Indulge

A more current issue in the world of packaging today is making packaging more eco friendly. UXUS has designed a new type of wine package for APL Wines' new series of wines called indulge. At first glance you may not realize that this pouch stores wine, but with its spout and lightweight packaging this wine pacakge makes it ideal for travel. Each package contains 1.5L of wine but is only has only 2% of the weight of ONE regular glass bottle. Not to mention that due to the materials it's made of, buying a pouch of Indulge will save your pocketbook as well.

Information from: http://www.dexigner.com/news/23052

Picture from: http://yum.sfstation.com/files/2011/03/indulge-wine-pouches-590.jpg

Water is Life

Water is life was an international art competition that showcases how the title says, water is life. "The aim of the competition is not only to demonstrate that the younger generations are prepared to bear their share of the responsibility for our world but, first and foremost, to publicize the message that ‘Water is Life’ to a broad public by means of worldwide exhibitions."

This competition was open to students to interpret the message in a creative way in a poster. Each participant could submit up to 4 posters by the end of 2010. On the 20th of February, 2011 the winners were announced.

Although this poster didn't win, it is my personal favourite. It makes the viewer look deeper into the picture to understand the message. In the top box the artist (Aleksander Pujszo of Poland) depicts a golfer's feet on a perfect green looking into the golf hole, in the bottom there is a picture of a shoeless person on dry ground with a waterhole that only spans out the size of a golf hole. I believe this picture puts into perspective how much water developed countries waste that developing countries need.

research from:http://www.posterart-waterislife.com/

STRESS!

Two weeks in, eleven projects on the go and feeling like I'm six feet under. With this said time and stress management has become a huge issue in my life.

"So how do you deal with this stress?"

After research I've found multiple ideas that could work for me, and and equal amount that probably wont here's a list of the top 10 stress relieves that I think would work:

1. "Don't rely on your memory ... write it down"

2. "Avoid negative people"

3. "Stop thinking tomorrow will be a better today"

4. "Visualize yourself winning"

5.  "Exercise every day"

6. "Sleep"

7. "Avoid stressful situations"

8."Participate in something you don't find stressful, such as sports, social events or hobbies"

9."Don't worry about things you can't control, such as the weather"

10. "Eat regular, well-balanced meals and get enough sleep"

http://www2.honolulu.hawaii.edu/facdev/guidebk/teachtip/101ways.htm

http://www.studygs.net/stress.htm

Participate in something you don't find stressful, such as sports, social events or hobbies.

Five Designs That Will Save our Planet and Benifit Humans

1. LifeStraw.

The average human is able to survive up to sixty days without food but can only survive on average three to five days without water. Water is a basic need that many people take for granted in developed countries. On the other hand in developing countries clean drinking water is hard to come by."Approximately 43% of the global population, especially the lower-income populace in the remote and rural parts of the developing world, is deprived of household safe piped water." With this said almost half the world does not have access to clean drinking water. To solve this problem the company Vestergaard has come out with a device called a Lifestaw has been made, this small device, 25cm long allows the user to drink from virtually any source of water. The lLfestraw filters out bacteria and any waterborne diseases for up to 700L of water.

2. Houses made of storage crates

Storage crate houses can save our planet in more ways than one. First off they can be built offsite of the end location, this means that construction costs are reduced. Secondly since these crates are no longer being used, it gives them an alternate purpose. According to environmentalgraffati.com these houses are made of"80% recycled materials."

3. Sky Sails

A sky sail looks like a giant para sail for a cargo ship. The purpose of this sail is to harness the wind as a source of energy. The use of sky sails can "reduce a ship's annual fuel costs by 10% to 35%." Ten percent may not seem like a drastic amount but this could make a huge difference on our impact on the environment.

4. Post consumer Recycled Plastic

A designer from chile has come out with a line of products that are"100% post-consumer recycled plastic coming from toys, electronic devices, fast food trays, and everything in between." These products range from plastic bottles, to stools made of recycled garbage cans and stools made of used electronics. Although these products are made of recycled materials, most of them would have ended up in the trash due to the fact that they are too much of a hassle to recycle.

5. Solar Powered Eye Implants

Old ill powered eye implants are a worry of the past with the new solar powered model. No longer do candidates of eye implants have to worry about not having enough of a energy supply for the implant to work due to this implant's solar chip.

http://www.vestergaard-frandsen.com/lifestraw

http://www.globalhealthhub.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/lifestraw1.jpg

http://design.spotcoolstuff.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/03/container-houses-m.jpghttp://inhabitat.com/7-designs-that-can-improve-your-health/

http://images.businessweek.com/ss/09/12/1209_25_world_changing_products/21.htm

http://www.environmentalgraffiti.com/featured/5-incredible-container-houses/3132?image=5http://www.springfieldmstech.info/pictures%20for%20tutorials/eye.jpg

Package Design

http://ideasinspiringinnovation.files.wordpress.com/2010/03/logo-product-identity-design-makeover_tropicana-orange-juice_us-1.jpg

On the first day of class we were shown a package redesign by Tropicana that went terribly wrong. Not only does the new design look generic, but also strays from the design familiarity of what loyal customers have grown to love. The loss of Tropicana's identity is to blame for thier loss of sales with this package redesign.

http://refineddesigner.files.wordpress.com/2010/02/new_ketchup2.jpg

While surfing core77.com I came across a package redesign that in my opinion works well and is more aesthetically pleasing. This ketchup bottled shaped packet can be used for squeezing ketchup onto food such as burgers or used to dip for food such as chicken nuggets. At a first glance you are able to tell what it is, what you can do with it and how to use it. This package is an example of how form and function can work well together.

3.5 Million, The Price of Life?

http://www.treehugger.com/files/2010/10/damien-hirst-artwork-thousands-butterfly-wings.php

At first glace the corresponding picture appears to be a kaleidoscope of radiant colours but take a closer look and you will notice the thousands of butterflies.(and yes these are REAL butterflies) This piece of art which stands 17x7ft was sold for 2.2 million pounds which roughly translates to 3.5 million dollars Canadian. Although the artist, Damien Hirst did not say where the butterflies were from for his artwork entitled I Am Becoming Death, one could assume that these butterflies were harvested for their vibrant colours. 

Breathtakingly beautiful? Yes. Ethical? Not in the slightest.

To read more about butterfly harvesting:

http://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive-free/pdf?res=FB0A15F8395414728DDDAD0994D0405B848CF1D3