Adding another dimension to portable music experiences, Kerchoonz's lightweight K-box speakers bring deeper bass response, making for to a spontaneous, on-the-go party-starter.

Using patented Gel Audio technology to convert any smooth, solid surface into a giant speaker, the K-box generates an actual increase in the sound—the deeper the surface, the deeper the boom. Seeing it in action proves how nicely the K-Box syncs with any portable music player.

Compatible with any 3.5 mm audio jack, most laptops, mp3 players, phones or TVs support K-box. Its petite frame, USB charging capabilities and 20-hour battery life offer near endless tunes anywhere, anytime.

Pick up a K-box for £45 from Kerchoonz.

To celebrate the 2009 launch of the State of Design Festival in Melbourne, Australia our friends at the Portable created a short film competition they call "Film the Future" (in keeping with the fest's theme, "Sampling the Future"). After hundreds of entries and hours of debate they finally selected Takafumi Tsuchiya's music video "Apoptosis" as the winner. Check it out above.

A mental journey, ambient electronica guides the viewer through scenes ranging from skylines to leafy suburbs, which Tsuchiya distorts into a spiraling circular image. The mixture of sound and visual effects make for mesmerizing entertainment, sparking the imagination to work overtime to construct meaning out of the fleeting forms.

Melbourne designer and Film The Future judge Jeremy Wortsman comments, "The first thing that grabbed me was the excellent use of soundtrack. Apoptosis used sound as an integral part of the piece, especially in engaging the viewer in the first moments, setting the visual foundation for the formal experimentation that occurred throughout the piece. To that end, the idea was simple, yet very effective. The source video seemed carefully chosen to yield the most fruitful results in the kaleidoscopic meanderings of the work and in the end, it left me being able to view these ubiquitous scenes of nature and everyday life in a new light, which is definitely a challenging feat to accomplish in a short film."

Portable's objective is to make film and new media storytelling accessible to everyone regardless of their experience, location or technical proficiency by offering audiences the chance to download an entire curated selection of international film and video program for free to their iPods, mobile phones, PSPs and laptops. Now in its fourth year, their Portable Film Festival starts this 1 August 2009, offering nearly 180 films, from over 800 submissions from 46 countries, across the festival categories of Short Film, Music Video, Look at Me, Get Animated, First Hand Capture and Feature Film. Get more info and all the content at Portable.

Beat Poet Menswear delivers another thoughtfully minimalist line with their upcoming Fog collection. The line works in tandem with their spring/summer line, Desert, a conceptual approach taken by the Sydney-based designers to produce a full year-round collection.

Desert and Fog take their inspiration from the immense power of the sun and the threat of its demise. Their wide range of influences—ranging from Luc Besson films to Futurist Operas and Germanic military operations—make for a decidedly intellectual fashion experience.

These themes shine through with varying intensity in the Fog line, playing heavily towards the military vein with t-shirt sporting blossoming mushroom clouds and a Germanic D coat hinting at ominous things to come.

Several Australian retailers carry Beat Poet Menswear. Visit the Beat Poet site to find a stockist.

Learn and see more after the jump.

Aussie-based water bottling operation Another Bloody Water brings some serious sass to the table. Their disregard for overly pretentious competitors shows in everything from their irreverent name to their simplistic design (consisting of a dazzling palette of white, gray and black) and the oft-acerbic commentary on their blog. Down with the flowery language. Down with the Caribbean vistas. It's just bloody water.

Thankfully their low-brow attitude doesn't translate to a low-quality product. ABW's water comes from a single, natural spring water aquifer located deep in the Victorian Alps. The upshot is clean water, unpolluted by the taint of civilization and extremely low in sodium, which magnifies its thirst-quenching power.

Check out Another Bloody Water for more info and to view their blog.

An eco-friendly and vibrant solution to the rampant waste of disposable chopsticks (250 billion are trashed yearly), Yuento's travel-friendly alternative comes with a portable poly-carbonate case and silicon cap that doubles as a rest between bites. The designers make the chopsticks themselves—dubbed Eco-Pocke-My-Hashi—out of durable and sustainable bamboo in 12 vivid colors.

Buy a set of Eco-Pocke-My-Hashi for ¥1,135 (just under $12) through Idea.

Urban visionary James Rojas captures the energy of L.A.'s transient Chinatown environment in his exhibit Re-imagining Chinatown: An Interactive Planning Process. Nationally acclaimed for his insight into U.S. Latino urban built culture and co-founder of the Latino Urban Forum, Rojas brings his intimacy with community to the exhibition aiming to create an installation that "mimics the dynamic and collective nature of urban life."

The exhibit will be hosted by Fifth Floor, an art/design gallery located within L.A.'s Chinatown, which will transform into a pop-up urban planning store.

Shelves lining the walls hold a rainbow collection of miniature buildings, which visitors can use to construct their own cityscape on a topographically accurate 4x8 foot model of Chinatown and the adjacent cornfields and L.A. river.

Special events will also be taking place during the course of the exhibit, including the opportunity for community members to design and implement their own building designs.

Re-imagining Chinatown: An Interactive Planning Process
Opening reception: 8 August 2009, 6-9pm
Re-imagining Chinatown: An Interactive Planning Process
Fifth Floor Gallery
502 Chung King Court
Los Angeles, CA 90012 map
tel. +1 213 687 8443

Urban visionary James Rojas captures the energy of L.A.'s transient Chinatown environment in his exhibit Re-imagining Chinatown: An Interactive Planning Process. Nationally acclaimed for his insight into U.S. Latino urban built culture and co-founder of the Latino Urban Forum, Rojas brings his intimacy with community to the exhibition aiming to create an installation that "mimics the dynamic and collective nature of urban life."

The exhibit will be hosted by Fifth Floor, an art/design gallery located within L.A.'s Chinatown, which will transform into a pop-up urban planning store.

Shelves lining the walls hold a rainbow collection of miniature buildings, which visitors can use to construct their own cityscape on a topographically accurate 4x8 foot model of Chinatown and the adjacent cornfields and L.A. river.

Special events will also be taking place during the course of the exhibit, including the opportunity for community members to design and implement their own building designs.

Re-imagining Chinatown: An Interactive Planning Process
Opening reception: 8 August 2009, 6-9pm
Re-imagining Chinatown: An Interactive Planning Process
Fifth Floor Gallery
502 Chung King Court
Los Angeles, CA 90012 map
tel. +1 213 687 8443

We love nature and we love innovative architecture. Cutler Anderson Architects showcase their amazing ability to combine the two in "Searching For True," an upcoming compilation of 22 of their most impressive projects.

These projects range from chic, expansive forested villas to an inconspicuous yet undeniably moving Armed Forces Memorial. No matter what the task at hand, Cutler insists that "each material has its own characteristics" and "tell[s] us how it wants to be used." This almost druidic connection with his natural environment shines through in the tact with which he executes his projects.

One of our favorites, the Residence at Meteor Vineyards, is nestled into the rolling vineyard country of Napa Valley, the roofing slant's inward in a "V" form, emphasizing the house's placement within the natural hillsides. The pool is also gorgeous, lined by discrete stone tiling that blends perfectly with the low profile gravel pathways traversing the property.

The Reeve Residence is another standout. You may barely notice the rustic single-story from the fields and forests lining Lopez Island's weathered coastline. Stone retaining walls and a slanted roof, pitched to mimic the natural wind-shaped trees and planted with native vegetation, obscure the facade, creating an allure of privacy and intimacy.

Cutler and Anderson deliver a lesson in subtlety with their Armed Forces Memorial. The pavilion lies in the corner of a Norfolk waterfront park, accessible only from two bridges. The only standing monument within the space is a flag pole flying the stars and stripes; however, the ground is littered with what seem to be letters blowing in the wind. Each metal sheath is inscribed with an outreach from a soldier days before their death in battle. Visitors to the memorial must bend or kneel to read the emotional accounts, physically engaging themselves in their remembrance.

Cutler and Anderson's breathtaking connection to their environment is definitely worth exploring. Searching For True is available through Rizzoli Publications and for pre-order from Amazon, with more images after the jump.

Encouraging more meaningful interaction than status updates, social networking site thisMoment allows you to create a timeline of your life—adding photos, videos and feelings in an easily navigable format. We recently had a chance to catch up with thisMoment partner Ankarino Lara, who told us more about the site.

Cool Hunting: What inspired you to look at life in terms of moments?

Ankarino Lara: In thinking about our lives, we saw our past, present, and future as this flow from which certain ideas, events, people and emotions rise above the blur. These things that make us laugh, smile, cry, shudder are the fundamental units of human experience, or a Moment. A Moment has context: there's a time and a place, often people, and always emotion and some visualization that makes up a Moment. So thisMoment was really born out of a need to share these Moments of life – stuff that can’t be conveyed in a single image post or a 140 character tweet. It demanded a rich, vibrant aesthetic, and seeks to draw more out of people through the Moment Making process.

There are already a ton of social networking websites out there. What does thisMoment offer to differentiate it from the herd?

We believe that thisMoment is a compliment to all the existing website and services that exist out there, as opposed to a competitor. People are already uploading images and videos to sites like Flickr and YouTube, and they’re already updating their status on Facebook, or tweeting about the latest thing that happened to them - but they really have nothing to show for all of it. thisMoment allows you to link up all of your media and communication services and then easily pull content and contacts into creating Moments. You can sync Facebook, Flickr, Photobucket, Picasa, YouTube, Twitter, and FriendFeed today, and we're adding more in the coming months. The idea is simple: let people pull all the stuff that they've already uploaded to the web to create a beautifully packaged and presented Moment, and then let them broadcast that out to their existing social graph.

So, for example, you can check out one of my latest moments that I created using our Facebook App. It's a moment with me taking my son, Kalyxtomar, swimming for the first time.

And it is able to have it's own manifestation on thisMoment.

And of course there's a version for the iPhone app as well.

See the rest of the interview and more images after the jump.

Check out thisMoment to start your own lifeline.

Encouraging more meaningful interaction than status updates, social networking site thisMoment allows you to create a timeline of your life—adding photos, videos and feelings in an easily navigable format. We recently had a chance to catch up with thisMoment partner Ankarino Lara, who told us more about the site.

Cool Hunting: What inspired you to look at life in terms of moments?

Ankarino Lara: In thinking about our lives, we saw our past, present, and future as this flow from which certain ideas, events, people and emotions rise above the blur. These things that make us laugh, smile, cry, shudder are the fundamental units of human experience, or a Moment. A Moment has context: there's a time and a place, often people, and always emotion and some visualization that makes up a Moment. So thisMoment was really born out of a need to share these Moments of life – stuff that can’t be conveyed in a single image post or a 140 character tweet. It demanded a rich, vibrant aesthetic, and seeks to draw more out of people through the Moment Making process.

There are already a ton of social networking websites out there. What does thisMoment offer to differentiate it from the herd?

We believe that thisMoment is a compliment to all the existing website and services that exist out there, as opposed to a competitor. People are already uploading images and videos to sites like Flickr and YouTube, and they’re already updating their status on Facebook, or tweeting about the latest thing that happened to them - but they really have nothing to show for all of it. thisMoment allows you to link up all of your media and communication services and then easily pull content and contacts into creating Moments. You can sync Facebook, Flickr, Photobucket, Picasa, YouTube, Twitter, and FriendFeed today, and we're adding more in the coming months. The idea is simple: let people pull all the stuff that they've already uploaded to the web to create a beautifully packaged and presented Moment, and then let them broadcast that out to their existing social graph.

So, for example, you can check out one of my latest moments that I created using our Facebook App. It's a moment with me taking my son, Kalyxtomar, swimming for the first time.

And it is able to have it's own manifestation on thisMoment.

And of course there's a version for the iPhone app as well.

See the rest of the interview and more images after the jump.

Check out thisMoment to start your own lifeline.

Highly functional and dead simple, Dynomighty Design's Desk Dots made us instant fans on our recent visit to their Manhattan studio. An indispensable desk-side companion, the powerful ceramic magnets can hold business cards, post pictures, build little wobbly structures (a surprisingly and incredibly addicting pastime) or stand in as modern-day Buddhist meditation beads. And no matter how much you use them, Dynomighty guarantees they won't lose their tenacious strength, which is intense enough to work through a hand.

Desk Dots also make the perfect gift for any stressed soul. Pick them up for $15 through Dynomighty.

A breathtaking monograph of prolific designer Marcel Wanders, "Behind the Ceiling" investigates the designer's motivations and inspirations, going beyond a simple catalog of work to lend real insight into what makes him tick.

The coffee table-style tome looks at Wanders' ability to reference old motifs while simultaneously exploring new themes, making him a leader in the permeating neo-decorative trend of the last decade. Rejecting the contempt for antiquity—what he calls "baby-face fixation"—in the world of design Wanders attempts to "use both old and new metaphors in the materials and material expressions I apply." Examples in the book include the way he adds novelty to classic Dutch ceramics (pictured below), outfitting eccentrically modern vases with traditional patterns.

More proof of the Dutch designer's innovative experiments take the form of alternate methods of production and presentation. The Knotted Chair and Crocheted Chair (pictured below) explore the use of epoxy resin to create functional pieces of furniture out of rope and cotton, respectively. A series called the "Airborne Snotty Vases" borrow their shape from mega-magnified models of mucus, captured and reconstructed using SLS rapid prototyping technology.

As beautiful and provocative as his products, the book also explores Wanders' more recent forays into interior and architectural design. From a glimmering Swarovski installation of luxuriously colorful murals (pictured below) to Mondrian hotels like 2008's South Beach Residence, his irreverent aesthetic creates playfully immersive environments.

Buy "Behind the Ceiling" from Gestalten or Amazon.

Dynomighty Design uses High Density Polyethylene threads (Tyvek to us non-chemists) to make their Mighty Wallet a tough and lightweight option. We recently had the opportunity to meet with Terrence Kelleman, the mastermind behind Dynomighty, who demonstrated the Mighty Wallet's incredible durability when faced with basically any stress imaginable.

If you've ever tried to tear a FedEx envelopes, you have some idea of Tyvek's strength; it's near impossible to break. And due to its flexibility, a single piece of folded material goes into making the Mighty, reducing the possibility of damage along seam lines. The design also renders the wallet expandable, adapting to individual levels of use.

To prove its strength, Kelleman put his product through a range of tests, including soaking it in water for a full day, freezing it for a week, beating it with a sledgehammer and even using it to hang from the ceiling. (See a video, along with more images, after the jump.)

He says there may even be plans for a similar test involving his motorcycle. "I think three could take it," he boasts. From what we've seen, we're inclined to believe him. To top it off, the recyclable wallets are made from 25% post-consumer material, adding a comforting tint of green to their capabilities as a wallet.

The Mighty Wallet comes in fifteen different designs, ranging from an all-black version and one that looks as if its folded out of comic book pages to Kelleman's old French homework and a printout of the first 3,000 digits of Pi. Seven more will debut late this August.

They sell for a mere $15 through Dynomighty Design.

Paying homage to some of their favorite design icons and the summer season, Furni teamed up with soft goods company Bruxe to create a very limited color and pre-release run of Bruxe's "Chairs" tee. Exclusive to Montreal's upper ground boutique Off the Hook and online at Furni's webshop for $34, the tees come in white, lemon yellow or heather grey on good quality, well fitting American Apparel tees—show your support for mid-century design in the style it deserves.

As a special bonus, the guys are giving away one "triple threat" package to a lucky CH reader, featuring a Bruxe "Llyod" computer bag in cement, a furnigraphmumbletronic white watch with grey face and a "chairs" tee in the color and size of choice (X-Small to Large sizes only, subject to availability). All you need to do is e-mail over the surnames of the seven designers who's first names make up the graphic of the shirt to info [at] furnicreations [dot] com by 11:59pm EST Sunday 19 July 2009, and a winner will be selected at random.

See more images after the jump.

PSFK's new "Snapshot Brooklyn," breaks down the massive borough with a book of area highlights. The 60-page guide traverses a range of activities and interests, giving insider tips on the best eats, tunes, arts and otherwise desirable destinations in town.

A few of their insights make for a picture of Brooklyn that few know of, namely the thriving illegal bee keeping movement. Quirks aside, the book covers a plethora of more realistic information, with especially useful advice on where to find good music (see Death By Audio, The Bell House) and eccentric art (see Rubulad).

PSFK Snapshot Brooklyn is available through Blurb. Buy now, as the first 100 sell at the wholesale price.

Street artist INSA's recent buzzed-about work pays tribute to the runner with 35 portraits of feet that he hand painted in East London. Produced by media think-tank Protein and created in collaboration with Nike Sportswear's IAM1 Journey Project, it's part of a push by the brand (see the campaign on CH and beyond) to celebrate the history of Nike's Air Max 1 as they launch the new Air Maxim.

The artwork spans East London along a route mapped out by spoken word artist Charlie Dark (of the London running group Run Dem Crew) for the Journey. Inspired by the Dark and the runners, INSA—who is more widely known for his graffiti of a woman's foot in heels—explains, "I'm not really much of a runner, but I thought maybe my artwork would travel around the city. My art would do the running for me."

INSA's longtime collaborator and photographer Ethel documented the week-long jaunt, resulting in a high-def, stop-frame animation of the excursion. The video will play as a focal point of INSA's solo show, "Looking For Love In All The Wrong Places," which opens this Friday at Nike's pop-up space in Shoreditch. (See details below.)

The exhibit will also feature a large-scale installation conveying typical INSA topics, including fetishism, aspiration, success, love, self-reflection and reality.

Visitors to the gallery will get to see a new set of INSA's PVC canvases too, keeping his Griffiti Fetish series alive, in addition to three signed and numbered limited-edition prints.

View more images of the artist at work on the project after the jump

Looking For Love In All The Wrong Places
17-26 July 2009
Nike Sportswear 1948
Arches 477-478
Batman's Row
Shoreditch, London map
tel. +44 (0) 20 755 88 766

An exclusive first peek, this trailer for Daniel Leeb's portrait of Italian bike frame-builder Giovanni Pelizzoli, aka "Ciocc," celebrates the renowned artisan and his work. The short film, called "Anima D'Acciaio" (Soul of Steel), documents Ciocc's expertise as he makes a new fixed gear frame by hand, sharing his insights into the craft and his life along the way.

With commentary by other Italian bike heavy-hitters, tricks by Ed "Wonka" La Forte and a soundtrack from Blonde Redhead's Amadeo and Simone Pace, we highly recommend seeing it on the big screen at the Bicycle Film Festival, where it plays this Saturday, 18 July 2009, in San Francisco. Check out the BFF site for more dates and locations.

A mash-up of NYC graffiti and the elegantly seductive lines of women's swimsuits, Graffini brings an edgy vibe to beachwear. Available in five different cuts—from a skimpy Brazilian string bikini to a classic one-piece—each sport a different set of vivid images.

Designers use photographs of street art from walls, signs and even ATMs, taken in locations that include Chinatown, Soho and the Bronx, incorporating the images into the various suit cuts. We like the skull-adorned ATM (above left), Old School (middle) and Union Square (right). These walking testaments to the character and history of New York are sure to catch eyes and turn heads all summer long.

Graffinis range in price from about $140 to $180 depending on cut and print, and sell on their site.

Drawing on the rich sense of history of thrift store objects, Rob Walker and Joshua Glenn founded SignificantObjects.com. The site is a collaborative experiment pairing cheap thrift store/yard sale finds with creative writers who create a unique personality for it. Items include cat figurines printed with chilis (above left), ceramic hot dogs (above right), smiling coffee mugs and buttons lauding professional "necking." These random objects, once imbued with their fictional significance, are posted to eBay to test if that significance translates to an increase in perceived value.

With the literary chops of Luc Sante, Kurt Andersen, Lucinda Rosenfeld, Ben Greenman, Curtis Sittenfeld and more imagining the vivid and immersing tales, the project mixes consummate storytelling with found obects. All net profits from the sales go directly to the authors in what may be the first pay scale for writers based on emotional impact.

All goods and stories can be viewed on SignificantObjects.com, with bids being accepted through their eBay store.

Of the eco-tourist travel boom lately, one of the most effective programs we've encountered is conservationist non-profit Reef Check. Tourists lucky enough to indulge in exotic island vacations have a chance to give back, combine active and activist lifestyles and help maintain reef integrity by joining Reef Check.

The human impact on coral reefs is a result of quick-buck practices such as bomb fishing, poison fishing, coral mining and even reef walking, leading to the extinction of some indigenous species from a vast majority of the world's reefs. In an effort to help educate people that such practices are selfishly destroying these precious ecosystems for temporal gratification, Reef Check enlists teams of volunteer divers, snorkelers, scientists and community organizers to catalog reef life as an indication of reef health and to promote awareness.

For more info on how to get involved on your next excursion visit Reef Check and apply.

NYC label No Mas knows that nothing says summer like vintage shades, prompting their recent collaboration with Silver Lining Opticians. The two styles, modeled after those worn by baseball star Reggie Jackson and tennis' sex-symbol Bjorn Borg, perfectly complement No Mas' unpretentious approach to sportswear.

Reggie's Italian logo-free aviators sport golden monel (a nickel alloy) frames—perfect for a day at the ballpark. The pair also come with a complementary No Mas vintage Reggie t-shirt (pictured after the jump).

Bjorn's signature shades feature injection molded plastics with a padded bridge for increased comfort. The full wrap around temple cables ensure a snug and stable fit even if you are running around on the court. An order of Bjorn's shades also comes with a pair of complementary BJ shorts (pictured after the jump).

Reggie's and Bjorn's vintage summer shades sell for $325 and $375 respectively through No Mas. Be sure to check back with them often because we've heard the sunglass series could turn into a monthly release.

More images after the jump.

Celebrating a decade of art collective Mixed Greens' efforts in promoting struggling artists, their Tenth Anniversary Exhibition, X, brings together 84 members and alumni for a sensory overload experience.

The show draws on a roster of talent (over 100 different artists to date) that speaks to the organization's careful selection process, based on a novel use of materials or intriguing perspective on subjects. Currently championing 22 lucky artists, it's a program insuring that the gallery maintains an eccentric and eclectic vibe.

Art in the exhibit runs the gamut too, including psychedelic acrylic portraits from Zane Lewis (at right), to photographs of floating goldfish from Dirk Westphal (bottom left) to oversized wooden installations from Lee Stoetzel (bottom right).

X
Through 14 August 2009
Mixed Greens
531 West 26th Street
New York City, NY 10001map
tel. +1 212 331 8888

RetroSpecs & Co.'s Buffalo Horn Inlay collection is another class of shade. The outfit has dedicated themselves to the discovery, research, and restoration of antique lens frames since 1992. In the ensuing 17 years they have established themselves as masters of their craft, catering to the high profile tastes of celebrities such as Kobe Bryant and Orlando Bloom.

The Buffalo Horn Inlay series specs are made from imported South Indian horn, adorned with 12k gold inlaid designs. These inlays are salvaged from registered and certified 1920-1950 era vintage glasses, flanking the temples in lieu of a logo. While they are certainly not cheap, starting at around $500, they do guarantee a chic look that's built to last.

RetroSpecs & Co. glasses are available through their numerous local dealerships or their L.A. showroom.

RetroSpecs & Co. Showroom
8629 Melrose Ave
West Hollywood, CA 90069 map

We were just in London on the bus thinking the classic vehicle needed an update. Good thing premier luxury car producer Aston Martin and prominent architectural firm Foster + Partners recently teamed up to give a new spin on the classic London behemoth. The collaboration was prompted by London mayor Boris Johnson, who launched a “Design a Bus” competition last year. The AM/F+P model tied for top honors, with the winning designs now being put through to bus manufacturers for finalization.

The redesign is both plush and efficient. Electric motors in the wheel hubs are the main driving force, resulting in lower floors, easier handicapped accessibility and a 10% increase in turning radius for the formerly clunky buses. The engine is installed in such a manner to be easily swapped when upgrades in fuel-cell technology present themselves. The sky lights on the roof are both invigorating and empowering, providing a refreshing dose of natural sunlight and charging the batteries through photovoltaics.

Incomplete as an Aston Martin without some semblance of luxury, the bus will also feature reconstituted leather seating and recycled wood flooring.

London goers should expect to see the first prototypes take to the streets in 2011.

via Fast Company.

Alternative clothing promoters Altamont present their first collaboration with Off Bowery Production’s infamous A-Ron (aka Aaron Bondaroff, NYC’s downtown impresario and personality). A-Ron epitomizes Altamont’s “Cut From A Different Cloth…” mentality, willing to go the weird or outlandish route to produce something with the right blend of aggro attitude and aesthetic. Boiling down the OBP line to a single theme is impossible with items like a rainbow-hued belt titled Friendship, a bad-ass sleeveless leather vest titled Gang Bang and a variety of items adorned with a hand flipping the bird capped with a peace sign. Check out Altamont’s video interviews with A-Ron for more insight into his enigmatic style.

The Off Bowery Productions Line will be available for purchase through Altamont for Fall 2009.

Outdoor adventurers and dog enthusiasts can blend their passions by purchasing Paracord Survival Strap Dog Collars.

Composed of knotted paracord, these durable collars quickly unravel for lashing together a shelter, suspending gear from bears or even saving strangers from drowning in pits of quicksand. While these situations may only sporadically present themselves, the collars are also stylish in their own right, available in nearly 900 two tone color combinations.

Survival Straps also produces a variety of other paracord accessories, including bracelets, anklets and belts; the collars are available for $28 through Survival Straps.

A portion of all proceeds are donated to the Wounded Warrior Project, assisting men and women severely injured in the line of duty.

ID Prints extreme-sports action images are cause for any radical aesthete to rejoice. Their purchasable posters are "staccato-quality offset prints," or in other terms, they are crisp and clean. Produced using only first-rate materials and processes these posters offer both action and integrity that is hard to match.

As action sports have grown so has the demand for posters of these leading athletes. Taking photos of skating, surfing, and snowboarding takes a fearless photographer willing to put themselves in precarious situations under water, in the air, hanging off cliffs and across the globe to capture these images.

These prints and many more are available through ID Prints.

Check out some more of our favorites after the jump.

Lulan Artisans 11°/17° Textile Competition is an avenue for aspiring textile artists to publicize their craftsmanship and be discovered.

Founded in 2005 by Eve Blossom as a sustainable textile initiative, Lulan produces handmade high-quality textiles using organic and renewable materials while at the same time providing sustainable income to over 650 artisans throughout Cambodia, India, Laos, Thailand, and Vietnam. Lulan achieves great product diversity through incorporating techniques and styles from the various local artists it supports, creating a fascinating dynamic between American and Asian sensibilities.

11°/17° are the approximate coordinates of Vietnam, where Blossom was first inspired to begin her venture. In this spirit, entries should symbolize a melding of contemporary design and traditional asian weaving techniques.

Entries will be received until October 15, 2009, with winners being awarded $1,500 cash and a place in the 2010 Lulan Collection. Visit the 11°/17° Textile Competition site for more details.

Les Toiles Du Soleil, or "The Cloth of the Sun," is a 150 year old French company from Saint Laurent de Cerdans that is bringing generations of fabric expertise with its first U.S store in New York.

Les Toiles Du Soleil produces all of their merchandise—excluding a few handbags and fabric inlaid acrylic trays—on site, by hand, using only high quality materials. The colorful napkins, table runners, dishtowels, pillows, place mats offer classic french designs in vibrant colors.

If you don't see what you need Les Toiles Du Soleil will happily make custom orders for upholstery, drapes, etc. using their signature fabrics.

Les Toiles Du Soleil
261 West 19th Street
New York, NY 10011 map
tel. +1 212 229 4730

See more images after the jump.

Built's new camera cases are chic and affordable. The Soft Shell Camera Case (above left) is perfect for the simple point and shoot but for more involved photographers the Cargo Camera Bags (above right) will hold multiple cameras, lenses and other gear.

The Cargo Camera Bags feature an exterior composed of double-layered neoprene while the bottom incorporates additional padding for extra protection of those valuables. Built also includes padded dividers that you can adjust or remove as needed depending on your gear.

The Soft Shell Camera Case and Large Cargo Camera Bag are available in a range of patterns and colors through Built for $30 and $100, respectively. A Medium Cargo Camera Bag debuts in a few months for $60.

Blue Ember's 79,000 BTU 650 iQue grill is pushing the frontier of digital outdoor appliances. Every facet of its design lends itself to precision and versatility, allowing users to grill, rotisserie, smoke, sear, roast and even bake with ease.

The most notable difference from a traditional gas grill is the digital touch screen in front (pictured right). The screen facilitates access to the computer that regulates the multitude of features. Capabilities include two distinct cooking zones that can be individually controlled, automatic digital temperature detection and adjustment, the SonarQue fuel monitoring system that updates fuel levels every 30 seconds and dual meat probes that connect to the computer to ensure accurate cooking and automatically adjust the temperature. This computer allows even rookie grillers to cook with the best, perfectly monitoring your meal to fit your exact specifications.

The physical components of the iQue are just as impressive as the digital ones—Porcelain coated cast-iron grates to maximize heat transfer and reduce sticking, a smoker box for wood chip flavoring, 15,000 BTU stainless steel tube burners, a 12,000 BTU infrared rotisserie burner, three piece lid designed to circulate inner air flow while retaining heat insulation, and perhaps most importantly, a bottle opener.

The iQue is a must have for any grilling enthusiast, available through Lowe's, Sears, and Home Depot stores.

Environmentally-conscious designer Hiroki Hayashi is cleaning up the recycled-goods world with his new line of home scrubs dubbed Goodbye Detergent. The two main lines, Kitchen Cleaning Scrubs and Outdoor Scouring Pads, utilize the abrasive powers of recycled food remnants like ground peach pits, corn cobs and walnut shells to tackle household clean-up.

Indicative from their name, the earth-friendly scrubs are so effective that you won't need to apply detergent except on the most viscous grease—saving you money while lowering the amount of toxic chemicals introduced to the environment.

The cornerstone of the Kitchen Scrubs Line is the Spaghetti Scrub (pictured right). A loose and flexible sponge it's perfect for penetrating kitchen grime's deepest depths. For outside use, Goodbye Detergent's three types of outdoor scouring pads (below) are durable enough to vanquish tough stains on BBQ grills but gentle enough to clean patio furniture without leaving a mark.

Goodbye Detergent's products are 100% recycled and recyclable, and eliminating the need for detergent sets a new standard for green cleaning products. Hayashi's spaghetti scrubs and outdoor scouring pads will be available for $11 and $9 respectively from Roland Products.

Any fan of introspective music on the alternative end of things must check out The Wailing Wall's debut album, Hospital Blossoms. The brainchild of NYC-based musician Jesse Rifkin, The Wailing Wall brings together an immensely talented group of musicians to tell a story of sadness, acceptance and catharsis. Rifkin relates the concept behind the album to a phoenix rising from the ashes; it's about embracing the pains of life and being able to blossom out of them, cleansed, content and ready for the next trial.

Using the layout of the album as structure, the track listing lends symbolism. Morning and Morning #2 are the first and last songs, respectively. Morning opens the album with the chirping of birds and menacing growls of thunder, while Morning #2 closes with a crescendo of chaos that suddenly cuts to silence, speaking to the cyclic chaos of life's tribulations.

A wide range of conventional and not-so-conventional instruments flavors the entire album, with Rifkin himself playing everything from guitar to gamelan, mandolin to accordion and harmonica to harmonium. His captivating lyrics are no less intentional; to explain his lengthy writing process Rifkin cites Twain, "The difference between the right word and the almost right word is the difference between lightning and a lightning bug."

His masterful composition skills shine especially strong in the CD's title song, "Hospital Blossom." In fact, its a track so captivating that I lost myself in listening to it repeatedly, nearly missing my interview with Jesse.

An impressive compilation, the entire album is now available online for free download, courtesy of JDub Records.

Cool Hunting sponsored an old-school early-'90s jam at the Thrillist Loft earlier this week as part of their week of parties. Absolut Vodka supplied an open bar, calling for many drinks, dances and adventurous picture poses. The classic tunes—from Black Street to SWV—supplied by the illustrious DJ Sharee got the dancefloor going, assisted by a breakdancing troupe. We'd like to shout out our thanks to Absolut, Thrillist, DJ Sharee and our talented photographer James Ryang. (You can see more pics on his site.)

Nathan Shedroff's new book, "Design is the Problem", presents a practical and layman-accessible exploration of sustainable design. In it, he breaks the progress towards sustainability into five parts: learning how to reduce, reuse, recycle, restore, and process. And Shedroff isn't afraid to get in reader's faces about the issue, either, bluntly stating that we need to "get over the guilt or shock or outrage... because none of it will be useful... and we have a lot of work to do."

His often counter-intuitive points encourage reconsidering prolific and seemingly solid reasoning. For example, the book considers paper bags may be worse than plastic for the environment or how a Prius may have a larger footprint than a H2 Hummer. (Maybe there's redemption after all for the notorious tank-drivers.) One of the most thoughtful arguments we've come across against green-washing, the gist is that to be sustainable you need to consider more than just the veneer of a product.

Put most poignantly, Shedroff insists, "Don't do things today that make tomorrow worse."

"Design is the Problem" is available through Rosenfeld Media. You get both a digital and a printed copy of the book, and with the discount code WHATMATTERS you get 20 percent off the cost of the book (and all other books) on the site. You can also find it at Amazon.

Add new dimensions to guitar recording with Paul Kinny's Stereo Acoustic guitars, which use two sound holes to create a richer, more dynamic sound. The mammoth design, both intriguing and off-putting, is reminiscent of harp-guitars employed by innovative musicians Andy McKee and Michael Hedges.

The two holes, oddly positioned towards the musician in lieu of his audience, separate the resonant bass tones from the twangy trebles. The result? Amazingly versatile sound capabilities similar to switching pick-ups on an electric. While electrics may produce solid basses and tinny trebles, rarely can they manifest both with the vivid success of the Stereo Acoustic. Tension heads mounted on the end of the guitar allow for alteration of the instrument's key, further enhancing versatility.

While not very practical for around-the-house guest entertainment, a sound-hole miked Stereo Acoustic is sure to deliver a magically rich recording experience.

The Stereo Acoustic is available, made to order, from Kinny Guitars.

Photos via gizmag.

The LA Times' up-and-coming new-media site Brand X is hosting a video competition (that we're judging) to explore what it means to be a next-gen Los Angeleno. Shape your creative vision in a three-minute or less video exposé by this Friday, 12 June 2009 and enter to win a featured showing at the 2009 Los Angeles Film Festival. We'll see you there.