Three Great Men's Denim Lines

by Ami Kealoha

by Johnathan Lawhorn

For all you denim connoisseurs, here are three brands with today's de riguer details (or lack thereof) to keep your jeans arsenal as fresh as possible.

Denim & Thread
Launched in 2006 by the designer-denim technician duo of Ron London and Alex Lambousis, these Aussies have all the makings of a denim powerhouse, boasting their own in-house facilities and personalized finishing techniques. However, these designers are guided by a purist philosophy when it comes to construction, so don't expect bedazzling anytime soon. We're talking denim in its rawest form to emphasize shape and wearability. Influenced by the vintage threads of yore, the duo utilizes heavy 25-gauge-weight thread to create that hefty feel of authenticity.

Huffer
Conceived in 1997 by Dan Buckley and Steve Bunstan, the sportswear label Huffer has gracefully translated the founders' backgrounds in extreme sports to a range of clean, laid-back separates, denim in particular. The pair have infused a surf and turf grab bag of snowboarder-chic and skate-park grunge into their spring/summer collection called Infinite Supersymmetry. And, here, the designers have managed to tease out some pretty high-quality denim in the process. Their signature cut, the Infinity jean, gets raves for its relaxed but still lean silhouette that serves as the perfect antidote to the super skinnies of yesteryear.

YMC
The brainchild of Fraser Moss and Jimmy Collins, YMC has quietly developed into a full lifestyle label with the cult following to show for it. However, it's their standout selvedge denim that is the star component of this well-oiled machine. Constructed out of premium raw Japanese denim, this durable pair of jeans will no doubt become a wardrobe mainstay. And this comes as no surprise considering the pair has long operated under American Industrial Design pioneer Raymond Loewy's mantra that "you must create your own design style," which carefully guides the construction of their collections from season to season. Not that seasonal trends matter to these two anyway.

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Veer Ideas

by Max Gold

When Van Gogh dreamed of a utopian community of artists in the south of France, he probably wasn't thinking of the online possibilities. Fortunately for us (over 100 years after the painter's vision), there's Veer Ideas, a social networking site where creatives and design lovers can create original content and connect with each other. It's a creative playground defined by each participant as they visually realize their own unique imagination.

The site levels the playing field—whether professional designers or aspiring artists, each user can comment on each other's portfolios and connect through the collaborative creation of unique digital environments, as well as share inspirations on a communal blog.

We love Veer Ideas for opening up the creative potential of the web in a way that doesn't happen nearly often enough.

A Century of Olympic Posters Book

by Laurice Parkin

As we all watch the Olympic athletes take their talent to the worldwide stage less than two months from now at the 2008 Summer Games, graphic design aficionados will be watching another kind of talent on display: the posters. Throughout the history of the games, the posters have provided a unique visual record, evoking everything from time, geography, style and sometime politics.

"A Century of Olympic Posters", published this month from Abrams, traces the evolution of the poster from the first official one for Stockholm in 1912 until the present. The range of styles is as fascinating as the historical context and the evolution of graphic design itself. Sixties Op-Art is perfectly reflected in Mexico's poster in 1968. And, Tokyo's stark minimalist take on the 1964 games reflects a timelessness that still looks incredibly modern today.

In conjunction with the book, at London's Victoria and Albert Museum of Childhood, you can see the Museum's collection of posters as well as various ephemera from the games. A selection of posters has also been made available for purchase at the V&A shop.

A Century of Olympic Posters
Through 7 September 2008
V&A Museum of Childhood
Cambridge Heath Road
London E2 9PA
United Kingdom map
tel. +44 (0)20 8983 5200

Fogo Design

by Phuong-Cac Nguyen

Shattering the divide between street and home, Brazilian creative agency Fogo Design playfully reinterprets household objects in forms that some would call trash. The company, made up of longtime friends Miguel Sanches and Ramses Marcal, promote good humor through each of their products, all of which ride the conceptual line.

Their past work includes objects like a lamp that resembles a huge box of matches; to switch it on, slide open the box. A magazine rack takes on the shape of a set of bottles and the blades of stainless-steel knives feature lurid color graphics and engravings that suggest darker uses for them than cutting vegetables.

We'd say their goal of making people see ordinary objects in new ways has been realized. Contact them through their site to find out how you can get a hold of their products.

Tielen Perpetual Calendar

by Tim Yu

We love the Tielen Perpetual Calendar for its simple design and, well, perpetual usefulness. Apparently some folks in Sweden liked it too recently awarding the prototype a European Design Award last week in Stockholm.

Graphic designer Sander Tielen used the versatility of the digital numeral "8," creating different colored cards that slide in behind a black front to display the date with an appealingly clean retro '80s look. The number on the lower right hand corner in white indicates the month while the bright fading colors mark the day. Easy to use and read, all other calendars start to pale in comparison.

There's no word on price yet but you can contact Tielen directly to find out more.