ThingsAmongMany

The iconic musings of Droog Design will find their way to a new home in Soho (NYC for those across the pond) beginning on February 26. According to this NYTimes article, merchandise is already on a boat headed this way. Droog’s new shop will be at 76 Greene St. near Spring. According to Droog founder, Renny Ramakers,

a kind of exploded house made from bricks of blue foam, conceived by Jurgen Bey, the Rotterdam-based designer. Pieces of this structure will sprout from the SoHo showroom’s floor: a door here, a chimney there, a balcony in another corner. Droog products will perch on top or nestle within these deconstructed blue bits, and if you like the bits — a section of that balcony, for instance — you can buy them, too.

Known for their unique furniture and lighting solutions, Droog employees 200+ designers to create a unique collection of objects, etc.

I got an email this morning from a reader, Danielle, who runs a boutique/gallery in Brooklyn called Fact & Fancy. A quick glance at her site reveals that her shop is likely well-worth a stop. I immediately recognized a couple of the designs that she’s featuring from my previous hunting. A couple of jewelry designers stood out in particular; the ZipTie ring from MetalNat made the rounds a while ago, and the pieces from Metalicious caught my eye recently when I stumbled onto their Supermarket shop.

And, to help you get through those last-minute holiday gifts, Fact & Fancy is holding a series of trunk shows with a variety of artists through next tuesday. Here’s the schedule:

RSVP to one or more of these shows by emailing
factandfancybrooklyn at gmail.com
and get a free gift!

jewelry by danielle maveal
friday dec.19th 6pm-8pm

fine art and ceramics by louche lab
saturday dec.20th 3pm-5pm

housewares by cakehouse
sunday dec.21st 3pm-5pm

felt & knit accessories by nguyen le
monday dec. 22nd 6pm-8pm

bags and wallets by callieco
tuesday dec.23rd 6pm-8pm

Just goes to show you, those little Google links aren’t always completely ignorable. I noticed a link to Terreform 1 the other day in the text-ad at the top of my Gmail account, and something about it grabbed my attention enough to click. One glance at the home page was enough to get me to bookmark it for later, though I have to admit, I didn’t get to it until this morning.

Figuring out how to describe Terreform 1 (or ONE as some of their documentation holds, “Open Network Ecology”) isn’t the easiest task. In their own words, they’re

a nonprofit organization and philanthropic design collaborative that integrates ecological principles in the urban realm

Ok, that makes perfect sense. But what do they do? How about some badass thinking around the future of urban sustainability? They sum it up as, “the organization has created a unique laboratory for scientists, artists, architects, students and individuals of all ages and backgrounds to explore the larger framework of ecology in design. We are currently working on innovative practices and appropriate technologies for local sustainability in such matters as energy, transportation, buildings, waste treatment, food, water, and culture. Our goal is to advance the environmental future of New York City and inspire solutions in areas like it around the world.”

Sounds pretty freakin’ awesome to me! And by the looks of the credentials of their team members, these guys could be a force to be reckoned with in the future. They have some really interesting interpretations of what “urban” will mean in the future and how it will manifest itself, particularly in NYC. They’ve put together a video of their ideas that’s well work checking out.

A couple of weeks ago, we introduced you to Urban Escapes, a new adventure travel company based in NYC. They’re really getting things rolling with new trips posted for August and a new interim website to hold things over until the full experience launches. You can get all the info, and keep an eye out for the new site, at http://www.urbanescapesnyc.com.

August trips include two backpacking excursions as well as a combined hiking/whitewater rafting trip that sounds like a total blast! The guides at Urban Escapes handle all of the planning, most of the packing, and will keep an eye on everyone to make sure no one wanders off alone. Keep in mind, the price also includes transportation to and from a central meeting point in Manhattan and these guys have done the leg-work to hunt down some fantastic trip locations within a reasonable distance from the city. You seriously won’t believe that you can find all of this within a short drive of the concrete jungle! Don’t believe us? Have a look at the shots from a recent trip:

So, as much as we all love living in the heart of things where no one ever sleeps and rent costs half your salary, sometimes you just need to get away. The problem is where? Many New Yorkers don’t have a car (and renting costs a fortune in the city). Montauk and the Hamptons have a certain…personality, let’s call it, that isn’t so agreeable to everyone. As does Fire Island. Atlantic City can be just a bit too much.

How about reconnecting with nature? We live in the one of the biggest concrete jungles in the world. Getting away from all of it - away from the car horns, the jackhammers, the screaching subways - is an amazing, wonderful thing. And it just so happens that a friend of mine has started a company that offers the perfect solution. Urban Escapes (have a look at the Facebook group for info; a website is coming soon) offers a variety of outdoorsy, adventurous trips that are perfectly suited for the city-folk who need to get away.

I had the pleasure of helping out on one of the first trips this past weekend. It had been way too long since I’d been out in the woods, and the experience was phenomenal. The group was awesome; everyone was excited to get outdoors and ready to help out wherever they could. And a good time was had by all.

There’s another trip planned for this weekend if enough people jump onboard. And the price is right considering that transportation to and from Manhattan, all food, entertainment, and experienced guides are all included. If you can’t make this weekend’s adventure, be sure to keep an eye on the Facebook Group - and soon, on the website - for an up-to-date schedule of trips.

I know I’m not the first one to post this. The guys over at High Snobiety tipped me off. That, said, I’m uber-excited so I’m shamelessly reblogging it. Colette, the famously infamous Paris design boutique, is closing their doors for a few weeks for a full redesign.

You’re right, that probably doesn’t sound so exciting. In fact, the idea of them closing (despite being for a redesign) is kind of mournful. The exciting news is that Colette is coming to NYC! For one month, September 6 to October 5, Colette will be operating a pop-up store near 54th st. and 5th Ave.

Think you can shoot? Weekend warrior who hasn’t had the gumption to get out there and get “discovered”? Then it looks like the EXPOSURE competition might be right up your alley. The Artists Wanted organization has initiated their latest call for entries. This time photography is the topic of choice.

They’re looking for submissions of four images from up-and-coming, previously undiscovered, or already out there photographers. The prize inside? First place will net you a collection of your photos printed billboard-size around NYC along with a gallery opening and $2008. There’s also a student prize of $1000, including an additional $500 educator’s grant for their teacher, and a People’s Choice award of $500. The organization also claims to keep an eye on the entries for anyone else that they can help be discovered along the way. So even if you don’t win, you just might score a gig for your trouble. Entry costs $25 and the deadline is fast approaching.

And, for a moment of shameless self-promotion, you can check out my entries here. If you like what you see, please take just a second to vote.

New York is one of those “tough” cities. It’s tough to live in and it makes you tough to live in it (or so they say). But every once in a while, you hear a story from a friend or just stumble across something that reaffirms why we all do it. Why we struggle through the noise, the pollution, the high rents, and the (quite literal) stench of summer. Heading East, a blog entry by Raul Gutierrez - not Raul Gutierrez the Fu-Shih Kempo Knife Fighting Master - did that for me recently…

After a few minutes a very tall girl with long brown hair who I would later learn was a Parsons design student, broke social convention, turned to her fellow benchmates, and said, “My God, wasn’t today beautiful.”

Take a minute to read the rest. It’ll make you feel better about the “Law and Order” look at NYC where there’s a murder a minute and you take your life into your hands walking down the street.