Buy It, Fill It, Drink It, Roll It

Feb 25
2010

It’s not often that a new product come along that makes total sense, is wonderfully sensitive to the environment, AND is affordable.

The Vapur™ Anti-bottle is a foldable 16oz plastic water bottle. It contains no BPAs — the chemicals in rigid plastic bottles that leech into liquids over time — so it’s completely refillable and reusable.

When full of liquid, the brilliantly-designed bottle stands upright. When empty, just roll it up and stuff it in a pocket, or even flatten it and slip between the pages of a book.

Vapurs are available in an assortment of colors, and come with a carabiner for easy carrying when full. They can be frozen for use as an portable ice-pack, and are dishwasher safe.

Lay your hands on one for the bargain price of $8.95, or a set of four for under $30. You can even buy extra screw or squirt caps separately.

Introduced in late 2009 by a California-based company, the bottles are manufactured entirely in the United States, and ship flat (taking up 90% less trucking space than comparable rigid plastic bottles).

Packaging is printed using wind power with soy-based inks on 100% post-consumer recycled paper. The company also participates in the 1% for the Planet program.

Compare that to the approximately 17 million barrels of oil it takes each year just to manufacture standard water bottles for the US market, and the fact that an estimated 30-40% of water is wasted while filling these bottles for sale.

Sure, you can use an expensive, bulky aluminum canteen instead. But why would you?

Get yours now & spread the word!

[via core77]

Twitter: @vapur

Anna and the Universe

Feb 11
2010

What is space?

Most likely, it is a property of the human mind. An algorithm, like time, that helps consciousness make sense of the world around us.

anna 1

That our idea of space is relative can be illustrated simply, without need to delve into quantum physics.

mirror bookTake the “Magic Mirror” toy that was popular in the late 19th century. Images that appear to be distorted blobs become detailed drawings when viewed in a different way — in this case as a cylindrical reflection. This is an example of anamorphosis, which has been used in art since Leonardo Da Vinci and by many since, including Salvador Dalí and Marchel Duchamps.

Putting the concept into practice in a very modern way is one of Swiss design firm Zmik’s latest installations, appropriately entitled “Anna.”

The main corridor in the new offices of Swiss interactive firm iart is visually expanded by a series of large-scale drawings.

From five set viewpoints, these sketches coalesce to reveal wireframes of (both real and imagined) spaces behind the walls. Viewed from any other position, the design appears to be simply a rather random pattern of graphic lines.

Zmik describes the work as an “allegory for the quest of new perspectives.”

anna 2

It can also be viewed as a metaphor for the “fixed vantage point” each of us holds in this journey of life, along with its accompanying limitations, biases and opportunities.

But this rigidity is changing. Whole new online communities — such as Twitter, World of Warfare, Second Life — are forming with their own, different rules of space and time.

Dr. Robert Lanza says, “Reality is simply an information system that involves our consciousness.”

Understanding consciousness and the way it shapes our worlds is the next big step in evolution.

Let’s be intent on getting there.

anna 3

[via core77 and dezeen, interior photos by Eik Frenzel]

Choose Your Own Adventure

Feb 02
2010
crooked-neck

Crooked Neck has a circuit bent drum machine & 2 battery powered amps built-in. The speakers for the amps are behind the blue & grey circles on the body.

Or does your adventure choose you?

If you’re an artist, usually a bit of both.

Ben Simon makes wonderfully whimsical and unique handcrafted electric guitars and other instruments.

After growing up all over the East Coast, he landed for a time in the Carolinas — a region with a rich history in woodworking — and immersed himself in learning the craft at Burch Company Wood Studio.

As a musician, Simon noticed that some of the more elaborate cutting boards he was working on were reminiscent of electric guitar bodies.

Taking 2 and 2 apart, he deconstructed an electric guitar, did some research, and in 2006 crafted his first custom instrument.

He went on to twice tour Europe playing self-built guitars and basses with his band Get the People.

The instruments themselves have evolved over the years. One was made using 18 different types of wood.

The repertoire is also no longer limited to guitars; pieces have been built that incorporate synths, drums, speakers and amps.

exotic

Bass made with exotic hardwoods

A true artist, one of Ben’s goals is to teach, and spread his specialized knowledge and discoveries.

As a member of the Brooklyn artist community center 3rd Ward (which it so cool that it gives all of its members free bicycles — yes, free bikes), Simon has access to a full woodworking studio.

He’s working on an instrument building program for disadvantaged youth featuring small classes there.

(This should be very popular with kids, who will see tangible, usable results from their hard work.)

To own your own one-of-a-kind musical art piece, you can consult with Ben (bensimonmusic@gmail.com) and discuss types of wood, shapes, hardware and more.

Prices start as low as $500.

Check out more photos below after the jump, or on his Flickr stream.

The adventure’s just begun. Read the rest of this entry »