The Bake Off Begins!

So the Vivid Brand bake off got off to a start yesterday with yours truly setting the standard with a Beetroot Chocolate fudge cake! Ok, so it wont win points on the looks front (image above is unfortunately not a true likeness) but tastewise hopefully it scored a little better.

If anyone fancies trying the recipe, it can be found here: http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/484627/beetroot-fudge-cake?binderbox=forgot

This is the actual cake incase you were wondering.

Your smile for an ice cream

I can't wait to see and try it for myself.

Unilever revealed an ice cream vending machine for the digital age. Branded "Share Happy," it is able to sense when people are near. Using facial recognition technology, it can determine age, gender, and emotion. The machine uses an interactive "smile-o-meter" to rate smiles; those with a big enough smile are rewarded with free ice cream. What is also worth noting is the ability for users to share pictures on Facebook via built-in 3G. In an age of social networking, brands providing new experiences also need to consider ways to promote the sharing of them. (source: http://www.mobilebehavior.com/2010/06/21/unilever-ice-cream-machine-detects-emotion-and-shares-happy/)

Watch "the share happy trailer" on http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DI-IO3kmxVc&feature=player_embedded

Information is beautiful

David McCandless is the mastermind behind the website (and book) "information is beautiful". "I’m an independent data journalist and information designer. A passion of mine is visualizing information – facts, data, ideas, subjects, issues, statistics, questions – all with the minimum of words.I’m interested in how designed information can help us understand the world, cut through BS and reveal the hidden connections, patterns and stories underneath. Or, failing that, it can just look cool!"

http://www.informationisbeautiful.net/ http://www.davidmccandless.com/

New Designers

www.newdesigners.com

New Designers is renowned for showcasing the very best in graduate design. This year marks its 25th anniversary, and once again, the July exhibition showcases 3,500 of the brightest and most creative talents from Britain's leading design courses. It is an event for fresh thinking and aspiration.

Part 1 • 01 – 04 July 2010 (Awards Preview 30 June) Textiles, Fashion & Accessories, Contemporary Applied Arts, Ceramics & Glass, Jewellery & Precious Metalwork, One Year On

Part 2 • 08 – 11 July 2010 (Awards Preview 7 July) Product Design, Furniture Design, Visual Communications (including Graphic Design and Illustration), Spatial Design, One Year On

New Designers takes place at the Business Design Centre, London, N1 OQH. Nearest tube Angel.

Creative use of typography

Here's a webpage we came across with examples of creative use of typography in advertisement. Some ads are brilliant, some funny, some confronting, either way: inspiring.

http://creativebits.org/inspiration/creative_use_typography_advertising

Rebranding the Science Museum - Triumph or disaster?

Johnson Banks recently revealed their new identity for London's Science Museum, which so far has been greeted with a mixed response from the design world.

CR will be running a in depth case study in August's edition, but their blog also contains an article with further detail from Michael Johnson regarding the rational behind such a drastic change. Read the comments and add your own...

Exhibitions we would visit

(King Kong made of 3000 coat hangers, by David Mach)

Exhibitions we would visit if we were free all day...

*** The Design Museum has a few exhibitions on but the one that caught my attention is called "Sustainable Futures". It explores a range of products, concepts and projects that address issues of sustainability in their design. Through prototypes, samples, products and film, you can find out more about your impact on the world and how to change it. I'd say: Always worth exploring in times like these. *** On until 05 September 2010

http://designmuseum.org/exhibitions/2010/sustainable-futures

*** The Royal Academy's annual Summer Exhibition is the world’s largest open submission contemporary art exhibition. It showcases work by both emerging and established artists in all media including painting, sculpture, photography, printmaking, architecture and film. This year’s co-ordinators, Royal Academicians Stephen Chambers and David Chipperfield, have selected works for the exhibition around the theme of ‘Raw’.

ps: for the real art-lovers: the majority of selected works are on sale, offering visitors an unrivaled

opportunity to purchase original artwork by high profile and up-and-coming artists. *** On until 22 August 2010 (closed on monday 5 July)

http://www.royalacademy.org.uk/exhibitions/summer-exhibition/