How pretty are these handcrafted kitchen wares from father-daughter team Herriott Grace? Each piece is completely unique, most of them made from salvaged wood. I’m really loving that charcuterie board. Unfortunately, it’s sold out, but I think a piece like that would get a lot of love in our home. Hmmm… maybe my inner gourmande will just have to settle for one of those fancy ice cream bowls.

- Jessica

I’m in love with these “designer fireworks” from Japan. Enjoy Fireworks by Yamagata take the homely sparkler to another level through flawless product design. I’ve read that Japanese fireworks (or hanabi), unlike their American counterparts, typically focus on the aesthetics and beauty over explosive power. With names translated to things like, “Chasing the Summer,” “Bathrobe Woman,” and “The Canvas of the Dark,” it’s almost a shame to light these little gems on fire. Almost.

- Curt

Seen on Japan Trends

Pantonism is dope. This site catalogues thirteen sections defined by a color and distinctive “tumblr-esque” photos. If you couldn’t tell, I pulled images from the “orange” chapter. Simple, clean, and inspiring.

- Curt

Check out these impressive animation and type skillz of Like Minded Studio, an Aussie branding, design, and motion graphics outfit that helped pull together this slick ad for a boring client.

- Curt

I recently purchased a bike off of Craigslist to ride around town and get to my InDesign class from a recent UCLA grad. Not gonna lie, it can get pretty stressful out there on the mean streets of car-centric LA. I’ve got the required front and read LED lights, but Project AURA takes it to another level. Born from two current Carnegie Mellon Industrial Design undergrads, this ingenious safety system takes into account that according to 2008 bicycle accident records about a third of all fatal collisions occurred at intersections. This project seeks to make cyclists significantly more visible from the side and I’d say they pretty much nailed it. The only issue I see with this system is when paired with a front and rear flashing light you may end up looking like some schmuck that got lost on his way to Burning Man, but I guess that’s the price you pay for safety. The system is regenerative (i.e. battery-less) and fully automatic that way the rider can’t forget to turn it on or off. Another nice touch is how the lights turn from red to white indicating speed of the rider and acting like pseudo break lights. Be sure to check out both Ethan Frier and Jonathan Ota’s VERY impressive design portfolios.

- Curt

Oh, Public Bikes. I love them. And I want one. Specifically this one. That is all.

- Jessica

When you think about it, professional sports logos and team names are kinda weird. Heat? Nets? Canucks? Dodgers? Browns? Brewers? Galaxy? Weird. But you gotta love these reimagined NBA logos by beantown graphic artist Michael Weinstein. Along with these rad new logos, Michael also provides a thorough visual history of each logo he’s redesigned.

- Curt

“Saatchi & Saatchi Tel Aviv aims to find a creative solution to the israeli-palestinian conflict.
Our idea was to create the first fight that leads to a truce.”

This great little video was created by Art Director & Graphic Deisgner Francesco Basile

- Curt

Ohhhh snap! GBM got herself a facelift and she looks goooood. I still have a few loose ends here and there to tie up, but I think it turned out pretty slick given this is only my second ever try at web design. As we get more posts up in the “widescreen” format I think it will look really sweet. Plus webfonts are awesome. Get on that train if you haven’t already!

Thanks to The Fox Is Black, Saturdays NYC, and Design Inspiration for the inspiration!

PS – give me a shout if certain things on the site look blatantly broken to you

- Curt

Vintage fan from Noun. Truck contact sheet from SMUT. And lots more…

Rabbit from Canoe. Bear from Ink & Peat.

Black sand and bright green moss from Artemisia. Pencils (in the black goblet thing) from Ace Hotel.

Abalone shells from Artemisia. Sweet hanging terrarium from Noun.

Finished product! The succulents are from Plant Depot down in SJC.

Curt finally scored a nice keychain! It’s from Canoe.

Hooray Portland goodies!!

- Jessica