumers the ultimate multimedia experience with a 3.2 megapixel camera, video streaming, video playback and video recording, and the ability to enjoy all their digital music.



Beginning last September, they promoted the Xperia with a competition centered around a series of online webisodes featuring a character named Johnny X. Although the competition and a chance to win a phone is over now, you can still watch the episodes. Go here to watch them.




Sony Ericsson Xperia(TM) X1 - At a Glance


Camera
• Auto focus
• 3.2 megapixel camera
• Photo light
• Video recording


Above: Although originally rendered in black, the phone is silver

Multimedia
• Bluetooth(TM) stereo (A2DP)4
• Media player
• Music tones
• Windows Media(R) Player Mobile
• 3D games
• FM radio
• Java(TM)
• Video streaming
• Video viewing


Internet7
• Internet Explorer(R) Mobile
• RSS feeds
• Opera(TM) 9.5



Communication and Messaging
• Polyphonic ringtones
• Speakerphone
• Vibrating alert
• Video calling3,8
• Email
• Picture messaging (MMS)9
• Predictive text input
• Text messaging (SMS)9


Design
• XPERIA(TM) panels
• Optical joystick navigation
• Navigation key
• Picture wallpaper
• Touch navigation



Organizer
• Alarm clock
• Calculator
• Calendar
• Document editors
• Document readers
• Flight mode
• Handwriting recognition
• Notes
• Phone book
• Tasks
• Touchscreen

Connectivity
• aGPS
• Bluetooth(TM)4 technology
• Modem
• Synchronization
• USB support
• WLAN

Windows Mobile(R) Operating System
• Microsoft(R) Outlook(R) Mobile: email, contacts, calendar, tasks
• Microsoft(R) Office Mobile: Word Mobile, Excel(R) Mobile, PowerPoint(R) Mobile
• Windows Live(TM)
• Microsoft(R) ActiveSync(R)
• Voice control
• Utility Applications: file explorer, calculator, pictures & video, notes



Above: Although originally rendered in black, the phone is silver


• Size: 110 x 53 x 16.7 mm (approx.)
• Weight: 145 grams (approx.)http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif
• Available colors: Silver
• Main screen: 65,536 color TFT
• Resolution: 800 X 480 pixels
• Size: 3 inches (approx.)
• Phone memory5: up to 400 MB
• microSD(TM) memory card support

Networks:
GSM/GPRS/EDGE 850/900/1800/1900
UMTS/HSDPA/HSUPA 850/1900/2100 MHz

Pre-order it here now.

Design Within Reach Is Out Of Reach In This Economy.

One of the most impressive collections of modern furniture, a great looking and well functioning e-commerce website, a well-written 'design notes' newsletter and blog, beautifully designed stores, and some of the nicest looking, impressive catalogs ever produced can't help even Design Within Reach's online and in-store sales in this economy.



Even with their newest addition of DWR "limited", a purchase or an auction on one different unique new or vintage item each day, one of my favorite design stores is suffering. I came across this unfortunate, but not unexpected, news today.

E-commerce sales fall almost 30% at Design Within Reach

The economy continues to hammer revenue at Design Within Reach Inc.



Web sales were down for the third straight quarter, falling 29.7% to $5.2 million in Q3 2008 from $7.4 million in the prior year quarter. The Internet accounted for about 12.3% of sales in Q3 2008 vs. 15.2% in Q3 2007.

Store, or studio, sales also declined, by 10% or $3.3 million, from $32.1 million in Q3 2007 to $28.8 million in the third quarter of 2008. Overall sales were down 13.7%, or $6.7 million, for the third quarter ended Sept. 27, 2008, to $42.3 million from $49 million in the same quarter of 2007.

Design Within Reach is a multi-channel retailer of modern design furnishings and accessories. The company, No. 263 in the Internet Retailer Top 500 Guide, depends on affluent consumers for its business and the company cites the stagnant housing market and the mortgage crisis as key reasons for sagging sales.

Design Within Reach reported an overall loss for Q3 2008 of $5.6 million compared with net income of $2.4 million in the prior year quarter.

Through the first nine months of fiscal 2008, web sales decreased about $4 million, or 18.3%, from $21.8 million in the first three quarters of 2007 to $17.8 million. Net sales through nine months of fiscal 2008 declined 3.8%, or $5.5 million, from $141.9 million in the first nine months of 2007 to $136.5 million.
Source: Internet Retailer

Positioned to appeal to affluent customers, their prices simply are not competitive enough. I even affectionately used to call them DOOR (Design Out Of Reach) and often find an item that I like there and then scour the net for a better price. And although they have sales, the discounts and reductions are never very large and I've never known them to give promotional or discount codes.


Above: their Design Notes Blog

That said, they still are a heaven for those interested in modern design and interior decor and one of the only companies whose catalogs I can never bring myself to throw away. Like I mentioned at the beginning of this post, I love the look and functionality of their online store, their catalogs, their newsletter and blog.

They are one of the few companies who knows how to 'brand' themselves. They have a cohesive look and style across all their communications, create promotional material which reflects the quality of their products and consistently remind customers of their products and offerings without being intrusive or annoying. Their newsletter and blog are optional e-mail sign ups and their site is easy to maneuver and is searchable numerous and convenient ways. Proof that sales are not directly tied to 'branding'. After all, one cannot account for all unforeseen impacting factors.

I think that with the opening of so many stores across the country in the past few years unfortunately coinciding with the numerous foreclosures and mortgage crises, they simply overextended themselves and are now paying the price.

Maybe now, their sales will be a little more 'accessible'. Here's hoping... because I certainly don't want them to go away.


www.dwr.com

I Am Loving Wordle: A Fun & Easy Text Cloud Generator

I am loving Wordle.

Wordle is a free online app for generating “word clouds” from text that you provide. The clouds give greater prominence to words that appear more frequently in the source text. You can tweak your clouds with different fonts, layouts, and color schemes. The images you create with Wordle are yours to use however you like. You can print them out, or save them to the Wordle gallery to share with your friends.



Simple, easy, applicable options include available color palettes, your choice of all upper or lower case- or a combination, choosing whether or not the words are vertical, horizontal or half and half and more. You can edit as you'd like or use the 'randomizer' for variations.

Think about using them for presentations or report covers, screen savers and more. Inventive, malleable and creative, Wordle does have some limitations (read more about the FAQs on the site).

And for those creative types those who like a little more control and wish to determine their own hex colors and weighted words, he now has Wordle Advanced.

Here are a few examples I just generated in less than 5 minutes, using the paragraph from the beginning of this post and the 'randomizer' tool:












Wordle was created by Jonathan Feinberg (shown above)
In his own words he also credits all these helpful folks.

Go play with Wordle now.

Artists Dalek, Emil Kozak & Motomichi & More Do Zune

above: Emil Kozaks' artwork available is now on your customizable Zune player

Zune, Microsoft Corp.'s end-to-end music and entertainment service has added 46 new designs from leading artists to its customization Web site, Zune Originals, for the holiday season.

Wanna customize a Zune player for yourself or as a gift this holiday season? The new Zune Originals designs include a Zodiac Series featuring exclusive artwork of Eastern and Western astrology from Catalina Estrada and Iosefatu Sua as well as other great designs from several artists and a tattoo inspired series. An expanded line of regular Zune players, popular Zune accessories and Zune Marketplace gift cards are also available for purchase here.



In the Zune Originals online design studio, consumers can customize a Zune by choosing artwork and adding personal text that is laser-etched on the Zune player they choose. Zune has just added 12 new eye-catching designs from artists such as these:

Dalek - A graffiti artist who works extensively in both fine arts and the skateboard industry:



Motomichi - A graphic designer known for his widely exhibited animation and live video mixing:



Daniel Jackson, the artist and DJ from Surface to Air, the creative art collective made up of artists from Paris, Barcelona and New York, produces cutting-edge designs for everything from clothing to jewelry to skate decks:


Other featured Zune Originals artists include Kenzo Minami, Alex Trochut, Alvaro Arteaga, Emil Kozak(whose work is shown at the beginning of this post), Ippei Gyoubu, Kate Moross, Maya Hayuk, Siggi Eggertsson and Robin Nishio. Playlists from each artist that reflect his or her personal taste in music will also be available for download in the Zune Marketplace.

Go check them out here.

About Zune
Zune is Microsoft's music and entertainment brand that provides an integrated digital entertainment experience. The Zune platform includes a line of portable digital media players, elegant software, the Zune Marketplace online store, the Zune Social online music community created to help people discover music, and the ZuneOriginals.net customization Web site. Zune is part of Microsoft's Entertainment and Devices Division and supports the company's software-based services vision to help drive innovation in the digital entertainment space.

About Zune Originals
Zune Originals is the premium Zune purchasing experience. It's an online design studio where consumers can customize Zune players by choosing the color and size of their device and selecting exclusive artwork and text that can be laser-etched onto the back of the device. Artwork in the Zune Originals collection is available in three series: Artist Series, Zodiac Series and Tattoo Series that feature designs from world-famous artists. Visit the Zune Originals design studio here.

And You Thought Origami Was Impressive: Paper Fashions By Zoe Bradley

Artist Zoe Bradley creates stunning headpieces, dresses, sets and installations crafted from various papers. That's right.... paper. And boxes, and sometimes even plastic spoons. But her 'forte' is her signature use of various "luxury" papers in a sculptural way.



She also does windows. And by that, I mean the windows of some of the most prestigious stores around; Harrods, Selfridges, Liberty, and Smythson in London, Missoni in Italy, Brown Thomas of Dublin and more.

A graduate of Middlesex University she went to work for Alexander McQueen where she honed her craft that later became her trademark.

Below are some of her spectacularly designed dresses and headpieces that have appeared in editorial work and advertising campaigns.












And her headpieces:







And her in store displays:
















And of course, her head-turning window displays:













Some of her fashions have even been on the runway, as in these two from the Michiko Show:



There's a lot more of her impressive work to see. Be sure to check out her entire portfolio of work here.

Mighty Morph Pads & More From Schleeh Design. Note Paper Never Looked So Good.

I have been a big fan of Schleeh designs beautiful wood desk accessories and notepads for years. I have the "Magnetique DooDad Pad" and the "Bachelor Pad" in my home and have recommended them on several sites.




In addition to their unusual sculptural wood accessories, they are the makers of the Mighty Morph notepads you might have seen if you frequent hip stores, museum shops and the like. Now they have many more additions to the line that are equally fantastic and make great gifts for the holidays. And they are made with 100% recycled paper!!

New for this year are some unusual and fun additions, including one of a kind, hand painted pads, dog and bone pad, and laser engraved customizable pads. Each consists of 1000 sheets of paper. And every single one would make an awesome gift for anyone.

ZEBRA MIGHTY MORPH, sculptural notepad 3" by 5" by 5" high:


RULER MORPH pad 2" by 2.75" by 5" high:


The DOG & BONE MORPH, (a collaboration with Canadian graphic artist Jeremy Tracz). Perfect for the Dog Lover:


The OLD GLORY MIGHTY MORPH PAD. Perfect for the Patriotic.
3" by 5" by 5" High :


Custom Laser Engraved MORPH and MIGHTY MORPH Pads. They will laser your artwork for runs as few as 36 units. Each consists of 1000 sheets of paper:


Hand-printed, one-of-a-kind MIGHTY MORPHS. Some are mono-block prints, some are splattered-all of them are original works of art that you can then morph to indescribable levels of cool:



From their previous collection (and still available):

The original, a sculptural tower of blank paper that you can twist and turn into desktop art. A perfect example of 1,000 sheets of notepaper in functional form.

The original MORPH malleable paper pad sculpture 2" x 2.75 " x 5" high:




The PICASSO MORPH pad (PICASSO graphic image by Victoria Wonnacott and Schleeh Design) 2" x 2.75 " x 5" high:



STRIPED MORPH series, malleable paper pad sculpture 2" x 2.75 " x 5" high:



STRIPED MORPH black, malleable paper pad sculpture 2"x 2.75" x 5" high:


Not all of the pads are carried at stores, to find where you can purchase your favorite Mighty Morph pad, I suggest you 'Google' it.

Some of their beautiful wood desk accessories are shown below. Most are available in maple, cherry or walnut and paper refills are available for each design. They make wonderful gifts and the prices start at approximately $45.










Some of the above wood desk accessories and notepads can be found here or here at Greer Chicago. And here at the Marten Arts Gallery. And several more here at the Van Dop Gallery.


About Colin Schleeh:
Colin Schleeh was born in Montreal, Quebec in 1955. He began his design career working for his father, sculptor Hans Schleeh, polishing marble sculptures and cleaning the ever-growing piles of marble chips. Attracted to the organic qualities of wood, he began his studies in wood design at the age of 17, apprenticing at the Berufs und Fachschule, Holz und Kunstgewerbe in Stuttgart Germany, before moving to Edmonton where he also completed a Canadian apprenticeship as a furniture designer and builder at the Northern Alberta Institute of Technology. Opening his studio in 1980, Schleeh designed and built custom furniture, as well as having his own work featured in galleries and stores across western Canada.

Moving his family to Montreal in 1986, Schleeh worked as a boat-builder, set designer, custom furniture designer/builder, sculptor, jewelry designer, and completed a one year stint as manager of a custom furniture company (not all at the same time!), before accepting a position at Dawson College to head their Fine Arts studio. Schleeh taught for ten years, always maintaining his own studio. When it became apparent that the increasing demand for his work required his full attention, Colin Schleeh opened Schleeh Design with Rachael Schwartz in the fall of 2001.

Operating out of a 7,000 square foot studio on the banks of the Lachine Canal in Montreal, Quebec, Schleeh Design offers a line of innovative limited production accessories and serves as a showcase for Schleeh's collection of handmade vases and decorative art.

Recent work includes design commissions for Hermes of Paris, Bulgari and Shreve Crump and Low. Schleeh's work is represented in galleries and collections throughout Canada and the United States, as well as Japan and Europe.

To see their vessels, furniture and more, check out the Schleeh Design site here.

Designlush: Living Up To Their Name

Designlush is a collection of finely crafted interior furniture, rugs and accessories created by a talented group of designers and artisans. They sell to trade professionals and offer residential and commercial interior design services. They also create one of a kind pieces for use in everything from real estate staging, set design, and film, video and photo shoots.

Because they are not a retail store, you probably have not seen many of these great items, which is why I want to share them with you.

The style, design and materials vary from exotic hardwoods to hand blown glass. But all are top quality (and many of their wood pieces are sustainable). they carry numerous lines and special, exclusive collections.

Take a look at some of their fabulous rugs:

"Damage" lounge rug:

The Dark Tree Rug:

The "Paris" Lounge Rug:

The Royal Lions Rug:


And their wonderfully crafted wood pieces:

The Lubalin flat credenza and media console:


Wishbone Entry Table (available in various woods):



Black Walnut (or Rosewood) Console:




Santos Rosewood Console:


Slab pine with glass shelves:


Swahili console:


Waterfall writing desk (my personal favorite) :

the level console:


They have some really unique lighting, two of which are shown below.

The Antler lamp:


The "Night Owl" blown glass floor lamp:



They have a large collection of upholstered furnishings as well.

Knowland Sofa:

Groove Sectional sofa in ultrasuede or leather:


and a large selection of art and framed photography, such as the Stable Canine photo below shot by Jesse Harrris:


They also have 3D wood wall panels and unusual mirrors:


Clara Walnut carved wall mirror:

The DESIGNLUSH showroom is located in Suite 415 at the prestigious New York Design Center (NYDC), 200 Lexington Avenue, New York, NY 10016.

DESIGNLUSH is headed by President and Creative Director Stephen Mitchell, with co-founder and Style Director Thomas Ruscica.

There's much more at their site to see, including a modern masters collection. Check it all out here.

The Mongo Modern Menorah List: Over 140 Hip Chanukah Candelabras

UPDATE: THE 2009 MODERN MENORAH LIST OF OVER 200 CAN BE FOUND HERE.

First of all... what is a Menorah? For those who may not know, below is a simple definition:

Menorah - A menorah is a candelabrum with seven candles that is displayed in Jewish synagogues. The original design for the menorah is in the Torah, and it was used in rituals in the tabernacle (portable sanctuary) and later the Holy Temple in Jerusalem. Since the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem, it has had no formal role in Jewish prayer services or rituals. The presence of a menorah in some synagogues is purely symbolic.

The one exception to this concerns the Jewish festival of Chanukkah, in which a nine-branched version of the menorah is used; this nine branched menorah is properly called a Chanukkiah.

The Chanukkah menorah includes nine candles. Jewish folklore brings down that the reason is one for each day the oil miraculously burned when there was only enough for one day. The Talmud teaches that during the Greek rule in the Land of Israel, the Jews were not allowed to celebrate Sukkot, a holiday of eight days. Therefore, Chanukkah was deemed an eight day holiday from the outset in order to make up for them missed holiday of Sukkot. Today the candles are still lit in order to remember. The ninth candle, the shammes (in Yiddish) or shamash (in Hebrew), is a servant candle that is used to light the others.

This year Chanukah begins Monday December 22nd (it changes every year because the Jewish calendar differs from our calendar year) and continues for 8 days. If you need a menorah for yourself or as a gift, and prefer contemporary, modern or luxe designs to traditional ones, you won't find a more comprehensive selection than my list of over 140 options and growing.

Modern menorahs are gaining in popularity. And since last years' list was such a hit I've decided to continue to scour the world and web for new and more modern menorahs to add to last years' list.

Please note that although I've listed many menorahs, this list does not include 'novelty' menorahs of which there are many (you know... those cutesy or crafty ones made of cats or shoes or in the shape of Noah's ark).

Instead this list is focused on beautifully designed menorahs that deviate from the traditional style. The list includes impressive manufacturers like Tiffany & Co., Christofle, Steuben, and Simon Pearce as well as inexpensive but nice looking ones from Crate & Barrel, Pottery Barn and other retailers. There are some crafted by famous metal smiths, some by hand blown glass artists, and others in limited versions or even 24k gold plated.

The prices of the above menorahs vary from $14.00 to over $25,000.00. To purchase or learn more, just click on the image.

See more of my Modern Menorahs list at ThisNext.

To see other modern holiday stuff for Christmas click here.

Here's the 2009 Modern Menorah list for you

Warm Up To Safretti's New Designer 'Firespaces' For Indoors Or Out

Safretti has contracted various top designers to build up their assortment with new product lines of fireplaces they call 'firespaces'; the Curva, the Prometheus, the Cubico, Riviera and the Gaya. The designers are Jan des Bouvrie, Jort Mercuur, Frans Schrofer and Roderick Vos and the results are HOT.



The Curva:




The Prometheus:




The Cubico:




The Riviera:




The Gaya:




Safretti decorative "firespaces" have a unique design and a high-quality finish. A combination of exclusive design and the warmth of fire. The decorative firespaces are easy to attach to the wall or to place in open spaces. The open fire will be created by using a special liquid (bio-alcohol). A flue is not necessary. Due to the high-quality materials used, these firespaces are suitable for use both inside and outside on the patio or balcony.

Go here to find a place to purchase them.

Artists James Jarvis, So Me & Delta Create Limited Edition Bottles of Malibu Rum

Malibu Pop & Street Art Series is a limited collection of artist designed bottles for Malibu Rum by So-Me (France), Delta (Netherlands) and James Jarvis (UK) , curated by La MJC.

Three different bottle by three different artists from three different countries representing three different styles; each is numbered and signed and limited to 100 bottles.

French Graphic designer/multi-media artist S0-Me 's Typographic exploration:



Netherland Graffiti artist /painter Delta's Collage design:

And illustrator/vinyl toy designer James Jarvis' pop art version:


Each bottle will cost 19 euros and will be available to the public exclusively at Colette in France beginning December 1st.

SO ME:

The So Me Show at Studio Gallery .
So Me's MySpace page

JAMES JARVIS:

Buy James Jarvis' many vinyl toys collectibles here.


See James Jarvis illustrations here



DELTA:


See some of Delta's older work here
And his newer site here


Visit Colette here to purchase the Malibu Rum bottles starting december 1st

Samsonite's Black Label Gets Glitzy; Alexander Queen's hardsided luggage now in silver.

Alexander McQueen’s work for Samsonite Black Label gets two new updates this season – in limited edition shining silver for the striking ribcage Hero piece (Al1) and the Travel piece (Al2) in crocodile skin design.

The shiny exterior, courtesy of a new paint technology, is developed in conjunction with Bayer. First developed for the motor industry, the paint is thermoformable and highly resistant to impact.

The surfaces are scratch- and UV resistant yet drip of sleek modernity, blending Samsonite’s famed hardiness with the glamor that is the hallmark of Alexander McQueen. This new silver collection will be available at Samsonite boutiques worldwide starting this month.



Above: The Hero Piece
The critically acclaimed Hero piece takes on the imprint of a human form with the ribcage and sternum outlined at the front of the case and the backbone on the back. Now in a rich Chocolate, the decadent color and texture makes this piece more luxurious than ever. This striking effect is echoed within the interior with a negative of the ribs represented in a soft molded form. The Hero piece is also available in chocolate, black and bone colors. AI1 Upright 57 Silver: 43x57.5x25.5 cm, 17x22x10in


Above: The other hardside pieces in the collection follow the design thread of fusing patterns and textures found in nature with the latest cutting-edge technology to create a crocodile skin textured pattern. The cases are lined with a soft feather print and are also available in chocolate, black and bone colours. AI2 Upright 55 Silver (Crocodile Texture): 37x55.5x21 cm, 14.4 x22x8.25in


About the Black Label Collection By Alexander McQueen:




Samsonite has a rich history of partnering with some of the world's most interesting and well-respected designers. When the time came to launch a new collaboration, thoughts turned to the man who is probably the world's most influential fashion designer - Alexander McQueen.

The McQueen brand is defined by the juxtaposition of tradition with technology; the idea of romance, nature, the influence of arts and crafts, together with edgy tailoring and a futuristic aesthetic. When brought together with Samsonite Black Label's values of luxury and style, and an unrivaled 97-year heritage of function and durability, the result is a unique collection of luxury travel items that not only meet the demands of modern travel but also one that applies the McQueen values to luggage for the very first time.

Design:


The hero piece in the collection takes design inspiration from the human rib cage. McQueen took a mold of a male torso and began to work from there. “The human ribcage protects our vital organs as we move about in the world.



Luggage takes on the same role as we travel and pack our worldly possessions inside for safe transport, ” said McQueen at the Samsonite launch of his new collection. Available in bone, black and chocolate brown, the hero piece boasts a ribcage and sternum outline in the front, and a backbone on the back.

Alexander McQueen


Samsonite Black Label

Karl Gets Cuddly With A Steiff Bear In His Likeness

Karl Lagerfeld has been all over the fashion world more than usual lately, whether it's his Gun heeled shoes, his own action figure doll, or images of him holding his latest fishing rod for Chanel. Either way, he's inspiring lots of fun goodies and this Steiff bear is the latest.


Above: Karl Lagerfeld Action Figure (sold out everywhere)

This limited edition Steiff teddy bear in the likeness of designer Karl Lagerfeld is dressed in signature jeans from the KL collection, sunglasses (just like his namesake) and a black tie with a Swarovski crystal in it. He comes poised on black plexiglass podium and in a pristine white gift box.



Scribble of the bear, drawn and signed by Karl Lagerfeld.

Limited-edition Karl Lagerfeld Steiff bear includes:14.5"H bear with jointed limbs, constructed of the finest alpaca wool. A miniature outfit designed in collaboration with Karl Lagerfeld, including black denim jeans, flannel jacket, white shirt, Swarovski® crystal-studded silken tie, leather belt with Swarovski® crystal-studded KL buckle, and tailor-made leather boots. Miniature sunglasses in the style Karl Lagerfeld himself wears. Special black-and-white gift box with KL and Steiff logos. Scribble of the bear, drawn and signed by Karl Lagerfeld.









Limited to 2,500 made and sold worldwide. Cost is $1,500.00 USD
Available at Neiman Marcus, Bergdorf Goodman, Steiff, Colette.


If luxe teddy bears is your thing, Steiff makes many of them, including the world's most expensive teddy bear, a 125 Carat bear with gold, diamond and sapphire button eyes.

Ron English Adds a Little Classic Rock to Some Classic Paintings

Pop Culture artist Ron English has long incorporated pop culture icons into paintings from well-known artists like Picasso, Manet and Warhol.

His "Secret History of KISS" continues the tradition by applying the famous face make up worn by Gene Simmons, Ace Frehley, Paul Stanley and Peter Criss of the rock band KISS onto the faces of maidens and Madonnas in the well-known paintings of the Old Masters.


Above: The Rock Band Kiss in full face make-up

The images below were on exhibit in 2007 at Basel Miami Beach, the Shooting Gallery:

Kiss Ace Lamb:

Kiss Monkey On My Back:

Miracle of The Milk Kiss:

The Kissening:


And these are presently on exhibit at The Shooting Gallery in San Francisco:

“The Secret History of Kiss”
Opening November 1, 7:00 – 11:00 pm














The Shooting Gallery in San Francisco

Ron English

Barbie Goes Psychedelic for 2009: The Mod Squad Collection

For the real collector, there are several lines of Barbie dolls... everything from artist and designer series to DC Comics, Dolls of the world and dolls ranked by 'label' (platinum, gold, etc.). I don't want to bog you down with the details (of which there are many) but instead want to share with you some of the Barbie Dolls you probably had no idea were ever created (unless you have tween girls at home or are a collector yourself). Barbie certainly ain't what she used to be...



The Pivotal Mod Squad collection of Pop Life dolls for 2009 is fun, modern and frankly, fabulous. This new set of Pivotal dolls... the follow up to last year's Jazz Baby dolls brings the new POP Life! dolls.

Retro fashion dolls wear mod shapes in shift dresses and elephant bells, mixed with black-and-white graphics and a burst of color and texture! Celebrate the Mod Era with three fully-posable, Pivotal™ body dolls from the Barbie® Fashion Model Collection.

Based on the Pivotal body, each doll comes dressed in Mod prints and features nostalgic face sculpting. Barbie and Christie share the TNT face sculpt, while Kelly is a Steffie face sculpt.

Mod Barbie:




Mod Christie:



Mod Kelly:




Price approx. $54.95 each. Release date is TBA, but the mod dolls, each sold separately, can be pre-ordered here. Or here.

Other "hip" Barbies worth noting:

2008 Hard Rock Barbie


Buy it here.

Hard Rock Runway Barbie:

Buy it here

And of course, the fabulous "The Birds" Barbie commemorating Alfred Hitchcock's classic movie:


buy it here
If you like dolls, I have some other really cool posts for you:


be sure to see the fabulous hand-painted dolls in the likeness of famous actresses by Noel Cruz here