Toy Collector Apartment Crash by KRonikle

Photo courtesy of KRonikle.
Any serious toy collector eventually runs into the problem of just what the hell to do with their toys! Soon no amount of shelves or displays will be able to contain the mass collection of any apartment dweller, and you've got to get creative with ways to show off your hard-earned prizes. KRonikle put out a great article, Toy Collector Apartment Crash about Kidrobot employee and toy enthusiast Grace who had to roll up her sleeves and hit the drawing board for ideas on how to display and utilize her toys as interior decoration. My personal favorite placement choice was the bathroom Labbit, which is a bizarre and deliciously voyeuristic location for such an object. Check out the rest of the article for your own ideas and motivation!

Three Apples

To the millions of Sanrio fans out there, LISTEN UP. This weekend kicks off what should prove to be a great show in LA titled "Three Apples"; in honor of the 35th anniversary of Hello Kitty, this phenomenal event is unlike anything that America has seen before, taking place at Royal-T (LA's first Japanese-style cosplay café). Unless you've had first hand experience of the Japanese mania surrounding this iconic figure, you have no idea the impact it has made in our country and around the world. The fact that this cutesy cat has lasted through over three decades of worldwide fame and is recognizable in virtually every country in the world is a testament to the designer who created her, and her entire band of Sanrio friends!

Come view the work of many of the big contemporary artists today, including Amada Visell, Buff Monster, Frank Kozik, Friends With You (FWY), Gary Baseman, Huck Gee, Luke Chueh, Natalia Fabia, Ron English, Simone Legno, Tara McPherson, and more! Don't miss the Happy Hour specials on Saturday after the opening; the show runs from October 23 through November 15. Plenty of time to stop by and getting cheered up/ creeped out by the perpetually perky feline!

8910 Washington Blvd
Culver City, CA 90232
T 310 559 6300
F 310 559 6633

Blog Alert!!!

I love finding and reading other blogs- in this information age, it's difficult to have your voice heard amongst the cacophony of millions of others just like you! Still, it's a great feeling whenever your passion for your work is recognized, so whenever I am introduced to a particularly interesting outlet, I like to pass it along and say hey! Take the time to read this!

My sister brought glow.like.berlin to my attention; it's a sleek but confusing, exploding, bright, subtle mess of words that make deciphering the entire point of it almost impossible. Nonetheless, the wide range of topics from music to fashion to art to Germany (Berlin specifically) make for an interesting read. Just don't expect the expected. Her Etsy post specifically caught my eye, and her design*sponge-esque way of laying out her favorite DIY selections left me drooling for all of her picks. It would be silly for me to post pictures of work that she/he too has posted, so do yourself a favor and check it out. If you think you can't commit to a whole afternoon pawing through the posts, just read the first page. Even that is chock full of so many goodies that I feel confident you too will become a believer.

Day by Day

Remember the DMV incident that sparked a nationwide overhaul of identification applications? Or how about the Klown Klux Klan? And who can forget the smash hit "Bum Rock"? Well, the classy guys from DaybyDay who brought you Teenagers from Marz and Teenagers from Uranus now bring you THE BEST OF THE BEST! The last 3 years have been busy for the Richmond collaboration, working on new material for Stupidface and now bringing you the creme de la creme of their efforts. Richmonders, if you love laughter, gratuitous gross out comedy, or collar-pulling antics, don't miss the premiere at Empire (corner of Laurel and Broad) this Friday for FREE. Don't miss what will be the most hilarious event in the city since the premiere of Teenagers from Uranus at Alley Katz!

Oopsy Daisy/Studio Avo

The dawning of a new era! Today I had the privilege and pleasure of starting at No Boundaries, Inc., home of Oopsy Daisy and Studio Avo- wholesale website of fine art and miscellaneous items for children and adults! The day was filled with paperwork, tutorials, and introductions, and I think I'm going to be very happy to be a part of this dynamic, interesting, and creative environment!

The BEST part of my day was when the girl who sits next to me and I got to pick out our new wall art! New people means new views, and after flipping through the catalog we decided to go with two pieces by Andrea Cobb, a North Carolina based artist who had studied Illustration at Parsons School of Design in NYC:

Morning Pond

Evening Pond (images used from Studio Avo and are copyrighted Andrea Cobb).

I'm incredibly excited to be a part of this, and I'm looking forward to much more exposure to art and artists that I'm not familiar with. Check out both sites for extremely high quality, GREAT stuff for all ages.

Munny made a friend!

Your favorite DIY toy has come individually, super-sized, glow in the dark, mobile, and now Kidrobot is introducing the Munny FRIEND! This indecipherable shape (giraffe? goat? cat?) lends itself to the imagination and is not yet available in stores or online. Keep checking back though, Kronikle just announced this launch and with rabid fans chomping at the bit, they're sure to drop soon!



In the meantime, check out the other Munny merch to satiate your desires. Personally, I'm partial to the Houndstooth Munny tee. Christmas, anyone??

Pantone mugs!

Attention color nerds! If you like coffee (fuel for designers everywhere!) then snag your favorite Pantone color mug here! Pop Deluxe had originally carried these in sets of 10 only, but the demand for custom colors became so great that now you can order them individually. As a coffee AND color nerd, you can bet that one of these will be gracing my kitchen ASAP.

In Stitches- Teresa Cole

Crafting is at an all-time peak interest, with fantastic organizations like local Craft Mafias and independent crafters worldwide offering handmade goods on private sites and Etsy. Teresa Cole of In Stitches (and Richmonder!) offers hand-dyed yarns for the DIY knitters at reasonable prices, along with hand-knitted baby items and made-to-order knitted goods. Check out her iCrave store to pick up some fantastic custom dyed yarns for your next project!

Photo: Western Sky Knits Collab.

Heroine

To all those who loved Helvetica, I have every confidence that you will also appreciate Heroine, set to release September 15, 2009. FountainType brings you another feature length film exploring the oft-ignored but ever-prevalent world of type and how it permeates everything in the world around us. Only a true design lover can appreciate the nuances and enjoy an hour and a half discussion of the history of type- count me in!

Heroine is a typeface inspired by the typeface Windsor, which is most recognized as the font in Woody Allen movie titles (obviously!) Designed by Göran Söderström, this modern take includes alternate letters and a variety of differentiations that keep the eye enthused and the design clean with a throwback to the early 1900's. Enjoy this preview of it, which promises to be just another step to bringing the importance and interest of clean type to the public eye!

Noah Scalin

Noah Scalin- Richmond legend, owner/creative director of Another Limited Rebellion, and most famously known for his Skull-A-Day project; recently he had an exhibition at none other than Quirk Gallery, and just to make sure his work continues to be appreciated here's just some more note-worthy work to feast your eyes upon!

Design and Design recently awarded him with recognition for his work seen here.

Actor's Choice Book Covers


The Richmond Vegetarian Festival 2009 Poster


Fair Share Campaign


First Vote Postcard


Artseen Invitation

It's hard not to envy such talent.

All photos courtesy of Design and Design.