A Mini Cannon For The Office

Each mini cannon($29) fires standard .177" BB's with a fireworks fuse, and is able to fire them up to 100 yards. They are precision machined and at close range are able to inflict some pretty decent damage, like breaking glasses or piercing Coke cans.

Source

Nervous System – Generative Puzzles

Jessica and Jesse of Nervous System just released these new Generative Puzzles featuring one-of-a-kind complex puzzle shapes and artwork from contemporary digital artists (Jonathan McCabe seen here). My favorite part of the puzzle are the random recognizable puzzle pieces that they inserted into the designs.

A little more about the project:

Each generative puzzle is a one of a kind creation with unique art and pieces. Our goal was to marry the artistry of traditional, hand-crafted jigsaw puzzles with the possibilities of new technologies. Custom software simulates crystal growth to create an organic interlocking pattern. Our laser cutter translates this into a unique set of plywood pieces. We collaborated with contemporary digital artists who created engaging artwork for the puzzles.
To create the organic shape of the pieces, we designed a system based the simulation of dendritic solidification, a crystal growth process similar to the formation of snowflakes that occurs in supercooled solutions of certain metallic alloys. By varying the parameter space, it can produce a variety of cut styles. You can read about how our simulation works here.
The puzzles are made entirely in our studio in Somerville, MA. We print the artwork on archival paper and laser cut the puzzles from birch plywood. They come in two sizes, a round 7.5″ puzzle with 85 pieces and a rectangular 18×12″ puzzle with 410 pieces. Every puzzle is unique.

Zuny

Zuny creates adorable animal-shaped leather accessories such as book ends and paper weights. I was initially drawn to the whimsical animals purely for their aesthetic, but was quickly delighted by their website as well... which is equally playful. Then, like the icing on the cake, I discovered their packaging! Zuny worked with the design team at Bonanza Brand Marketing Group to create miniature worlds for each animal. Whether it is a forest, grassland or ocean animal... each one comes with a little environment to call home. The creative use of die-cutting and the bright color palette really brings these designs to life. This is the type of product and packaging that just makes me smile.

826 National: Brooklyn Superhero Supply Co.

More packaging goodies from the 826 catalog by 826 National. To read the story behind these products, see the earlier post here.
See lots more after the jump.

Cactooph Toothpick Holder

Cactooph Toothpick Holder. No comment necessary. Just funny.

Little Red Riding Hood – Mike He

Little Red Riding Hood containers by Pistacchi Design take the old story and combine it with matroyshka dolls.
via MoCo Loco

Dice For Change

DiceForChange is a boxed set of three dice designed to help kids playfully engage the world in a positive way. The WellnessDice encourages you to take better care of yourself, the KindnessDice to be more kind, and the EcoDice to take care of the world.

Long Distance Glass

One of the reasons why I adore Li Jianye’s works is his simplistic approach to design. Be it the original Flexibin or the iShelf; both exude charm, wit and thoughtful detailing. This time around he has a functional toy for us, The Telescup, a set of drinking glasses that coordinate to become an impromptu telescope. Now isn’t this what we call clever!

Designer: Li Jianye

Uglydoll Tin Cars

An amazing set of tin cars with Uglydolls drivers/pilots. They look more like flying cars than driving cars, which makes them 100x cooler

D-Torso

I thought that the D-Torso booth was pretty fun. It featured life size animals, and a moving robot. A version of the giraffe is currently on display in a zoo in Japan. Other life size animals include an elephant, cow, horse, dolphin and a tortoise.

Cement Toy Trucks

Growing up I could be occupied for hours playing with my little trucks and cars, one of my favorites being my cement-mixer truck. This minimal twist on the toy truck isn’t really anything like my cement-mixer, but it is made from cement! Designer Nimrod Or’s goal was to incorporate the familiar material into the design as a reminder of its importance in his native Israel. The pigmented cement might be a little heavy for the really little guys but it’s undoubtedly cute.
Designer: Nimrod Or

Rocking Horse Raises Awareness

As we begin to see more products focus on renewable energy and sustainable design it becomes apparent that we can also expect to see a cultivation of this newfound awareness in children starting at a very young age. The Calidu rocking horse is one design that aims to reinforce this idea by producing just enough power to light it’s OLED lights simply by rocking or collecting sunlight. The sturdy, tip-resistant horse is made of stainless steel, solid oak, an herbal oil finish, and leather fringe tail.
Designer: Günther Schunn

Sectional Globes

These Sectional Globes by Geografia are pretty cool - there are three versions: 3-D, Night Glow and Blank (a globe you can leave alone or color in yourself!). I would like the Night Glow, please!

Via Design Crush.

Beautiful Vinyl Figures, noop and nism

Executing another exhibition style piece in vinyl, Coarse brings their latest figure series, “Casting Shadows” to light. It includes an original sculpture of Coarse character, noop, huddled and his new shellbound pet, nism. noop clings to a fabric kite reminiscent of a long time friend, paw!, which soars above casting his shadow onto the two characters. We’re not much for vinyl figures here but this is really beautiful. We just had to share it with you guys. Hit the jump for the full story.

“Haunted by the memories of a lost friendship, noop struggles to continue lost and helpless. His new companion, nism puts on his best face to try and cheer up noop but his efforts are futile. The sun comes out and eclipses the hovering paw! kite, casting them into total blackness. A mystical moment, that could uplift the two beings from their loneliness but how will they interpret this strange happening?”

Slide open the heavy hand crafted cardboard box by pulling at the woven ‘noop’ and ‘nism’ tags. Uncover the box contents — two vinyl figures, the longing nism [4''] and huddled noop [7'']. Set up the fabric paw! kite, and let the noop hold the string tight in his hand. The paw! kite will float high in the sky [14''], casting his shadow onto the two torn friends. A set of c-o-a-r-s-e typographic leaves complete this scenery, full of desperation.
casting shadows
loser — hkg edition
[limited to 200 pcs]
HK$ 2488
Price includes global airmail shipping
On sale May 3, 2011 — exclusively at www.coarsehkg.com
Designer: Coarse

Balancing Blocks

Ah the simple joy of stacking objects to see how high they can go before the whole thing collapses. Fort Standard, a design studio based in New York created Balancing Blocks, an homage to a timeless form of entertainment for all ages. Each $70 set is handmade. A bit pricey but I love the simplicity.
Designer: Fort Standard

Dog on a Gun!

Trust the Russians to teach us how to train a dog! Actually it’s more like shooting, err… walking them on a leash with the Povodokus! A pistol – shaped retractable dog-leash fit enough for your canine friend. Make that ANY friend!

Designer: Art Lebedev Studio

Balancing Blocks

These Balancing Blocks are handmade in Brooklyn from repurposed hardwood scrap collected from local furniture shops. One set contains ten different sized colored blocks. Multiple sets increase building possibilities and create additional multi-player game opportunities. It looks cool.

Seriously Savage Rectal Houdini Kit

It’s a toss-up which would be worse, getting caught by the enemy or having the cap on this rectal escape kit pop off unexpectedly in a spy’s caboose. The kit was issued by the CIA in the 1960s.

Very Cheap Wolverine Costume

Flickr user Vó Maria's cool idea, we advise 3-pronged forks to make this really convincing.

Bronze Kinetic Robots

Let me tell you about the “kidult” factor – a play off  the words kid and adult. It’s a philosophy that encourages play in interactions with objects adults use. The Kinetic Robots look like bronze toys but each one performs a utilitarian function and requires simple action to work. The Lamp has a manually controlled cable winder. The Music Box works by turning the little guy’s arms and the Sharpener has a butterfly winder. Shavings are saved in the lower compartment. They are adorable!
Material : bronze
Size : 130(H) x 100(W) x 90(D)
Designer: Monocomplex