Spirograph business cards!

http://www.adafruit.com/blog/2009/05/25/adafruit-business-cards-laser-cut-spirograph-cards/
If you'd been to Maker Fair, which was... somewhere, recently, then you might have been lucky to get your hands on these adorable business cards: How cool are they?

From Adafruit, who also have on their website a multitidue of small wonderful electronics projects, including the Minty Boost, which I think I might have to have...

Built from VW parts and gas canisters - the Hotpod

http://www.hotpod.co.uk


Came across this while I was at the Grand Designs Live exhibition which is on in London this week (and yes, I am now full of plans to build my own house on a piece of land the size of a postage stamp somewhere desirable)... this is a stove made by 'artist-blacksmith' Daniel Harding, when he needed to keep warm in his camper van while on January surfing expeditions. Pretty, no? And entirely recycled. And finished to a high standard, which makes a change.

Milkcrate Digest

http://milkcratedigest.com/
Isn't it a relief to know that important, dedicated people are keeping a watchful eye on those things that really matter?

I wonder where they are...

Meanwhile, here is a picture of a sofa. Or an armchair. Or maybe just a chair. Okay, it's a chair.



The brainchild of Miss Lila Jang. I think it's great. Just the thing for a small flat which needs an armchair but which would secretly like a sofa.

Wee planets - a photoset on Flickr

http://www.flickr.com/photos/gadl/sets/72157594279945875/
Also from core77, but even better than the paean to foil, is this. Also includes tips on making your own images. ARen't they gorgeous?

The Google Carpet Marker

http://www.robertsollis.com/page/pages/google/google.html
Ah... I've got a feeling this isn't the first time this has been done, but since it's someone at my old alma mater (hah), the Royal College of Art, I kind of have to post it. Plus, it's cute. Although I'm not entirely certain where the tent would be, it doesn't appear that the satellite photos have been updated fast enough - predictable, but still, how cool would that have been?



On a completely unrelated note, why the heck did the designers of my computer keyboard put the quotation marks as a 'Shift +' key? I use them far more than I do, say, #, or [], all of which have their own keys. Dammit people, get a grip.

BBC NEWS | Bear robot rescues wounded troops

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/6729745.stm
"The Battlefield Extraction Assist Robot (BEAR) can scoop up even the heaviest of casualties and transport them over long distances over rough terrain.

New Scientist magazine reports that the "friendly appearance" of the robot is designed to put the wounded at ease. "

Isn't he cute? How long before someone gives him a gun, do you think? Mental images of a row of cute little teddy bear robots, armed to the teeth, mowing down anything in their path...



Anyway, fans of Dan Simmons will know what I mean when I say this thing looked suspiciously voynix-like to me...

Oh! Purdy! (vase)

Pretty vases! A little Dali-esque, if memory serves? From Little Wonder in Philadelphia, but distributed by a German company. So I don't know where they'll end up being sold. Nice, though. Thought some of you might like them.

And while I'm trawling the interweb, look at this! Holy crap! It's a sofa that turns into a set of bunk beds! Wow. I bet it's not very comfortable as a sofa, though.

Churn, churn, churn... kawaii

Okay, so this article dates from 2002,
but still: a fascinating insight into the Japanese relationship with
kawaii (cuteness, basically). Not only can you buy tasers with cute
little eyes and a mouth on them, you can just buy the eyes and stick
them onto whatever you like! Anthropomorphize your life!

Maybe I should get some for the robot.

Woolly crash hat using supercustard stuff

This I found ages ago while trawling for stuff for skiing.  It's a hat! 

I love skiing, but I'm reluctant to wear a crash helmet despite hearing numerous horror stories (and knowing people who've been injured). The ribcap is kind of a halfway house - way cooler than a crash hat, it uses some weird stuff called d3o which takes the whole harden-on-impact thing to new levels. I want one, and it'd be brilliant for persuading kids who are too cool to wear something which might afford them some protection.

All the shops appear to be in Switzerland, which is a long way to go for a hat, but never mind that now.

Pictoplasma!

In the absence of any exciting projects of my own to share (I have several which I want to post, but they're not ready yet), core77 brought me this blast from the past. I came across pictoplasma in book form a few years back and loved it, but here's the website! It's a directory of 6500 character graphics and they are universally very very cool. Check out the archive. Great place for inspiration.