In the US, marshmallow Peeps are as famous as the Easter Bunny. Introduced in 1952, the sickly confections were originally only in yellow chick form, hence the name. Now they come in a variety of shapes, colours and flavours, which makes them ideal material for building sickly sweet dioramas. The Washington Post has just judged it’s second annual Peeps Diorama Contest and with over 800 entries, it’s clearly catching on.
TV shows, films or the year’s events inspire many of the entries such as this year’s winner “The Tomb of King Peepankhamun” by Laura Sillers. My favourite however is Sue Hauser’s campfire scene “Suddenly There Was a Peep!” in which four Peep rabbits toast their marshmallows over a fire – surely that’s cannibalism?!
David Rainbird
Posted on Monday, 24th of March 2008 Permalink
Seeing David’s earlier post, titled ’Flaming Logos‘, it was clear that a lot of work was put into recreating those 80s motion graphics logos. Plenty of 3D and a good dose of Flame or After Effects I’d wager.
After Effects, Schmafter Effects. Check out how they did this back in the day…
Who needs Maya when you’ve got 6 craftsmen sweating night and day over 3 months, a motion control camera from the ark, and some old school ingenuity.
Hey, I know it’s a 10 minute video, but trust me it’s worth it just for the soundtrack… Altogether now, “Pay a little closer attention to detail…All the things you’re taking for granted… Are just as important as what you see”
Gary Butcher
Posted on Thursday, 13th of March 2008 Permalink
Rejoice! The Thomas Heatherwick Christmas card has arrived! This Heatherwick tradition has three simple rules – the stamp that plays a central part in the design, an unusual production technique and the involvement of the Mount Pleasant sorting office. The result is that rare thing – the Christmas card that never gets thrown away.
And this year’s card is no exception, the stamp is the star atop a Christmas tree that looks as though it has been drawn in the snow with the stamps own perforations, revealing shiny metallic green. The stamp is cancelled with a gold frank that becomes part of the design and the whole thing is shipped in a glossy see-through envelope. Beautiful. Thank you Heatherwick Studio!
Jennifer Kabat
Posted on Thursday, 20th of December 2007 Permalink
Director Aaron Duffy has combined his love of crochet with stop-motion to create The Special Guest. His new studio, SpecialGuest, is dedicated to the use of stop-motion, CG and cell-animation, and has created some quite charming story-driven animations. See them at his crafty website. Link
David Rainbird
Posted on Wednesday, 28th of November 2007 Permalink
If you haven’t found a reason to buy PlayStation 3 yet, LittleBigPlanet by Media Molecule might just be it. Originally titled Craft-World, the emphasis is on creativity – players can build their own levels and customise any character or object within the game using simple modelling tools, then share them on the PlayStation Network. The characters can then co-operate or compete to complete the obstacle course. All the objects are made of real world materials and obey the laws of physics so there’s no script or one solution for solving a problem. The felt trees and rag-doll heroes give the game a warm, fuzzy feel and this demo also has an apt choice of music – it’s The Go Team!
Also, don’t miss the other great demo of the modelling tools shown at GDC this year.
David Rainbird
Posted on Thursday, 26th of July 2007 Permalink
Whilst browsing through Flickr the other day for a picture of a Juno 106 synthesizer, I came across these cool miniature synthesizers. Now it’s time to get technical! Each of these miniature replicas have been beautifully hand crafted from cardboard right down to the most intricate detail. The synth above comes with wave form, modulation, freq and res sliders, basically it’s got it all! I only wish they actually made fully functional synthesizers this small!
John Alexander
Posted on Wednesday, 4th of July 2007 Permalink
We recently did a Google Image Search for “Austin Mini Cooper”. One of the results is of a Tamiya 1:24 Scale Plastic Model Kit, another is a black and white shot from 1962. Have you spotted it yet?
David Rainbird
Posted on Tuesday, 30th of January 2007 Permalink
This year I got what I actually wanted for Christmas. And it came early. It was a Thomas Heatherwick Christmas card. Hardly your typical affair, there are no robins, ice skaters, Christmas trees or snow scenes. Instead the central feature is a postage stamp. In fact the envelope it came in was as impressive as the card itself. It was handmade, backed with cardboard to keep the confection inside stiff—but with a whole cut in so the stamp could be cancelled. Heatherwick’s worked for years with someone at London’s central sorting station (it’s just down the street from his studio) designing them.
One year’s intricately engineered card came in a box no bigger than two square inches. Inside were four postage stamps with a ring at the back. You pulled it, and the stamps peeled open like a flower to reveal a customized greeting. Another year was a 3d Christmas bauble—of stamps–and shaped like a tetrahedron. And hand cancelled. Then this year’s with its lovely sprawling tendrils that seem to sum up all of Heatherwick’s ingenuity and whimsy.
Jennifer Kabat
Posted on Thursday, 21st of December 2006 Permalink
Sometimes I think that something deconstructed is often more interesting than the intended result. This comprehensive site from one of the world’s leading origami masters features crease patterns that have far more beauty and appeal to me than the paper forms he ultimately creates. Link. (via Brand Spanking New)
Gary Butcher
Posted on Monday, 11th of December 2006 Permalink
Who knew a Chandy was a punk rock chandelier made of crystals and metal rings and not a summer beverage drunk in the UK. That’s just one of the fine things which can be discovered – and made – with the help of “Craftivity — 40 Projects for the DIY Lifestyle.” Now in the name of full disclosure Jen and I both have projects in there: page 78 the Moth Embroidered Sweater and page 136 our Glass Dining Table, while I also lay out instructions on how to weave your own quasi-legal baskets from Tyvek envelopes (just don’t upset any international courier companies).
Craftivity was edited by Tsia Carson, the person behind the excellent crafting blog Supernaturale as well as partner in the excellent NY design firm Flat. Naturally they designed the beautiful book.
Perfect for closet crafters (like me and Jen) Craftivity sports projects from the Bag o’ Bags (woven from plastic bags) to the Knit Lampshade and the Embroidered Screen Door. With primers on key skills such as crochet, silk screen and ceramic slip molding, there’s no excuse not to get your hands on a copy, get your hands dirty and start crafting. Buy it here.
David Rainbird
Posted on Tuesday, 7th of November 2006 Permalink
