Summer sizzles with organization

Today we welcome a guest post from certified professional organizer Bonnie Joy Dewkett, who runs The Joyful Organizer in western Connecticut, and her wonderful advice on summer preparations.

The summer months are almost here for those of us in the northern hemisphere! By taking a few moments now to get organized, and plan for your summer, you will be able to make better use of the free time you have while the weather is warm and the sun is shining.

  1. Start by making summer plans now. Planning your vacations, organizing projects and home improvement endeavors now will help ensure that they get done. Planning and putting events on your calendar will help you find the time to purchase supplies and get the work done. Also, planning vacations ahead of time can save you money as prices are often less expensive the earlier you book.
  2. At the end of the school year, have your kids go through their backpacks and get rid of any junk. Put important papers, such as report cards, in a file. Toss all the trash, recycle papers, and store scissors and other supplies that can be used next year. If the backpack is not going to be used again next year, consider donating it to someone less fortunate.
  3. This is a great time of year to buy new sun block and bug spray. The ones you have from last year may be almost empty, and you run the risk of running out when you need it most. Sun block in particular loses its effectiveness over time.
  4. Create a “to-go” bag for swimming, or the beach. Put frequently used items like towels, goggles, and pools passes in the bag and keep it by the door or in the trunk of your car. Throw in an extra bathing suit and towel for when you have the opportunity to take a dip!
  5. If you are taking a vacation, start doing research now. Visit the city’s chamber of commerce website and look for deals and coupons. If you are an AAA member, contact them in advance for free maps in your destination. Find out if your AAA discount can apply to your lodging, or any of your trip expenses.
  6. Flip flops can easily add clutter to an entryway. Use large drink tubs, or baskets to toss summer shoes in. Or, you can hang them on hooks to make sure you can always view your options, and they are ready to go at a moment’s notice.
  7. This is a good time of year to update your car’s first aid kit. If you don’t have one, now is a great time to get one. Many discount stores sell pre-packaged first aid kits that are under $10. Make sure all medicines are up to date and that band-aids still have adhesive.
  8. Life jackets need to fit properly in order to be effective. Have your kids try theirs on at the beginning of the season to see if you need to purchase a new size. Don’t put your child’s life in danger with a life jacket that is either too big or too small.
  9. Summer sports equipment such as soccer cleats, baseball gloves, and basketball shoes should be tried on before the summer season begins. This will ensure you have plenty of time to purchase new ones if your child has grown from the previous year. Shopping early will help you have the best chance of finding their size in the style they desire.
  10. If your kids are going away to camp, call the camp now to request a list of required items. Start shopping with your weekly errands to avoid a large time commitment or expense all at once.


Design Miami Makes Plans to Relocate to Miami Beach

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Who knew that this was going to be the year that Design Miami changed completely? First they signed a big sponsorship deal with W Hotels, then just a few days ago, the art fair’s co-founder, Ambra Medda, suddenly resigned. Now another big change with the news that the group has plans to leave Miami proper and move to Miami Beach, to run alongside the other big annual design/art event there, Art Basel Miami Beach. While not 100% solidified yet, according to the Miami Herald, it appears the city (who had been vying for Design Miami to make the move) will give its okay tomorrow, letting the show “rent a parking lot across from the Art Basel home inside the city convention center.” Given that the two groups both have hands in each others pockets, investing-wise, the move certainly makes sense:

In 2007, [owner Craig Robins] sold a 10 percent stake in Design Miami to MCH Group, the owner of Art Basel. MCH also owns 50 percent of Design Miami’s annual Switzerland show, which coincides with the original Art Basel fair in MCH’s hometown of Basel, Switzerland.

Design Miami is the lone authorized satellite fair for Art Basel Miami Beach, the country’s leading contemporary arts fair. MCH also is a partner in a joint venture with Global Spectrum that runs the convention center year-round. In winning that city contract, MCH pledged to bring another of its international shows to the expo.

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

Call for entries: Seoul Cycle Design Competition

pGot a concept for a bicycle, bicycle accessories, or a more macro citywide cycling system? Notoriously congested Seoul is trying to remake itself as a bike-friendly city and hoping to establish “a healthier cycling culture,” starting with a A HREF=”http://www.scdc.kr/index_e.htm” design competition/A:/p

blockquoteCycles have become an icon of ‘eco-friendliness’ and ‘healthiness,’ and are part of a major urban lifestyle trend. Through this competition we hope that all citizens will have the chance to share their own personal visions for a new Seoul, a city that has embraced change through design.

pThe competition is divided into three categories: cycle design, cycle fashion accessories design, and cycling infrastructure./blockquote/p

pA HREF=”http://www.scdc.kr/theme_e.htm” Click here/A for more info.br /
/pa href=”http://www.core77.com/blog/events/call_for_entries_seoul_cycle_design_competition_16540.asp”(more…)/a
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Type Tuesday: Hyperactivity Typography


A tour-de-force by Studio3, a group of Norwegian design students! Check out the full preview.

“Studio 3 is an in-school design agency at the Graphic Design Department of Westerdals School of Communication in Oslo (Norway). Studio 3 was established in 2002 and exists of a handpicked selection of 15 truly dedicated 3rd year’s graphic design students.”

Shoe Of The Week: Alexander McQueen Military Ankle Boot

imageMilitary is the theme for spring and summer with military jackets and other military-inspired details on everything from purses to leggings popping up in stores everywhere. Designed by the late and great Alexander McQueen, this Military Ankle Boot is the trendiest way to complete this new fashion phase in sexy style. Classic army green detailed with gold accents, the Alexander McQueen Military Ankle Boot is given a hip, sexy spin with a peep-toe cut out, edgy top-stitching and a ‘tuff gal’ inspired skull zip-pull while tall, slim stiletto only adds more sex appeal and the fold-over panel makes it unique and flattering. You’ll have the troops readily marching behind you in these versatile Military Ankle Boots that work equally well with a loose, floral sundress as it does with denim shorts and a billowing button-down. No matter how you decide to style these hot boots, there’s no denying that they’re definitely at home on the spring and summer wishlist!

What: The Alexander McQueen Military Ankle Boots

Price: $1134.00

Where To Buy: Couture.Zappos.com

Who Found Them: Idabone was the first to add the Alexander McQueen Military Ankle Boots to the Hive.

48 Hour Magazine

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So what did you do this weekend? Anything productive? Anything creative? Whatever satisfying thing you achieved, whether it was mowing the lawn, painting a wall or baking some bread, it’s hard to beat the sheer audaciousness of the bright young media things in San Francisco who turned a magazine around in 48 hours, resulting in the inspired 48 Hour Magazine.

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Yup, just in case you haven’t heard, i.e. if you’re not on Twitter, the concept of a working weekend was taken to new levels over the past few days by the 48 Hour Magazine team, who came up with what they described as “a raucous experiment in using new tools to erase media’s old limits.” Which is to say that they decided to push all previously understood publishing boundaries and attempted to “write, photograph, illustrate, design, edit, and ship a magazine in two days.”

The great news is their experiment worked! In fact it more than worked, it was an outrageous success, and I say that without having even seen the magazine yet. But if you’ve been following the progress of 48 Hour Magazine, you will know that the energy, enthusiasm and community bonding the idea provoked in writers, photographers and illustrators around the world was awe-inspiring.

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For all those creatives who’ve been understandably down on traditional media and the publishing world of late, this was the loudest wake up call of their lives. In the 10 days before kick off, over 6,000 people signed up to take part the 48 Hour Magazine experiment and during the production time the editorial team received 1,502 submissions. That’s a lot of people crafting and creating for this unpredictable and unprecedented concept of a 48 hour magazine.

The energy, experienced variously through their Twitter, Ustream and Blog was infectious and I, along with the other 1,501 crazy kids who submitted, was swept up in the creative possibilities of what new media technologies can produce.

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48 Hour Magazine’s greatest triumph is that it motivated thousands of people to create something original, without knowing whether or not it would be used, just for the pure unbridled sense of joy, fun and pumping adrenalin that comes from being under a tight deadline and in the race.

The audacious 48 Hour Magazine editors Heather Champ, Dylan Fareed, Mat Honan, Alexis Madrigal, Derek Powazek, Sarah Rich, Joe Brown plus thousands of contributors made it happen. This informative interview with Gizmodo reveals the staff’s process in designing Issue Zero, aptly themed Hustle.

48 Hour Magazine is available from MagCloud. All the contributors and info about the magazine are available on the blog.

Production photos by Heather Champ


Indie Furniture

Indie Furniture è una soluzione modulare di archiviazione su misura costituito da articolazioni mobili universali e pannelli in legno. Potete configurare il vostro modulo qui. Disegnato dallo svizzero Nicola Enrico Stäubli.
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Indie Furniture

Type Tuesday: Grafica Fidalga

Thanks for the link, Jenny!

Thom Puckey

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Great work from Thom Puckey, this shot’s from his in-progress gallery.

Check out his site to see the full shoot, as well as his completed projects.

via: booooooom

Chanel ‘Bocce Ball Set’

Una delle cose che ho imparato dai viaggi nel Sud della Francia è che i francesi si portano sempre dietro un set di bocce in ferro, così ogni occasione è buona per sfidare amici o parenti. Non poteva che mancare Chanel con questo set super-chic.
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Chanel Bocce Ball Set