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FAIL HARDER! It seems the be best best path to success, or getting posted on NOTCOT, because i am just loving the guys at WK12 more and more every week. First there was discovering their Pushpin piece with the fun meaning behind the saying... Then came the behind the scenes video. And in my mail yesterday i received what at first appeared to be a box of boxes of pushpins, but instead there was a Fail Harder shirt. Classy clear on white, so subtle it makes people try harder to see it. At the bottom front interior there is even a white print of their logo with the two guys and the keys. Handwritten card and all. If this is an example of Failing Harder... we should all try to fail like them.

As posted here before ~ i said i'd try and check out this Harry and the Potters emo-pro-literacy-summer-tour phenomena, and that i did. WOW. Here's my follow up - not to be a cynic, but here's goes. They are possibly an example of marketing genius - while the size and enthusiasm of the crowd blew my mind - the merch booth was really where it was at. The amount of cash being shoved at them in exchange for shirts (14$), posters (10$ - yes i bought one, its a gorgeous and well made print), CDs (10$) and toothbrushes (2$, i dont get it.) - was mind blowing. These guys found a niche... few bands can get into the libraries of america peddling merchandise - let alone hit up the indie hipsters and tweens AND harry potter loving kids and their parents. By offering songs that encourage fun and reading and rocking out to take down Voldemort, they've found their way into the hearts and wallets of so many parents and readers alike, wow. We watched the whole spectacle in complete amazement as the tweens and hipsters jumped up and down singing along while wearing their "Save Ginny Weasley" shirts.

SUMO LOUNGE REVIEW!!! Andrew over at Sumo Lounge sent over this black Omni and Otto about a month ago, and i've been test driving it and having others come play with it as well. It is extremely comfortable for sitting and working outside i've found ~ a bit large for people crammed for space, but i love relaxing and working out here on the patio, where i'm posting this from. For the full verdict see below.

Perfume - FLOWER BOMB. by Victor and Rolf. Kind of pretty, kind of bizarre, posting this just for the packaging.

For anyone that every wanted x-ray vision, these shirts are for you. They are also great for med students during exams. So here's the backstory on how i found these - we were printing shirts - and Caroline (yes, the intern) started on about this fabulous vintage shirt she stole from a friend while living in Rome, but unfortunately he stole it back. First made back in the late 70s we didn't think it would be possible to find again... but low and behold the artist is still making them. And there is quite a story behind it. This isn't just any t-shrt designer. These Skeletees are the work of Dr. Leslie Arwin. Yes a medical doctor. She's a physician, medical illustrator, and anatomist, and "can assure you that her T-shirts are 100% anatomically correct." Besides these two designs (the front and back of the bones T, and the Stomach T) - there are also muscle tees, nerves tees, and apparently a heart, x-ray, and "keep on tickin'" shirt that dont have images on the site yet. Wow. I wish i had these during AP Bio. I wonder if they glow under black lights.

p.s. "Bill Murray sleeps in one in Tootsie. Also seen in Crocodile Dundie 2, EDtv, Spinal Tap, numerous TV shows, and even worn by a cartoon character in the Simpsons."

Looking to catch some chaos on wheels? Denver Roller Dolls will jam you senseless. This 70's-reminiscent girl-on-girl skater sport was invented in the 1930's and is finally enjoying a reckless and well-deserved revival. But mercy is not in the mix. The four eight-woman teams are uber-athletes and wear plenty of protective gear. With names like Daytona Beeotch, Kitty Kaos, Dharma Gedden and my own good graphic designer friend Fawn Stalking (aka Denise Dambrackas), you'll soon see that these sisters mean serious kick-butt business. In addition, all skaters are required to do monthly community service hours for sponsor-dedicated causes. Catch the Shotgun Betties crash and collide with the Bad Apples (and don't miss the afterparty, which according to rumor, includes cream-corned wrestling) at the Denver Colliseum throughout 2006.

It is said that one man's garbage is another man's goldmine and Alex Dragulesco has found his in junk e-mail. His inbox, like most of ours, is constantly bombarded with spam mail, but instead of deleting them he collects what most of us recognize as trash. He has created a computer modeling program that, when fed junk mail, creates 3-D outputs which he has dubbed the Spam Plants Series. These 3-D flora and fauna are beautiful in their shape and color and are even more so when considered the waste they were created from. His latest work, Extrusions In C Major, is an exercise in music visualization, using works by Mozart to create intricate 3-D graphic compositions of form and color. Also make sure to check out his Spam Architecture, just another portion of his truly creative collection!

Following in the steps of photography trends like Lomography, comes Panography. The concept is to take multiple pictures of the same scene, object, or landscape from different angles and perspectives and then compile them into one kaleidoscopic image utilizing your computer. To create your own spherical panorama, check out the step-by-step guide on Photojojo. A great way to spice up that mundane photo album from your last trip abroad, your panography is sure to impress even the most scrutinous of critics. If you like the panography make sure to check out the rest of Mareen's portfoilio.

Via Love Made Visible

LA born and now Sydney / Melbourne based t-shirt brand Mofo is launching the Mofo Dollars web page design competition to help in the evolution of the brand and assist in the re-launch of Mofobrand.com, a fully functional e-commerce site that will bring Mofo apparel to customers around the world. They've done their part, expanding their operation to over 40 stockists around Australia and now reaching even further to all corners of the globe including Japan, Europe, and the US. Now they're searching for kick-ass web designers to help create an image for the new site that portrays the Mofo look and lifestyle - think Pam Grier, Grand Master Flash, Cadillac's, pimps, hookers, and Blaxploitation movies. To boot they are offering a cash prize of $1000 US dollars to the best design, that's definitely some prime spendin' money! They've got an idea and you have the talent and motivation thanks to that prize money, so check out their blog for the details and get to work!

A Taste of Slow, arguably Australia's most fabulous food festival, will be held in Victoria this year from 30 August - 11 September and includes a two-week program of classes, dinners, discussions and tasting opportunities, culminating in experts and chefs and the chance to engage in "produce, pleasure and provocation." For a little Slow Food 411, if you haven't already heard, just envision the nemesis of fast food. This 1986 Italian movement was cooked up in response to the negative impact of multinational food industries and is about using local seasonal produce, restoring time-honoured methods of production and preparation, encouraging ethical treatment of animals and promoting environmentally sustainable methods. They now have 80,000 member restaurants in more than 100 countries (some very surprising ones too.) To celebrate the sensation of taste, and contribute by linking your plate to our planet, check the schedule for Slow Food's multiple soirees. Double dipping allowed.

Some people inherit money, others inherit a company name to carry on with - the unique part here is that as the company changed hands, the business did as well. What began with her grandfather as a jewelry store has grown and evolved through the years. I love this part of the about page "The name Paris House was originally created by my grandfather, Cohus Paris in 1934 for his jewellery business. My father Michael Paris, a watchmaker, continued his father’s tradition until his death in 2002. It is with a sense of pride and commitment that I continue the legacy of care and quality associated with the Paris House name."

I love companies where the philosophies are well grounded in the passions of the owners/workers. And the Paris House seems to have understood and embodied this notion whole heartedly from day one. As a designer - Sharon Paris managed to combine her background as a conceptual artist - and her ability to create some fascinating leather wallets, etc which all have text to draw you in, make you think - and thats not enough, she takes you on a ride through mental illness in this collection (even donating 10%). And packaging is fun stuff. She provides you with a pot of New Zealand bee's wax to preserve the leathers ~ one of the first lines contained beeswax with "what's so wrong with taking care of each other?" imprinted in it.

Colin Rundel does this weeks digital curation of .org --- which has been under much craziness lately - for those of you who have noticed the periodic construction and such. The more complexity through features we add, the more bugs (some absolutely bizarre as far as my logic can determine) pop up - and the more fixing and backing up - and LEARNING happens on this side. But no posts have been lost - the RSS feed is on hold till we finalize our db to a stable state... so post away. Still loving the content, in fact i'm proud to say that i think you have all been getting better and better at it! And i'm addicted!

That said here's what Colin picked for you : This week all kinds of beautiful prints from .org and a few other random bits and pieces. Prints on a swing seat, prints that really are for your wall and prints of a happy little anteater to tie it all together. If that doesn't do it for you how about some painted access panels from utility posts around the streets of barcelona or the truly bizarre jewelry from cultured bone tissue.

(l-r, 877, 885, 890, 896, 910, 914)

This isn't your average drinking tour of LA... as a native its come to my attention that i might quite possibly take the abundance of designer water available for granted. It is simply a way of life. Our new NOTCOT Intern, Caroline Freedman ran around town today to give you a rundown of what's on our shelves, and keeping us hydrated during this bizarrely humid heatwave. Water is water in a designer bottle that makes you want to buy it, drink it, treasure it, and then buy another. Do you have a favorite? Show us some we missed?

And readers - she wants to make you happy. So give me some feedback here ~ this NYU girl is ready to run around LA and find you the designer goods to make you drool over - but we need some direction - what are YOU interested in? What do you think of her roundup below?

This full-color fine art book showcases Shawn Barber's portraiture series on well-known contemporary painters and tattoo artists. Through his refined skills, modern expressionistic techniques, and and personal experience with ink in his skin, Shawn's paintings provide complex emotional responses to the subject being tattooed, tattoo designs, and the tattooing artists applying the ink. The paintings range from traditional representations to colorful, expressionistic abstractions, with portraits of well-known artists such as Mike Giant, Grime, Mike Davis, Paul Booth, Helen Garber, Marcus Pacheco, Jeremy Fish, Henry Lewis, Owen Smith and Tara McPherson. Introduction by Grime; foreword by Shooting Gallery's Justin Giarla. "More than pictures of people with pictures upon them. Within we find emotion absent from the glassy-eyed queens and incidental princes we are accustomed to... They bring to the viewer an intimacy that, at times, is possibly too revealing." - Grime

Purchase the book online at 9mmbooks.com


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