Friday, October 31, 2008

Insane Architecture

Location: Ludwigsburg, Germany
J. MAYER H. Architects

The geometry of the building is based on the footprint of the house that previously was located on the site. Originally built in 1984 and with many extensions and modifications since then, the new building echoes the "family archaeology" by duplication and rotation.

Before:











After:








© Photographer David Franck

I love Fall


The first photo is my favorite but all of the photos on this web site are gorgeous based on the concept of incorporating art into everyday life (and vice versa).
Smosch.com

Happy Halloween!


HAPPY HALLOWEEN!


Cheers,
Molly and Brooke


Thursday, October 30, 2008

Afternoon Electropop


Sleepy Head - Passion Pit

Dessert & Design

Event: 14th Annual Salon du Chocolat Fashion Show
Location: Paris
Date: October 28, 2008.

Studies show that a vast majority of people see chocolate -- mainly produced by international giants such as Swiss-based Nestle, Britain's Cadbury or U.S. Kraft Foods -- as one of their most regular sources of pleasure.

Chocolate couture has travelled across the globe. Sculpture is gearing away from the use of the classical ceramic medium, as artists recognize the seductive allure of chocolate.


Wednesday, October 29, 2008

Upcoming Movies..

The following is a list of movies we're looking forward to... woo hoo for cold weather movie going...
007 Quantum of Solace - November 14th
Who doesn't love a little Bond?

Twilight - November 21st
I rapidly read through all four of the books in the Twilight series but the first installment was by far my favorite. I like Sci-Fi, what can I say?

Australia - November 26th
Baz Luhrmann's first feature film since the artistic 2001 Moulin Rouge. (Also the mastermind behind Romeo&Juliet)

Milk - also November 26th
Gus Van Sant directs this biopic about the life and assassination of Harvey Milk, a San Francisco city supervisor and gay rights activist in the 1970s.

Time Traveler's Wife- late 2008, trailer unavailable at this time.....
I read the best-selling book this film is based on earlier this year and have to say it has become one of my all-time favorites. Written by Audrey Niffenegger, the story follows a Chicago librarian who suffers from a rare genetic disorder that causes him to time travel whenever he is under extreme stress. Great love story/dramatic fantasy=I'm so there.

Etsy Picks

Custom Block Lettering from PureInnovation
In honor of Halloween... a brain bowl from foldedpigsCedar Stump Box from annedinan

Lone Pattern Leather and Stainless Steel Flask from moxieandoliver


InkSpot Workshop 2009 Desktop Calendar from inkspotworkshop


Holey Cuff from paintedmetal

Limited Edition Photography

Nigel Parry:

Arthur Elgort:



Guy Aroch:

Tuesday, October 28, 2008

The Last Stalinist State in the World

In such a restrictive society, it is difficult - if not impossible - for residents to get news of the outside world, and for the outside world to see in. What photography comes out of North Korea is either state-produced, state-approved, or at the very least state-managed (visitors are restricted in their movement). Still, if you look over the following images with those restrictions in mind, one can still get some idea of life in North Korea in 2008. (photos by Eric Lafforgue)

Tuesday Music Picks

M's Picks:

The District SF || "Baby"

Breathe - Alexi Murdoch

Time Stops - Explosions In The Sky
Colorado - Grizzly Bear



B's Picks:


Artichokes - Maps And Atlases



Gimme Three Steps (live - Lynyrd Skynyrd



While You Wait for the Others - Grizzly Bear


Little Kids - Deerhunter (not yet released!)

Treasure your relationships, not your possessions.
— Anthony J. D'Angelo

Monday, October 27, 2008

Awesome surfing photography


Check out these amazing surfing photos from bendecamp.com

Ben grew up in New York and graduated from UC-San Diego. As one of the youngest staff photographers ever for Surfer Magazine, Ben has worked in Canada, Mexico, Brazil, England, Costa Rica, Chile, Polynesia, Hawaii and throughout the US. My favorites are the "waves" shots but the lifestyle and surfing photos are as equally captivating.
photos courtesy of bendecamp.com

Pepsi Re-Branding

Just read that Pepsi has announced that they are undergoing a drastic relaunching of their branding and packaging to bring "new life" to their flagship brands. Personally, I hate Pepsi. More power to the Coca-Cola brand.

Temple created from over a million bottles


A Buddhist monk walks past the Wat Pa Maha Chedi Kaew temple, built with more than a million glass bottles, in Thailand's Sisaket province, about 600 km (370 miles) northeast of Bangkok, October 17, 2008. The Thai Buddhist temple has found an environmentally friendly way to utilize discarded bottles to reach nirvana -- using them to build everything in its premises, from a crematorium to shelters and toilets. Picture taken October 17, 2008. - YahooNews

Sunday, October 26, 2008

Photoshop Mishap

What happened here? Looks to me like Marie Claire's editorial staff had a little photoshop work done. Too bad the photoshop craftsman didn't take into account the reflective table below. Actually, this is really just a horrible picture of what the media world has come too.

Saturday, October 25, 2008

Dress Made of Water

Hana Soukupová and Mattoni! Two famous names joined together in creating a new commercial project – an advertising spot that embodies all elements of a feature film within 30 seconds.
There is no more Mattoni!” The sentence that has become popular will now please the television viewers and the movie audience in an entirely new appearance. Hana Soukupová is a world-renowned star of modelling that has made it among ten most acknowledged top models of the world. She is often considered to be the successor of Karolína Kůrková. Her photogenic attractiveness has been emphasized by the recognized designer studios.
Mattoni started to secretly cooperate with Hana Soukupová already in July. The shooting started in the most beautiful parts of Karlovy Vary, from where Hana comes from and to where she always returns very happily.
The story and the form of its presentation inspired her.
Clothes made out of water? Yes, water clothes.
As of yet, Hana had never modelled them and neither any designer had the courage to conceive them. It was only when Mattoni, using the most modern trick photography along side with the classical filming, could dress the model into clothes made from water. The German staff, together with the director Matthias Zentner perfectly executed the Italian creative idea. It is known about the director that he can create an all-out impeccably motivating atmosphere. The representative of Mattoni, Gabriele Guzzo, not only supervised the shooting based on his position as the Director for Strategic Marketing, but he also creatively influenced the entire project. The filming itself was made more complicated by the cold weather as Hana had to do the entire shooting almost naked. As a true professional she did not let it bother her. Her bodyguards had to constantly protect her from curious viewers throughout the filming.
The General Manager of the Karlovy Vary Mineral Water Company Alessandro Pasquale with all elegance took over the role of the chauffeur of the historical automobile Tatra 87. It could not be otherwise! It is not every day one can take a treasure named Hana Soukupová for a pleasure ride.
The fact that Mattoni made a good choice when selecting the type of veteran vehicle is supported by the fact that this automobile came out on top in a readers’ survey, where they were asked which antique car would they favour to be reintroduced into manufacturing. (If your browser does not recognize the video below, click here: http://www.videolog.tv/video?375985)


Creative People

Stephen Reed Design: Stephen Reed grew up in the London suburbs with a tendency to take objects apart to discover how they work. As his interest in design progressed, he found the need to explore design from other perspectives.

Here are some of his installations and products:

1. Interactive Seating Installation - Users can make words and leave messages with the lettered cushions. Located at the Bloomberg offices in London.



2. Alphabet Paperclips - Lettered paperclips can be used to file documents alphabetically or arranged to form words.


Thursday, October 23, 2008

The Mad Men Revue at the El Rey Theatre

A small group of us had the opportunity earlier this week to attend "A Night Out On The Town With Mad Men" at the El Rey Theatre in LA. The supporting cast of one of the best television series (in my opinion) performed songs from the show's era live on stage. Serving as a fundraiser for The Recording Academy Los Angeles' educational programs (we each donated $20), it was a night of belting, dancing, vamping, blushing, cracking wise, and generally giving notice that even without the presence of the big stars (no Hamm, Moss, Slattery, Hendricks, Jones, or Kartheiser), the actors of Mad Men are addictive as nicotine and more talented than Peggy Olsen on Popsicles.

I've never been to the El Rey. The only thing Brooke and I really knew about the venue was that Lykke Li was performing there in early November (now sold out). As we waited in line, we saw members of the cast saunter by us en route to the red carpet. No sense of urgency, no "better than thou" attitude, just sequins, hairspray and a few 40s style party dresses. As we entered the venue we were immediately welcomed by an endless supply of Chivas Regal cocktail drinks.

Our emcee for the night was Joel "Freddy Rumsen" Murray, who admirably piloted the ship after opening by encouraging us to "Keep sippin' the Chivas, because the more you sip, the smoother this'll all go." One by one, he introduced his castmates, as MM composer David Carbonara (and the Chivas Thirteen) kept brassy time behind them: Mark "Duck Phillips" Moses channeling Ol' Blue Eyes's voice on "Ain't That a Kick in the Head"; Allison "Trudy Campbell" Brie abusing a white fur stole during Sammy Kaye's "Daddy"; Maggie "Rachel Menken" Siff throwing down a take on "Black Coffee" so vicious it could very well have summoned a facial expression out of Don Draper himself; and Robert "Bert Cooper" Morse proving he's not so much acting on the show while delivering his wonderfully dotty performance of "I Believe In You" straight to creator Matthew Weiner.

Some highlights:
- Bryan "Salvatore Romano" Batt and a gaggle of dancing girls brought the house down with Dean Martin's "Sway"
- Michael "Paul Kinsey" Gladis confessed it was only "the better part of a bottle of bourbon" that got him on stage with his acoustic guitar for a heartfelt Dylan number--"Don't Think Twice, It's All Right"--complete with a lyrical false start that he blamed on Weiner's presence. This error was more than negated by the fact that, while every other man on stage was buttoned up in a Brooks Brothers tux, Gladis was fetchingly in shirtsleeves, suspenders, and undone bow tie, as though the end of the night had already come and gone and we were down in the Village with Rosemary DeWitt or something

All in all it was an unexpected, thrilling night. We met Salvatore at the end of the evening, saw the very pregnant Jennifer Garner mingling about and had some good laughs. These folks aren't just paper dolls moved about between nicely art-directed ashtrays--they are professionals, with a thousand years of Broadway and regional theater experience among them. This "Night on the Town with Mad Men" not only made me like the show better (not hard; I'm still crabby about what they did to poor Peggy last season), but gave me hope that for every Hills spinoff, there might be another one of these sorts of programs upon which real actors supply a real craft and make real art for everyone who's got the patience to soak it all in.

(courtesy of EW.com)

Tuesday, October 21, 2008

Tuesday Night Music Picks

Molly's Pick:
I'm too lazy to pick specific songs this week, so I'm recommending an entire album. I promise that you will not be disappointed. --- Bon Iver "For Emma, Forever Ago"
And my favorite song right now: "Creature Fear" (give it a few seconds)

Creature Fear - Bon Iver

Brooke's pics:
-Department of Eagles || 1997 (click for 5 free DoE downloads from Daytrotter.com)
-Lykke Li and Bon Iver || Dance, Dance, Dance


-Sea Out - Guillemots

-George Jones || Cup of Loneliness (I can't find a download of this anywhere but on iTunes.... it's the song from the last scene of this week's episode of Mad Men)

Monday, October 20, 2008

Pickens' Plan

T. Boone Pickens is an American businessman who on July 8, 2008 announced an energy policy proposal intended to reduce American dependency on imported oil by investing in wind turbine farms. The policy has received broad public support despite a few minor criticisms. Growing up it was drilled into my head (no pun intended) that the issue of alternative energy and fuel was a problem my generation would ultimately have to solve and therefore I take it very seriously. Anyone that offers or attempts to provide a solution commands my attention and curiosity. Enjoy.

Pickens' web site where you can view videos and learn more about the plan: http://www.pickensplan.com/index.php

New York Times article entitled "The Pickens Plan and Proposition 10" September 25, 2008:
http://greeninc.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/09/25/the-pickens-plan-and-proposition-10/

Monday Morning Memo

Weekend Recap and Random Thoughts:

-Friday evening a group of us all met for dinner at Frida's for Mexican food. There were ten of us in all and it was a great way to get together with friends and friends of friends. Decent food and great margaritas.

-Saturday Molly and I got up and moving and headed north to Pacific Palisades to tackle a hike in Temescal Canyon. 4 miles, 1000 ft elevation gain, all in the first mile... and ohhh did we feel it. Absolutely gorgeous hike with views of the ocean and a variety of "terrain" reminiscent of the climax in Sleeping Beauty. The nice thing about this particular hike is that it is a loop so there isn't any backtracking. Roughly 3o minutes into our climb, we realized that we were crossing paths with numerous groups of fellow hikers but we had yet to catch up to anyone or be passed by anyone traveling in our same direction. This observation was confirmed by a couple we passed who made the comment that we were "brave ones that chose to hike up on the sunny side" rather than the cooler, shadier side of the canyon. Hmmm you live and learn. However, Molly and I concluded that although it was the path less travelled by (haha) we reaped the benefits as we cooled down in the shade toward the finale of our Temescal Canyon adventure. Gold stars for us.

-This weekend I stumbled upon a TV show on MTV - "The Hills According to Me" I hate everything about the original but love the clever* mocking of this remake. Below is a sample. The clips from the episode I saw are so much funnier that the scenes below but you get the idea...
* It makes me reevaluate the quality of current television in the sense that The Hills is an embarrassing reflection of a segment of society. So just the existence of parodies of such a show are comforting/hilarious but disturbing at the same time.

-Saturday night I went to the restaurant Beso with some family friends. Definitely recommend this place....perfect for a girls night out or a romantic Saturday night date. Despite high ceilings and expansive spaces, the decor creates a cozy and lounge vibe. Latin influences on a classic steakhouse menu yields an eclectic variety of starters and entrees with the famous Todd English as head chef. Expansive list of cocktails as well... the Bee's Knees: dry gin, honeycomb and lemon....the Looking Glass: le tourment vert absinthe, blackberries, fresh sour.
-Molly and I are devoted fans of AMC's Mad Men and once again last night's episode delivered. The show especially in the last two or three weeks has been incredible. The last scene from the episode entitled "The Mountain King" might be an all-time favorite.... Don standing in the crashing waves in southern California while the George Jones song "Cup of Loneliness" plays in the background.

photos courtesy of
citysearch.com
flickr.com
cinema-review.com

Sunday, October 19, 2008

A Sunday Morning Song...

Sun Kil Moon || "Carry Me Ohio"
"It's so equally pretty and powerful, you just might wish it were longer than six minutes and 21 seconds as it mixes rich, vintage, guitar tones with innovatively detuned arpeggios and elongated, unpredictable and sometimes angular guitar solos" -- truly original and beautiful

cheers and happy sunday !

Saturday, October 18, 2008

Another Win...


Technically, as I'm writing this, Texas has not won quite yet. This post may be a little preemptive but still rightfully deserved. However, we just intercepted at our 18 yard line with less than 13 minutes left in the 4th quarter.

Oh wait, another touchdown Texas. Current score 49-17.

I miss football games, I miss tailgating, and I miss the color burnt orange. But mostly I miss the overall satisfaction that satiates the city of Austin after a win.

I'm going to wait to post this till we actually win, but congratulations Texas. Hook'Em and Texas Fight!

Final Score: TEXAS 56 , MIZZOU 31

Unbeaten and still #1 .