The Feltron 2008 Annual Report

by Brian Fichtner

Graphic designer and data visualization guru Nicholas Felton just released the fourth volume of the Feltron Annual Report, his yearly compendium of personal statistics. As in previous reports, Felton has meticulously logged factoids pertaining to travel, dining, drinking, listening, reading and photography. Apart from being a visual delight, The Feltron 2008 Annual Report makes for a fascinating anthropological case-study of a creative man living and working in New York.

Want to know how many Bloody Mary's he drank last year? Seven. His average miles walked per day? 3.13. The number of CDs purchased versus albums downloaded? 2 to 46. Why the Secret Service visited his office in September? You'll have to ask.

Unlike its predecessors, this year's report has been printed as a fold-out, the flip side of which features a collection of maps from Felton's travels. However, the bit of genius that will send you racing to order you own are the maps which have been plotted to create a cut-and-fold icosahedron atlas (below)—a twenty sided object comprised of equilateral triangles.

The Feltron 2008 Annual Report is produced in a signed and numbered edition of 3000. It can be purchased online for $5 (folded) or $10 (unfolded).

Also on CH, Nicholas Feltron Annual Report 2006

Jimmyjane: Little Gold Limited

by Karen Day

Valentines Day can be rather stressful. Luckily Jimmyjane, purveyor of sophisticated sex toys, has relieved some of the worry about what to gift your lover with their newest additions to the Little Gold vibrator line, aptly named Little Gold Limited.

Made of 24k gold, the luxurious little jewels are adorned with an intricate heart and scroll etching. The three new additions bear the words Mine, Trouble or Sugar inscribed inside the heart. All you have to do is pick which one best suits your sweetie. As with all of the Little Gold Limited toys, JimmyJane says each one is "waterproof, silent and everlasting."

Available for $375 from Jimmyjane.

Bouroullec Cloud for Kvadrat

by Leonora Oppenheim

The kings of the modern modular wall hanging, the Bouroullec Brothers, recently released their latest beautiful creation for Danish textile company Kvadrat. Entitled Cloud, a new hanging system allows endless variations of nebulous forms to be used in any way your imagination sees fit.

Cloud comes in two fabrics and seven colour ways. Through the simple device of a customised elastic band, tiles can be built up into an infinite number of forms and functions. This new product follows in the footsteps of North Tiles, the modular wall system that the Bouroullecs designed for Kvadrat in 2006.

Textile projects for Kvadrat have evolved from the Bouroullecs' plastic Algue and Twigs hanging screens produced by Vitra. We love the way these systems generously hand over the creative process at point of purchase, making interior design a collaborative event between designer and consumer.

via iconeye

São Paulo Fashion Week Winter 2009 Highlights

by Phuong-Cac Nguyen

Brasileirismos, or Brazil-isms, is admittedly a redundant theme for the already distinctly Brazilian collections at the Winter 2009 edition of São Paulo Fashion Week, which ended last Friday. The biggest change, compared to past seasons, was the massive influx of international journalists flown in (including our own Ami Kealoha and Greg Mitnick; video forthcoming) to provide coverage of an event whose organizers are pushing for it to stay on the fashion map.

2nd Floor was strong all around (above). Taking inspiration from the 40's and 50's era of aviation, the result as a romantic collection of skirts with plane appliques, bomber jackets and schoolboy looks.

Do Estilista bounced back to form after last season's fantasy-fueled outfits. This year designer Marcelo Sommer used prints taken off tiles and dishrags from Holland (above).

The Cavalera show took on a mysticism and folklorism inspired by an annual festival that takes place on the Brazilian Amazonian island of Paratins. Animal prints appeared among colorful, saturated pieces (below left).

Oestudio came through again with their expected element of surprise, integrating social commentary into fashion. This year they seemed to criticize society's tendency to turn a blind eye to serious issues (above right).

Always intriguing and fascinating, Osklen's collection used cotton sweatsuit material to create rather conceptual pieces. Playing with volume and unexpected pinnings created interesting silhouettes. Proving that function need not come at the cost of appeal, I especially enjoyed their rubber items (above).

Also on Cool Hunting SPFW Summer 2009 and SPFW Winter 2008.

Riitta Ikonen

by Lost At E Minor

Finnish artist Riitta Ikonen creates impressive costumes for her subjects, who then incorporate them into their environments in playful and hilarious ways. The experiences of the people wearing Ikonen's creations as they ride on subways, walk through parks and stand on the street seem just as important as the resulting images. Check out more of her work on her site.