design – Page 4 – everydaysparks

Hip Hop Hooray

Posted on June 25, 2012 by Cate

A lot of people don’t know this about me, but I love hip hop music. I am whiter than most white people (thanks to my Irish genes), can’t really dance, don’t like a lotta bling, and I’m not really very street-wise, but for some reason I love hip hop. Not all of it, but a lot of it. Maybe it’s because I love words and people who are clever with words (and by that I don’t mean people who can only rhyme ‘ho’ with ‘blow’, or ‘cop’ with ‘pop’). There are some brilliant hip hop lyrics, aside from the trashy sexist, racist, violent stuff that you often hear about. And a very cool design studio in Chicago – Orange Beautiful – has produced a series of prints based on some famous lyrics. This first series features an ‘Ice’ connection. I found them via Fab.com and I like them alot…

All right, stop – collaborate and listen. Vanilla Ice, or Robert Van Winkle as he was known to his family, is credited with releasing the first single that brought hip hop into the mainstream (entering the Billboard music charts when it was released in 1989/90). It was Ice Ice Baby and it was a massive hit (and a guilty pleasure for many people who were too embarrassed to admit that they were hooked by Vanilla Ice and his catchy tune). So many memorable lines, but Orange Beautiful have chosen to immortalise: Anything less than the best is a felony. Words to live by, for sure.

Then there’s Ice Cube – a giant of hip hop who has also had success in film and tv (production and acting). Ice Cube should not be confused with Ice T, another hip hop legend who now plays a detective Law and Order: SVU. Orange Beautiful have picked the only lyrics that I think are fit for framing from Ice Cube’s Check Yo Self – sound advice for anyone you know who is maybe hitting life a little too hard: You better check yo self before you wreck yo self.

And to finish on a more deep and meaningful note, here is a print of Ice T’s lyrics from Don’t Hate the Playa, a graphically worded song that’s a twist on the footballing/life expression, ‘play the ball, not the man’: Don’t hate the playa, hate the game. They could also have used another classic line from that song, some financial advice from Ice T: If you out for mega cheddar, you got to go high risk. Maybe next series. (As an aside, the styling of this photo from the Fab website makes me laugh.)

You can check out these limited edition prints from Orange Beautiful on sale at Fab.com here as they’re not yet on the Orange Beautiful website (or their etsy shop) here. Peace out.

Treasures from Italy

Posted on June 8, 2012 by Cate

Ah, Italy. It’s easy to love everything about it – the language, the food, the beautiful country, the fashion, the people, the history. Not to mention the design, which is world-famous for good reason. And thanks to Fab.com, I’ve discovered Antartidee – an Italian company designing and making zany homewares that are both practical and quirky. And brightly coloured. What’s not to love?

Here’s The Rock Coat-Stand, part of a series of coat stands featuring different coloured hands making different kinds of gestures. I think this would look very cool just affixed to a plain wall in your home (especially if you added some of the other hands to create a slightly creepy gallery), but I understand if you want to use it as an actual hook on which you hang coats or hats or bags. Their coat stand range also features a banana, gelato in a cone, gun, tap or fairly lifelike human ear. Uh huh.

If you find yourself reaching for the lolly jar a little too often and want something to scare you away, this might be just the thing: Chameleon-Glutton sits on top of the jar as a sign of where you’re headed if you over-indulge. Genius.

Or if you’re looking for some innovative lighting solutions, then be sure to check out their lamps. The Frame Hand Lamp Clouds is part light, part artwork and part fortune teller. Love it.

And this Fall Lamp looks almost magical and is sure to keep you calm. Unless you live in a country that is prone to drought, in which case it might just make you feel guilty all the time.

Speaking of time, here’s a cute clock – Valentina – from their extensive range of wall and table clocks. I’m sure it’s an insightful commentary on how we all want time to slow down, or something like that. But really, I just like the snail.

And I’ll finish with this vase – Pablo – because I could honestly find another 30 pieces on the site that I would like to show you. But instead, you might want to check out the Antartidee magic for yourself here.

Home sparks, WWWhat?

Pop goes the weasel

Posted on June 7, 2012 by Cate

Hello, I’m Cate and I am globophobic. No, I am not afraid of the globe – I’m afraid of…balloons. It’s not a glamorous fear, I know – and I am thankful that it has an actual name, rather than being tucked away in the ‘weirdo’ section of the psychology handbook. Granted, it’s known to psychologists as an ‘uncommon phobia’, but I say why settle for a boring old fear of heights or flying, when I can have an uncommon phobia? Even if it is mocked by small children and adults alike.

According to Dr Google, I should be able to trace my fear to a traumatic event. But since balloons are mostly associated with happy parties in my memory, I am not sure where it started. I do remember hating those games where you had to pop the balloons to get a prize, but I don’t think they messed with my head any more than an egg & spoon race or pinning the tail on that poor donkey.

After childhood, there was a blissful mostly-balloon-free decade or so, then my beloved nieces and nephew came along and the balloons reappeared. At parties, from shopping centres, with showbags. Pop! Pop! Pop! But my family knows that I am a balloon hater, so they try not to use them very often. And my nieces – bless ’em – usually shepherd any stray balloons out of the room when I come in. So now I mostly just have to dodge the balloons in shopping centres (why oh why can’t stores just give out pens or ipads or gold bars as promotional tools these days?). You might have seen me, ducking and weaving to get away from a balloon in a shopping trolley, or a balloon being held too close to the ground by a little kid, or a balloon coming into contact with something sharp. I know, I know.

One day last year, I went to work in the city office of the insurance company I was with at the time. I was just expecting an ordinary day in the HR bearpit. But when the security door opened and I walked on to the floor, across the wide span of a football field of open-plan workstations, there was a sight to be seen. Hell had come to the office overnight – in the form of hundreds of helium balloons tied to ribbons, hovering over every desk. Before the first pop, I reminded my team mate of my fear and he kindly moved the closest balloons, but they lurked not too far away and kept bobbing about, getting closer and closer as the day wore on, like a pack of hyenas. I am not sure how I survived, but the psychologists in our team (it’s HR, so there were a few) said that I had participated in ‘exposure therapy’ and that I should actually thank the balloon deliverers for helping me to overcome my fear. Not only for the balloons, but I do not work there anymore.

So, when I saw this piece of furniture on the fabulous Umbra site recently, I thought that perhaps I should buy it and continue my ‘exposure therapy’ via this cool stool. Designed by young Canadian designer Natalie Kruch, the Balloona stool features over 500 brightly coloured balloons tied onto solid wood. It looks funky and not too intimidating, so I will think about it…(You can check it out here.)

Or there’s this beautiful balloon necklace, made by Nokike in Florence. These balloons look too cute to be scary – and if new jewellery can help conquer my fears, then I reckon this ‘exposure therapy’ might be a good idea after all. (Necklace is here.)

Of course, another option is to move into an inflatable house, like this one. Now, that would be confronting my fears.

Arty sparks, Fashion Sparks

Picture perfect jewellery

Posted on June 6, 2012 by Cate

Sometimes, you need to write something down, but you don’t have a pen handy. Or you really want to draw a picture to explain what you’re saying, but you don’t have any coloured pencils with you. This post could be for you. Or maybe you like jewellery that is pretty and practical – funk-tional – and you’re looking for a new ring. Or you’ve always wanted to be the artistic equivalent of Edward Scissorhands – Jonathon Pencilhands or Albert Paintbrushhands. Whatever, this post is for you too.

For these, my friends, are Crayon Rings. Such a simple, yet clever, idea by Timothy Liles. For sale on the cool design website Generate, these brightly coloured rings, cast in washable crayon come in a set of 8. That’s right, for less than $50 US, you can add eight new rings to your jewellery box and eight new crayons to your pencil case. And, you know, draw colourful stuff with your accessories.

But what if you accidentally draw in the wrong place? Or colour something that should have been black & white? Fear not, this Eraser+ing by ahead creative will solve your problems. Featuring bright colours and a ‘mild fruity scent’, a set of five costs less than $40 US.

If you’d like to check out these rings, or a whole heap of other kooky stuff, you can find the Generate online store here.

Fashion Sparks

It’s in the bag

Posted on June 5, 2012 by Cate

I am a bag lady. Be they fancy bags, practical bags, work bags, silly bags, travel bags or shopping bags, I love them. And I first saw these kooky handbags on sale at Fab.com. Dutch designer Sylvia Krens created the Hi-Di-Hi range of bags in striking styles that highlight individuality and, most importantly, spark conversations. Yep, I’m pretty sure these are going to be conversation starters – or stoppers…

The pics of these Winky cross-body bags are from Fab.com, which featured them in a recent sale. They come in a range of bright colours and, as the name suggests, the hologram eye appears to open and close when the bag moves. Be warned that your bag will be winking at everyone that you pass on the street. Which may work in your favour, or may result in you getting slapped. Please take care.

The winking eyes made me curious, so I checked out the Hi-Di-Hi website, and was delighted to discover more wacky accessories there. Like these Birdy Shopper bags, designed to look as though you’re carrying around a bird in a nest. Granted, the ‘nest’ in this image is made of faux fur, which is a little confusing, but it somehow works.

Or there’s this funky Home Sweet Home, which features a cute little bird stuck in a cut-out hole, like a cuckoo. Only cuter.

Then there are colourful bags with butterflies, flowers, babies, and even hoodies to customise your backpack as your mood changes – from Little Red Riding Hood to a dragon, elf or robot.

These pics are all from the Hi-Di-Hi website, which is well worth a look. You can check it out here.