Dine. Travel. Design.

I was at my cousin’s restaurant this weekend, Blue 22, and placed in front of me was the drink coaster above. The New Glass has been out on the market for over a year now, developed with the help of “world-renowned sensory experts” (Boston.com). Is this a marketing scheme or true R+D efforts to design the new glass? Buy one and test it out for yourself here from Sam Adams.

TopShop now has a US site to shop at online! If you don’t know TopShop, the best way to describe it would be the H+M of the UK. Love it! (oh how I miss London…)

But wait! TopShopNYC is coming this fall… a good reason for a roadtrip

Just a few clever ways to help with cord management and organization in the home and during travel…

ChargerFrame by Naolab

Sombrero by Andrea Ruggiero Design

Wire Stay by Harry Allen

Funny how this has become a need from the development of technology and mobility. Find a slew more at Unplggd

via MocoLoco, BusinessWeek, and Core 77

• Activity #1: Ice-cream (and dinner) at Cabot’s Ice Cream + Restaurant in Newton, MA. A classic diner-style experience with quality comfort foods and great desserts. From their website:

Cabot’s is a family owned and operated old-fashioned ice cream parlor and restaurant. We are especially known for our generous portions of unique premium ice cream and frozen yogurt creations. We serve breakfast (all day), lunch, dinner and late night treats featuring deli style sandwiches, wraps, flame-broiled burgers, salads, and traditional home-style dinners.

What more could one ask for? Especially in an environment that brings you back to the ’70s. I remember going to Cabot’s as a kid and loving it! (not that I was alive in the 70’s, but you get the point.) That nostalgic feeling and environment is certainly working to their benefit. A definite classic spot for locals and tourists alike.

• Activity #2: The Larz Anderson Auto Museum in Brookline, MA.
  This weekend there was a European bike show which I attended with a couple of friends. A great opportunity to take the camera out for some interesting photos. (Wish I could have stayed longer.) Not to mention the bikes on display were so interesting to look at from a pure product perspective. I may not know too much about them, but I could certainly appreciate the attention to design details that were addressed in the variety of bikes shown.
  Photos after the jump.

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Yup. A code to break.

-Egg Grade
-Free Range or Cage Free or Pasture Raised
-Organic
-Vegetarian Fed
-Hormones
-Omega-3
-Pasturized

the whole article at New York Times
via BoingBoing and TreeHugger

There were 4 Target’s Bullseye Bodegas open for 4 days in NYC.  Sounds like an interesting store concept that carried designer-named designs for Target products.

Now, ever wonder where these name-designers got themselves into Target? Your answer at Target’s Design Scout from BusinessWeek

Bodegas via NotCot

“Ding” by Office for Product Design is a reinterpretation of traditional Chinese cookware. Well done.

via Core 77

• Boston Taxi’s will join San Francisco and NYC in going green by 2015. Read the report from the Boston Globe

• Eating beef is good for the car industry?

As long as people are eating beef, there will be hides to recycle that would otherwise go into landfills. So one of the environmental benefits is seen right from the beginning, just in the fact that the leather you are sitting on is recycled product.

According to this article, the more beef we consume then the more environmentally friendly we are in regards to the car industry.

via Inhabitat and MichiganBusinessReview

Came across a new blog today: BizChicksRule which links to many more in her blogroll. Learn about networking, self-promotion, business planning, marketing+branding, career management, and much more. Wow, I think I’m only now discovering (or finally realizing) the vastness that exists on the internet…

Relates to my previous post and the Design*Sponge resources.

I joined Twitter a few weeks ago..

So far, I’m just tweeting to myself, but just came across this article from BusinessWeek. Now, just gotta learn to do it right My feed is on the right-hand navigation column. enjoy!

Pros + Cons of Twitter from BusinessWeek and Graphpaper’s blog thoughts

Having grown up in a house where proper etiquette and table manners were strongly enforced, this product strikes a cord. From Demelza Hill’s website, her Snap and Dine product encourages proper tableware use even in an informal outdoor evironment.

via CoolHunting

One of the many great photos I took. It’s like my very own postcard!

Labor day weekend I became a bit of a tourist in Boston- the city I grew up in. As a local or a tourist, I would definitely recommend taking a PhotoWalks tour to get a different perspective of the city (both the story of the city and through the camera lens). Not only did I learn a bit of Boston history, but I learned some great reinforcing tips on composition and camera angles. It really is fun and interesting for beginners or photo-hobbyists. The 1-1/2 hour tour really went quick and I’m sure I’ll be back for another. Thanks Saba for the tour of Beacon Hill!