1% Water

As part of their 1% Water exhibit, curators Ilse Crawford and Jane Withers have started a Water Archive. The archive is a collection of water samples sent in by people around the world to map the 1% of the Earth's water that can be used for human consumption. They ask people to bring or send in 50 cl of water along with an explanation and/or picture of the source. The water samples they are looking for are any fresh water such as; water from rivers, lakes, groundwater, rainwater, spring water, mineral/bottled water, religious water (ganges, lourdes), dangerous water (virus, toxic, bacteria, chemicals), polluted water (from industry or human use), water from special places/cities/ landmarks (water used to flush the toilet in the Eiffel tower or water from a special fountain), water which is stored in special places (3 year old water from a water bed, heating systems, fridge), tapwater (but only when it’s special).

I Hate Perfume

CB Perfumes are created by a guy who hates prefumes, but appreciates the power of scent. Christopher Brosius creates all his perfumes the old school way, striving to produce an indivudual experience with his scents that cannot be achieved through mass production.

Live Search Olympic Backgrounds

I was sad today to see the Live Search homepage back to it's usual self as the Olympics come to a close. I've been enjoying their themed backgrounds.

Webby Video

This is the promotional video for 12th Annual Webby Awards. It has an intriguing edge to it. The combination of video and motion graphics is very tastefully done. The two aspects compliment each other well making the final product something to aspire to.

Normann-Copenhagen

Norman-Copenhagen is a housewares company with a solid design heart. That focus on design is reflected in their elegant new website. The website features beautiful high res images of their products with detail shots, colour options and information about the product's designer. A lot of care and attention to detail went into this website, which reflects well on the products and designers themselves. (Found through The FWA).

Pop Art Pumas

I saw these styln' Pop Art kicks at the Puma store the other day. The graphic design used on the shoe was created by Eba Akamatsu, inspired by the work of American pop artist Roy Lichtenstein. Lichtenstein's style is borrowed from comic books, know for its thick outlines, Benday dots, and bold black, yellow, blue, & red colors.

Stop Destroying Our Planet

One of this week's Threadless t-shirts made me laugh. It reads "Stop Destroying Our Planet. It's where I keep all my stuff."

Slingbox

I've been meaning to buy a Slingbox for a while but just never got around to it. I finally got a chance to try one out this week... and it's amazing. If you don't know what a Slingbox is, basically it is a set top box that allows you to watch your home TV (DVR, DVD, satellite or any other video output device(s)) from your computer or mobile phone via the internet. It uses your home network to broadcast the signal. You can not only watch your TV, or other devices, but control them remotely.

Sling Media has been around for a few years now. They have won a bunch of awards including a few industrial design awards a couple years back.

I've been using my Slingbox on my laptop, both around the house and remotely, as well as on my Moto Q phone. The video streaming is fantastic. There is just a little bit of lag and pixelation... all very forgivable. The Slingbox Solo (connects to one device) costs about $150 with no subscription fees and HD support. They also make a Slingbox Pro which allows you to connect to up to 4 devices. Very impressive.

Yellowism

My friend Rex has just started a great t-shirt company entitled Yellowism. It features a series of humorous printed tees as well as custom design and printing services for t-shirts for your special event or organization.

Ornamented Metal Lace Drain

The Ornamented Life has created a gorgeous series of metal lace drains, turning the ordinary into extraordinary. They are made out of hand-forced and laser-cut stainless steel.

Statue Appeal

In Sweden only 1 out of 10 statues are commemorating women. A Swedish magazine called Amelia has started a Statue Appeal campaign to change this. They have began placing pink pearl necklaces on male statues around the country. Their website also gives instructions on how to make the necklaces and encourages people to place them on statues in their own towns and upload the photos to the Amelia website. The campaign also includes 20 great Swedish women who they have nominated to receive statues. (Found through the David Report).

Mechanical Parts Pics

Brittnybadger's mechanical parts pictures appeal to the industrial designer in me. Great photos of meticulously laid out parts from disassembled home appliances. I imagine that she had second thoughts about this photo project when she went to make toast the next morning. (Found through Swissmiss).

SANS Socks

Are holes in socks a bad thing? Not according to New York based fashion label SANS. SANS is challenging the conventional thinking around socks with these Hole Socks, available at their online store ($28-30).

Olympic Medal Count Map

The New York Times never fails to impress with their interactive info graphics. They have some great Olympic graphics currently on their site including this Olympic Medal Count Map, which animates a world map based on the amount of medals each country wins at the Olympics over the years, ending with this year's current count.

Stitching Postcard

These postcards are a nice interpretation of a places-I've-been map. They let travelers sew in their routes before sending them to friends and family. (Found through BLTD).

Beijing Olympics Opening Ceremony

I watched the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics this weekend. If you missed it, be sure to check out some of the many photos that documented the visually stunning event.

No One Belongs Here More Than You

What better way to see a book than with some great storytelling? And Miranda July's website for her book 'No One Belongs Here More Than You' is definitely an example of great story telling (maybe not fabulous photography but good storytelling). I plan on buying the book based solely on the joy I got from the ridiculously entertaining approach to the website.

Otto

According to designer Duncan Wilson, "Every object and surface in our environment has a whisper; subtle tremors and vibrations that are usually undetectable to the human ear, produced by the activity and movement of daily life." He developed Otto to give you a glimpse into those secret whispers of objects. Otto uses suction cups and magnets to latch onto objects and amplify their sounds into ambient music for your listening pleasure.

Movie Box Office Charts

Movie Box Office Charts are illustrations created by Zach Beane. Each chart tracks a year's worth of movies, showing the top 25 movies for every weekend. The movies from each week are color coded, allowing you to easily track how long the movie stayed in the charts and how its ranking changed over time. (Found through Neoformix).

Fred Eerdekens

Fred Eerdekens creates amazing typographic sculptures. At first glance they appear like abstract objects. When light is shone through the sculpture, a message is revealed using the negative or positive light of the shadow. There's an inspiring beauty in the madness.

Applause

Jason Bruges Studio has created this interesting installation called Applause. An array of computer controlled flags respond to motion. The flags dynamically follow polo players or race cars, turning back and forth to follow the action.