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My friends Mary and Chris from Maryink are big soda fans, but they don't drink the store-bought stuff, instead they make their own with this gadget from Soda Club. It is about the size of a blender and doesn't require electricity, it costs only 50 cents to make a liter of soda, and the best thing is you no longer need to buy bottled beverages anymore, all you'll ever use are those 3 bottles pictured here, great for the environment! The down side is you do have to order everything online. But since Chad prefers drinking seltzer and I am just an occasional soda drinker, we probably won't think it's a hassle.
Here is how it works: fill a bottle with cool water, screw it into the carbonator, press the fizz button five or six times, add the flavored mix to the bottle (or you could do without the mix if you're making seltzer), close the bottle and shake a few times, and within a minute, you have a home-made bottle of soda!
As for the mixes, they have lots of flavors available- all the fruity flavors, cream, vanilla, and flavors that are similar to Mountain Dew, Coke, 7-Up, and Dr. Pepper! You can also make egg-cream with it (seltzer and chocolate syrup). As a creative person, you know I'll be mixing flavors and experiment with other beverages like coffee and tea, wonder if I can make frothy milk shake or orange juice with it???
image: Engadget.com
Erin and Zach are my dear friends living in Tokyo, they are both teachers at a Montessori school there. Because most people live in tiny apartments in Tokyo, they are experts in eliminating unwanted waste that would clutter their homes. (Note: The house below is not their home, it's a house near their apartment) Here are some of their great tips:
Erin
We have learned a lot from Japan. Here, instead of using paper towels, most people carry a small washcloth to dry their hands. Saves a lot of paper!!
Also, we carry our own bags to shops and if we do happen to get a plastic bag, we use it as a trash bag (instead of buying new trashbags).
Have a clothes trading party. Everyone brings their old (or new) clothes that they are tired of wearing/haven't worn in a long time/don't fit and puts them on a table or in a huge pile on the floor and then people just take what they want. The extra clothes get donated to charity.
Zach
See your CO2 footprint at one of these sites:
https://sustainabletravelinternational.org/
http://www.climatecare.org/
How many planets does it take for us to live like we do? SEE (My favorite):
http://ww2.earthday.net/
Become a virtual marcher:
http://www.stopglobalwarming.org/
Check the happy planet index "Economics as if the people and the planet mattered.": http://www.happyplanetindex.org/index.htm
Watch the documentary Planet Earth. Absolutely amazing!
Or, if you still haven't seen it, An Inconvenient Truth.
Oh, and PLANT A TREE!!!! wooo hoooo!
Thank you, Erin and Zach!
To celebrate Earth Day, I asked some of my good friends to share their tips on ways to help save the earth. Keep in mind that we're city busy dwellers and we're not active environmentalists, so what we practice are easy and sensible for everyone!
• Eliminate unwanted catalogs (basically all of them) sent to our home by signing up for CatalogChoice.org. It's easy, once you sign up, you can choose from a long list of catalogs that you wish to opt-out. You can also call the customer service numbers on the back of the catalogs and ask to have your info removed from their mailing lists.
•Turn the lights out when you leave the room for more than 5 minutes. and buy CFL or LED bulbs.
•Unplug electronics, rather than just turning them off, if you aren't using them regularly. vampire consumption adds up. anything plugged in draws electricity.
•Use environmentally safe cleaning products, recycle your trash at home AND at work. Treehugger has wonderful Buy Green Guides that will help you live healthier, live better and live more efficiently.
•Go vegetarian! Greening your diet is better for the earth than greening your car. Livestock production is not just cruel but is one of the top two polluters in the world.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/kathy-freston/vegetarian-is-the-new-pri_b_39014.html
Thanks: Chad, Gal, and Nicki
images: CatalogChoice.org, Treehugger.com
Open Space Gallery in Beacon NY has a wonderful Tote Bag show featuring over 100 artists' customized tote bags. Each artist was given the same natural canvas tote bag, and I am amazed by the caliber of the artists (shown here: Caroline Hwang, Dan Funderburgh, and Upso) that generously donated their time and creativity, and what amazing designs they came up with! Each bag is $100, but it is for a really good cause...
90% of the proceeds from the sales will go to the Hudson River Sloop Clearwater, a New York-based organization committed to environmental education and advocacy. Its mission is to protect the Hudson River, its tributaries and related water bodies, and to create public awareness of the estuary’s complex relationship with the coastal zone. A magnificent natural design blending the freshwater streams of the Adirondacks with the salt tides of the Atlantic, the Hudson is a prime example of an estuary’s ecosystem that, as a type, ranks second only to rain forests in biological productivity.
A good reason why you should go see the show- it's in Beacon, NY. What a good excuse to leave the city and while you're up there you could also go to DIA!
images: openspace.org
Check it out! chadkrobot.blogspot.com.
Come see him speak at the Brooklyn Museum this Saturday.
Panel discussion-Envisiong Japan: Consuming Art in Japan/America
2pm-4pm
Iris and B. Gerald Cantor Auditorium, 3rd Floor
See you there!
HyperJumbo is only 2 days old and I love this A2 screenprint. It kind of reminds me of Utensilo (below) which is one of my all time favorite products. I hope to see more work from Adam from HyperJumbo.
images: hyperJumbo.etsy.com, velocity
Mary is Chad's friend from high school in Nashville, she moved to New York for college and worked as a photo stylist. Now Mary is happily married to Chris and live in East Nashville. Their baby- Maryink, is one of the most popular shops on Etsy! Here are the Five Whats:
What is your all-time favorite product in your shop and why?
It's a tie- I love the Arcadia votive set (above), it's dreamy and cool. The French ad copy t-shirt (below) is a fave, too, which is something that Chris made.
What is your dream job (project)?
I'd love to do something for John Derian. I want everything in his store, and I love the decoupage he does.
What are your inspirations?
I have a lot, and current ones are: fairy tales, Spring, 50-60's kitchen items, Georgian and Victorian gloominess.
What do you like to do in your spare time?
I like to take bike rides in the big park by my apartment. The path meanders by the river, and sometimes it seems like I am in the middle of nowhere. I also like to garden, and I'm excited to start my tomato container garden once it warms up.
What kind of music do you listen to? Favorite bands?
Right now, I listen to the Knife, Dungen, Stereo Total, old David Bowie, and Vive la Fete the most.images: maryink.etsy.com, thanks Mary!
Renegade Craft Fair in Brooklyn is going to be my first time as a craft show vendor, and I am so thrilled to share the space with the lovely and talented Kimberly of Chez Sucre Chez. I hope to bribe you guys into buying some stuff with lemonade and treats! The Fair will be held at McCarren Park Pool in Williamsburg on June 14th and 15th, from 11am to 7pm. Starting next week I will be posting the new prints/products that I'm making for the Fair!image: renegade craft fair
I promise promise promise that I will make it up to you with lots of new posts next week. I'm going there on Sunday, drop me a line if you are going!
This week I am proud to present Five Whats with the Founder and President of Kidrobot, Paul Budnitz. Paul is the man with the vision and courage to popularize the urban toy industry, within 6 years Kidrobot became one of the most successful urban toy/apparel stores in the country. I wanted to know what it's like to be Paul and as you read the answers you'll find him a very grounded and energetic person with a balanced life between work and play (you should also visit his blog). Here are the Five Whats:
What is an average weekday like in the life of Paul Budnitz? What about an average weekend?
Weekday: wake, brush teeth, floss teeth, meditate, run 3 miles, eat Bunnylove cereal with soymilk, put on cyan blue Nikes, dodge scary streetsweeper homeless guy who recognizes me every day and lives on Sullivan street, catch M6 to work, design some stuff, eat lunch, design some more stuff, eat a snack, run out of office in a sudden panic, end up wandering around the Islamic Art section at the Metropolitan museum of art, dinner at Korean restaurant, home, read Tintin comics, practice Tai Chi, eat Bunnylove cereal with soymilk, brush teeth, floss teeth, sleep.
Weekend: The same, except substitute Vietnamese for Korean food.
What is your favorite food?
Bunnylove cereal and Almond Butter.
What are your inspirations?
This week: The Dead Boys, Flashdance, and Mr. Peanut.
Last week: Benjamin Franklin, Junya Wantanabe, Asterix, and Smax. 
What is your favorite product that Kidrobot has ever made?
It changes almost every day. Right now it is "CAPEE: Calcium is Insufficient!" in pink flock.
What does it take to be a successful entrepreneur?
A firm and unshakable commitment to see what one is doing through, no matter what, and at all costs.
Until one is committed
there is hesitancy, the chance to draw back
always ineffectiveness
Concerning all acts of initiative (and creation)
there is one elementary truth,
the ignorance of which kills countless ideas
and splendid plans:
that the moment one definitely commits oneself,
then Providence moves too.
All sorts of things occur to help one
that would otherwise never have occurred.
A whole stream of events issues from the decision,
raising in one’s favor all manner
of unforeseen incidents and meetings
and material assistance,
which no man could have dreamt
would have come his way.
-W.N. Murray
The Scottish Himalayan Expedition
images: Kidrobot and blog.paulbudnitz.com
Sorry guys, I'm having a very busy week so the Five Whats that was planned for this week has to be rescheduled for next Tuesday. But I promise that it is going to be a SUPER one! Postings will be light for the rest of the week as well, I'll be back (better than ever?) next week.
image: cuteoverload.com
It's funny that all the art and design crews that I'm really into lately are husband and wife teams, and today I'm loving Little Friends of Printmaking, or lfop. Based in Milwaukee and trained as fine art printmakers, their dalliance in silkscreened concert posters quickly turned into a design career. 
I like this print they did for Poketo (above), it was letterpressed 3 times with Stonehenge 90 lbs printmaking paper with ink carefully mixed by hand. The indentation resulted from the print process makes the print so special! It also comes with a numbered certificate which is also letter pressed and so cute! They also have an Etsy shop selling mainly silkscreened concert posters, I prefer these non band-related ones (below and above top).
images: Poketo, lfop.etsy.com
