Pow Chicka Wow: Femme Fatale Art

Powerful, femme fatale women are a running motif in Phil Noto's artwork which I noticed after riffing through his artbook, Trans Am Champions. After noticing the clean lines of his sketches, vintage color palettes, and their graphic appeal, I fell in love with his work. This is an art book worth picking up at your nearest book store or comic shop. Affordably available at Buds Art Books, $25. Visit his art website here.

Nom, Nom, Nom: Pac-Man HotHead Oven Mitts

Gobble, Gobble, Gobble. Indulge in those holiday baked goods while showing off your arcade gamer cred with these Pac-Man Oven Mitts. Made out of silicone, these bright yellow slim oven mitts are molded into classic Pac-Man shapes that are perfect to chase your family -- err, cookies with. I spotted them at Tate's Comics back in South Florida and tracked them online. Great for the next housewarming present for a fellow gamer geek. Available at ThinkGeek for $15.

Happy Holidays

Happy Holidays to folks!

 I'm flying out to warmer climes to celebrate the festivities with family.

Olympic Inspired Art For the Inner Olympian In All of Us

1972 Olympics Judo by Otl Aicher at L-Dopa Design, $360

Every four years, I get a thrill out of watching the Olympics (Summer, Winter, it doesn't matter). There's something magic about watching the nations parading in their uniforms, the best athletes competing in the world, and the sports drama that gets to me. As a designer, the sheer amount of promotion materials for the Olympics is dizzying -- merchandising, logo work, posters, etc. the list goes on and on. The designer Otl Aicher  created these Munich 1972 Olympics that are dynamic, colorful, and modern. They're excellent posters worthy of being hanged in your homes. Here's my favorites from vintage art/poster site L-Dopa Design

1972 Olympics Archery by Otl Aicher at L-Dopa Design, $420

1972 Olympics Shooting by Otl Aicher at L-Dopa Design, $350

Laptop Bags: Take a Byte Out

Mmmm... who doesn't like munching while perusing the Internet? Why not declare what's your favorite munchie while you're on the go? Check out these delicious looking laptop case sleeves by designer Lorena Agnolli   who can be blamed for causing you munchies everytime you check out these laptop cases. 

Byte Laptop Sleeve Case fits 13" laptops, $45.

Fun DIY Project: How to make a Monster Business card holder

Originally uploaded by alittlestranger.com

Looking for an informal way to introduce yourself to someone, see if you'll click, and make them a smile? Whip out a Monster Business Card and dice out your business card to potential mates, friends, etc.


Holly of alittlestranger.com created a fun side project on Instructables if you're looking for a spiffy, cute way to store your non-work greeting cards.

OMGWTFBBQ! Over 58,000 visitors on dearly devoted?

Snapping the Local Neighborhood

Oi, Oi, Oi.

Grad school has been kicking my ass, folks but I ain't dead.

According to my web stats, since I started dearly devoted (back in May 2007), I've had 58,000+ visitors on my humble blog! Wow. Talk about things to be thankful for in 2009 ~ if you've found me, I hope you enjoy my shopping picks, design/style spotting,  and random goodies of the net.

I hope to pick up the pace soon when winter break hits and I can finally establish a rhythm at my school and in the Big Apple.

xoxo,

ms.dearlydevoted

I Love Pandas

I Spy a Panda Fight.

Snapped at Kinokuniya in Midtown Manhattan. The perfect coffee mug to starting off a kickass day! Must.Have.It.

Photo by Virgin America

Can I just say that Virgin America is the coolest airline in the US? Can I get an amen? Richard Branson, I salute you for making flying sexy again. Mmm. Flat-screen mini-TVs, WiFi, leather seats...I wasn't sure if I was in a South Beach lounge or flying cross-continental to my new home.

Speaking of which -- news to my dearly devoted readers -- I'm back on the East Coast! After much packing and huffing, I've headed out to school in New York City! It's been such a shock moving from West Coast Seattle to the frenetic Big Apple. Mama, here, had to go sharpen her claws before she went out apartment-room hunting. After moving in for the kill, she nabbed a tiny shoebox room in an apartment that she hopes she'll be sharing with a (seems to be) sane roommate. I'll be sure to document my decorating process. Let's just say I'll have to be creative (the room is 7x10 ft.). Yeow. 

Eccentrics Keeping Time

Oh, Marc Jacobs and your quirky chic accessories. I would proudly sport this on my cuff, it's black-white looks can stand on it's own as a cute gothic piece of jewelry. You had me at the gobsmacked skeleton face design. Marc by Marc Jacobs Skull face watch, $200 at Net-a-Porter 

Detour into the Unknown

DEEP SEA HARDHAT DIVER #8 "NO EINSTEIN ON THE BEACH" by ZeroG, Flickr

Argh. It happened again: an inopportune hiatus! Where did July go aside? Well, Seattle is in a major heat wave (try experiencing 100-deg. weather in a non A/C city and apartment). 

Me no likey. Aside from that, I'll be moving soon! So expect to see me more regularly when I get the downtime to share news! 

Tromping the Pacific Northwest

Can we please take her home? While showing my brother around Seattle, we found this at Velocity Lab : Ursa the Wooden Bear designed by David Weeks for Areaware.  What a great gift to give a friend who loves the outdoors, craft toys, and earthy-organic things that can kill you. 

Tech Gadgets in the House

I J'adore Gadgets! Please excuse my absence, I've been cleaning house and preparing for a move to a smaller apartment with my BF. In that time I've been in love with my new iPhone case: JAVOedge iPhone 3G JAVOJelly case in pink! Love the translucent prism backing. It keeps twinkling under the sunlight and the neon pink translucent case is pure eye candy. My boss asked me to test out the colors: Pink and Purple are leading the pack (ha, ha, am I a girl or what? Still I love it when my pink accessories match!)

 The other things consuming my attention?

 I never thought I'd be suckered into this but this game -- Sally's Spa -- is mad addicting. After I saw fashion blogger, Sea of Shoes, talking about it, I had to try it! On sale for 99 cents and so far, I'm still plugging away at it.

Lastly, my birthday bash was trés fun. My friend, Olivia, flew in from Miami to hang with me and with her help, we cooked up a feast -- a banquet, I tell you! -- for 15 friends! It was exhausting but very memorable. As I mentioned earlier, The Sak Silverlake cross-body bag was my own gift to myself! Love Zappos! See it above with the other things I stow in it (Canon G10 aside). It is THE perfect metro bag. Red leather is awesome, juicy apple red, and you can tell The Sak designers paid attention: plenty of pockets, zipper compartments, comfortable cross-body belt, slouchy leather, etc. 

What Up, My Ninja!

Check out My Ninja! 

It has to be my favorite typographic t-shirt to date. Straight from the West Coast, designer Peter Hong, otherwise, known as Peter Rocks started up this line. It's about time we celebrated ninjas! Am I biased? Hells bells, yes. Look here.

Seen at Angry Asian Man 

Pink or classic black?

Happy Birthday? The Sak Silverlake Leather Flap

As my birthday present, I decided to reward myself with

The Sak Handbags Silver Lake Leather Flap Cross Body in Punch. Isn't she lovely? I hope she arrives on my bday in a few days! As a city dweller, I need a stylish durable, leather bag that can take me across town without much fuss, summer, fall, winter, and spring.  Easy to reach pockets? Check. Extra long, adjustable strap? Check. Fun color? Check! It was a tossup between the saffron yellow or punch red. Here's me snapping a reminder pic at Nordstrom with the yellow down below. After much agonizing, I went with Punch Red: 1) It should wear more gracefully in appearance then high maintenance yellow. 2) Red is a must-have color accessory in my closet. I was so excited, I went and purchased the Silverlake through Zappos for its free two-way shipping (just in case, I wasn't sold on the punch red in person). As for dimensions, it's pretty spacious, I'd probably be able to cram a netbook there, pens, gadgets, etc: 15" Length, 3" Width, 11.5" Height, 11"! 

 

DAISO carries Swine Flu Masks

Spotted at my local DAISO store: SARs mask packs in fun shades and shapes. 5 a pack, got to choose among checkprints, leopard, duckies, etc. DAISO is the local Japanese dollar convenience store that I j'adore. See previous post. I went with the heart-shaped. Best $1.50 spent to sow sheer panic, ever? Cue alarmed facial expression (see above).

Rocking Retro Swimwear

Credit: Flickr by Miss Axemaker 

With summer quickly approaching comes a much-hated ritual for some femmes — bathing suit shopping. Bikini? Tankini? One-piece? Two-piece? Let's face it, today's latest style of swimwear is most forgivable on those who hit the gym frequently (Hello, sexy Victoria's Secret models! Mwah!). However, since dearly devoted is more low-maintenance (ahem) and we love to concentrate on the pretty and whimsical, we turned our eyes to the retro, glam swimwear that pinup girls made famous.  No need to thrift shop for finds. Check out Portland-based Popina Swimwear, whose creator, Pamela Levenson, became inspired by swimwear from the 1940s-1950s. The best part is seeing how her swimwear fits on real women, like Miss Axemaker above. Love the rockabilly look? See how these girls rock the suits below.
  

Credit: Popina Swimwear

Love the poolside accessories, heels and all. This is my favorite shot of Popina swimwear 
(L-R): Retro Sadie in Red $78, Retro Halter in Espresso Dot, $75, Retro Halter in Jungle Flower, $75

Credit: Popina Swimwear

Designer, Pamela Levenson, surrounded by her swimwear models on a shoot. 

Look at the Kitty!

Oh, hai! Can I haz New Kitten card by Yellow Owl Workshop?

Forget the special occasion, dumbfound your friends on random obscure holidays with this WTF card statement.  Random suggested holidays to dole these precious cards include National Hamburger Month, Hug Your Cat Day, National Ventriloquism Week, etc. Surprise! I'm sure they'll love you for it. 

$5 per card, $19.50 per pack at Yellow Owl Workshop

Geeky Cool Gadget Accessory: Stackable LEGO USB hubs

Bring playtime fun into the office with these Systown USB hubs AND score cred from the geek and tyke set. If you're in need of USB connection, each Lego-like brick comes with 4 ports and is perfect for stacking your action figurines on top. Just don't let babies gnaw on them. Speak Korean? Why? Cause, they're only available overseas right now.  Boo.

via technabob

Muji : Online Store

Lucky New Yorkers no more. Now, design-savvy Americans across the United States can check out and enjoy Muji, the upscale no-name brand that prides itself on "simplicity achieved through a complexity of thought and design." That's no bull. Muji is known to hire well-known designers, from Sam Hecht, Jasper Morrison, and Naoto Fukasawa to create products. I came across their paper stationary line in New York's MOMA gift shop and have been smitten since. Check out their online store, MUJI

See a few of their design classics below:

Look familiar? This wall-mounted CD player, designed by Naoto Fukasawa, is in the trailer for Objectified.

Cylindrical coffee maker designed by Sam Hecht.

Cardboard speakers that are lightweight and collapsible. 

Zombies, Robots, Movie Posters, oh my: Travis Pitts, illustrator

Travis Pitts is an illustrator whose work was featured on Apartment Therapy. His poster above captures one of my favorite, B-movies of all time: Big Trouble in Little China. Dude, it's the villain, Lo Pan! I had to high-five him for that, what a classy poster for a cheese-tastic movie. Ahem. His art posters draw upon retro, graphic illustrations from the 1960s with a dash of post-modern snark (see the Zom-bot poster below). 

Objectified, the movie

If you loved Helvetica, the documentary, like I did, you must be SUPER EXCITED to see what the filmmakers' next project is about: product design. Meet Objectified. It covers the interesting world of product and industrial design and the creators behind them. 


Here's what their website summarizes: "Objectified is a feature-length documentary about our complex relationship with manufactured objects and, by extension, the people who design them. It’s a look at the creativity at work behind everything from toothbrushes to tech gadgets. It’s about the designers who re-examine, re-evaluate and re-invent our manufactured environment on a daily basis. It’s about personal expression, identity, consumerism, and sustainability. "


Just look at this A-team roster, some of whom I know and some I don't:
Featuring:
Paola Antonelli (Museum of Modern Art, New York)
Chris Bangle (BMW Group, Munich)
Tim Brown (IDEO)
Anthony Dunne (London)
Dan Formosa (Smart Design)
Naoto Fukasawa (Tokyo)
Jonathan Ive (Apple, California)
Hella Jongerius (Rotterdam)
David Kelley (IDEO)
Bill Moggridge (IDEO)
Marc Newson (London/Paris)
Fiona Raby (London)
Dieter Rams (Kronberg, Germany)
Karim Rashid (New York)
Alice Rawsthorn (International Herald Tribune)
Davin Stowell (Smart Design)
Jane Fulton Suri (IDEO)
Rob Walker (New York Times Magazine)



Gawwwwd. I can't wait and Seattle is getting a sneak preview in early June! 

Couture on Cuisine: Karl Largerfeld's Daily Affirmation

"Fashion is the healthiest motivation for losing weight." – Karl Lagerfeld

The Chanel photo spread is giving me totally mixed messages. Dear Papa Lagerfeld, don't you know those delicious French fries look so damn good (especially with the Chanel logo!) and swimsuit season is JUST around the corner? Tsk, tsk! 

via BryanBoy 

Dreams of Flying by Jan von Holleben

Photographer Jan von Holleben has got me hooked on his photo book, Dreams of Flying. Invoking the whimsy of a child's imagination, he plays with his subjects and their imaginary settings: among them, in space, mid-air in the skyline, etc, all while rooted in their everyday surroundings. 

Spring is here! Shopping, Eating, Easter Extravaganza Time!

Sorry, sorry! Spring weather came to Seattle and like a kid listening to Peter Piper, I put everything down and frolicked among the cupcakes and sakura blossoms. See, I am totally documenting everything (Loving the QuadCamera!). 

Cherry blossoms are courtesy of my neighborhood.

I went shopping at DAISO where I gathered this cute keychain cover for $1.50. I love it, so. 

DAISO is also the place where I rocked these Easter bunny ears ($1.50 also). 

My best friends are having their birthdays and, whaddaya know, Fomato cards, were my standby. Why give Hallmark when you can give Fomato with a nice side dish of snarky humor? Mmmm, snark. Pssst, click on the picture and you can read the birthday card text! I *heart* this card company.