To say "I love social media" on a WordPress blog that will be shared via Twitter and Pinterest – is stating the obvious to the point of blushing. Chances are if you're reading this, you love social media too (though I wonder if your time would be better spent elsewhere online with much better content). In particular I love the "social" part of social media; the collective sharing, learning, working, meeting. I think it's phenomenal and it's what I suppose is one of the altruistic aims. When this aim is in symbiosis with a fabulous product, a fail whale gets its wings. Or at the very least, you have a game changing idea.
I really wish I could remember where I first stumbled upon this genius of an idea, but I do know it was through social media. A dollhouse with simple elegant design that didn't just leave its walls blank for imagination to run free but comes with an online point of creative departure with crowdsourced ideas to personalize and make it your own. They even crowdsourced their funding through Kickstarter.
Alyson Beaton and her Grow Studio team have designed locally made, eco friendly modular houses using baltic birch and easily replaced recycled paperboard (I've already mentioned my affinity for cardboard). They pack flat which is welcome news for those of us whose square footage or patience can't afford clutter (both apply to me).
I love every aspect of this toy, and what it can become as it's shared within a online community and IRL. It engages kids to be inspired by the designers' ideas, share their own ideas and see other kids' featured work, and learn from how-to tutorials by Esty artisans crowdsourced by Grow Studio.
Having spent untold hours hunting online for a dollhouse that didn't start its life in an injection mold or display a glaring gender bias, I can tell you that wooden dolly domiciles don't come cheap. I was thrilled to see that Grow Studio starts their pricing at $12 for adorable mini houses and tops out at $60 for their biggest houses not to mention all sorts of fun add ins and replacement parts to prolong the life of this clever house.
Now that my Christmas list for the girls is locked, I can spend more time fiddling about with the downloads and trolling thrift shops for jazzy fabric the girls can use to make soon-enough-to-be-their Lille Houses theirs. It's going to be a happy crowd happily crowdsourcing *wah wah* this December!
NOTE: Fab added some of these houses to its list of incredible things to buy – discount is 30%. Sale ends in just under 7 days on Oct 9th 2012. Woot!
I first saw this video on Design Mom (one of my favorite blogs, and top of my life to envy/admire list). I was thrilled to watch two ladies making their names in research communities, hold their own with venture capital funders, and proving themselves as successful entrepreneurs.
Plus the idea is pretty darn clever. And the video is just slick – nod to Focus Forward Films. Riveting … it gets me each time I watch it.
Pinterest makes me nervous. At first, to be honest, I was annoyed by Pinterest. A dear friend of mine had sent me an invitation to join in the early days before its meteoric rise. At the time it was just one too many social media platforms for me to digest. I'll admit jumping on the Pinterest bandwagon after learning that my husband's boards were gaining followers (being a twin, my bent towards parity borders on competitiveness). As I grew enamored with pinning and repinning, anxiety started to interrupt my enjoyment.
What worried me is that I realized I want to LIVE inside Pinterest. Specifically the gorgeous well-appointed world of Merche Grosso and her series of boards. Any of these delightful domiciles would do. I'd traipse around stunning vistas, nibble on snacks that are as delicious as they are beautiful, and perhaps learn about how to dress or why packaging sometimes trumps what it contains.
If she wasn't so talented, if her eye wasn't so attuned to fabulous innovative and winsome design, I might just be put off by it all. Instead I'm planning my move to her Pinterest boards where I'm sure I won't need any of my own things but definitely need to forward my mail so I can keep in touch with my family.