Photography by Mert Alas and Marcus Piggott

Alfred Hitchcock held that a director or a scriptwriter has to use as many elements of a city as possible to "earn" the right to use that city in a film. So a movie shot in Switzerland must contain Swiss food, watches, chocolate etc. as key plot devices. While that may have worked for his films, I'm really tired of seeing the same things whenever a photographer/director decides to shoot in my home town, Istanbul using the city as a theme. Especially fashion shoots are guilty of squeezing Turkish textiles, tea, coffee, simit, food, anything Ottoman or early 20th century into a single frame. I have to praise Mert Alas and Marcus Piggott for breaking the cycle with their Istanbul photoshoot for W Magazine. They did a great job of just focusing on certain architectural shapes and juxtaposing them with beautifully shaped clothes.

(They then contradicted this shoot with a Kate Moss as harem-girl shoot in a Turkish bath but I have to forgive this slight because the photos are so gorgeous and lively.)

Fred Tomaselli

Summer Swell, 2007, photo collage, acrylic, gouache and resin on wood panel

via W Magazine where you can see more of these and also find an interview with the artist

5 Different Styles for Terraces

Images from Marie Claire Maison

Brett Manning

via Fecal Face

soviet style + mayan figures = soviet mayan playing cards!

Apparently the Soviets had a thing for Mayan culture! (I'm guessing they idealized the Mayans as a pre-colonial, pre-capitalist peasant culture, just as the Mexican revolution did. ) One of the few playing card motifs available during the Soviet era, the Mayan playing cards are fascinating.

Found on English Russia via Ffffound!

10 Amazing Package Designs

1.Brooklyn Superhero Supply Co.


2. Designed by Hara Design Institute - Nippon Design Center

3. Kitchen sponge design by Atypyk

4. It's Candy! Taku Sato D.O.'s design for Sakuma Confectionary

5. Saison Beer by Zoran Konjarski

6.Matsu wine by Moruba

7. Award winning wine bottle design by Jin Young Lee


8. Gorilla Coffee Packages designed by One Trick Pony (This also happens to be one of my favorite coffee brands. Recommended for those who love their coffee like delicious mud!)

9. Environmentally friendly boxes designed by student designer Kevin Kwok

10. Comme des Garçons fragrance bottle by Marc Atlan

Sources: Lovely Package, The Dieline, Kitsune Noir, Inspiration Lab

A Gorgeous Hammock by GAEAforms

Images from Istanbul based design firm GAEAforms

Wilkins Coffee Ads by Jim Henson

I found this while doing a search for 1960s ads, inspired by my love of Mad Men. According to the Muppet Wiki page, Jim Henson was approached by Wilkins coffee to create these 10 second ads. When you subtract the 2 second product shot, he only had 8 seconds to work with. And he brilliantly created two puppets, one who loves Wilkins coffee and one who hates it. Of course, the hater gets destroyed in Muppet-esque fashion in each ad. And the man shot 175 of these from 1957 to 1961.

Enjoy!

Helmut Palla Sofa

Elizabeth Dunker

_MG_0852 (1) copy, originally uploaded by //fine little day//.

Image from Elizabeth Dunker of Studio Violet

It's a perfect afternoon to go to a carnival...

Garden Inspiration from Marie Claire Maison

It takes so much work to create a lusciously green garden. After almost 4 months of buying plants and gardening every weekend,there's still so much more

I want to do with ours. But the great thing is, no effort is wasted when it comes to working on one's outdoor space. With even just a little work, balconies, terraces and gardens become the better living room in every home that has one.





That facade mirror is a genius but risque way to create the illusion of bigger space.

The next images were taken in the designer Kenzo's home.



I love how the outdoor is invited in in every room.

A Wooden Bike

via Design Spotter


Wood is an incredibly lightweight material for bikes and very cool looking. The bike above weighs around 5 lb!

it's the circle of life!

From Designer Daily via The Book Cover Archive