Tag: design

Posted in Arty sparks, Sparks in the wild, Sparky gifts, WWWhat?

Doggone

Posted on by Cate

If you’ve read my post Walk on By, then you’ll know that I don’t have a problem with fake dogs. In fact, my Ikea dog Goldie is one of my best mates. Which may say more about me and my life than it does about Goldie, but I’ll save that analysis for another time. Anyways, I think that fake animals are great and there should be more of them – whether you’re after fake company, fake walking pals, or fake protectors to guard your home, fake it up, I say.

Which is why I was delighted to find a very talented fake animal maker (NB, that’s not her official job title) on the etsy website. Excited at the thought of adding to my fake pet collection and providing a fake pal for Goldie, I thought these amazing, life-like dogs were too good to be true. I could put these two out as guard dogs and they would definitely keep the possums away. And if I wire up an MP3 player with a growling dog soundtrack on repeat play, then seeya, annoying neighbourhood kids! My mind started to wander, full of possibilities for these “I can’t believe it’s not butter” canine equivalents. Perfect looking and no maintenance – surely the recipe for any great relationship… I would call them Snowy and Snowi and we would go on walks, relax in the sun, read the Saturday paper and generally pal around like an episode of Lassie. (Or Neighbours, before the untimely end of dear old Bouncer.)

And the product title on etsy specifically says LARGE Size Pet Sculpture. Yes, with large written in capital letters, wouldn’t you think that would mean life-size pups and all of the good times I dreamed of in the above paragraph? Well, hold your LARGE horses, people. Contain your shock as you look at this next photo. And see why my vision for a life with Snowy and Snowi vanished in an instant.

If you are more forgiving than me, other LARGE size pet sculptures are made by FeltedFuzzies.

Posted in Arty sparks, Sparky gifts

Brainiac

Posted on by Cate

This Jumping Brain is one of a series designed by Emilio Garcia at the “secret Lapo laboratories”, wherever they are. And they might be secret, but presumably they’re paved with gold – an extra large Jumping Brain costs 1500 euros. But imagine how handy one could be…

When you’re in a meeting and Sucky Suckinson is trying to impress the boss with a jargon-filled speech, the brain jumps across the table as a very subtle sign that he’s not as smart as he thinks he is. Or when the 12 year old boy running the McDonald’s drive-thru gives you the wrong order, ol’ Brainy could jump up to the window as a reminder to stop chatting up the chick making the sundaes and actually serve the customer. Or at extended family gatherings, the brain could sit in the middle of the table as a warning to Great Uncle Charlie and Second Cousin Babs – no one wants to hear dumbhead rants about how much better things were in the olden days. Or if you see a Kardashian or a Snooki or pretty much any reality tv star…

Honestly, think of all the people you’ve met and discounted as idiots – and if you’ve worked in the corporate world in particular, I’m tipping you’ve met plenty – or the people that you suspect are either off their heads or heavily medicated when you speak with them. Maybe, just maybe – like a weird twist on old Pavlov’s dogs – when the Jumping Brain appears, everyone in the room gets a little bit smarter. If so, 1500 euros is looking like a great investment!

Check out Emilio Garcia’s brain(s) here.

Posted in Sparks in the wild

Fit for the birds

Posted on by Cate

If you’re up for a different kind of holiday, or at least a different kind of holiday accommodation, you might want to check out this bizarro ‘bird’s nest sphere’ accommodation in Canada (Vancouver Island, to be precise). I saw it on Trip Advisor and it sounds like all kinds of wacky. According to the owner: Once one breaks contact with the ground, energy shifts. The magical environment of the forest canopy conjures up thoughts of elves and fairies. One can feel the presence of the forest. That presence seems to dwell in the canopy where it can watch the meanderings below. Like, totally.

For under $200 per night, you could be tucked away in this spaceage Spherical Tree House, which apparently ‘rocks with the breeze’. And rolls with the stronger winds, presumably. They say it’s a marriage of tree house and sailboat technology. Yep, that’s really what they say. There are a whole lot of details on the website and it certainly sounds complicated – the sphere is “accessed by a spiral stairway and short suspension bridge”, which to me sounds like the way to get to heaven (or at least a neighbouring village), rather than your room, but whatevs.

A word of warning – choose your travel season carefully, as a hazard of life in the forest is trees and branches falling in a strong wind or ice storm. A sphere distributes any impact stress throughout the skin and resists puncture or cracking. But when the company that owns them is called Free Spirit Spheres Inc, could you really be sure?

Safe travels, to the Spherical Tree House and beyond.

Posted in Arty sparks, Sparks in the wild, Sparky gifts, WWWhat?

Totally Foksy

Posted on by Cate

Wherever you stand on the whole animal fur debate, this Silver Wolf Foks (yes, that’s how they spell it, they’re from Poland) is a-ok. Whether you’re inspired by the recent Liam Neeson scary movie or you’re just an animal loving fashionista, this is surely a must-have addition to your wardrobe/menagerie. Part pet, part scarf and all felt, with a special clip so that you can curl ol’ Foksy around your neck or leave him hanging free. From the new Felt Fokses range by wacky Polish designers Celapiu, you can pick one up via their fabulous etsy store for around $150.  The designers claim that the Long Foks version is “long enough to wrap himself around you in hundreds of different ways”, which sounds at once creepy and impossible. Whatever, I am very tempted to carry one of these around Sydney this winter. And I will sidle up close to people on public transport and in bars and tap them gently with one of Foksy’s paws. And wait for the screams.

If you must have a Foks, check out Celapiu’s etsy store.