Hasta La Ideas

The practice of reading is just as important as writing when it comes to maintaining habits that will make you a better writer. If you’re wanting to improve your writing skills, we’ve highlighted some books that will help your creativity—and writing—flourish.

Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott

Known as one of the modern classics on writing, Bird by Bird by author Anne Lamott is an essential read for all writers to include on their bookshelf and have on hand.  Weaving personal anecdotes in and out throughout this piece, Lamott informs readers to take their writing “bird by bird,” or one small step at a time. Lamott believes in the power of writers starting small.

On Writing by Stephen King

This book is no secret to most writers. How did Stephen King go from being a janitor to one of the most well-known horror novelists of all time? He outlines this journey in On Writing, which serves as both a memoir and advice book. King also emphasizes the importance of concentration—of making sure there’s space and time for you to write. You’ll want to make sure you have this classic to carry you through your writing journey.

Zen in the Art of Writing by Ray Bradbury

You may know Ray Bradbury from his science fiction classics such as Fahrenheit 451 and The Illustrated Man. However, his essay collection on writing and creativity is typically overlooked. It contains nine different essays you won’t want to miss out on.  

What I Talk About When I Talk About Running by Haruki Murakami

Did you think writing and running have no correlation? Murakami would disagree. Part memoir, part journal, part advice book, What I Talk About When I Talk About Running is also Murakami’s love letter to writing and running—and how practicing one helps his practice of the other. It’s one of the more unconventional books on the subject, but you’re sure to be inspired as he takes you with him through the process of writing stories and running marathons.

Make Time for Creativity by Brandon Stosuy

Considered “part artistic retreat, part guide to living a creative life,” this book includes advice and prompts from author Brandon Stosuy, co-founder of The Creative Independent, along with quotes and tidbits of inspiration from artists like Jia Tolentino, Hanif Abdurraqib, Matthew Barney, David Byrne, and more. It will help you reflect on your current creative practices: what they are, how they are influenced, and how they can be improved. It’s for anyone but is especially helpful for writers looking to reflect and hone in on their craft.

Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert

The title of this one implies Elizabeth Gilbert’s belief in the power of creativity—and in it, she outlines how to live your best creative life. Gilbert believes we all have creativity within us that can, and should, be utilized. With the experience of being an established writer herself, she shares inspiration and advice for writers looking to stay out of ruts and practice creativity on a daily basis.

Punk is a speaker design that incorporates a removable fingerboard that functions as the device’s remote control.

Home speaker systems are meant to deliver quality sound and blend in with the rest of our home furniture. While two things can be true, too often do designers favor one over the other, leading to really either dope speaker designs that don’t deliver on audio or underwhelming designs that do.

Designer: Designer Dot

Since it comes down to personal taste, designers are left to their own to produce quality, niche speakers that even audiophiles will enjoy. Designer Dot, a studio known for its extensive catalog of household appliances, finished work on a speaker design called Punk that was inspired by fingerboards that audiophiles and skaters alike can enjoy.

Designer Dot conceptualized Punk to incorporate the addictive nature of fingerboards into the very build of the speaker. Punk keeps a concave surface that creates a gradual ramp for the volume control fingerboard to glide back and forth.

Outfitted with intuitive control buttons, the fingerboard allows users to connect an external device via Bluetooth, skip or return to songs, and, of course, the play and pause button. Detachable by design, the fingerboard isn’t the only way to control the speaker.

Protecting the speaker’s main body and internal machinery, a weighted base draped in speaker fabric is positioned just below the device’s top surface. Integrated control buttons allow users to operate Punk however they’d like.

Separated by a slight opening, the top, concave surface provides the area for the detachable fingerboard to control the speaker. When users aren’t listening to music, they can play with the removable fingerboard like it’s a fidget toy, helping the workday go by a bit faster.

Designer Dot conceptualized Punk in both green and red tones. 

Even the speaker’s fuller body resembles the build of a skateboard.

Embossed tracks line internal magnetic strips that keep the fingerboard in place.

The remote control comes with all of the necessary power buttons for intuitive operation.

The packaging maintains a subtle, yet maximalist aesthetic. 

The post This home speaker design transforms a fingerboard into the device’s remote first appeared on Yanko Design.

This Tommy lamp, designed by German design studio Spezial and produced by Studio Domo, has an adjustable head—but no pivoting mechanism. Instead, it relies on physics and a little activity from the user:

I like it; it reminds me of something you’d improvise on a jobsite or in a workshop, and serves as a good ID example of “more than one way to skin a cat.”

The cast-iron base keeps the lamp put, and Spezial points out that the frame can accommodate a second lamp head if desired.

Vyrus, the exclusive Italian motorcycle manufacturer having its roots in Coriano, Italy is an avant-garde when it comes to innovative bike designs. For more than thirty years the Italian craftsmanship has shaped the niche for the brand known to dress up the Ducati powertrain into machines that set any night-time highway on fire. The high-performance motorcycle outfit has a knack for creating extremely sharp two-wheelers that appeal to young riders.

If the sexy-looking Vyrus bikes like 984 2V, 985 4V, and 987 4V needed an even more of a god-like appearance, something outstanding needs to be done. That’s where the VTOPIA Design steps in, and turns the hot beast into an irresistible set of wheels rearing to set the tarmac alive. The AG-SYS kit teleports the Vyrus’ hot seller bikes into a predator-like machine that no one will miss taking notice of even in the dark of the hour.

The custom kit brings the full carbon fiber bodywork for the Vyrus bikes with an ultra-aggressive geometric style. Everything right from the angular handlebars, license plate holder, mudguard and monocoque to the single-piece front fairing, belly pan, and airbox get the carbon fiber treatment. Just have a look at that suspension tail section, custom intakes, or the matching belly pan – the kit seems to do the unthinkable here.

To maintain the polygonal bodywork design, the bike gets the bespoke CNC-machined front and rear frame. The custom seat on top of the 3D laser-printed nylon-carbon fiber subframe, and pure titanium exhaust system designed by VTOPIA and materialized by SPARK Exhaust take the custom design to unprecedented realms. The aluminum fuel cell has been moved a bit, the dash is redesigned, the Motogadget Motoscope Pro instrumentation unit added and a custom battery box included. Man… what more can you ask for!

The flamboyant AG-SYS Kit is going to be only available in limited numbers and will be available in two different options – woven or forged carbon fiber make. For a starting price tag of approximately $22,300, the kit is the right supplement for the popular Vyrus models.

Designer: VTOPIA Design for Vyrus

Click Here to Buy Now!

The post This badass Vyrus bike custom kit turns the eye candy ride a predatory monster first appeared on Yanko Design.

While conventional walking canes often lack thoughtful design and still require strain on the part of those using it, the Stride Senze—an intelligent walking companion—is sleek, modern and equipped with smart technology to ensure the safety of users. Created by the Singapore-based NextOfKin, the cane features sensors that scan the area to help navigate spaces; smart technology to monitor the user’s gait, balance and mobility; self-balancing aids for better weight support and fall-detection which alerts social services or family in case of emergencies. Blending futuristic design and technological upgrades, the Stride Senze (which comes in either single support or walker mode) seeks to be a tool for empowerment. Learn more about it at designboom.

Image courtesy of NextOfKin