In the 2006 movie This is England, a young aspiring skinhead drags his mother to the local shop to be outfitted in the standard “uniform”- Doc Martin boots, tight black Levis, red suspenders, and a Fred Perry polo shirt. The latter of these brands, Fred Perry, has recently come under fire by the German government for being part of the current dress code for right-wing extremists and Neo- Nazis, which has resulted in Berlin’s police officers being warned about, and in some cases banned from wearing, the eponymous label. In addition to Fred Perry, officers seen wearing Ben Sherman, Lonsdale, [...]

If you ever thought you heard echoes under the high heels of women on Atlantic Avenue in Brooklyn, it’s possible you weren’t just hearing things. In 1981, Brooklyn native Bob Diamond confirmed the existence of a massive tunnel that stretches some 1,600 feet under Atlantic Ave. Recently, there has been a flurry of renewed interest in the tunnel, including a documentary currently in production about Diamond’s search. In fact, the story of Diamond’s quest nearly rivals the excitement of his discovery.
In the late 1970s, Diamond was an engineering student with a taste for New York transit lore. He first heard [...]

Apple released the smallest iPod ever made yesterday. While the new iPod Shuffle is certainly small, the new sound features and design are what make the pinky size product a potential heavy weight in the mp3 player arena. The third generation iPod Shuffle can talk in 14 languages, informing us the artist and title of song we are listening to. In addition, for the first time in Shuffle history, the controls are mounted on the headphone lead. The device can hold 4GB of music (around 1000 songs) and comes in either black
or silver – and with a classy polished steel [...]

Brooklyn based wallpaper designer and commercial artist Dan Funderburgh inspires us to stop using our hands for typing and start using them for constructing. With a love for decorative arts, his new collection of saws entitled “My Name is a Killing Word” carries on his legacy of intricate design and craftsmanship. These saws are verification that the quality and detail of his work continues to grow (the only wood we’d allow them to touch is the stud in our wall…). Funderburgh recently received a grant from FEAST to adorn North Brooklyn with his innovative wallpaper. His work can also be [...]

Underground restaurants are the dining equivalent of a speak-easy or a rave. Whether they are entirely legal or not is a bit of a grey area. But this is part of their allure. There’s something very intoxicating about the combination of being “in the know” and illicitness that creates an experience that people can’t help but talk about. It’s word of mouth marketing at its most powerful.
Underground restaurants are new to the UK in the guise of MsMarmitelover’s Underground Restaurant in Kilburn and Horton Jupiter’s Secret Ingredient in Hackney, but are much more familiar in other parts of the world. [...]

Gallery owner and artist Jonathan Ferrara, from the Jonathan Ferrara Gallery in New Orleans, is pushing the city’s creative forces to the edge while relying on the strong foundation he has built for over a decade. While allowing young artists to exhibit their individual voices, Ferrara’s gallery is speaking volumes nationally with sales reaching 80% out of state.  The gallery is currently showing Camouflage by artist Sidonie Villere, whose minimalist paintings are a portrait of self-preservation. The all-white collection reflects ideas of blending in and masking oneself, which is relevant in a time where privacy seems to be near extinction.  [...]

As magazines try to survive the economy and evolving tastes of their audience, Conde Nast UK daringly launches a style magazine that offers up a new version of sexy – LOVE Magazine. A nude Beth Ditto, singer and gossip columnist for The Guardian, graces the mint green cover with flaming red hair and bubblegum pink tutu to match – the caption reads “Icons of Our Generation”.
The bi-annual publication covers style and celebrities, with a noticeable emphasis on edgy and fashion-forward photography. LOVE editor Katy Grand on Beth Ditto for the cover: “Everything about the way that Beth looks reminds us [...]

On February 3rd in Chennai, India, Google India launched the “internet bus“. It is a mobile bus designed to share the experience of internet as tool for learning, with Individuals throught the state of Tamil Nadu (south India). According to the Google Internet Bus project site, the project is an attempt to educate people about what the internet is and how it may be beneficial to their lives by bringing the internet experience to them. The bus hopes to make the internet less intimidating and much simpler for new users. The concept of the Internet and [...]

On a slope near the village of Karjat, India, an international team of architects has begun to envision a modern, 3-story building that will use bamboo as a primary supporting material.  Intending to spur eco-friendly changes within the Indian construction industry, the ambitious Dutch architect Robert Verrijt and Indian architect Shefali Balwani of Architecture Brio have created an exciting example of engineering prowess, innovative aesthetic, and altogether- sustainable design.   Combining natural and local materials such as bamboo with wood, concrete and steel, the project has been designed with the help of engineer Vilas Gore of GeoScience Services. The building will [...]

As a well-known Italian furniture designer, Kartell’s strengths also lie in their extensive experience with and use of plastics and injection-molding technology. Normaluisa, an Italian fashion designer, has developed a clothing line that is inspired by Cinderella’s epic love story. The collaboration brings to life a ballerina flat of plastic that comes in two forms: a two-tone color-scheme or solid. The two-tone flats are either transparent and opaque color combination or two opaque color combinations. The flats have both a classic and edgy feel and it doesn’t hurt that they’re waterproof too.
Lorenza Luti, Kartell’s marketing and retail manager, was the [...]

Gored: v. to pierce with or as if with a horn or tusk.
A new campaign by the American Heart Association bears an unfortunate resemblance to the popular (RED) campaign we’ve discussed a bit (controversially) here before. The latter campaign, which raises awareness of AIDS/HIV around the world, embeds the word red in other words, e.g. desi(red) and inspi(red) in various products. The Heart Association’s “Go Red for Women” campaign, while probably equally as inspired, seems a little less thought out. This poster we saw outside a subway stop in NYC beared the words “go” and “red” that, when [...]

Soleckshaw is a solar Cycle-rickshaw which has recently been introduced on a test basis in Delhi, India. The vehicle can be powered both by pedal power and solar energy. The Soleckshaw’s solar rooftop has been designed to power a 36-volt solar battery, which not only alleviates the drivers’ physical strain but also provides them with a mobile phone charging port, as well as FM radio. Soleckshaw will be fully introduced by the year 2010 for the commonwealth games. Soleckshaw has been designed, developed and prototyped by the CSIR’s national laboratory at the Central Mechanical Engineering Research [...]

Indian born Architect Bjiov Jain of Studio Mumbai designed a house entirely built from locally sourced and sustainably harvested Palmyra palm – one of the most important tree in India also pitched as a material which can be used in over 800 different ways. Built directly on a coconut plantation in the town of Alibaug, near Mumbai, the Luxury habitation comprises of two airy and open wooden houses that spread across 3000sft and separated by an open court and pool.
[via sub-studio]
- Contributed by Sophie Nevoux

Privacy is dead.
Well that is at least according to Jeff Jarvis, who made the bold proclamation at this month’s NY Tech Meet-up yesterday. Jarvis, author of “What Would Google Do,” was one of seven individuals/companies that offered their take on the theme “Mobile meets Social” in 5 minute max presentations in front of an audience of 400. For mobile users that have been seeking new ways to socialize and engage with their surroundings through their phones, here’s a summary of the apps to look forward to:
After a lively presentation from Peek —the elegant, email only device, mobile app company Xtify [...]

 
Lee Brimlow, platform evangelist for the Flash productline (Flash / Flex / AIR) takes a cue from spy movies and the tradecraft of intelligence agencies to “dead drop” free copies of Adobe Master Collection CS4 (valued at over $2,500) through Lee’s unique take on geocaching involving video, navigational coordinates and clandestine codewords and visual clues.
The first “drop” was retrieved in Santa Cruz in the the dead of the night at 2:30 am. Along with the pickup, a photo was posted of the clandestine package which community commenters have described as looking like “a kilo of cocaine”. Lee says he plans on [...]