Floral Pliers

Tired of friends "borrowing" your pliers and never returning them? Are you looking for a way to make your tools stand out? Yearning for some added flair in your toolbox? Longing to give your wife or girlfriend a personalized pair of floral pliers?

If you are, Bloomsbury may just have the tool for you. Their floral pliers, available in four colors (purple, pink, red, and blue) cost £5.95.

If these floral pliers are your thing, you might also be interested in the 10ft floral tape measure or the 6-in-1 Floral Combination hammer. These are just a selection of the floral items that Bloomsbury offers. Could this mark the return of flower power, but this time in a whole new way?

(Via Gizmodo)

Stamps we'd like to see

Worth1000 has a Photoshop contest on what people would like to see on postage stamps. Most of the entries are humorous and all are very creative. My favorite would have to be the tribute to Fast Food. Ah, how American...

Check it out and see what your favorites are.

(Via Boing Boing)

Super-Sized Snacks

Pimp My Snack is a site dedicated to extreme snacks. Documenting extreme baking projects, recreating familiar snack foods at a gigantic scale, you can follow these feats via pictures and text.

If you thought your King Size Kit Kat or Giant M&M was special, check out some of these pimped snacks.

(Via Boing Boing)

Mischa Barton - New Face of BeBe

I don't really care about what Mischa Barton does or who she endorses, yet I'm posting this entry. Hmmm... Anyway, Mischa Barton, the rail thin actress from the OC, will be the new face of Bebe when their summer ad campaign launches in May.

Other starlets, like Lindsay Lohan may be running into some trouble scoring fashion ad campaigns, apparently Mischa and other actors aren't facing the same dilemma.

(Via The Luxist)

Urban Legends - Truth or Fiction?

Ever wondered whether an urban legend was fact or fiction? There are books you can buy and television shows to watch with debunk some myths and prove others as true. But if you simply must have the answer right now, check out snopes.com.

Snopes is a collection of reference pages for urban legends. These reference pages are divided into a number of sections to make navigating them easier.

My favorite entry is on the shelf life of Twinkies. Check it out to see if these baked goods really do last forever.

Free Stuff

I love free stuff? Don't we all? There's something about "free" that is just truly awesome!

Through Michael Arrington's TechCrunch, I've discovered Freebie Finder.

Freebie Finder is an automated free stuff aggregator. It collects free stuff offers from top freebie sites. The site updates every few hours, so check it often if you're interested.

(Via TechCrunch)

Hardwood Rug

Yes, you read the title correctly. Hardwood Rug. I thought it strange too, but this unique Hardwood Rug is made from a thin combination of beechwood and cork. Easily rolled up for portability and storage, it covers a 30x59-inch area.

Available at Generate Home for $249.


(Via Luxist)

Foam Party, anyone?

Looking to add some additional flare and excitement to your next party? Do you already have a great sound system, dj, bar and bartender, disco ball, and a bevy of crazy friends just ready to get out on the floor and dance? Why not add some foam to your party?

The Foam Factory is a portable foam maker that can create up to 55 cubic feet of foam in less than three minutes! Simply pour in some tear-free shampoo (supplied), add water, plug it in and watch as the suds emerge.

This isn't a cheap toy, available for approximately $125, it has already sold out from the UK vendor. You can place a pre-order for the next shipment of the Foam Factory, scheduled to be available May 8, 2006.

(Via Random Good Stuff)

Uono Cocoon Coffin

Death and taxes are two certain things in life. Well, you can possibly manage to escape taxes for a while, but death is a certain thing. Not meant as a morbid thought, Uono has created a completely different type of coffin.

This sleek oval casket was launched last spring with a business plan as unique as its aesthetic. “My strategy is to convince people to buy the Cocoon before they get to the funeral home,” says Uono founder Spiegel. A fundamental problem in the funeral industry is that mourning families will buy just about any casket on the spot, making for an extremely stable but stale market. Uono addresses that issue by branding the $3,500 Cocoon as a premium product, marketing it both to funeral directors and to consumers. “It’s a piece of furniture with a high design standard—the last piece of furniture they’ll ever buy,” Spiegel says. In fact, he came up with the idea after having to bury his design-loving father in a tacky brass-handled box. To broaden its appeal, he also made the Cocoon biodegradable: It’s molded from an inexpensive plant fiber called jute and coated with a water-based varnish. “People who shop at Whole Foods would buy this coffin,” says juror Harley Manning, VP for customer experience at Forrester Research. Spiegel hopes to introduce the coffin in the United States by year’s end.

The Uono Cocoon Coffin is available in an array of fourteen colors. If that isn't enough, individual colors are available through Uono's Haute Couture Service, as well.

(Via The 2006 Bottom Line Design Awards)

Nick Lachey Opens Up

After a very public marriage, relationship, and then divorce, Nick Lachey finally opens up to Rolling Stone about his breakup with Jessica Simpson. The issue, which hit stands on Friday is a candid and revealing look at the breakup.

Contrary to rumors, Nick denies that Jessica's manager/father Joe Simpson had anything to do with their separation.

For more details, check out his interview with Rolling Stone.

(Via Rolling Stone)

Floating Pool Table

Longing to recreate the swim-up pool tables at the Hard Rock Casino in Vegas? Is your pool already so cool that you want to make it even cooler? Looking to bring yet another relaxing experience into your pool?

Look no further than the AquaPub Floating Party Table. This floating table and chair set seats six and comes with two removable ice tray containers built into the tabletop. It also comes with six cup holders and can even accommodate a large sun umbrella. The table weighs 90 lbs and is designed to remain level while floating about your pool.

With the AquaPub Floating Party Table, you'll be able to play cards, dine, drink or just have a good seat with five of your closest friends!

(Via Uber-Review)

Currency Collage

Talk about a effort of both patience and love! Christopher "C.K." Wilde snips and glues incredibly detailed collages out of paper money from around the world. The wide array of colors, portraits and other symbols on the money makes these collages even more interesting.

Instead of spending your unused foreign currency, why not use it for art?

(Via Boing Boing)

The Bibliochaise

Here's an interesting concept: combine a bookshelf with a chair and what do you get? The Bibliochaise! It's an armchair library for those who like to be "immersed in deep reading". With a shelving capacity of five linear meters worth of books, what do you really want to have within an arm's reach?

(Via Gizmodo)

iPod Speaker Review, Part 1

Check out Cool Hunting and their first of a two-part iPod Speaker Review. Curious what's out there? Tired of sifting through all the speakers options available? Let the cool folks at Cool Hunting give a couple pointers and their review on a number of the more popular iPod speaker options.

Coca-Cola unites with Godiva

Coca-Cola is teaming up with Godiva to launch a beverage line being tagged as "Godiva Belgian Blends". A new line of chocolate-infused coffee drinks, they will hit the U.S. market on July 31, the companies said April 17.

The drinks, which a press release describes as, "more decadent than just plain coffee," will be branded under the Godiva name. Flavors will include: Dark Chocolate Mocha, Milk Chocolate Mocha and French Vanilla Latte. It will be sold in 9.5 fl. oz. glass bottles, in singles and four packs, and at convenience stores, supermarkets and other retailers.

(Via Slashfood)

Edible life-size chocolate rooms

For all of you chocolate lovers out there, Food is Art (a company in the UK) will create an edible chocolate fantasy room, both functional and delicious!

Starting at £2,500 (approx $4,500), decadence doesn't come cheap, after all, these chocolate rooms feature:

Solid Chocolate Life-Size Fireplacece & Hearth
Solid Chocolate Skirting Boards
Chocolate Paintings
Lickable Chocolate Walls
Lickable Sugar Wallpaper
Chocolate Chandelier
Chocolate Vases
Chocolate Logs

Visit Food is Art to order your own chocolate room and other edible chocolate delights.

(Via Boing Boing)

Drip Shelf & Puddle Table

Launched at the Milan furniture fair in April 2006, the Drip Shelf and Puddle Table are two quirky interior pieces that will surely bring added flair to your decor.

Designed by Susan Bradley, both the Drip Shelf & Puddle Table give the liquid effect of melting. They are created from powder-coated steel and are available in a range of colors - Blood, Oil and Milk (gloss red, gloss black, and gloss white respectively).

Contact Susan Bradley for additional details and ordering information.

(Via Gizmodo)

Banana Splitter

Apparently peeling a banana is difficult enough that someone's invented a Banana Splitter to assist in this process. I admit that sometimes it may take a try or two to peel a banana, but is this Banana Splitter really necessary?

Available for purchase for a mere $3.99 at Dynamic-Living.com, the Banana splitter is easy to use.

Says Dynamic-Living, "Simply place the Banana Splitter ring over the top of the banana, and use the prongs to pierce the skin. Then all you need to do is flip the handle up and peeling is started."

Can it get any easier?

(Via Seihin-World)

The Gigapxl Project

The Gigapxl Project is a fascinating ultra high-definition photographic look at America. Defining the upper limits of large-format photography, digital scanning and image processing, custom-built Gigapxl cameras capture images with truly unprecedented resolution.

According to the Gigapxl Project, it would take a video wall of 10,000 television screens or 600 prints from a professional digital SLR camera to capture as much information as that contained in a single Gigapxl exposure.

The Project's near-term goal is to compile a coast-to-coast Portrait of America; photographing her cities, parks and monuments in exquisite detail.

A longer term goal is to create for future generations a world-wide archive of vanishing cultural and archaeological sites.

Check out a sampling of the pictures taken for the Gigapxl Project including:

• The San Francisco/Bay Bridge at Night
• Mormon Temple, San Diego (I think this temple looks like it has been computer generated, but I've searched on the internet and apparently, it exists in San Diego.
• Balboa Park, Reflecting Pool
• Half Dome, Yosemite National Park
• Adobe Systems, Inc., San Jose

(Via Digg)

Nine Most-Wanted Time Capsules

Time capsules usually are lost due to thievery, secrecy or poor planning. The International Time Capsule Society, which has formed with the mission to record the burial of all time capsules, is still in search of nine time capsules of which little is known.

Here is a "most wanted" list for the missing time capsules. Click here for the full story.

1. Bicentennial Wagon Train Time Capsule - This capsule was supposed to hold the signatures of 22 million Americans. But on July 4, 1976, when President Gerald Ford arrived for the sealing ceremony in Valley Forge, Pennsylvania, someone stole the capsule from an unattended van in the bicentennial wagon train. The capsule's maker, the Reynolds Company, had broken the mold. The thief’s identity and the whereabouts of the capsule are unsolved mysteries.
   
   
2. MIT Cyclotron Time Capsule - In 1939 a group of MIT engineers placed a brass capsule beneath an 18-ton -magnet used in a brand new, state-of-the-art cyclotron. The capsule was to be opened in 50 years but was not. No one remembered the time capsule was there (the cyclotron had long since been deactivated). But when reminded of its existence, MIT was faced with another problem: how do you get a time capsule out from under a 36,000-pound lid?
   
   
3. Corona, California, Time Capsules - The City of Corona seems to have misplaced a series of 17 time capsules dating back to the 1930s. Efforts to recover the capsules in 1986 were in vain. "We just tore up a lot of concrete around the civic center, "said the chairman of the town's centennial committee. A Los Angeles Times reporter has called Corona "the individual record holder in the fumbled time capsule category."
   
   
4. The M*A*S*H Time Capsule - Buried by cast members of the hit TV show in a secret ceremony, the capsule contained props and costumes of the show. It was buried in January 1983 -- somewhere, no one will say -- in the 20th Century Fox parking lot in Hollywood. The lot has shrunk in size, so the time capsule may be under a Marriott Hotel now.
   
   
5. George Washington's Cornerstone - Today's custom of burying time capsules is in part an outgrowth of Masonic cornerstone-laying ceremonies. Through the centuries, Masons have officiated at rituals which often include placing memorabilia inside building cornerstones for later recovery. In 1793, George Washington, a Mason, performed the Masonic ritual upon the laying of the original cornerstone of the U.S. Capitol. Over the years, the Capitol has undergone extensive expansion, remodeling and reconstruction, but the original George Washington cornerstone has never been found. It is unknown whether there is anything inside of it.
   
   
6. The Gramophone Company Time Capsule - In 1907, Hayes, Middlesex, England, sound recordings on disc were deposited behind the foundation stone of the new Gramophone Company factory (later HMV, later EMI) by the opera singer (later Dame) Nellie Melba. During reconstruction work in the 1960s, the container was officially removed, but before it could be reburied, someone ran off with it. The whereabouts of these priceless master-pressings of Melba and other stars remains a mystery.
   
   
7. Washington Territorial Centennial Time Capsule - In 1953 Washington state celebrated its territorial centennial by burying a two-ton time capsule on the state capitol campus in Olympia. The legislature failed to approve funds to mark the site, and the capsule was lost until 1959. However, records indicate that a supplementary time capsule was prepared in 1953 for burial alongside the main capsule. The location and contents of the second capsule are unknown. The capsule may have been interred as planned; its reported location was a closet at the capitol. Update: it appears that this capsule was found in 2002.
   
   
8. Blackpool Tower - In Blackpool, Lancashire, England, a foundation deposit was interred in the late 19th century with the customary ceremony. When a search was organized recently in preparation for new building work, not even remote sensing equipment or a clairvoyant could locate the time capsule.
   
   
9. The Lyndon, Vermont, Time Capsule - First mentioned in an 1891 Vermont newspaper, the capsule is an iron box containing proceedings of the town's centennial celebration. It was scheduled to be opened on July 4, 1991. Citizens have looked in the town vault, the bank and the library but have not found the box. The time capsule may not have been buried at all, since some ceremonies were canceled due to rain. Lyndon residents have vowed not to lose their new time capsule which is set to be sealed July 4.

(Via Digg)

A new twist on packing tape

Created for last year's London Design Festival, Shift designers Richard Shed and Sam Johnson took a tongue-in-cheek look at modern versus traditional techniques of joining objects. Grab a roll, in limited quantity, for some fun taping and packaging.

(Via Cool Hunting)