Textile
It was my 43rd birthday on Sunday, I know, I’m looking good for my age, and my darling other-half surprised me with a present of this brilliant cushion made by an anonymous prisoner currently residing at Her Majesties pleasure somewhere in Scotland. It’s entitled Moustaches – for obvious reasons – and features surface embroidered bushy moustaches. You can see the entire range of products from Fine Cell Work here.
Whilst trawling through the internet trying to find the website I came across this site which demonstrates prisoners’ incredible ingenuity when not guided. Unfortunately these are not available to buy on-line.
Nathan Usmar Lauder
Posted on Thursday, 10th of December 2009 Permalink
Here’s a really nice Levi’s advertisement that I spotted down on Old Street. The ad is made up of different styles of real 501 jeans cut into the shape of butterflies. Check it out before it flies away!
John Alexander
Posted on Wednesday, 8th of October 2008 Permalink
Dieter and Lung of Perish Factory have directed this awesome, and, dare I say it, cute music video for Bomb The Bass, called Butterfingers. For the unfamiliar, it’s an analogue synth/sequencer/groovebox, of no particular type, made in felt. Each button and control has a unique character and role in the video that sustains viewing all the way to the witty end. In Dieter’s own words there was “no real trickery to the making of it, just lots of hands, a lot of puppets, a lot of takes and a crap load of duct tape in the back holding things together”. Check it out here.
Gary Butcher
Posted on Friday, 21st of March 2008 Permalink
Weare is a fascinating collision of clothing and technology with a simple philosophy - everyone should be able to participate in fashion.
Moving Brands launched Weare with a socially networked and user created scarf. The Moving Brands ecosystem of friends, colleagues and clients were invited to submit images to a window gallery at the Moving Brands studio. This sequence of images was then used to create the Weare scarf. The limited edition, collectible scarf is available to buy online from Moving Brands or in selected design-led shops in London throughout December and January 2008.
Aspiring designers and contributors can create images for the next Weare product – to be produced early in 2008 – by visiting weare.movingbrands.com.
These images will be shown at the Weare exhibition (online and Moving Brands window display) from December 2007 to March 2008. As well as creating images, contributors will also be able to vote for what the next Weare product should be.
In the interest of full disclosure I am the lucky owner of scarf 203 of 1000 and I used to work at Moving Brands. Not that that should stop you checking them out.
Gary Butcher
Posted on Saturday, 15th of December 2007 Permalink
I work with some fairly style-savvy folk. Today was a particularly good day for T-shirts in the studio. Link.
Gary Butcher
Posted on Friday, 16th of November 2007 Permalink
Riffing of a recent post on casino carpets I was drawn to this Flickr set of patterns from public transport seats. Like a technicolor DPM, the fabric’s design aims to camouflage the seats from the accumulated urban grime but ends up becoming an enduring symbol of grubbiness itself. (via boingboing)
Gary Butcher
Posted on Thursday, 25th of January 2007 Permalink
I had the (mis)fortune to stay at the New York New York hotel/casino in Las Vegas last year. The hotel, and Vegas, is an assault on the senses right down to the eye-bleedingly vibrant carpets. So for your viewing pleasure Dr. David Schwartz of the Center for Gaming Research has collated a comprehensive gallery of casino carpets. They all look quite nice in discreet 430 pixel wide jpegs but a floor to floor carpet with the square footage of a small town is something else. (via Nothing To Do With Arbroath)
Gary Butcher
Posted on Sunday, 7th of January 2007 Permalink
For some time now I’ve been pondering which of these beautiful hand printed William Morris wallpapers would best suit the left hand wall of my lounge, a little research (everyone that has been in my house has been asked) has proven, as I hoped that the middle is the most popular and I’m hoping the most child proof…it’s £22 a roll. William Morris designs have graced the walls of many a stately home but my favourite fan has got to be Eastenders’ Pat Butcher, yep the design at the top proudly covered her front room when her beloved Roy redecorated as a surprise. Pat no longer lives in No 41 and err Roy no longer lives at all but the Morris wallpaper still covers the walls and I’m sure when Jake Moon isn’t shooting his Brother dead or running off with Den’s missus he greatly appreciates it.
Liz Greening
Posted on Tuesday, 23rd of May 2006 Permalink
A week doesn’t go by without hearing of a ‘promotional week’ being touted in some form or another to promote this or that cause, event or product. (One of my personal favourites, National Doughnut Week is 6th - 13th May for all those wanting to support this very important week in the gastronomic calendar.) This week has been no exception with, amongst others: the National Public Health Week; the Week of the Young Child and the International Tartan Week.
I have never been a particularly fan of the Lauder family tartan (top), no bright reds or dazzling yellows, just a collection of dour Scottish hues. Perhaps I should do a redesign and have it registered with the International Tartan Index – here’s one I made earlier (bottom). Anyway, this blog goes out to all the Lauder clan on the World Wide Web, respect.
If you wish to discover your family tartan and join in with this weeks events, here’s a good place to start.
Nathan Usmar Lauder
Posted on Friday, 7th of April 2006 Permalink
Life is hard for those creative souls who, on being asked to amend work by a non-creative, can’t help but wear their emotions on their sleeves. However, help is at hand. Scabal offer the opportunity to express their emotions and to have the last laugh at the expense of the ‘suits’ who make their life a living hell.
Private Line is a collection of fabrics into which you can insert your own lines of text. The letters are placed vertically to create a pinstripe pattern in any colour-way. There appears to be no limit to the length of sentence you can have but you will be restricted to two typefaces: Cyrillic or Roman.
I wonder if they have a censorship policy.
Nathan Usmar Lauder
Posted on Tuesday, 28th of March 2006 Permalink
