Peeking Into Industrial Design

I must say I'm quite pumped for my industrial design class. I'll surely never be able to reach the godliness levels of sir Dieter Rams or Steve Jobby, but I think knowledge plays a powerful part in driving innovation today. The more you know, the better you design. The less likely you are to create a dishwasher that only works for 1/10000th of the world's population.

LookBook Project on Hold

So, you can probably guess my slight obsession with LookBook over the course of this Summer. I swear I ended up visiting the site at least 10 times a day, picking up trends, getting inspired by fabulous photography, and painting my ass off. Now that school's starting back up, I'm not sure if I can still deliver my promise of 5 more paintings. Sad. I hate not being able to finish the things I start.

The Road Review

After having seen multiple post-apocalyptic movies (and almost every zombie-filled movie ever made), The Road comes as a big refresher to the tired genre. Without warning or explanation, all you see is the leftovers of the human race after what seems to be the end of man, or "apocalypse," referring to the early pages of Genesis. And The Road tells the story of a father and son in a dark, poignant story as they succumb harsh weather, malnutrition, and under constant threat of marauders, thieves and cannibals. Their goal: basic survival. But importantly, are their affirmations of being "the good guys" in a world so morbidly bleak that it feels like humanity itself is placed in front of a mirror throughout the entirety of the film. As far as post-apocalyptic movies go, this one requires a patient, critical viewing. 8.4/10.

Twin Shadow Gives Me the Fresh Buzz

I've been looking for a new band to love lately. It was then when I stumbled upon Twin Shadow. I think they definitely fall into the buzzband worthy status category. Why? You know, because they got that whole creepy weird "I'm on drugs, but not really" or "Maybe I just talk like this, otay?" thing going for them. Like Joy Division when they were on drugs. Or Interpol... when they were on drugs.

New York 2010

Made a short music video using footage shot during my trip out to NYC. Explored Manhattan and Brooklyn quite a bit, speaking with the locals (many of which I found were from originally from Cali as well) and caught up with some familiar faces.

Music by The Xx.
Shot with the Panasonic Lumix GF-1 with 20mm pancake lens.
Quick and dirty edit in iMovie '09.

Pure Rasterbation

I have a boring archway in my new living room that leads to the dining room. I was considering doing a huge "rasterbated" image to create some visual interest. Any suggestions for images to use given the wide opening for the door-to-dining room area to showcase my love for music and movies while maintaining a classic, eclectic feel?

Beat It vs. Epic Crazy Chinese Omnipotent China Red Army

What more can I say? Just wait for the solo at 2:51. It's all worth it.

Yo Gene, I Heard You Got Art

Gene: "Hell yea. I got art in an art-filled apartment livin' on art central. Now run and tell that!" @Brooklyn

Becoming the Master of UX

Here's 5 indispensable skills you must learn to become the Master of UX:

1. Sketching: One must be able to convey ideas outside of text. You need bubbles. Hundreds of them, if necessary.
2. Storyboarding: Being able to tell a good story is like being the Steven Spielberg of UX. Make it do that empathy dance. Draw on what makes us human.
3. Critiquing: If you can't take or give empowering critique, you're doing it wrong. Good critique makes everyone feel better - like they've learned something new - like they're giving it their all.
4. Presenting: Craft counts and it certainly makes a difference being able to deliver an engaging presentation to stakeholders and place them behind your ideas and direction.
5. Facilitating: Know when and where things do and don't work. Always look for new tools. Get the team to consensus and don't be a jerk while doing it.

Next Step, Become a Surrealist Realist

Not that I know anything about art history. Just thought it sounded cool and fit the description. As an aside, Brooklyn's treated me fine tonight. Gonna miss you. Might be back on Saturday for more good times.

Cookie Dipping Mug

Man, I really wish they were selling these at the MoMa Design Shop in NYC.

Paris is Burning... in NYC

The plan is to scope out the disco scene here in New York City tonight and see how it compares to that dubsteppin' nasty shit you see on the regular in San Jose. Now, if I find that like both, I'll just be tempted to own properties on both coasts!

Lumix GF-1 Leica Treatment

Considering a few upgrades to pimp out my Leica... *ahem* I mean, Panny GF1. On the list is a sweet leather skin, a Voigtlander Nokton Classic 40mm f/1.4 MC/SC ($540) lens. The +'s for this upgrade is 2 stops faster, compact and retro aesthetic. The -'s is forced manual focus due to no internal stabilizer on the GF1. Which means more work, but the shots look really nice.

The alternative is the GF1 + Nokton 35mm f/1.4 combo. I think it's a bit more compact and still the epitome of technology sexiness.

Framed Perfection

Concrete walls. Silly old frames. Mix and matched. My kinda living.

Everyone's on Drugs

Ha! Now here's how you piece together an excellent music video using nothing but stock footage from Getty Images. If you're really on drugs, however, I'd suggest avoiding completely. Via BoingBoing.

Headphone Side Table

I've always thought it'd be nice to have a listening station set up right beside the couch. Never thought it'd be very practical in application, though. Well, that's until I scoped out this hot little setup by Steve over at IKEA hacker.

I Mean Business

Self-branding can be one of the most difficult projects one can undertake (Trust me, I've been at it for a while). But I think I've finally settled on a design I like very much. It streamlines with my current portfolio and utilizes the same resources used on the site. Plus, they're nice and skinny and all sexy and shit.

A Postmodern Experience

Minimal branding. No frills. High contrast. My favorite kind of branding.

Cats During Emergencies

True. So very true. Via Cats vs. Human.

Happiest Wedding Cry in the World

Here's how to get your weekend started. Courtesy of internet memes and Kid Cudi.

Royalty

It doesn't take much to achieve a high class look. Muted palettes, punches of rich black, and an attentive eye for sexy natural materials. Ho-ho, I think I know what my next big project is gonna be now...

I'd Live There

Just because they have nice typogrpahy.

Words of Wisdom

Now, this is hot. No, not the girl. Well, maybe the girl too. But this track from Hoodie Allen is what I'm talking about. Not only has it been on my playlist all day long, but it's one of the smoothest tracks I've heard in a long time. Baby bottom smooth. Like Wale. Like Kanye. Like the perfect way to end a glorious summer.

And she spoke words that would melt in your hands,
And she spoke words of wisdom

Hoodie Allen - Words of Wisdom (MP3)

Bike Porn From Australia

Stumbled upon a bike forum last night and couldn't stop browsing through their fixies gallery. Those Aussies sure know how to party when it comes to bikes. As for me, I'm still debating how much I should throw down on my first build...

How To Clean Up Scanned Sketches

Some people have been asking me for a quick and easy way to clean up smudges when scanning stuff off their MoleSkine's and sketch books.

Now, in Photoshop, all you need to do is pull up Levels from Image -> Adjustment. For the white arrow, pull it a bit left until it hits near the beginning bump of the rightmost curve. For the black arrow, go right slightly until the darks appear uniform.

Alternatively, you could always spike up the Brightness and Contrast, but that often results in much of the detail blowing up and getting a crappy look overall. Use this method and you'll be immediately more pro.

We Use iTunes DJ

The class assignment: create an instructional graphic. It started with an idea (though I'll admit Apple obviously came up with it first); to incorporate a simple music requesting system implemented in the home space. Let's be honest, guest or not, there are times when the music at a party just blows and there's no real polite way to change the music aside from ripping out their iPod and plugging in your own.

There's a much simpler solution to that. It's iTunes DJ, a feature in Apple's iTunes software that creates automixes from your iTunes collection and makes taking music requests easy as pie. The thing is, most people just don't know how to use it.

Here's where I come in with the hipster Indian headdresses. I decided it'd be a good idea to create a simple tutorial for those not familiar with iTunes DJ - to encourage those who aren't enjoying the music to participate in background music requests.

The end result was a 3-step guide to using the Apple Remote app for iPhone/iPod Touch followed by an image of individuals enjoying themselves. All sketches were done in my notebook, scanned, and cleaned/edited/composed in Photoshop. The end product will be printed out and will be spot-colored using Prismacolor colored pencils on a small frameable 8" x 8" poster.

Fall/Winter 2011 Lookbook Preview

Seeing as my Summer Lookbook collection is finally complete, I've decided to do a set of 5 limited edition high definition paintings for Fall/Winter 2011. Above, a preview of my latest craziness.

These pieces will be considered my professional entries into the digital art world. I'm estimating each piece will take approximately 30-40 hours each. When completed, they will printed and stretched on a 16" x 20" canvas, courtesy of Canvaspop.com. Prices TBA.

Chillwave on Blast

While some may be complaining about the hackneyed discourse on chillwave - what it is, where it came from, whether it actually exists and what does (or does not) qualify as chillwave - I for one, am just enjoying the hell out of it.


Beat Connection - Sunburn (MP3)

Beat Connection - Theme From Yours Truly (MP3)

I Want to be Swedish Modern, Too

What's wrong with striving to achieve a Swedish modern look in the mid-west with a small/non-existent budget? Nothing a few trips to the thrift store can't solve!

iPad Design: Something New

Here's a few inspiring tips from Derek Powazek's lessons learned after designing the MagCloud app.

• Design intimately, it's much more than print: "It’s utterly unlike print in every other way imaginable. Point is, the direct interface really does mean reevaluating every assumption when it comes to interactive design."
• No more hover states! "You don’t click, you tap. You don’t scroll, you swipe! It's all changed our interaction vocabulary."
• Take your time: "Apps have a lot of hidden corners that can disrupt a user experience. Getting them right takes time."

Personally, I'm pretty psyched about the device and will most likely be picking one up later this year. The plan is to streamline home entertainment, cloud life, and keep up with all of my favorite blogs anywhere in my house. Trust me, this'll be interesting.

Paper Tiger

Riding chillwaves and kickflippin' over spaghetti. My kind of weekend indeedy, courtesy of Paper Tiger. Alf makes a guest appearance as well.