Drowning In Brands. Underwater Rosae Still Life Logo Series by Alexander James.

A series of identifiable and popular brand logos comprised of red roses and photographed underwater using the subtle light distortions of the water's own energy. From Louis Vuitton to Nike, the rose logos were captured 'in camera' without the use of post production, either traditional or digital.

Apple:


By taking the red roses, a symbol of unrelenting love, and juxtaposing against a deep dark void, London based photographer Alexander James is making a social commentary on how we ourselves are drowning in a society dominated by a reverence towards branding and celebrity.

Chanel:

McDonalds:

Louis Vuitton:

Mercedes Benz:

Gucci:

Nike:

Volkswagon:

Yves Saint-Laurent:

Fendi:

Givenchy:

images courtesy of the artist and Distil Ennui Studio

About Alexander's work practice in his own words:
"My photographs are always presented ‘as-shot’ without post production either traditional or digital. It is this dedication to ‘in camera’ purity that establishes a predominant focal point for my practice.

The quality of the work and the purity of the process is paramount, distilling elements out with the use of deep blacks; hoping to convey rich layers of meaning in what at first appear deceptively simple images.

Distil Ennui; def... to extract the essence and beauty of life to appease world weariness."

Alexander James is represented by Pertwee Anderson & Gold

TouchFire - A Flexible, Featherweight Screen-Top Keyboard for the iPad!

Many people I know simply do not like attempting to type on the iPad for the same reason that several iPhone owners turned back to their Blackberry. They miss the ease of using a keyboard as you normally would. That's precisely why Steve Isaac and Brad Melmon of Seattle have come up with a thin, feather-weight device that puts the "touch" back into typing - TouchFire.



TouchFire makes typing on your iPad feel like using a normal keyboard. The silicone rubber keyboard is easy to type on, cushions your fingers and weighs less than an ounce.



It's ultra-thin and attaches to the inside of the iPad cover and folds up within the cover, so you can always keep TouchFire with your iPad without it getting in the way. It's so thin and transparent that you can even use the touch screen as you normally would and 'swipe' through it if you so desired. TouchFire fits right over the iPad keyboard and aligns itself magnetically.

Applies magnetically to position directly over the iPad keyboard:

Roll it down to use the whole screen:

It attaches easily to the iPad Smart Cover with two plastic clips:

If you don't have a SmartCover on your iPad, the TouchFire is easily stored in its handy case:


Steve Isaac and Brad Melmon, the brains behind TouchFire:


Patent Pending, Steve and Brad are presently requesting funding on kickstarter

A pledge of $45 will pre-order you the starter pack which contains a keyboard, a storage case and a pair of cover clips, all in black. Shipping is free in the U.S. Please add $10 to your pledge for shipping to Canada, $25 for International shipping.

Help support this ingenious idea and buy one for yourself or a friend here.

TouchFire® is a registered trademark of TouchFire, Inc. Seattle, WA. All rights reserved. PATENT PENDING. Put the Touch Back into Typing™ and Screen-Top Keyboard™ are trademarks of TouchFire, Inc. iPad® is a registered trademark of Apple, Inc. Cupertino, CA.

A Talented Mom Designs An iPad App. Drum Roll Please....

Imani Powell-Razat, a designer/illustrator by trade (see Spye Design Studio) is also a mom who has designed and created an entertaining and informative application for the iPad that is a multicultural celebration of the world's drums.


above: Imani Powell-Razat of Spye Design and her son, Orion, playing with his iPad



Drum Circle Kids is a colorfully animated app that allows your child to engage in and create unique jam sessions by tapping five colorfully animated drummers that represent various types of drums found throughout the world.



The American Trap Set, Caribbean Steel Pan, Chinese Drum, Cuban Conga and the West African Djembe (with more drums to come) can be easily turned on and off with the tap of a finger and combined for dozens of possible musical and sound combinations.



Adding to the fun, is the possibility of discovering ambient sounds hidden in the scenery.



In the learn section, kids can swipe from one drum to the next and touch to play each drum while learning fun drum facts.


Intended for toddlers, age 18 month +
Buy it in the itunes store here

The Official Etch A Sketch iPad Case From Headcase.

Headcase™, in partnership with The Ohio Art Company, has just introduced the first and only officially licensed Etch A Sketch® iPad case! Now, the world’s most popular drawing toy provides a fun backdrop for the most revolutionary device ever conceived by Apple.

Etch A Sketch® is celebrating its 50th year and over 150 million units sold. The iPad sold over 3 million units in its first 80 days, prompting the USA Today front-page article: “Etch A Sketch: The 1960’s iPad”.



Daniel Deutsch, CEO of Headcase explains, “Etch A Sketch® has been one of the most recognized and iconic toys for generations. The iPad, like the Etch A Sketch®, is also instantly recognizable and has defined an entirely new category of technology. It has been a thrill to work with Ohio Art to bring the look and the feel of the world’s most popular drawing toy to Apple’s latest opus. It is the perfect accessory for those of us who never really grew up.”

While the Etch A Sketch® iPad case looks like America’s favorite toy, there has been equal attention placed on making it a high quality protective case. Made of impact resistant ABS plastic, the Etch A Sketch® iPad case will help protect your iPad. Rubber feet and a felt backing gently cradle your iPad inside the Etch A Sketch® iPad case.



Strategically placed windows throughout the Etch A Sketch® iPad case allow for easy use of all your iPad switches, ports, and buttons.




A retractable kick stand allowS you to either lay your iPad flat, or angle it for easy use of the keyboard.



The Etch a Sketch® iPad case is available for purchase for $39.00 USD here

FAQ

I’ve heard horror stories about some iPad cases overheating iPads. Will that happen with my Etch A Sketch® iPad case?
No. Unlike many silicone or leather iPad cases, the Etch A Sketch® iPad case is designed to let your iPad have the proper ventilation for cooling.

Will I be able to easily access my switches, ports, and buttons?
Yes. The Etch A Sketch® iPad case was designed specifically for the iPad – it may look like an Etch A Sketch®, but no corners were cut in making it the highest quality iPad case possible.

Is Headcase the only maker of the Etch A Sketch® iPad case?
Yes, Headcase™ has an exclusive agreement with Ohio Art, the makers of Etch A Sketch®. The Etch A Sketch® iPad case is the only officially licensed iPad product available anywhere.

Will the Etch A Sketch® iPad case help protect my iPad?
Of course. While no iPad case can make any specific guarantees, the Etch A Sketch® iPad case is made of impact resistant plastic. We are proud of the Etch A Sketch® iPad case’s durability.

Buy it now.

Headcase™ is a division of Real Simple Ideas LLC, an Orlando, FL based product development company. With in-house design and prototyping capabilities, ideas go from conception to distribution in record time. Headcase™ is a trademark of Real Simple Ideas, LLC. Etch A Sketch® is a trademark of The Ohio Art Company iPad™ is a trademark of Apple®, inc.

Apple Lover Seeks Same At Cupidtino, An Online Dating Site For Mac Users.

The brain child of four geeks in San Francisco and Seattle with backgrounds at Google, Yahoo, and Microsoft, Cupidtino, is a new online dating site for Apple lovers and Mac users.



With around 30,000 registers users, the site has a look and feel of the Apple site, but no formal affiliation. The creators were inspired by the fact that Mac and Apple fans seem to share a similar aesthetic in terms of style, music, taste and tech... so why wouldn't they share romantic interests and attraction? At least that's the supposition.


above photo by Rome Wilkerson


A personal friend of mine and yes, a Mac user and Apple fan, actually met someone with whom he's fallen in mad mac love on this site, which prompted me to blog about it. Albeit, one positive case study does not a matchmaker make, but it was enough to get me to investigate a little further.



Since my stats show that my readers are predominantly (by a small margin) Mac users, I figured some of you might be interested in pursuing this as an option for finding your compatible mate - or as Cupidtino cutely calls them, Macheart.




above: screen grabs of the site show it's nice clean Apple-like interface and design.

So, what are the demographics on the site thus far and what do these folks have in common? I couldn't get a percentage breakdown of the age groups, but was told that users range from age 17 to 69 and that the site is GLBT friendly. But here's a breakdown of the member locations and some of their preferences from the very nice folks at Cupidtino as of September 8th:

Top Five Cities:
LA
NYC
SFO
London
Moscow

Top five states in the US and the percentage breakdown:
California (25%)
New York (10%)
Texas (6%)
Florida (5%)
Illinois (5%)

Top Five Countries:
USA
Germany
Canada
UK
Russia
USA: Rest of World split = 55:45

Members also share their favorite songs, movies and iPhone apps from iTunes. Here's the most popular songs, movies and apps the Cupidtino users are sharing now.

Top Five Songs:
Viva la Vida - Coldplay
Bad Romance - Lady GaGa
Uprising - Muse
Alejandro - Lady GaGa
Fireflies - Owl City

Top Five Movies
Avatar (2009) James Cameron
Star Trek J.J. Abrams
Fight Club David Fincher
The Matrix Larry Wachowski ; Andy Wachowski
Iron Man Jon Favreau

Top Five iPhone Apps
Facebook
Twitter
Shazam
Pandora Radio
Angry Birds



HOW:
You must be a registered Mac user and sign up using your Mac computer. And no, having just an iPhone or iPod touch doesn't work.

PRIVACY:
Your profile is public by default, which means anyone can see it - even if they're not Cupidtino members. They do give you an easy set of options to hide it from non-members, or hide it from everyone if you so desire.

PAYING:
The pricing structure is very different from other online dating sites. Sign up for free. Contact anyone for free. Pay only $4.79 a month to read messages you've received. In other words, sending messages is free. Reading them requires the paid monthly membership, but if someone replies to your message, you can then read or reply messages in that conversation even if you're not a paying member. (confused? it's outlined in their FAQ section).

Unlike most other online dating sites, membership is easy to cancel at anytime using your Paypal account.

BLOG:
Their accompanying blog features monthly members and has some fun stats and info as well as user generated content like consumer made videos.

GET SUPER SOCIAL AND YOU CAN HAVE 6 MONTHS FREE.
You can get a free 6 month membership if you succumb to all the social media. First, your profile has to be complete (a photo, basic info and selected favs), follow @cupidtino on Twitter, become a fan on Facebook, and they'll give you a complimentary membership for six months (you’ll be able to send and receive unlimited messages) + other member privileges.

•Sign up on Cupidtino
•Follow @cupidtino on Twitter
•The Cupidtino page on Facebook

And yes, they have just designed an iPhone app for Cupidtino, which will be available any day now.


all information courtesy of Cupidtino

Still single and surfing on a mac? What are you waiting for? Sign up now.
Cupidtino

Cyber Style For Your Home (or iDecor For Tech Lovers).

Nerd alert! Nerd alert!
Some people just can't get enough technology in their lives despite their being wired 24/7 to their iPods, iPhones, PDAs, mobile phones, laptops, flip minos and other gadgets.

For them, there are a few designer and artists satisfying the need for Cyber style for the home, particularly items inspired by Apple products.

First off, the Brazil design studio Meninos makes decor that is reminiscent of home sweet homepage. Doormats, coasters, lampshades, playing cards, magnet kits and mousepads emulate computer software and hardware from many of your favorite gadgets by using the familiar icons as design elements.

Doormats:
iPhone 'slide to unlock' and Mac Command Key doormats make a Geek feel welcome.




Icon Pendant Lamps and Shades:
Google map pins, computer keyboard commands, rss feed icon, space invaders and more make for illuminating fun.




iPhone Playing Cards add a new element to your favorite card game:



Icon Drink Coasters
Where to put your beer when playing poker with your iPhone cards?? Why on iPhone coasters, of course.

or Adobe Creative Suite coasters:


Or other computer icon coasters:

Ai and Ps Magnet Kits:


If you hunger for more design, your fridge can now have the same look as your favorite computer software with magnets that replicate the screen tools, windows and interface of Adobe illustrator or Photoshop.

Ps Magnet kit:

Ai magnet kit:


Skate Deck Art:
They even make wall-mountable skateboard decks that are decorated with either Photoshop tools or the Mac scroll button:



To purchase any of the above, shop here.

iPhone bedding:
Yes, some people sleep with their iPhones right next to their head. Now they can snuggle up inside a duvet with the same comforting home page as their cell phone.


Available from the Swedish retailer, Ellos, it is only available in a twin size and I am not sure if they ship worldwide.

iPod coffee tables (iTables):


These iPod shaped coffee tables (iTables) were initially made by Italian artist and industrial designer Mirko Ginepro for Milan Design Week. Made of Corian, he designed three of the tables; one in yellow, one in white and one in black. He now creates them to order, if you are interested.



Dimensions: The iTable is about 47 inches long by 29 inches wide (original measurements: 120 x 75 centimeters) and about 13 inches high.

Colors: It comes in classic white, black or sunny yellow. Each table is a one-of-a kind, made-to-order piece of art.
Contact the artist here to inquire about ordering an iTable.

Apple Table:

designed by ilovecode, the apple logo table was a project and is not available for purchase.

Tech Gadget Soaps
How about iPhone, iPod, Palm Pre and Blackberry soaps? Yep, Two Eggplants makes these glycerin based soaps to look just like PDAs, gaming devices, mobile phones, mp3 players and other tech gadgets but they seem to be sold out and not stocking any at present:


Two Eggplants Etsy Store


iPhone icon paperclips:


Handmade by Bear Duck Designs, these are available in small and large sets at their Etsy store here.

Throw Pillows:
I can't forget my previously blogged about throw pillows by Craftsquatch:


and by My Suite Stuff:


and Throwboy:

learn about throwboy pillows here.

Be sure to check out Apartment Therapy's Geeky Gifts For The Home, they've got a selection of items under $50.

Now I have to go wash my face with my iSoap and get into my iBedding.
Sweet iDreams!