Affluenza: August 29

How to move an obelisk:

http://eternallycool.net/?p=409

FYI!

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Shaped Console:

http://www.brocadehome.com/bh/catalog/product/product_detail.jsp?productId=bh_prod112126&link=leftnav&navAction=jump&navCount=24&categoryId=bh_cat1036

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BookSwim: NetFlix for books.

http://www.buzzfeed.com/buzz/BookSwim

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A pair of beautiful fish prints by Feanne, at a great price.

http://feanne.com/2007lostkeys.html

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The Chair-air (ugh) takes a classic silhouette and adds a PVC inflatable cushion on the seat and seat back.

http://www.zodesign.nl/en/werk_chairair.html

It's nice to see someone move beyond Phillipe Stark's admittedly awesome but increasingly overused Louis Ghost chairs.

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Round LED clock:

http://www.momastore.org/museum/moma/ProductDisplay_Round%20LED%20Clock_10451_10001_43839_-1_11451_11628_null__

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Buddha Lotus Tapestry:

http://www.target.com/gp/detail.html/ref=br_1_3/602-8649009-6736629?ie=UTF8&frombrowse=1&asin=B000NIMTXK

Twenty bucks!

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Ducduc Children's Desk and Chair:

http://purecontemporary.blogs.com/behind_the_curtains/2007/08/back-to-school-.html

"Available in 14 bold color combinations and two heights, the Alex desk comes with an optional entertainment system (built-in speakers and PC or iPod
connection)."

From the same blog, the iSteam Shower:

http://purecontemporary.blogs.com/behind_the_curtains/2007/08/isteamshower.html

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Chiasso's (ahem) "homage" to the classic Eames room divider is a steal at four hundred bucks:

http://www.chiasso.com/store/item.aspx?ItemId=50514


Here's the original:

http://hivemodern.com/products/?view=sub_product&sid=1456&cid=339&cid2=343

It's five times more expensive, but so beautiful it's almost sorta worth it.

(Note the "eco-friendly" nonsense on the Chiasso page. "Save the planet: use bamboo instead of plywood! It's somoehow more eco-friendly! Whatever you do, don't stop driving!")

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Book Of Lights, a pop-up book with a working lamp:

http://www.artecnicainc.com/index.php?page=shop.product_details&category_id=60&flypage=shop.flypage&product_id=341&option=com_virtuemart&Itemid=12&vmcchk=1

http://www.artecnicainc.com/index.php?page=shop.product_details&category_id=60&flypage=shop.flypage&product_id=340&option=com_virtuemart&Itemid=12

Heh..."illuminated manuscript." That's funny.

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"Morgan Grays' Overnighter is a replica of the US Olympic bags used in the 1930s."

http://www.onthefly.com/products/product_details.jsp?PRODUCT%3C%3Eprd_id=845524441770164&FOLDER%3C%3Efolder_id=2534374302025050

(Yeah, I'm suspicious about that apostrophe up there, too, but it's how the site had it. Consider it [sic]ed.)

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Whoa. Now *this* is a decanter:

http://www.productdose.com/article.php?article_id=6467

I love it. Of course, I don't drink, and I think the effect would be slightly diminished if I filled the decanter with chocolate soy milk...

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LULL is a lamp that turns into nightlight and then becomes your alarm clock:

http://m.flickr.com/photo.gne?id=1203116186

http://m.flickr.com/photo.gne?id=1202251673

(A truly epic LULL...)

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Magazine holders from the Swedish Museum Of Architecture:

http://www.creativereview.co.uk/crblog/a-city-of-magazines/

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These chairs are bit, er, ugly...but the story behind them and the making-of process is fascinating:

http://www.finefurnituremaker.com/stories/fenellaandjohn.htm

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Bankabank:

http://m.flickr.com/photo.gne?id=1263191653

Stamp Out

Brian Epstein...inventor of the ironic T-shirt?

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I was just searching Google for the phrase "rambling, incoherent response" (don't ask). I didn't find what I was looking for, but Google made this hilarious suggestion at the bottom of my search:

"Would you like to add a 'rambling, incoherent response' section to your Google News homepage?"

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Ordinarily I avoid sending you a link straight to a Metafilter post, but this story is fascinating and the post is well put-together: The Most Kissed Girl In The World

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Content Aware Imaging System

Affluenza: August 22

i-delicious, the online portfolio of illustrator Lesia Chernish:

http://i-delicious.de/

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Prints by Swedish illustrator John Bauer (1882-1918):

http://www.artsycraftsy.com/bauer_prints.html

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Chiasso Pebble Rug:

http://www.chiasso.com/store/item.aspx?DepartmentId=46&ItemId=53283

http://m.flickr.com/photo.gne?id=1128218539

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A knit jacket for your apple...at last!

http://store.roseandradish.com/product-exec/product_id/1596/nm/Jacqueline_Dufresne_Apple_Jacket

(How adorable.)

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Amazing anatomy tattoos:

http://streetanatomy.com/blog/?p=132

That first one is especially gorgeous. Great choice of colors.

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Wristwatch with built-in magnifying glass AND FLASHLIGHT:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000S01AHE/ref=nosim/?tag=dealtime-hpc-20&creative=380333&creativeASIN=B000S01AHE&linkCode=asn

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At first I was cracking up at the model used in this "black mirror" promo photo...

http://www.coolhunting.com/archives/2007/08/black_mirror.php

...but the more I look at it the more appropriate it becomes. It's like a still from a Cribs episode: "And over here we got my *black mirror*..."

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Tord Boontje's classic Garland Light now available in white:

http://www.yousaytomayto.com/home/lighting/garland-light-white.html

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A pirate-themed toy sailboat:

http://www.grahamandgreen.co.uk/product.aspx/toys/contender+yacht+pirate+design/kids/kids_toys/-/xnz6646.htm

I suppose I should hate this and everything, but here's my point: this is finebecause it's ACTUALLY FOR CHILDREN, not for some whimsy-drunk senior webdeveloper who thinks we should all be more child-like.

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Another "toaster concept":

http://www.manufactum.de/res/316/group/172100/dmc_mb3_productlist_pi1.3693.page/1/dmc_mb3_productlist_pi1.3693.num/8/product/1397387/Produktdetail.1773.0.html

(Nice URL, you dicks!)

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"It's not spam, it's bacn. Bacn describes the things you signed up for but thatstill feel like clutter in your inbox: Email lists, Facebook notifications,Google alerts."

http://www.buzzfeed.com/buzz/Bacn

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Baby Viking Hat:

http://www.craftzine.com/blog/archive/2007/06/baby_viking_hat_kit.html?CMP=OTC-5JF307375954

"Yay, sleep! That's where I'm a baby viking!"

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Those beautiful Smeg refrigerators are finally coming to the US:

http://smegusa.com/

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Solopipe: minimalist design meets one-hitters:

http://www.solopipe.com/

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Silhouette Pictures by Karl Johnson

http://www.cutarts.com/

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Legally required paid annual leave around the world, in days:

http://www.nytimes.com/imagepages/2007/08/01/magazine/05wwln.graphic.ready.html

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"Guild.com: Your internet source for crazy, ugly coat racks"

https://www.guild.com/art/furniture/coat-racks.html

"Not just ugly...CRAZY ugly!"

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Hermes Hippopotamus lock. Actually, this is sorta meta, isn't it? A padlock made out of silver and palladium is protecting itself as much as anything else...

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This gorgeous "Six Part Coffee Table" dates to the 50s and is intriguingly re-configurable:

http://www.1stdibs.com/furniture_item_detail.php?id=164289

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Okay, yes, this card catalog-style CD holder is lust-worthy and all...

http://www.moremediastorage.com/asp/show_detail.asp?sku=LE1085&refid=DT84-LE1085

...but seriously, the only thing more out-dated than a paper card catalog is an apartment full of physical CDs.

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Hase Weiss children's furniture:

http://mocoloco.com/archives/004441.php

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Half-tone self-portrait, with holes in lieu of dots:

http://www.notcot.com/archives/2007/08/hole_punched.php

I assumed this was laser cut, but actually in was done with ten different-sizedhole punches. Pretty cool, but of all the pictures in the world, why choose that one?

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If Apple made syringes:

http://www.exchangesupplies.org/needle_exchange_supplies/never_share_syringe/never_share_syringe_intro.html

"The nevershare syringe is the world’s first syringe designed for injecting drug users! – With plungers in a range of colours to reduce accidental sharing."

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Sure, there's a Prada cell phone, but it's everywhere. You think you saw someone talking on one the other day, and then that person got on A BUS. It's only $780, so it's just a little bit more than an iPhone and even the chick at HotTopic has one of those. Geesh.

So how do you stand out? How about getting a Prada cell phone...THAT'S BEEN DIPPED IN 24K GOLD?

http://geeksugar.com/554605

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Drop-dead gorgeous Nike print ads based on mid-century Italian design:

http://eternallycool.net/?p=405

Affluenza: August 5

Nixon Women's Watches

Roche Bobois Bedroom Collection

Tacchini Moon Chair

The Staple-less Stapler

Le Magnetique - Star Design Nail Lacquer

Paper Folding iPod Boombox

Folding Picnic Set
Beautiful! (And it matches those Moon Chairs...)

Tobias Wistisen Shrunken Heads Necklace

Okay, obviously the main guy in this picture is ridiculous, but look at the people around him. Wowzer! Is that what everyone in Milano looks like!?

Affluenza: August 15

New York Times article on a globe manufacturer:

http://mobile.nytimes.com/2007/08/15/world/europe/15italy.xml

The article's only sorta interesting, but dig that incredible picture!

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Frost Watch White

http://www.scandinaviandetails.com/PERSONAL/watches/frost-watch-white

$95!

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Pretty amazing homemade wall storage unit by Thomas Wold:

http://thomaswold.blogspot.com/2007/07/samplier-display-wall-berkeley-ca.html

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Radical Six Part Toaster Concept:

http://www.yankodesign.com/?p=638

I like the phrase "toaster concept." Don't miss the other crazy toasters at the bottom of the post...

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This beautiful Audi Auto Union Scale Replica Pedal Car is crafted from over 900 components and even has leather upholstery.

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I'm really taken with this Turned Wood Pedestal Table.

So cheap! And so currently unavailable!

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Look at this amazing 1950s napkin holder from Switzerland:

http://freshome.com/2007/08/12/servietta/

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Gorgeous fruit bowl by Jenny Pokryvailo:

http://design-milk.com/design-star-jenny-pokryvailo/

Now I want lychees!

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I really like the lattice on this dresser:

http://design-milk.com/modern-kids/

Too bad it's kid-sized.

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JUst a bit of NEbraska:

http://www.noabembibre.com/

(Note the typo in October...)

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Cima Ladder:

http://cimaladder.com/

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The new Ikea catalog is out, and the chick from NotCot shows you her favorite new items:

http://www.notcot.com/archives/2007/08/ikea_2008.php

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Slate on LCD Soundsystem's "All My Friends," my favorite song of the year:

http://www.slate.com/id/2170298/

Clothes Hanger Trick

Peter Walsh--the guy from Clean Sweep, author of It’s All Too Much--offers this tip for cleaning out your closet:

After you’ve done a major purge of your closet, remove all the remaining clothes that live on hangers, and put them back in backwards, such that the open end of each hanger now faces you. Got it?

Then, mark your calendar for six months (or whatever) from today, and go back to your business as usual. Except that after every time you wear a shirt or a jacket or a skirt or what have you, when you replace the item, make sure the hanger faces the opposite/usual way (with the opening in the back).

When your six months have passed, and your calendar reminds you that it’s time, open your closet and remove every piece of clothing on a backward hanger; the chances are good you can give it away without the slightest pain, because you just clearly demonstrated that you don’t wear it.

Mine would be J. Wesley Rufflefur, a literary brown bear who charms his visitors with good-natured tall tales...

The PEANUTS gang, reimagined as anime characters:

http://www.furaffinity.net/view/70742/
http://www.furaffinity.net/view/70744/

NOTE NOTE NOTE: Though the content isn't furry, please note that these are links to a furry message board. (Totally SFW, though.)

Looking through their avatars, I'm struck by how many of their animal selves are portrayed as glib, flippant, and devil-may-care. In a word: cool. Other message boards feature avatars that make the participants seem like X-tr3m3 badasses or whimsical nostalgics, but furries seem to aspire to be something halfway in between: a rogue.

There's something really pitiful here, even more pitiful than being obsessed with anthropomorphic animals. On a basic level, these drama-inclined, marginalized, asthmatic, allergy-prone, wholly unloved nerds aspire to be...carefree.

YouTube commenters debate the merits of Dita Von Teese:

-She is very elegant & knows how to leave something to the imagination.

-i like her, but i dont. she needs a new act.

-She's a gorgeous, divine, fascinating being.

-she is soooooooooo boring

-Her face looks like the faces in the black and white photos from the early 1900's. It is kind of scary to me now for some reason.

Four Nineteen

The Nigerian spam I just got was allegedly from a brother and sister whose parents were poisoned (!) at a party by rivals, though the father lingered just long enough to reveal an immense fortune hidden in a foreign bank account...

I sorta want to send them money just for the literary ambitions of their tale, which I see as a gothic step above the usual 419 spiel.

What's next?

"Dear kind sir, my name is Violet Baudelaire, and along with my siblings Klaus and Sunny, I need your help in keeping my murdered parents' fortune from the
clutches of Count Olaf..."

Baja Chicken

"This guy is not a pimp, nor is he 'pimping'..."

http://viceland.com/int/dd.php?id=437&country=us

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The Celebrator is an innocuous rubber sleeve that turns an electric toothbrush into a vibrator. (This link probably has NSFW ads...)

How efficient! Who wants a bunch of vibrators laying around?

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Speaking of toothbrushes, here's one that creates a water fountain in a really ingenious way:

(Read the bottom of the page...it's only eighteen hundred dollars! WTF?)

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Momiji Friendship Dolls, designed by Joanna Zhou:

http://www.chocolatepixels.com/momiji.html

(I know it's really American of me to be suprised that there are Chinese-Austrians, but still...)

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Une série de photos réalisées de manière insolite, à partir de magazines, livres et êtres humains:

http://www.fubiz.net/blog/index.php?2007/08/08/1231-magazine-illusions