Jul 01
Jul 01
Microplane Easy Prep Vegetable Peelers
Posted in: UncategorizedCone-shaped veggie peelers make food prep easy
From the makers of chef-approved graters, Microplane‘s peelers skip traditional handles for a cone-shaped palm grip. The ergonomic design not only means they’re more comfy to use, but adds functionality for righties and lefties alike.
Other features include a soft touch coating and sharp stainless steel blades help that make food prep chores easier too, and a built-in end piece removes blemishes and helps with other tasks like hulling. Their ability to zest citrus is the best option out there for a bar set-up, but we find they’re also great for all sorts of other uses. Pick up either the serrated version or the classic straight blade from Microplane for $10 a pop.
Jul 01
Sir Kensington Ketchup
Posted in: UncategorizedA wholesome alternative to everyone’s favorite french fry condiment
A healthful mix of tomatoes, agave nectar, apple cider vinegar and other natural ingredients puts Sir Kensington Ketchup on the map somewhere between June Taylor‘s ultra-artisinal ketchup and the fridge staple from Heinz. The Classic version of their “gourmet scooping” ketchup contains less sugar, sodium and calories than Heinz, making it an ideal alternative for the ubiquitous condiment.
But both the Classic and Spiced flavors offer a distinct consistency and taste, one closer to a perfect marinara sauce than the traditional HFC-loaded versions. Put to the test at CH HQ, both flavors were well received among a variety of dipping agents, a couple of which who sang the praises of the mildly-spiced option.
Sir Kensington Ketchup sells online for $7 a jar.
Jul 01
Metropolitan Museum Tops 5 Million Visitors, with a Little Help from Picasso and Vermeer
Posted in: Uncategorized
Upon closing the books on its 2010 fiscal year (which ended yesterday), the Metropolitan Museum of Art has tallied its attendance clickers and found reason to celebrate. In the past twelve months, the institution saw 5,240,000 visitors, making it the first year since 2001 that the Met has surpassed the five million mark. The annual attendance figure, which includes visitors to The Cloisters and gardens, is among the highest in the museum’s 130-year history. For director Thomas P. Campbell, the landmark attendance “sends a signal about the enduring importance of culture and cultural institutions to the public,” he noted in a statement issued by the museum, “especially during this period of recession.”
Drawing the biggest crowds were last fall’s exhibition featuring Vermeer‘s “The Milkmaid” and the current Picasso blockbuster, which focuses exclusively on the vast array of works by Picasso in the Met’s own collection. Both exhibitions exceeded 300,000 visitors, and the Picasso show still has several weeks of prime tourist season to go. Meanwhile, around 175,000 people have already taken in “American Woman: Fashioning a National Identity” (video below), the first Costume Institute exhibition drawn from the newly established Brooklyn Museum Costume Collection at the Met. Sounds like the museum’s budget-conscious move to draw heavily on its permanent collection for exhibitions is really paying off.
New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.
Jul 01
Get it right, people, it’s “Coroflot” for chrissakes
Posted in: Uncategorizeddiv style=”align: right;”img src=”http://s3files.core77.com/blog/images/2010/07/0minimaldsch01.jpg” width=”468″ height=”508″ alt=”0minimaldsch01.jpg”//div
pI was just reading A HREF=”http://www.networkworld.com/community/node/63103″ this article/A speculating that Microsoft may bring the Courier project back online. To refresh your memory, the Courier was a dual-screen tablet concept that the boys in Redmond had been floating around, but pulled the plug on shortly after the iPad began making waves. (See also: This morning’s story on A HREF=”http://www.core77.com/blog/object_culture/only_six_weeks_in_microsoft_bins_the_kin_16859.asp” killing the Kin/A.)/p
pHere’s the part of the article I found interesting (boldface mine):/p
blockquoteThe Microsoft patent document identifies two other “inventors” of the dual display device besides Microsoft: Scott Wilson and Stephen Christopher, both of Chicago. An Internet search traced the two to BCoroloft/B, which is described as a job board for a wide variety of designers, but including industrial designers and product designers. Neither has yet replied to a request for comment. Microsoft again declined to comment today on the patent news./blockquote
pWilson has since responded to the author of that article, though I’m surprised said author didn’t spell his name “Wislon.” /p
pIn any case, you can check out A HREF=”http://www.coroflot.com/public/individual_work.asp?individual_id=162443keywords=stephen+Christopherc=1″ Christopher’s/A and A HREF=”http://www.coroflot.com/public/individual_set.asp?individual_id=32662set_id=7709keywords=Scott+Wilsonc=1″ Wilson’s/A individual portfolios on Coroflot. The two are accomplished designers that have done projects you’ll surely recognize; Wilson was a Global Creative Director at Nike, and Christopher’s an ex-Motorola guy. Christopher currently works for Wilson’s A HREF=”http://www.mnml.com/” MINIMAL/A design studio, which is based in Chicago but has branches in Portland and Milan./p
div style=”align: right;”img src=”http://s3files.core77.com/blog/images/2010/07/0minimaldsch02.jpg” width=”468″ height=”1089″ alt=”0minimaldsch02.jpg”//diva href=”http://www.core77.com/blog/object_culture/get_it_right_people_its_coroflot_for_chrissakes_16861.asp”(more…)/a
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Jul 01
How Can Futures Thinking Amplify Design Thinking?
Posted in: UncategorizedpThe business world has been quick to try and implement design thinking in hopes of stimulating sweeping organization change and innovation, only to abandon it and return to old practices when it doesn’t “work.” Is design thinking nothing more than a poorly defined gimmick, or are people just missing the big picture? /p
pPerhaps a part of the problem is that design thinking is more than just a set of tactics to be carried out, but rather a new ecology of mind. While grounded in business-minded rationality and operating within a defined set of constraints, it also contains an emotional/intuitive component that is often lost upon the more traditional thinkers. What this aspect requires is a capacity for switching between multiple perspectives and the ability to understand the world and our relationship to it, and within it, in a different way. Though there are many methods that can help develop this skill, I’d like to discuss an approach that may be unfamiliar to some: Futures Thinking./p
pimg alt=”miemis_futures_head.jpg” src=”http://s3files.core77.com/blog/images/miemis_futures_head.jpg” width=”468″ height=”719″ class=”mt-image-none” style=”” /br /
emImage: a href=”http://ericaglasier.com/”Erica Glasier/a /em/p
pbr /
strongWhat is Futures Thinking?/strongbr /
Futures thinking, or foresight, is a set of principles and practices that can be applied to solve complex problems. It combines data and trend analysis, pattern recognition, intuition, and imagination to envision desirable and sustainable paths of action. Just as Tim Brown distilled the design thinking process to: inspiration, ideation, and implementation, futurist Jamais Cascio a href=”http://www.fastcompany.com/blog/jamais-cascio/open-future/futures-thinking-basics”described/a the future thinking process as: Asking the Question, Scanning the World, Mapping the Possibilities, and Asking the Next Question. It’s an iterative process which helps you consider a range of possible, probable, and preferable outcomes. It’s not predicting the future, but rather taking a structured approach to understanding the potential impacts of today’s decisions and actions./pa href=”http://www.core77.com/blog/columns/how_can_futures_thinking_amplify_design_thinking_16791.asp”(more…)/a
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Jul 01
Summer Accessories Go Laidback-Luxe With Rope Jewelry
Posted in: Uncategorized  | Silver, gold, platinum, pearls… all are materials expected to come up in conversation about nearly any jewelry style, past, present, or future. But rope? Strangely enough, rope is the latest trend that’s been cropping up in the world of summer accessories (and I’m not just talkin’ tote bag handles), and the statement is surprisingly chic. Rope jewelry has a sort of breezy, nautical feel to it, yet at the same time is surprisingly versatile, as it can also be totally edgy when mixed with chains, rhinestones, or other contrasting hardware. For example, Rachel Roy uses rope for an updated version on the chunky charm necklace, while jewelry line Lizzie Fortunato Jewels finds beauty in the rope itself in their latest Indian-inspired collection. View the slideshow for more interesting takes on rope jewelry! |
Jul 01
Resign Academy
Posted in: UncategorizedA forward-thinking Italian collective starts an incubator for better design
A stand-out presence in the Italian design panorama, founders Andrea Magnani and Giovanni Delvecchio define Resign as not just a design collective, but also as a methodology “for all the designers who believe in magic and symbolic value of things.”
After graduating from ISIA in Faenza, the pair began collaborating with local companies, as well as national design institutions and universities, always following their dream of joining highly intellectual concepts with innovative approaches towards craftsmanship. Keywords such as sharing, symbolic capital and sustainability have led them to create a series of playfully conceptual unique and semi-unique objects. Their performances—like randomly abandoning their objects in front of doors, ringing the bell, running away and observing people’s reactions—have gotten them some attention too.
At the heart of their signature technique is a workshop element, what they call a “Bottega 2.0” model based on the work of sharing knowledge and creating dense relationships. The tactic is one of the reasons why they’ve also launched the Resign Academy, aimed at creating relationships and generating ideas in a sort of amusingly monkish isolation.
The next event for true “resigners” takes place mid-July in Sassello, on the mountains of Liguria. The workshop is open to all as long as you sign up before 10 July 2010.
Jul 01
Introducing New Core77 Columnist Venessa Miemis!
Posted in: Uncategorizedpimg alt=”introducing_miemis.jpg” src=”http://s3files.core77.com/blog/images/introducing_miemis.jpg” width=”468″ height=”311″ class=”mt-image-none” style=”” //p
pWe are thrilled to welcome Core77 Columnist Venessa Miemis#151;futurist, digital ethnographer, and modern day philosopher. Currently pursuing a Masters in Media Studies at the New School in NYC, her graduate work focuses on facilitating trust-building, generative dialogue, and open collaboration in networked environments. Her blog, Emergent by Design, probes the potential impacts of social technologies on human behavior, thought processes, and the evolution of consciousness. /p
pCurrently She is building a open source conversation platform called “Junto,” which will bring livestreaming video, a public backchannel, and the intentions of progressive minds into a forum together so that plans of action can be formed to drive humanity forward. She will be teaching the Futuristic Institute program at Duke University this summer, and also serves as a Director of the Foresight Education Research Network. Connect with her on Twitter @venessamiemis./p
pWelcome Venessa!/pa href=”http://www.core77.com/blog/featured_items/introducing_new_core77_columnist_venessa_miemis_16789.asp”(more…)/a
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