Funky Find of the Week: Moooi's Animal Furniture

Sing it with me everyone....Old MacDonald Had A Cool House....

Created Specifically for Front Design by Moooi, these fun “Animal things” are a sight to behold.

Horse lamp, Pig tray and Rabbit lamp

Who wouldn't want a horse to lighten up your living room and a pig to serve your guests?
Furniture to fall in love with at first sight, or hate forever.

Designed by Front Design for Moooi

This, my friends, is Abbey.

Unfortunately the love of my life, my sweet dog Abbey, who turned 14 last week, is in the vet hospital tonight. So instead of a new post I am putting a picture of her so you can see why I can't really write about anything else.


Abbey, 13 yrs, January 2007

The Movie Sucked But The Titles Were Great.

At least, that's how I felt about David Fincher's Panic Room. Most of Fincher's movies have outstanding title design (think "Fight Club" and"Seven"). Yes, there are some terrific movies which also have terrific title design, but certainly, the two are not mutually inclusive.



above titles for Panic Room by Picture Mill, produced in conjunction with Café FX.

On Submarine Channel, they love a good main title. That's why they've started an online collection of the most stunning and original ones. Some are engaging or wildly entertaining, funny, exhilarating or deadly beautiful. Some are oozing with visual treats while others hit you hard with their bold and audacious style.




Submarine Channel is a non-profit production and online distribution platform for designers, interactive artists and the people who like them. You may notice what seems like some obvious omissions, but that's because they are presently working on getting clearance rights to many of the main title sequences long revered as some of the best; like those by renowned designer, Saul Bass':


See some of the movies for which he's designed the titles here: title sequences by Saul Bass.

Forget The Film, Watch The Titles

The Ultimate Bachelor Pad.

The Ultimate Bachelor Pad (for the west coast) as interpreted by the hip men's magazine, Esquire.
An old world structure outfitted with state-of-the art technology, this 17, 000 square foot home is set high on a ridge in Southern California has a 360 degree view of everything from the Pacific Ocean to Santa Monica. Architect; Charles Gwathmey.

Meet Mr. Acrylic: Aaron R. Thomas

Above: Mr. A.R.T. himself

Aaron R. Thomas (ART) reinterprets some modern classics as well as designing and inventing his own, all in acrylic (As a matter of fact, he is sponsored by Plexiglas®).

Last year he was chosen as the lead designer to oversee the development of the Wasser Klar acrylic furniture line.

In addition to much whimsical design, he does make some high end gaming tables, beautiful lamps and more. Below are some images of his inventive and original furniture:


Above: gaming table



Some are frosted, some are hand painted.



All are fun.


above: The Lane Table made with a maple wood bowling lane top.

And all can be cleaned with a sponge.


I particularly like the acrylic eames LCW (pictured above).


above: The DJ table he created for the Golden Globes, complete with Louis Vuitton Trunk!

In addition to creating furniture, Aaron also creates sculptures from acrylic as well as custom displays for things like auto shows.

Below is an example of one of his fun sculptures titled "Freeze":



The following is reprinted from his site:
Aaron R. Thomas (A R T™) loves acrylic.

Aaron has an uncommonly intuitive way with acrylic, surely due, in part, to his lifelong exposure to the material. His Parents' acrylic workshop was his playground and he entertained himself learning to use the tools to manipulate the transparent plastic by watching his craftsman father at work. Aaron loved to turn secretly salvaged scraps into an efficient and appealing object that would bring beauty, joy, and vivacity into the world.

Aaron's philosophies of ART and Life stem from these formative experiences of the capacity for creation and invention to instantly change the world for the better.
Eliminating loveless design became his crusade.

Aaron's infectious passion and talent have enlisted a broad network of support and admiration across an intriguing variety of industries.

Aaron R. Thomas Design enjoys the exclusive sponsorship of Plexiglas®

Aaron creates custom unique pieces for top architects and designers worldwide.

Aaron's work is displayed in museums and exclusive private collections worldwide.

Aaron R. Thomas Website - Art in Acrylic

You can also see some of his other custom work and get information at another site of his: http://www.thomasplastic.com/

Funky Find of The Week: Swarovski Studded Refrigerator

Bling for your fridge? I can't believe it. But it's true.
Gorenje makes three versions of this real Swarovski® crystal studded refrigerator availabl for purchase.
It comes in black with white crystals or Aluminum with black crystals or in the extra special Limited edition which has a wider band of white crystals on a black fridge.

Below are some more images of these outrageous refrigerators:




Pictured above: The Limited Edition

From Gorenje. In addition to viewing these cool products, there a neat flash movie that introduces you to the Swarovski® studded appliances along with all the actual specs. Click here to go see it.

Nine New Fun Finds

From tiny stags head pushpins to design it yourself underwear, here are nine fun finds available for purchase. Just click on the pic and you'll get more information.

See more of my If it's hip, it's here. list at ThisNext.

Levis "Dangerous Liaisons" Commercial Will Stand The Test Of Time

The Dangerous Liaisons spot begins with a woman in her denim work wear looking through a window. Horse and buggy sounds alert us to a nineteenth century setting. With a knock on the door comes the beginning of the soundtrack, “Strange Love”, by Little Annie Bandez. As the man and woman take off a layer of clothes we see them appear in early twentieth century garb, he with a khaki top and shorter hair, she in a blonde wig and pink top. Next strip leads to the 1970s and long hair. And on the bed he reveals 1980s grunge jeans to match her white print shirt. Finally the strip reaches its climax with the new 2007 range. As they reach their point of intimacy we hear police sirens in the background.

 Agency: BBH, London
Creative Director: Caroline Pay
Agency Producer: Davud Karbassioun
Art Director: Steve Wakelam, Dean Wei
Production Company: Rattling Stick
Director: Ringan Ledwidge
Producer: Sally Humphries
Post Production: The Mill, London
Music: “Strange Love”, Little Annie

Gucci gets Punk'd. Media Company Runs Phony Ad.

Swiss Newspaper Falls for Prankster's Fake Gucci Ad
ZURICH, Switzerland

Some people will do anything to appear in the papers. But few have the audacity of a man in Switzerland, who conned one of the country's biggest media companies into publishing a two-page ad he created of himself posing semi-naked beside a bottle of Gucci perfume (see above).

The man, who claimed to represent the Italian fashion giant, called up the Swiss weekly Sonntags Zeitung last week to book the expensive color spread in Sunday's edition, a spokesman for the paper said.

Christoph Zimmer told The Associated Press on Tuesday that the man asked for the 60,000-Swiss-franc (about $50,000) bill to be sent to Gucci. "We've spoken to Gucci and apologized for the mistake," Zimmer said. "We're going to try and get the money back from this guy, but we don't rate our chances."

The Milan, Italy-based Gucci could not be reached for comment. Zimmer said the paper fell for the scam because the call arrived too late for the advertising department to check whether it was genuine. It wasn't the first time that the mysterious model — a dark, handsome man appearing to be in his late 20s — tried to sneak his way into the limelight.

According to the Zurich-based daily Blick, the man attempted to book concert venues by passing himself off as Puerto Rican singer Chayanne. The paper said it narrowly avoided also being conned, but was tipped of the hoax by record company Sony BMG, which represents Chayanne.

The man is under investigation for alleged fraud, said Meinrad Stoecklin, a spokesman for police in the canton (state) of Basel.

Decked Out Dunny Bunny: Special Edition Volkswagon

Talk about trends colliding. VW continues to show how hip they are by co-oping with Kidrobot.com for this Special Edition Volkswagen.


AUBURN HILLS, MI – Volkswagen has teamed with Kidrobot, the world’s premier creator and retailer of limited edition art toys and apparel, to introduce a one-of-a kind, special Dunny Edition Volkswagen Rabbit. Volkswagen unveiled the 2-door, black Rabbit at the grand opening of the new Kidrobot store-gallery located at 7972 Melrose Avenue in Los Angeles on Thursday, November 9, 2006.



The Kidrobot Dunny Edition Volkswagen Rabbit features patterned high-gloss exterior, green tinted windows, headlights and taillights, and a green anodized aluminum accented interior, along with Dunny Rabbit patterned seats and a custom green molded shift knob. This vehicle is a unique partnership between Volkswagen and Kidrobot, demonstrating an exciting movement of the intersection of pop art and auto culture.



“The Volkswagen consumer expects the brand to innovate and stay ahead of the trends,” said Volkswagen’s Director of Brand Innovation Kerri Martin. “Our collaboration with Kidrobot brings two creative and innovative brands together to merge art, street culture and iconic design.”



Kidrobot is an urban pop art factory of collectible and limited edition artwork and toys from designers throughout the nation. Some Kidrobot merchandise feature joint ventures with well-known artists from various backgrounds, such as industrial design, music, graphic design, graffiti, illustration and fine art. Just like Volkswagen, Kidrobot distinguishes itself from other brands by being smart, creative and fun. Both brands share their place in pop culture while the partnership offers the ability to expose this unique project to the hip, trend-aware urban consumer.

"This partnership with Volkswagen, and the creation of the Dunny Edition Rabbit, was a great opportunity to take original art concepts to new heights, and bring to life a very diverse and urban clothing line" said Kidrobot founder Paul Budnitz. "The collaboration with Volkswagen was a valuable partnering since both the Rabbit and Kidrobot appeal to a similar young, urban crowd who relate to and appreciate very inventive products,” added Budnitz.

The Dunny Edition Rabbit will be displayed in front of the new Los Angeles Kidrobot store, and can be seen in numerous boutique retailers around the world after the premiere.


above: some examples of Dunnys

About Kidrobot:
Founded by designer Paul Budnitz in 2002, Kidrobot is the world’s premier creator and retailer of limited edition art toys and apparel. The products sold at Kidrobot merge urban street trends and pop art to produce limited edition, collectible toys and apparel. Many Kidrobot products feature unique collaborations by famous artists with backgrounds in graffiti, fine art, industrial design, graphic design, illustration and music. Kidrobot operates three store-galleries, one at 126 Prince Street in SoHo, New York City, another at 1512 Haight Street in San Francisco and a third at 7972 Melrose Avenue in Los Angeles. Kidrobot products can also be found at numerous boutique retailers around the world. Visit Kidrobot online at http://www.kidrobot.com/.

Below is some apparel & accessories available from Kidrobot.com so you can match your VW!