Hasta La Ideas

Although the trophy itself is but a symbol for the prestige of the award, the statuette certainly provides a covetable physical artifact for those in the television industry. While you may not be interested in actually watching the broadcast tonight, you might appreciate the craft that goes into making the trophies everyone seems to gush over for a few days each year. After seeing the handiwork that goes into them, you might find yourself gushing, too.

Maybe it’s the exclusivity that comes with winning one of the golden gals, but I’ve always had this image that includes a super secret lab and the rarest of materials when it comes to the trophies. So it’s refreshing to see the number of people involved in the process. While only one person gets to take home the statuette for good, there sure are a lot of hands that are put to work on each trophy, from ladling molten metal into the molds to final assembly and quality assurance.

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Comments update: Zaha Hadid’s decision to sue the author and publisher of a book review that included allegedly defamatory comments generated some the week’s most heated debate.

Hadid filed a complaint with a court in New York, asking for damages from the New York Review of Books and critic Martin Filler over statements about Hadid’s attitude towards workers on projects in the Middle East.

“She really thinks she can control everything,” said Adobogiona, “what a waste of court time,” added Overhere2000. “She should be more worried about her designs,” wrote WaxWing.

But not everyone thought Hadid was wrong to pursue her case. “Am I the only one who agrees with Zaha?” asked Someguy. “I can’t fault her for standing her ground.”

“Why does everyone give Zaha so much s**t and not all the other British architects?” added Daniel Brown. Read the comments on this story »

Is breast best? The launch of a champagne glass moulded on the left breast of British supermodel Kate Moss raised a few eyebrows, and a number of readers were inspired to come up with their own body-part suggestions.

“Whose left testicle did they mould for the shot glasses?” wrote Spraycan. “That’s actually a great idea,” retorted Eidamm. “A whole ‘body’ series could be done. Clenched fist at the end of an arm for a beer glass. A nose for a tea cup. Etc.” “And there’s also a Champagne flute,” added Fritz. Read the comments on this story »

Heritage row: a legal tussle between developers and heritage campaigners in Istanbul resulted in a court order for the demolition of three new skyscrapers accused of ruining the city’s historic skyline.

“Massive legislative FAIL,” wrote James. “What a total waste of resources and energy.” Nathan Morton agreed, adding: “the optimism new buildings can add for a city’s future trumps any ‘sacredness’ an old building carries.”

But others applauded the move, and some thought that similar rulings should be applied elsewhere. “London should do the same to the Walkie Talkie skyscraper,” wrote Anne. Read the comments on this story »

Analogue vs Digital: a design for an aluminium carrying tube for large architectural drawings came under fire prompted a discussion about the changing nature of design education and practice.

“As part of the younger generation, I have yet to carry drawings around in my career,” wrote Dadv.

“Paper tubes are a thing of the past and have become a vanity item to make you look more like an architect,” wrote  Sgto. Coimito. “Do they make one of these for PDFs?” chimed in Matt Clarke. Read the comments on this story »

The wrong foot: finally, a concept for a trainer that crosses Nike’s footwear with the moulded plywood shell of the Eames Lounge 670 armchair, provoked a strong response. One commenter accused the shoe’s designer Ora-Ïto of “trivialising a great design.”

“I wonder if a company like Nike will appreciate being ‘provoked into producing the shoes’,” added Romain_M. “All those compound curves can only result in a very rigid shoe.” Read the comments on this story »

The post “Am I the only one who
agrees with Zaha?” appeared first on Dezeen.

I just finished reading An Astronaut’s Guide to Life on Earth by Col. Chris Hadfield and found that it contained some great tips from outer space that we can use to be organized right here on Earth.

The pen just floated away

In space, if you don’t hang on to them, things like spoons, pencils, scissors and test tubes simply drift away, only to turn up a week later, clinging to the filter covering an air intact duct. That’s why there’s Velcro on the back of just about every imaginable item: so it will stay put on a Velco wall.

Things on Earth don’t exactly “float away,” although sometimes it feels like they do! There are several strategies that we can use to help things stay put! Consider using Velcro to stick markers and an eraser to a whiteboard. A Grid-It organizer can be placed in a drawer, backpack, or briefcase to stop smaller items from disappearing to the bottom of a bag.

A pegboard won’t stop items from floating away, but it clearly identifies where items belong. Pegboards are ideal for tools, craft supplies, and even accessories such as jewellery, belts, and purses.

The most useful thing to do

During a mission on the International Space Station, when Commander Hadfield asked, “What’s the most useful thing we could be doing right now?” the answer was “an inventory of the inside of every single locker in the Russian cargo block.”

Previously on Unclutterer, we’ve discussed creating a home inventory. Inventories are important because they indicate how much homeowners insurance you should carry and also help identify items that may be missing or damaged if your home suffers from theft or other disaster.

Inventories done on a regular basis help ensure your items aren’t past their due dates (e.g. fire extinguishers, canned food) or have become obsolete (Do you need to keep the baby gates if your children are teenagers?). Regular inventories help you figure out how much of certain items you are using so you can prevent product shortages and keep just enough inventory on hand without having too much.

I can imagine that an accurate inventory is even more important for the astronauts and cosmonauts since the nearest convenience store is 250km away. Items must be ordered in a timely manner so they arrive when needed and there are only a limited number of items that can be sent on each flight to the space station. Planning in advance is essential.

Although being organized may not give you the opportunity to go to the International Space Station, it can certainly help you enjoy your space right here on Earth.

Post written by Jacki Hollywood Brown

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When we last checked in with The Bosco in 2012, the freshly formed start-up was touting its high-end instant GIF booth and video confessional. With GIF photobooths now all…

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Gli ultimi sprazzi di estate ci portano in quel di Conversano, dove domani inaugurerà la prima personale dell’illustratore nostrano Emiliano Ponzi nella suggestiva location del Monastero di San Benedetto. La mostra curata dall’amico e caparbio Gianvito Fanelli metterà in esposizione più di 70 opere a ripercorrere i tratti salienti della carriera di Ponzi, con approfondimenti legati a Charles Bukowski, Milano e alla sua reintepretazione dei gironi infernali della Divina Commedia dantesca. Ingresso libero.