FlipbooKit Moto

Now here's a fun weekend project - create your own motorized, animated flip book with FlipbooKit Moto! All you need is a screwdriver, and it assembles in under an hour. The kit comes with frames for a galloping horse animation, but wouldn't it be fun to create you own animations as well? Get your own right here.



(Via swissmiss)

the painted house

What an absolutely brilliant idea - patterned paint rollers, from UK-based company The Painted House!

By adapting the traditional roller system for use in fabric, paper and wall printing, Clare Bosanquet's printed rollers are both beautiful and versatile. See more patterns and instructions for use on the The Painted House's website and shop.

(Via The Design Ark)

2013 calendars: part 3

For this week's calendar post, I thought I'd take a little detour from your typical, static offerings to bring you some fun, interactive calendars. Because, while it's true that a calendar can brighten up your home or office, an interactive calendar brings a whole other dimension to keeping track of the passing days.

First up is this magic perpetual calendar from crankbunny. But why is it magic, you might ask? Because this gilded little beauty will not only serve as a 2013 calendar, but it's all set to show you the date for 2011 all the way through 2030. That's right, 2030! It even takes into account leap years, which seems pretty magical to me. And if you get tired of following the current days, you can always just spin the wheel and see what the future holds.

For another fun perpetual option, check out this ball calendar from Present&Correct. This little retro, space-age option comes in the form of a weighted ball with three rings to represent the day, date and month. Added bonus: the days of the week are in German! A pricy, yet unique calendar that will last you indefinitely.

Of course, if perpetual calendars aren't your thing, there are plenty of other ways to add a bit of DIY to your calendar experience. My personal favorite is the Stitch The Stars Calendar, which brings the fun of connect-the-dots to your monthly calendar experience. Each month is screen printed with the corresponding zodiac constellation, with a needle and thread provided for you to do the rest. And the best part? Both the ink and thread glow in the dark!

And finally, why not make your calendar into a game? Whimsy Milieu's 2013 fortune teller calendar does just that, and comes in 4 different styles to boot. It may not be the most practical of calendars, but it sure is fun.

Blog About It

Poppytalk and Design*Sponge - for me, these are the two big ones that first come to mind when I think of design blogs. Not only are they amazing sources for great new art, design and craft, but they also boast an average of 4-8 posts a day and have a great rotating set of regular features written by a host of wonderful writers and makers. As a result, they were two of the very first blogs I followed, and to this day, remain two of my favorites. Poppytalk and Design*Sponge: this Blog About it is for you.

A Vancouver-based design blog by husband and wife duo Jan and Earl, Poppytalk is dedicated to collecting inspiration and promoting emerging design talent.

 Summer Colours Week. Image by Alicia Bruce.

 Here Comes the Sun online market.

Nuria Mora

Poppytalk a great site with a wonderfully-DIY aesthetic. This not only includes craft tutorials, reader-generated content such as colour weeks, great discussions about making a living as an artist, and a host of amazing posts of a slew of talented contributors, but it's also the home of Poppytalk Handmade. Poppytalk Handmade is a monthly online market curated by Poppytalk to showcase, buy and sell handmade goods of emerging design talent from around the world. With submissions by new artists always encouraged, and with a different featured theme every month, it's an amazing place to discover great handmade items.

Even if you're not a regular reader of design blogs, chances are, you've probably still at least heard of Design*Sponge. Led by the Brooklyn-based Grace Bonney, along with a host of other talented writers, Design*Sponge features the best that the art and design world has to offer.

 DIY Project: Illuminated Firework Art

 Biz Ladies

Sneak Peek: Glenn Garriock

In addition to their great art and design posts, Design*Sponge is set up in the manner of an online magazine, with a set weekly and seasonal editorial calendar. Mondays are my personal favorites, with Sneak Peeks of homes and Simply Color color palettes inspired by these house tours. Other favorites include City Guides, which have gotten me around more than a few cities, What's In Your Toolbox interviews with artists and crafters, Biz Ladies business advice, and In the Kitchen With recipies.

yellow owl workshop - print workshop

Some images that caught my eye recently, from Christine Schmidt of Yellow Owl Workshop's new book, Print Workshop. Ok, so it was those awesome jar decals that really got me, but judging by Yellow Owl Workshop's fun aesthetic and the wide range of projects in this book, it looks like a nice addition to any DIY-er's library.

dirt poster

Dirt Poster, by Roland Reiner Tiangco, is amazing. I mean, not only is the poster itself lovely, but the clever, hands-on aspect involved is great as well. The Dirt Poster goes something like this: the back of the poster is covered in ink, which you're supposed to rub on your hands and then use to paint over the front, revealing the spot-varnished type. Love it.

(Via sub-studio design blog)

"pick your own" escort cards

I know I've mentioned before how much I love the work of Anna Bond, of Rifle Design, and her latest project is just as amazing and creative as everything else she does. These do-it-yourself escort cards are meant for a wedding, but you could use this same great idea for just about any type of event. Check out the full post with directions on the Once Wed website, here.