High art was once something to gaze wistfully upon from afar yet the cult sunglass labels and vintage-like frames by self-titled eyewear brand, Graz, will leave you torn between whether to look at, or look through these striking pieces of visual art. Graz Mulcahy’s creative thirst has led him from being the founder of AM Eyewear at the age of 19, to the force behind Ksubi Eyewear, followed by working with the big guns at Ellery and Chronicles of Never. Since 2009, the man behind these lenses is moving forward with his own specs label, Graz, showing up on faces of fashionistas and steady cult-like followers around the world, seeking distinct design. His appreciation of old world craftsmanship bred with present day designs is his philosophy to create classic designs of the future. With each piece hand-crafted, every Graz frame has a personality of its own, so put on a pair of his sunglasses and see the world. Steal a unique pair of your own from Brisbane’s own Optiko Eyewear.
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The bond between siblings can either be competitively paralysing or a pure catalyst to epic greatness – the Kardashian Klan is prime example for either or, whichever you prefer. But for Brisbane’s very own, Sheppard siblings, their dynamic bond has ignited fuel setting their hopes and dreams alive. Infiltrating the Australian and International music scene with their alternative Indie pop sound, Sheppard siblings George, Amy and Emma form Brisbane’s latest IT-band, SHEPPARD! Holding a strong family formation, the trio combined their talents with mates Jason Bovino, Michael Butler and Jared Tredly, becoming a gang of six. With their colourful, catchy mix of Indie tunes catering to any person of age, these kids express their youthful, affirmative take on the world throughout their 30 something produced tracks. Living proof that no dream is too big and that dust really can become glitter, they’re the newest kids on the block, in one creative family, bound by the love they have for music.
Determined Nick Vujicic really puts life into perspective with his incredible story.
The mercury is rising, the days are longer, the Christmas bells are ringing- it’s that time of the year again! Many of us look forward to the Christmas holidays as it represents spending time with family, friends, an abundance of fresh prawns, a large smoked ham and stockings over flowing with gifts. But this time of the year is often a difficult one for some. There are many who are often too sick to enjoy this holiday period that is supposed to bring peace, happiness and joy. And each year, there always seems to be a shortage of blood donations during the holidays. Designer Kiseung Lee has created a holiday blood pack putting the most valuable gift of blood into a special pack that will bring some joy to those who need it most. These little packages are sure to bring much needed smiles, welfare and love, potentially gifting someone with a new life- heart warming.
A unique way to interact with the amazing world of National Geographic.
Bored with your banal breakfast cereal? Let New York food blogger, Tricia Clarke-Stone add a dash of luxury to your morning with her renderings of cereals gone haute-couture. Inspired by her love of fashion, style and amazing food, she has given a luxury lift to favourite breakfast treats. This tasty, chic collection gives a high-end, expensive and glam aesthetic to cereal couture. But not only has the food lover designed breakfast cereals, the glam-foodie has also created a collection of luxury icy desserts. It’s ice cream sans the calories but full of style. Burberry milkshake anyone? That will definitely bring us to the yard.
The French can be renowned for their baguettes, cheese and Pepe Le Pew whilst the Americans for their bagels, cosmopolitans and Mickey Mouse. The two are ultimately distinct culturally, but every Ying has its Yang. Blogger and graphic designer, Vahram Muratyan depicts a friendly match between two of the most beautiful cities in the world with a series of beautifully designed art posters, New York et Paris. Playfully putting the two metropolitan cities against one another visually- fashion, film, food, transportation, drink, art, sports and cultural icons are placed side by side in a minimalist style of illustration accented with retro-style typography. The creative artist will release his first book ”Paris vs New York- A tally of two cities” in January 2013. Save the date and pre-order here!
We are all familiar with the saying, “a picture is worth more than a thousand words.” An image can encapsulate an emotion or trigger a memory with a simple glance. But for songwriters, the big challenge has always been to deliver a message based on melody and lyrics yet still have the core of your thoughts and emotions understood. Sometimes though when all else fails, drawing a picture is an easier way to express something or recreate an emotion than creating a melody. Designer and illustrator, Viktor Hertz puts music and pictures together creating pictograms for some of the world’s most famous songs ever written. It seems as if these were the inspiration for the songs in question when the songwriter wrote them- so effortlessly creative!
The world is increasingly growing in population and as a result, hair will and continue to be abundant in supply. But how do you turn flimsy follicles into a durable yet lightweight structure? Expanding the booming production of hair extensions beyond the beauty industry, the dynamo duo behind Studio Swine have discovered a way to turn their hair cuttings into stylish sunnies and vision sharpening eyewear. Made of simply hair and bioresin, Hair Glasses are 100% biodegradable with no harmful substances released during production. Whether you’re a bright blonde or a bold and brazen brunette, these stylish, sustainable specs are sure to turn heads.
The look of an old suitcase contains so much character with thousands of stories zipped up inside from travels around the world ready to be told. But what do you do with them when they get old or become to musty to use for packing clothes? The quirky and creative brains behind the Atomic Attic store on Etsy, have transformed vintage suitcases into “pawsome” pet beds, for your stylish furry friend. But it doesn’t stop there, the collection also includes vintage suitcase side tables, vintage suitcase filing cabinet even a vintage pet feeder. Whatever the use, there’s sure to be an ideal place in your home for these clever, colourful, and cute cases.
For the determined next Lance Armstrongs to-be of the world, Swiss designer, Juri Zaech has introduced a new concept to the world of bicycles. The project called, “Write a bike,” offers a new meaning to typography and design. The name says it all: a bike with the name of the owner/s as the frame. Unfortunately, for now, the idea is only on paper but the finished product will let riders customize each template to their taste, from the colour of the frame to the type of basket – close to fulfilling a bike lover’s fantasy.
Technology has come a long way creating faster and easier ways to perform tasks- like writing a simple email instead of a hand-written letter, googling a topic instead of trawling through encyclopaedias and using computer programs to create artwork instead of using pen and paper. But for artists, designers and doodlers out there, the traditional way of sketching and drawing is far from deceased with Wacom’s latest creation, “Inkling.” Like a standard pen- you sketch with its ballpoint tip on a paper/sketchbook, a digital version is created and then transferred onto your computer with a simple click . The drawings are also automatically saved, so no more accidentally throwing your sketch in the bin- too easy.
It’s hard to believe that the world looked completely different just a century ago. Here’s 100 years of fashion in 100 seconds.
Pins and needles may be an integral element of most garment construction, but for designer Rie Hosokai, the pointy tools could leave her creations a little flat- literally. Far from the latex animals seen at children’s birthdays, Hosokai deftly twists and manipulates balloons into creative, statement pieces. The former florist started her company, Daisy Balloon ten years ago creating wedding gowns and now continues to create masterpieces in the world of balloon art. The creative designer has won multiple awards at Belgium’s annual The Balloon Festival for turning these light, latex toys into incredible dresses. Seems like she’s got a lot more than hot air going on!
Traditional piggy banks were always the best way to save for that dream watch, dream phone or dream camera. Every day, you aimed to slot in a gold coin or two into the piggy’s back. Now, turning your change into a camera just got a lot easier, and slightly more realistic. Stash your hard earned savings in this hyper-detailed DSLR bank that looks just like the real deal. With identical buttons and immaculate detailing, the cute prop from photojojo is cheap as chips- surely it won’t break the bank.
Colourful, funny, creative, original and ideal as a bookshelf timepiece. Add a colourful tick tock to your bookshelf with the Karlsson Table Clock Book. The hours are cunningly disguised as a book title itself using the book spines for the nine o’clock and three o’clock positions. Hit up amazon.com for a quirky colourful clock or opt for the classic black and white titles. Either all, they will fit perfectly snug in your library bookshelf.
Some people need a glass of milk to fall asleep, others count sheep and some listen to the soothing sounds of music. But ever get tired of falling asleep with your headphones in your ears? Ear bud headphones can also sometimes be uncomfortable to have in your ears when trying to doze off to sleep. Bedphones are a soft headphone designed especially for bedtime. The headphones use a small memory wire to go behind the ear for support and linked with an app, the sound can be timed to get softer and softer as you drift off to sleep- comfortably.
If you were to ask someone who works in an office environment how many post-it notes they use throughout their career, chances are the answer would be somewhere along the lines of “a lot.” But for artists working at the Galeria Melissa in Sao Paulo, exactly 350,000 post-it notes were used for a new ad campaign to express “the power of love.” The gallery organised a spectacular stop-motion video using sticky notes created by 25 animators during a 5 month time span. The project invited 30,000 spectators to write their very own love messages on the paper notes and it now has become the world’s largest post-it stop motion movie ever.
