Archive for the ‘Cool stuff’ Category

Children’s Art

January 14, 2012

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Every time I sit here doing craft with either one of the turtles smallfries’ I love the honesty that come out.

Today we made a card for a friend.
A three year old wanting to give a four year old friend a card. if that isn’t the cuties thing you’ve heard all week you’re not trying.

Children don’t care about messing about resources and table space. The floor counts for table space too so if any extra room is needed a slight adjustment is made.

They will literally glue whatever the fuck they want where ever the fuck they want. Colours don’t matter continuity doesn’t matter, and where the glue gets put definitely doesn’t matter.

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I love it. As laborious as doing ‘craft’ is every minute of every time we do craft is a insight into my little turtles’ minds.

They just only want to make the person it is intended for happy. That is all.

Heart craft.

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And eating glue.

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Attention to detail is in the butterfly.

Friday night lights.

January 14, 2012

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Walking around last night in the cool but very tolerable early evening Sydney air was just so good I had to write this.
China town on every other night including tonight has the best vibe. Maybe it has something to do with glorious foods on offer, the bustle of the night markets or the close quarter human contact with other people enjoying the same.
And can I tell you last night was no different. It was a complete eye fucking candy tour of one of the best parts of Sydney.
You can almost smell the ‘getting ready for CNY’ in the atmosphere.
Knowing that I can just get in the car with my team and walk around here, letting my two and four year old also enjoy the experience is magical. Not in a ‘Gandalf the white’ sort of way but more in a ‘Silvermist in a hipster dress’ sort of way.

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If you drop down this way. Dinner is sorted. Automatic and sorted. Dumplings. Steamed vegetarian dumplings. Not going to say they are the best in Sydney cause as far as dumplings go I am pretty sheltered.
China town’s colors fuck your eyes on any given night but combine them with CNY prep a nice evening sunset and a cool/war summers breeze and it is heaven.

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This picture inspired this post. It is rare that just having a fun happy experience can inspire a non sarcastic objective post for me any how.
Sydney does this every week end my team and I go for noodles or what ever.
The more I write this post the more when I read it back it sounds like babbling bullshit.
I don’t. Care this time.
Just stare at the pictures please.

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Last night was a dream night in China Town Sydney. You should have been there.

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Tiny Books of Goodness

January 13, 2012

Recently whilst looking for a better web platform for viewing my instagr.am account I stumbled up on a little company called Printstagr.am

They do all sorts of little printing jobs and formats only using your Instagr.am shots.

From there assortment of products many stood out to me but on one in particular grabbed my eye totally – I live tiny things, miniature things, not in a horder needs a clean out sort of way but in a way that they just make me simply happy.

So I went through the very easy task of logging into their site and creating these adorable little things.

They are great value for money, and if you have an Instagram account, I would be totally recommending you get some.

At only $10 for three little books, each with 24 beautiful scaled square little photos they make the perfect gift, or novelty item for your house.

Each one has a hardcover, the postage delivery time was a bit interesting, but considering that I ordered them pre christmas, not caring if they would be delivered for christmas or not I have to admit the wait wasn’t too bad. Just not the usual 6-7 days from CH or HK that your would expect.

Honestly, if this isn’t a reason to download the instagram app, and abuse it I don’t know what is. I just want to squeeze the little books cheeks and say “isn’t you cuuuuuute”

Each Book contains 24 photos, and they are magnetised, so they stay together like A Miniature bookshelf, or you can stick them to your fridge.

Honestly, these are great for a gift, or just a novel way to get your digital prints, into a common area that you can easily look, would be great tiny little digests for a short travel trip or party.

I cannot emphasize enough, how much I love tiny versions of things. Micro Machines were the start of the obsession I think.

Void Watches [via Design-Milk]

January 11, 2012

[via Design-Milk]

 

Sometimes a watch just grabs your eye. For me i want to buy every wrist watch in the world. No I will not share before you ask.

just stumbled upon this whilst reading some articles from one of the best design sites in the world IMHO.

 

Void watches. The half glass half metal façade is supposed to reflect the horizon. I don’t mind. They look beautiful.

Seen Tell [Wow really Bad Pun for Sawtell]

January 10, 2012

First of all anyone not following @OMGthatsPunny you haven’t lived.

 

Up until recently I had the always welcome opportunity to avoid any travel to any small town especially ones with those junk shops disguised as antique shops.

 

After we had the children travelling to a select 2 of these such towns became mandatory.

 

 

 

With both grand parents living in the north coast area of Coffs Harbour, we started to frequent the little village/town of Sawtell. Which over the past 3-5 years has really perked up as a boutique/trendy strip with relaxed little cafes and most importantly THE two following shops.

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Everytime we travel to the north coast, my wallet trembles. Not because of the price but because of the sheer variety of dare I say it ‘uber- cool’ stuff that both ‘Boutique‘ and ‘CoCo39‘ have in stock. The need for shops like this to exist in Sydney without the exorbitant prices that Sydney insists on charging is high.

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[how good is the wine stashed in the picnic bag, just for a real example]

I am sure that Sydney would have shops like this, (there is a few in Newtown and the like) but in Sawtell they subtract the pretentiousness and the wank factor and really concentrate on the right amount of chic to hipster appeal.

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So in short the next time you visit Sawtell, or Coffs Harbour, or indeed Boambee East, don’t forget to go and invest all of your money in these two shops. You won’t regret in, Swallows printed on things until your heart is content, and metal robots for boys, until you can robot no more.

 

I have not left these shops without wanting to download the music playing once yet.

and some great pics from inside and outside my personal fav – ‘Boutique

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[Great mobile for any new arrivals scheduled for 2012]

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[All jewellery and nick knacks displayed are beautiful]

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[One of the many cool tin toys]

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[yet another overcrowded but cosy beautiful display]

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[Oh the robots}

 

Thanks to the great shop owners too for not being wankers about me taking pictures of the insides of their shops!

Coco39's Site

1st Ave Boutique's Site

 

First Avenue is very pretty any time of year.

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[one of the many Cafe's - food is great]

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Nano. Building blocks of life.

December 17, 2011

My good friend @nostraduckus just sent me picks of some new Nanoblocks.

I think this is by far the cutest Lego-like set for sure. Followed closely by the Easter island heads.

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Certainly beats ninja Lego this christmas.

Oh and don’t forget the panda’s jet pack for good measure.

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Head over to Nano Blocks’ site for more details.

And make sure you go follow @nostraduckus on twitter

A nice place to be for any occassion. [via Design-Milk]

December 16, 2011

[via Design-Milk]

 

I can’t help it. I cannot stop reading Design Milks Webpage ever. I do blame them however for constantly breaking what ever christian commandment lust is.

 

Or seven deadly sin or anti goat coveting law ….you get the picture.

 

 

Just want to share where I would like to be with my family this christmas, and easter, and monday thruogh sunday for the rest of my life.

This abode is just exquisite.

 

There you go. I said it. Exquisite.

 

I have not posted about apartment or house for a while but wow.

 

Back the fuck up people this is just the ensuite. Wait for the main bath. Take a breath have a cupcake and then scroll down.

Switchable opaque glass for privacy. Ahhh yepper.

As per Design-Milks article. The actual fitting for the water spout is inserted into the ceiling so the basin’s water alights from the roof and drizzles onto your dainty hands below. cleansing the world with it and possible contributing to world peace – can every one see where I am going with this, this apartment is amazing.

 

Minjae Lee. [Interview and new Art]

December 13, 2011

I sent this to Minjae’s management company not really expecting to get anything back but hey what do you know.  thanks to Ryan (@rothryanRoth Mgmt for the help getting through to Minjae! - updated website and URL

Great artist, and very honest and lovely responses to my not very good interview questions.

Panda: Your art is one of the most visually and mentally inspiring
things I have ever had the pleasure of seeing, what inspires your work?

Minjae: Most Important thing is feelings what I can feel.

That why I like music, picture, or painting. Sense my feelings when I saw/listen that. I like all of my feelings but not normal. 

Joy, or sadness, even If it’s anger. They like different taste of foods. I can get inspires from even feelings.

I can feel lot more thing when my feeling are getting deeper.  

Panda: Behind the art, how do you unwind, or is that part of the process?

Minjae: Everytime is rest time If I’m in my studio. Drawing something or Do something with computer or make something, all of that gives me relaxation. because I don’t put effort into what I do. that’s why all of those things are still fun to me.

lots of people said ‘live life to the full of effort, Then something good comes to you’,  Well, I can’t said something about another area, but in my art. I don’t want to make unnatural things. If I made something with effort without fun then just restrain things are coming out through me. 

Meet other people and go out somewhere is little hard to me,  but when I get in my studio. I’m feeling comfortable. 

Panda: If you could have a intimate dinner with any 4 living people who would they be? What would you guys eat and drink? 

Minjae: Well, having dinner with celebrity is not bad. but I like to have a dinner with my close four friends even If I have 100 chance of dinner. Idislike that first moment meeting new people, so avoid it if I and it would be worse if they were famous. And then I can’t eat or drink in front of them comfortably, I also think I don’t want to know their think or philosophy of life. We all have our own individual philosophies. Ican’t live the same philosophy as them and can only live my own. 

Well, If I can have a dinner with dead people. I want to share with “Kandinsky”/”Mondriaan”/”Picasso”/”Gogh”. Not to listen about how they think about art (I don’t want to be swayed what they saying).

Only I want to give modern food. And want to be conceited with that. Tell them modern people eat these things in the life… haha now that would be something.

Panda: What music are you listening to at the moment?, what was your first musical memory?

Minjae: Mother Mother – Tracy Bonham. 

My mother major in piano and cello. So I alway close with music and also I love singing.

I was learned how to play with piano and flute, but I forgot how to do that now. Well, I like classic, pop and heavy metal. But if it’s a good song, it does not matter what genre it is.

Panda: Finally, is there any art or design medium that you have never used that you would love to? 

Minjae: Most Expensive one….. kidding…. kind of… hahaha 

Well, I want to make solid structure like figure someday. But I’m not comfortable with what I’m using now. So I’ll try that when I’m comfortable with marker pen.

And as a special treat also included was Minjae’s Latest piece. Enjoi!

…..so I gave her a mix tape

November 15, 2011

yeah that’s right, you never hear that any more, do you, such a shame. Who didn’t love a mix tape.

 

even Cds were a push. And they were only a push if you rocked cover art.

 

 

maybe I am a little late on the uptake but the kind folk over at Air Cassette have been kind enough to give us iPhoneophiles a little bit of our childhood back.

 

totally rock any cassette well almost any cassette not the one that you got back from you ex in the schism of ’88 and had to tear the label off because it had that bitch’s name all over it and to be honest it was probably the worst mix tape you have ever made anyone, and staying up late that thursday to do it really bummed out the next day which was Saturday anyhow

yeah, totally rock any cassette from you teen/youth years. It doesn’t even have that time your cousin yelled out in the recording when you had a blanket over yours and his boom boxes dubbing Poison’s “open up and say ahh” LP.

The only let down that I can see is that you can’t draw your favourite love scene or metal patriot on the outside, and include “like love hearts and kisses and hugs and stuff”.

This app is way up there.  It just does everything to compliment the irony that no one really needs a smart phone, as we are all smart phones in person with each other, and in doing so becomes the perfect app for iPhone and whatever other platforms that it comes on which I choose not to recognise the existence of.

there is just so many to choose from, and even though I had my favourite brand (TDK gold) which I still fully believe that I believed sounded better this was probably more reliant on the type of blanket used to cover the dubbing tape players

go there and get it. 

 

 

AKA Grenomj [that part of your brain]

November 15, 2011

I am waiting for some poorly thought out interview questions, to try and even scratch the surface of how this 22 year old from South Korea, has what seems like the most expert grasp on not only the whole visual spectrum of colour as we know it, but also command over every single polygon you could have ever Dreamed.

Minjae Lee aka Grenomj is blowing up all over the internet. Once again thanks to the internet starting with me looking at second hand coffee machines, then leading me then to look at time-lapse videos of the earth which some how led me to stumble across Minjae. There was probably some funny dog clip or 30-45 seconds of nyan cat and dinosaur comics.

Nightmares aren’t in black and white, and dreams aren’t always in colour but when they collide I would hope they looked like this.

(self portrait II)

These works, I am not by any means an art critic just seep, seep in through your eyes, through your optic disc, change into chemicals at some stage and proceed to the part of your brain that you never alledgedly use according to those fact or fiction science shows.

and lets take it back. This guy is 22. yepper.

I know some 22 year olds….wait I don’t know any year olds any more strike that from the record That would not have the same command over their toileting habits as Minjae have over colour, shape and form.  What can I say I am absolutely mesmerised by his art.

(dace)

I am very anxiously awaiting for him to answer some questions from an email interview I sent and I am sure he is busy and they are mundane questions so no offence will be taken but hopefully it will shed some light on the humility but also the pride and state of emotion that these photo-esque portraits convey.

Every body on the interwebs should be blowing this guy and artists like him up.

(blushing flower)

(Gaze II)

I just don’t/didn’t think this could come out of pencils and paper, and as much as I love computers I really don’t think they could 100% reproduce explosions of coloured emotion and timestamped attitude that Minjae Lee captures and shares.

A bit of a wank-on I know….but tell me these pictures his management company forwarded to me aren’t fucking rad.

Thanks to Roth-Mgmt.com for correspondence, I hope to update this post with a Minjae interview soon, or never. I am sure he is proper busy in his mind that leads to these sorts of works.