Jewelry designer Thomas Giesen has been creating and producing his own jewellery collections in his own workshop for 20 years.
With several beautifully crafted pieces to his credit, it's his Contura rings that fascinate me. He developed the idea of crafting luxury rings from a human profile in 1998 and it took him a few years to develop the technique to get it precisely right. The final result is a very unique and personal Red Dot Design Award-winning piece of jewelry.
The Contura Rings can be crafted from yellow, white, rose or black gold, silver, titanium, platinum or stainless steel. Available in 8,10,12 and 14mm widths, the rings are suited to any gender or age.
And many options are available. Diamonds, pearls and other gemstones may be added in a variety of styles (see below):
Jeweller Thomas Giesen:
Prices range quite a bit depending on the style and material. For more information or to order one visit this site.
The Avenue in California's Venice Beach uses cutting edge technology to allow anyone to custom design a pair of kicks. They have created custom Chucks for many a celebrity and sell several uniquely designed pairs that celebrate pop culture.
My personal favorites are a series of nicely illustrated Converse Chuck Taylors and Vans Slip Ons by Jon Defreest that feature TV's favorite Anti-Heroes; Walter White (Bill Cranston) and Jessie Pinkman (Aaron Paul) from Breaking Bad, Zombie Hunter Daryl Dixon (Norman Reedus) from Walking Dead, Shameless' Deadbeat drunken dad Frank Gallagher (Bill Macy), everyone's favorite Serial Killer, Dexter Morgan (Michael C. Hall) and lovable mustachioed Ron Swanson (Nick Offerman) from Parks and Recreation.
Walter White (Bill Cranston) from Breaking Bad:
Jessie Pinkman (Aaron Paul) from Breaking Bad:
Breaking Bad's boys are also available on a pair of vans Slip-ons:
Zombie Hunter Daryl Dixon (Norman Reedus) from Walking Dead:
Serial Killer Dexter Morgan (Michael C. Hall):
Shameless' Deadbeat Drunk of a Dad, Frank Gallagher (Bill Macy):
Ron Swanson (Nick Offerman) from Parks and Recreation:
Each pair cost $85 USD (they ship worldwide) and please note that because these shoes are made custom per order, there are NO returns or exchanges on any orders
About:
Nestled at the heart of Venice Beach, California, The Ave, using cutting edge print technology, gives everyone the opportunity to custom design a pair of the legendary footwear that defined a generations culture, the best selling shoes in America, Converse Chuck Taylors and Vans Slip Ons, in addition to a wide variety of garments.
Shop for these and more (or design your own!) at The Ave Venice.
This Mercedes Benz Sprinter Passenger Van has been given the royal treatment by Lexani Motorcars who specializes in outfitting coaches and appointing them with custom amenities and materials that rival the finest luxury jets and yachts. All the fancy schmancy items you can think of from wireless Apple iPad integration to a platinum grille are available options. Orthopedic mattresses, Bose Home theater system, a full bar, 46" 3D tv, a Playstation 3 (blu-ray) can all be wrapped up in this van complete with secure armor on the perimeter if someone is out to shoot you.
Wondering what to bring to your next dinner party? Or to buy for the Boss/Friend/Co-worker/Therapist/Lover or basically anyone who drinks wine? Look no further than Swanson Vineyard's Modern House Wines.
adidas has launched its pioneering Holiday Campaign for 2012, enlisting the help of some of the world’s finest sporting and cultural icons, to turn your social media content into a potentially timeline-changing classic Holiday Tale. At the heart of the campaign is ‘The Cautionary Tale of Ebenezer Snoop’ online film (shown in this post), offering you the opportunity to follow a digital journey to find and share your own Holiday Spirit. As the film closes, you are invited to find out if you are an Ebenezer, and if so, the chance to redeem yourself with an innovative Facebook app (screen grab shown below).
The film features global music heavyweight Snoop Lion alongside skateboard OG Mark Gonzales escorting viewers into the illustrated world of legendary Beavis & Butthead artist JJ Sedelmaier. ‘The Cautionary Tale of Ebenezer Snoop’ follows the path of the classic Holiday story, seeing Ebenezer Snoop confronted by the Ghosts of Holiday Past (Stan Smith), Present (David Beckham) and Future (Derrick Rose & Rita Ora), as well as a host of other Global adidas stars that keeps viewers going back to find more. As you continue on your journey through the tale, you return to Facebook to create your own story.
The adidas Holiday Facebook application produces for you, the user, a personalized journey that mirrors the structure of the Ebenezer Snoop film content. Snoop might not be the only Ebenezer. By aggregating your user data around certain Facebook activities such as comments, birthday well-wishes, & event responses, adidas creates your own uniquely tailored Ebenezer film (they choose all the times you declined invites, didn't respond to posts or didn't acknowledge friends' brithdays to prove your 'scrooginess'). The app pulls in these features from your Facebook timeline, proposing what your digital life could look like if you don’t mend your ways. The level of your online interaction determines the film which your journey takes – the storyline and content directed by your digital life.
Examples from my own Facebook page:
At the end of your personal journey adidas offers you the opportunity to redeem yourself by sending a Facebook greeting card featuring JJ Sedelmaier’s campaign illustrations to friends.
You can choose any of the ghosts from the animated tale to deliver your customized card:
David Beckham:
Derrick Rose:
Rita Ora:
Stan Smith:
The gift which accompanies the card is dependent on your Ebenezer levels – one possibility is a 15% e-commerce discount.
A truly interactive online campaign working across social media, adidas recognises the importance of the digital world to its consumers and presents a complete Holiday gift-giving solution to its fans.
“The Ebenezer Snoop Holiday Campaign is the most user-specific app adidas has ever created, examining consumer behaviour to produce a truly personalised online experience. There is so much noise during the holidays, we’ve created a simple yet effective app to cut straight through. The Ebenezer Snoop Facebook app aggregates your personal Facebook information to produce a film entirely for you. Using the Timeline we are suggesting how your timeline could look if you don’t mend your ways!” -- Gabriel Jaffe, Senior Digital Communications Manager, AG.
Creative Credits:
Production Credits
Client: ADIDAS
Creative Agency: SID LEE
Production Agency: JIMMY LEE.TV
Post-Production:MASS MARKET/JIMMY LEE.TV/ VISION GLOBALE
Production houses: Live action – CAVIAR CONTENT / Animation - J.J. SEDELMAIER PRODUCTIONS
Director: Live action – Jake Szymanski / Animation – JJ Sedelmaier
Grading: MASS MARKET
Editors: JIMMY LEE.TV
Sound Design : MACHINE HEAD
Sound Mix: LA MAJEURE
About adidas
adidas is a global designer, developer and marketer of athletic footwear, apparel and accessories with the mission to be the leading sports brand in the world. Brand adidas is part of the adidas Group, a corporation that includes brands such as Reebok, TaylorMade and Rockport.
About the adidas Group
The adidas Group is one of the global leaders within the sporting goods industry, offering a broad range of products around the core brands adidas, Reebok, TaylorMade, Rockport and Reebok-CCM Hockey. Headquartered in Herzogenaurach, Germany, the Group has more than 46,000 employees and generated sales of € 13.3 billion in 2011.
With range hoods varying from modern to baroque -fit for any style kitchen, Bastille Metal Works has has revolutionized the art of cooking ventilation.
Art Inspired Range Hoods: above: Andy Warhol's Soup Can and Knives silkscreens are translated into custom range hoods by Bastille Metal Works above: A Jasper Johns inspired range hood above: A vintage Chevy's front end crafted into a functional range hood by Bastille Metal Works.
With a 100% customizable line of slip cast range hoods in an endless combination of patterns, sizes, designs and materials, the artisans at Bastille Metal Works pride themselves on their ability to offer beautiful, hand detailed functional additions to your kitchen that will captivate the eye.
The slip cast zinc range hood (also available in bronze, copper and pewter) is designed specifically for each client. Where another company may hesitate to take on a custom project, Bastille Metal Works accepts such ideas not as a challenge, but as an opportunity to truly shine at their craft as custom metal designers.
Letter Sweet framed wall art is a unique mixed media sculpture created with real LEGO® toy bricks and real candy.
Each artpiece is a custom, hand crafted work that will make a fun and colorful addition to any home.
If you prefer, you can select each letter's combination of LEGO® brick color and candy type. Artwork will be emailed to you within 48 hours for your approval.
Every letter tile is made with real LEGO® toy bricks and real candy, including Jelly Belly® jelly beans, Smarties®, Sweet Tarts®, and candy corn.
Each letter tile measures approximately 4" wide x 6" high. And each tile is completely sealed to prevent damage from moisture or pests.
The tiles are mounted to a lightweight yet rigid high-denisty PVC plastic, commonly used in the picture framing and museum industries.
Each Letter Sweet art piece is a unique, custom hand crafted, high quality, luxury heirloom. And every art piece is signed and numbered by the artist, and includes a "Guarantee of Originality" - no two pieces will ever be created alike.
Who's behind this? Inspired by his love for toys and candy, Gary Doss created the first Letter Sweet artpiece in 2012. Gary has been the owner and curator of the Burlingame Museum of PEZ Memorabilia since 1995, and the owner and curator of the Classic Toy Musuem since 2004.
above: Gary Doss
Gary started his career in 1972 as a professional enameler in San Francisco, CA. Clients included Macys, General Electric Medical, and Ziff-Davis publishing.
In 2008, Gary created the World's Largest Pez Dispensing Machine and received world wide attention when his artwork was recognized by the 2008 Guinness Book of World Records.
Gary's passion for creating fun, silly and unique items continues today with Letter Sweet.
