Good Chicken

Bruce Nussbaum recently went to South Africa, yay for him, where he discovered Nando an 800 restaurant global chain that started in South Africa. This is something that started out as a local business and quickly grew to becoming world wide! But, Rob Brozen, the owner of Nando, told Nussbaum how he wanted to keep his chain as localized as possible; he does not want to become Starbucks.

Nando uses a special sauce called Peri Peri made from local chilis, and they also like to keep their restaurants having a homey feeling; the art that decorates the walls is all made by local painters. Nando is very much about creativity and it would like to keep that, even as it grows.

They even have fun commercials!

Funny Nando's Commercial - The most popular videos are a click away

Chocolate

Chocolate is something that is very near and dear to my heart. Chocolate has always been there for me, in good times and in bad times. So today I choose to write about chocolate.

I've seen the brand Madecasse around my local wholefoods store but I myself have never bought the brand. I ran into it again today on Seth Godin's blog, apparently he really enjoys the stuff. But as it is a design blog he does speak mostly of the packaging. The package must say something about the brand and it must also be eye catching!

As it is now the packaging for Madecasse is blah. It's nice, but it doesn't really have me rushing to go out and buy it especially if I'm paying six dollars... It does convey that it comes from a small country, but that's really all I get from my quick look at it. What makes this chocolate unique is that it's made and packaged in Madagascar, the only chocolate that is made by local beans then imported from Africa. What this does though is that it helps the African people; it creates four times more income than shipping off the beans to be made by another company. So as a company they should focus on that.

Macy's recently begun selling a series of hand crafted baskets from Africa. Those baskets are freaking expensive! But, I'm sure they sell. Their way of advertising was a commercial which showcased the ladies in Africa making the baskets. Ingenious!

Picking Your Target

Is it alright to dismiss people you just don't like working with? Seth Godin said in his blog that some consumers are selfish, which is true, but would you really pass up a client if you didn't like the way he operated.

To get work you have to do good work and have a real human connection with your client. Well that might be hard since now a days everyone seems to want to take advantage. Well it's time to put on the gloves and fight back. You can either: put up with bad clients, just avoid the human connection factor, or just not work with ungrateful people. Which is the best advice. hopefully your other clients will be loyal enough to repay you in some way.

A client employ relationship should really be mutual for it to work best. Mutual respect in my opinion is necessary to achieving a good product. I was reading a book by Sidney Lumet a director and he was talking about have writers during the rehearsal process. (It parallels this scenario) One writer in particular would rush to change the script whenever someone was slightly apposed to it, he didn't have enough confidence in his work, another refused to look at the work from someone else perspective and refused to change anything. He got fired!

The point, there must be a balance! Both the client and employ must know what they want the product to portray.

Some Advice

From our friend Seth Godin. It's interesting cause you always hear people say stuff like "practice makes perfect," or "keep at it, you'll get it eventually!" Well what if you really won't be able to get it eventually, maybe all you really need is a new perspective. If something isn't working maybe 'try hard' isn't the answer, maybe it's 'try different'.

I think it's funny because now that I think about it in Math you are always taught multiply ways of solving a problem. In case the square root formula doesn't work you can do it manually. If it doesn't multiply one way do it in parts... etc... Why did I never think to do this in my everyday life?

It's weird how frustrated I'll get over something and then realize it was such a simple thing to do! When I stopped took a moment and thought I would often realize there was a much better way to get things done. After all, isn't that why we now have Macs? Cause someone looked at an idea in a different way!

Never Heard of Him

Andrew Carnegie, I personally had never heard of the man before Seth Godin. Of course I know the University, but I never stopped to think where the name came from. Andrew Carnegie was believed to be the second richest man in history. His story is a true rags to riches tale. As a young boy he came to America and began working as a messenger boy. Later in his life he build the most successful Steel company ever. In short he was a powerful man.

But what made this man so powerful? Well he believed it was the people who worked for him. "Take away my people, but leave my factories and soon grass will grow on the factory floors... Take away my factories, but leave my people and soon we will have a new and better factory." intelligent words from a powerful man; but this words are too soon forgotten in this day and age.

I recently watched a documentary on the fabric district of New York City. It said how while in the 60s, if I remember correctly, all the cloths on sale in America, were made in America. I love that. In a small way it's one American helping another American. Now though nearly all the garment district imports their cloths from abroad where they can buy cheaper labor.

Man just isn't worth what he use to be anymore...

I think me and this Andrew Carnegie think alike. Later in his life Carnegie used most all his fortune to fund philanthropic pursuits. I can except some people having big houses, those with big families, but if you have no need for such extravagance why not just give your money to something that can use it.

Work

I read Seth Godin's blog recently, he talked about how every one's model of work, is a job. That we have been "brainwashed" to believe that the only way you are working is if you have a job. I think the steady paycheck helps, the nine to five schedule, having some one above you giving you orders, it's comforting.

What if one was to work for one's self though... You would constantly be on the search for your next work. Well this reminds me of having to pick a major. My parents at least tell me to pick soomething I would be happy doing, but in the back of my mind, I know that I am already use to a certain lifestyle... Well some words of wisedom from Seth:

The less a project or task or opportunity at work feels like the sort of thing you would do if this is just a job, the more you should do it.

Smart, I think someone should have told me that while I was in highschool; it would have made it a lot easier to pick my major.

Something Fun

Sometime design goes to extremes. It's fun to see the outcomes of a crazed designer like Mark Reigelman who takes normal everyday occurrences and transforms them into something... else... too far...

It's suppose to be a bus stop. Why do I want a bus stop to have only two chairs? and a desk lamp... really though... talk about useless designs. Thank you ApartmentTherapy

Modern V Winter

I like going up to the mountains for a fun time of skiing, as we all do! But, there is something ere about a cottage. I'm not the type to fall in love with wood. In my dorm room I'm very sad to say nothing is the same wood color... thank you Hofstra... But when I do go to a cottage or something of the sort I can't help but get into the spirit. So in the future I want to incorporate at least a bit of winter spirit in my home.

ApartmentTherapy had a post about implementing Winter Toys in home decoration. One of them was most appealing to me:

I think it's because it was one of the only pictures without much wood in it. But I must find a way to work in both wintry and sleek into an apartment. I've realized that I like rooms looking like nice hotels. That's my style, empty and clean. Not that you can tell that from my dorm room. What a mess!

The Sun

As I do not have a home which can be covered in snow for winter I sometimes find myself marveling at the landscape New York takes from outside my window. I sometimes wish my family lived in a place where the snow falls in winter and we can all sit around a fire inside drinking. Obviously that's not gonna happen anytime soon, so I'll stick to window shopping.

Some places though you must admit look spectacular in the snow! Small winter villages in the mountains in particular. But, I have to give props to people who actually work a design around the weather and ApartmentTherapy gave them due credit. From the light glow of the lights inside to the plants that decorate the walk. It just wouldn't look the same in the Sun.

Black And White

I don't generally go for very colorful designs... I'm much more of a black and white person personally. Well with a splash of color on there. Well some people might think that black and white is boring, well it doesn't have to be!

If you do anything you have to make sure you do it right. In ApartmentTherapy they talked how a kitchen should be comforting and homey, yet modern and sleek too. So let's take a look at the kitchen they spoke of:

What I think is a good balancing factor in this kitchen is that only one wall, the smallest, is painted black and the entrance. I like how there aren't any door ways into the kitchen, two giant windows adorn the back wall giving plenty of natural light to the space.

Another aspect that Apartment Therapy looked at was the use of shelves. Instead of having all the things hidden behind cabinets this family chose to have long open shelves. I was watching the home and garden channel once and they put together these cabinets but instead of being wooden doors were all glass doors. That's something I really enjoyed.

Small Bathrooms

I do not particularly enjoy small bathrooms. And recently while looking for houses I encountered the worst bathroom I had seen in my life... It had the toilet seat hidden behind the shower... It was ridiculous. Also, I'm a big person so really a small shower isn't an option for me, I end up hurting myself somehow....

So, I was looking at a post on ApartmentTherapy which had solutions to this small bathroom problem. It said that if you really wanted a small bathroom you couldn't find it in America, you'd have to take a look at Europe or Asia, which is sad but true, everything is bigger in America! So European design...Small, sleek, and usable.

One thing that I found interesting is the SPAcer Fold Up Tub, yep, I said fold up tub. It saves space on the floor for when you aren't using it, like a fold away bed. But really, what about when you just want to shower.

Some things on the blog I would not approve having in my bathroom but there are things out there that can make a small bathroom look grand!

Bobble

Bottled water. I recently took the "Tap water challenge" from one of the schools atrium tables and failed... Although I think that was due to external circumstances because the water was in paper cups, which give it a taste, and it was room temperature, which I would have to drink room temperature tap water to know what it taste like, one needs a constant in science... Anyway now that I have rambled, the whole point of the test was to try and figure out which out of three samples of water was the tap water. It was run by advocates of the sewer companies I'm sure. The reason I don't drink tap water is because we live in the United States where tap water is not the best option. If I lived back in Switzerland I would be happy to drink tap. But here comes the reason for the post.

So I saw this water bottles on TheDieline and I thought they looked cool so I looked at the post. Apparently the water bottle comes with it's own filtering system, which will work for up to two months, or 300 bottles. They facts are this product is suppose to be both environmentally friendly and keep you from spending money on bottled water! It's like Brita on the go, and it's called the Water Bobble.

I love the design of the bottle too. The problem I had with thermal was that for some reason I always felt they got dirty... Like, there was just this grimy look about them... I can be a germ freak ever now and again. Another problem I have with reusable containers is the same as the first one really, I think if you use something too often it eventually becomes too dirty to reuse. So I think the fact that I can just buy a new filter whenever I want really would help me. I want one. (puts on list of things to buy with next pay check)

Art On Anything

I remembered a post one of my fellow classmates did over the winter session about taxis instead of having advertising atop their cars would have art. This took place for a month if I'm correct but the point of it was to try and showcase art so that more people could enjoy it and maybe get interested enough to go to a museum.

Well, I found a post of TheDieline where it showcased a series of art project on Styrofoam cups. It said that each cup was one of a kind. The only thing really that I see wrong with this is it's not a usable cup anymore! The practicality of the item is gone.

I do like the idea that art can be everywhere and I like that this designer Cheeming Boey has come up with Styrofoam art, but, I would like to see a mix of both practical and beautiful. The problem I usually have with art being replicated on things is this, the art piece was made out of a certain media, to work for that media, taking it to a different style can compromise the piece. It's like when books are adapted to movies, they don't always turn out so well.

Although, what is different about the Styrofoam cups is that it's art made to be on Styrofoam cups. I don't really wanna discuss about mass production of art and it's consequences... i think I've posted something on that already... but I would like to see a way in which art could become more exposed to the people.

From The Root

A wooden appliance company in Denmark wanted to re due there image to further emphasis the fact that their products are both made through an environmentally friendly process and made from natural material. So what did they come out with? A package that is quite to the point.

It looks like the items are literally growing which works with the companies standards. And my favorite part is that on the side it says "Designed in Denmark, made by nature."

Smoking

I personally do not smoke! Not getting on that band wagon anytime soon... But I was intrigued by what someone would come up with for a design on a cigarette packet, considering they would have to be half filled with a warning label. So now that I have TheDieline, I looked it up.

Apparently a new law was passed that cigarette companies can't use color anymore for advertisement... Well what I found was quite astonishing. A designer DJ Stout of Pentagram was asked to design what he thought that the cigarette companies could do to transform their look. The results, Stout thinks instead of trying to avoid the warning labels cigarette companies should embrace it and become a 3D warning label.

I myself wouldn't buy them... But thinking about it, it would make my grandma look hard core.

Design

As designers something people have to think about is a design that establishes an idea from the brand name. In TheDieline, a blog all about the packaging of products, there was a post on the current design of a product called "Works with water."

This was the perfect example of what a design should act like. It's straight to the point, and fun at the same time. The product itself is a soluble food supplement which can be added to your favor drink and still help with bad acne, high blood pressure, or cholesterol.

The Design is simple. it is a shape used as a lifesaver in water. Goes well with the name "works with water." Overall I think it's an okay design but I think the concept was very well thought out.

Print It

Another type of design which I really don't think of often is printmaking...

I did some print making in High School. It was suppose to be a collage of sorts of my home country of Colombia in all it didn't turn out great... but it was interesting as a project just to use a different kind of media.

London Transport commisioned printmaker Paul Catherall to make three new poster designs titled "A new view of London" and I personally think they turned out great. Hicksdesign led me to a video of him explaining the process he did to create this works.

Making Print

I personally just wanted to point out another type of media which can be used and is extremely difficult to do correctly and as beautifully as Paul does.

What's Kraken

I was looking for a spiced rum the other day at the local liquor store and realized how much design affects what I buy, and what I keep for that matter.

I had never tasted Kraken before but the bottle called to me. It's shaped like an old jug which reminded me of the Pirates of the Caribbean which I enjoyed thoroughly. So I bought it. It tasted quite good, especially in the rum cake and I am so happy with the bottle that I've decided to keep it as a souvenir, although I know I'll definately be buying more.

What I wanted to talk about was a post on Hicksdesign that led me to TheDieline, a packaging blog. So I found out as Kraken is the new spirit from Proximo Spirits they have set up a fun new packaging for Kraken. The Kraken Proof Kit.

Inside it gives you bits of proof that the Kraken, a mythological sea creature, did exist. along with a bottle of Kraken rum of course.

What is contains is; a Kraken tooth, Kraken ink, a log book, a scroll (depicting the size of the beast), a feather, and movies of the beast. Also the box itself is sealed with a Kraken stamp. I want one!

Whose Who

Dr.Who, I use to watch it back in the day... and well I would still watch it if it wasn't for my lack of BBC... But, anyway when 2010 rolled around it was time for a new doctor to appear on the scenes.

If you don't know the show I suggest you check it out it's extremely amusing. But just so everyone is up to date the premise of Dr. Who is that he is the only time traveler left in existence and he must save planets throughout the universe. Also if he is ever fatally wounded he just becomes a "new" doctor.

Well since there is a new season coming out and the show got a new production team and company sponsoring it, according to Hicksdesign, the timing was perfect for a new logo. The logo itself is simple yet resonating. The DW of Dr.Who in the shape of his famous vehicle the Tardis.

Check out the new trailer!

Dr. Who and Amy Pond

And of course the new logo...

DW Tardis

The Essentials

Things that are necessary to a designer. I was looking over Hicksdesign and found an article about Zootool. This is an online scrapbook of sorts. What it does is allow you to collect whatever documents, links, pictures, or videos you find online. Things that you enjoy throughout your online voyages.

Another cool thing that struck me about this site is that it performs like a Mac. You can drag and drop, double click for details, and shift select items. It's very user friendly. I'm starting mine! I'm thinking that's where all my blog/searching for cool stuff is going.

BBC

Bitches Be Crazy... I mean British Broadcasting Corporation... Well my friend who shall remain nameless brought up living together in a house next year which would be dubbed the BBC house. Not referring to the British Broadcasting Corporation as you may have already guessed... But anyway, I was scamming the blogs I enjoy reading for material for my blog and I ran into a post about the original BBC and was reminded of my friend so this is my topic for today.

As a read about the new layout that was occurring at the BBC I realized how that reflected exactly what New Media is about. The BBC is aware that it's dated look is unappealing to the online community so it has hired a design team to redue the whole scheme of the sites.

Here's a little tid bit of advice from there design team: Our recommendation is that pages have a predominantly neutral colour palette with colour being provided by large and dramatic imagery. The highlight colour is used sparingly to create vibrancy and draw the eye to key areas of the page.

Going to South Africa

Nussbaum recently treaded to South Africa for the famous design expo Design Indaba. This is where African designer have the chance to come out and show their stuff! As well as designers through out the world of course.

The interesting thing about having an expo in South Africa is that it isn't a fully up to date country. Sure they have all the technology and things in the big cities but just outside of the center there is a clear difference in society. This culture needs certain types of design and one that stuck Nussbaum as clearly relevant was an architecture design by Chilean architect Alejandro Aravena.

What makes Aravena's designs so different is that he uses the bare minimum. When he went to Indaba he showcased a community development project in which the house can be changed. This means that if the wife's mother decides to move in you can add an extra room easy!

The main focus of Nussbaum's blog though was that this houses could be used by poorer communities as sources of revenue. While in South Africa he witnessed government funded housing in which the people who lived inside decided that they were better of renting the whole house and building a shack in the back for themselves.

In this economy, and in South Africa in general people are struggling to find a source of income. So, use the free house you were given by the State and pocket the rent. Smart!