pOptimist

Protection Necklace

Maybe it's time that amulets of protection got back on "what's in" lists. With all the potential threats in this crazy world of ours—401killers, climate change, the smell of your neighbor's cooking—we call for a new form of sexy self-protection.

Given the hallow's eve season, this Anti-Vampire Protection necklace fits the bill, complete with wee, hand-carved stake and silver cross.

Powerful enough to ward off the boogeymen, yet attract that non-boogying kind.

Courtesy of ach ach liebling on etsy.

Action Method

It happened again. The millions-$ idea you had and discussed at happy hour just got launched, lauded and is rumored to sell for $125MM. By someone else.  Meanwhile, the boss want to see you about leaving leftovers in the breakroom.

No more!

The Action Method is geared toward helping creative types fight their inner procrastinator/rainbow dreamer and turn ideas into actual, finished things. We've been following this process in analog (i.e., pretty but pretty expensive paper products) but now it's online.

And the basic service is free.

A bit like the "Getting Things Done," this might actually help you do it. And it's better designed. With a nice turquoise. You can also use it with others, allowing you the power of the NAG navigation. (and APPRECIATE, too.)

Go sign up and use it, already. 

minimalist motivation

Mix tape + Swiss typography + motivation. These are not your asst. manager's successories. These are genius, cool-kid, faraway step-niece of them. Maybe.

Ltd edition screeprints are up at $30 a piece. Or get a set of four in cubicle proportions for just $20.

Happy Trash Bags

Trash is inevitable, and ever-growing in our highly consumerist culture. Recent designs reversed the American Beauty effect: Rather than seeing the beauty in trash, make trash more beautiful. In the polka-dotted process, it heightens our own awareness of the refuse we create.

Polka dots, courtesy of Any Color You Like and currently conquering NYC
Smiley bunny bags, aka Rabbit-kun, is from a Japanese design group that also dabbles in flowery trash collection.

Non-Partisanshipt

Scatological references are rarely positive. But this Threadless find seemed to cheerfully sum up a collective "enough already!" to haters on either side of the red/blue line. The truth is, nobody's perfect. But if you can handle potty humor, this message is pretty close.

Deleted Images

Where do images go before they die? Here - a site that proves that we can't quite say good-bye. People worldwide drop photos here before they scrub them from iPhoto forever. While lots of them should come with Excedrin, others have a dream-like quality that makes you study them. Or maybe it's the responsibility to bear witness to other people's experience --- and rejection and poor framing.

A Positive Negative

The market is ugly. The 401K statement is unopenable. The 24-hour news cycle doesn't even have to be sensationalistic.

It's tempting to go dark. But this t-shirt reminds us that's possible to be defiant and happy all at the same time. C'mon, just look at that shade of green and cheerful hand-drawn type! How bad can it be?

Is rejection denial? Not fashion denial at least.

via: Swiss Miss

Today I Needed This

Monday. It's 15 degrees colder at lunch than at breakfast. It's raining, the cat food's out and the dog skipped the homework and when straight for the red pumps. The ones that didn't hurt.

That's what $40 is for. By Samantha Hahn at the Shiny Squirrel.

Amaztype as Meditation

Built as a typographic app, Amaztype is a form of mini-meditation. You type in a word, it builds it with books (or music, or whatever) that contain that word. Breathe gave me two minutes (and counting) to do just that.

The Zeitgeist option tells you what's the hottest at the moment. In music, that's currently: Sex, Fuck, Design, Love, Child.

Random wisdom in the universe?

See Breathe in Books and Sex in Music. Whoa—that random wisdom thing just happened again.

Hello World

It's time to be borned. Slaps and all.

Are you ready?
Photo: Ryan McGinley