Packaging: the pull-tab of a chocolate bar

I’m impressed yet again by packaging for something as simple as a chocolate bar! Of course, it would be a Korean company to think of something clever like this… But is it ‘over-designed’? Did opening a chocolate bar really need such ‘innovation’ and rethinking? In reality, does adding this ‘simplification’ actually complicate the action of […]

PMQ Render_Tiffany Wan Writer

Interview: Billy Tam of Thomas Chow Architects Limited

As you’re all aware, community involvement is core to our philosophy here at Design Museum Boston, and we’re not alone. As I dig and dive deeper into the design scene in Hong Kong, I’m learning that this idea and importance of community is becoming increasingly vital to the artists and designers in this financially driven […]

Lucky Bookstore, Shanghai

It’s a week into the Year of the Rabbit and I’m wishing everyone all the best for the new lunar year! To keep with the luck, perhaps a visit to the lucky bookstore is an order: Happy Chinese New Year! And there couldn’t be a more fitting way to be greeted into the year of […]

Happy New Year! (and A Brandnü Way of Thinking)

Happy 2011! Wishing everyone all the best for the coming year :) Here’s to the first post of 2011 and an update of my own! Design Museum Boston is proud to present Tiffany Wan, the newest addition to our correspondents team. A graduate of Syracuse University and currently located in Beijing, Tiffany will be bringing an […]

Design Museum Boston

Last night DesignMuseumBoston hosted an event in collaboration with Office Environments of New England to not only eat, drink, and meet some wonderful people, but to also give some background and insight into what the Design Museum is trying to accomplish.  In addition to opening nomadic and ever-changing ‘pop-up museums’ in empty store fronts, DesignMuseumBoston […]

manage your cords

It’s true that our lives revolve more and more around electronics and it’s peculiar that cord management of all our electronics has really become an issue for us! I love travel accessories and MI-O cell phone cradle via YankoDesign helps manage all those cords when charging your cell phone, so they aren’t dangling all over the place. There’s […]

Designboom launches Chinese site

Designboom has just launched a version of it’s site in Chinese with translations of the same original English content! (Though, I can’t seem to match the content up…) Anyways, have a look at the chinese version http://cn.designboom.com :) Designboom 现在有中文的网站!看看。

stampy digi-cam

A new look at the Polaroid and instant-photo? In stamp form! Stampy is a camera concept that allows users to ‘stamp’ photos instead of print them (or in addition to printing photos). The pixelation of the stamp is a visual detail that references the original digital photo…? I’m curious what the thought process was behind […]

great logos have a message

This collection of logos at DevSnippets goes beyond typographic aesthetics; they successfully communicate a visual message about the company. Simply lovely designs! Check out some more via DevSnippets

bus stop: Suzhou

I loved the traditional Chinese architecture inspired bus stops of Suzhou! It really does emphasize and tie together the  historical significance of the gardens in this city. Lovely :)

Yves Behar’s FuseProject: free eyeglasses

Mexican government sponsored program “See Better to Learn Better” partnered with FuseProject to develop a line of free eyeglasses, Collección Escolar 2010, especially for students aged 6-18. The glasses are customizable, fashionable, and nearly unbreakable with seven different colors, five shapes to choose from, and three different sizes. Lovely! Well reported at Core77, FastCompany, and Good

I want: Chinese Military Shovel

As multi-function as a Swiss Army knife! On a larger scale. – shovel, dig, cut and chop, saw, peel, measure, climb, hammer and much much more… – 铲(chan3),挖(wa1),砍(kan3),锯(ju4),削(xiao1),量(liang2),攀(pan1),锤(chui2)…

bathroom icons

Usually toilets stick with just 1 icon, but at Vancouver’s BC Place Stadium, they’ve decided to emphasize variety with the use of 6 different icons for the women’s toilet. Oddly retro.. maybe it’s the use of the lime-green color?

VisionUnion: Chinese design blog

I’m well aware of many of the US based design blogs, but was recently directed by a friend to VisionUnion: Visionunion.net was found in June, 2008 with responsibility to introduce China Design to the world, report important affairs in China, promote China’s design firms/school of design/designers, present China’s original design works and articles. Have a […]

wanderlust posters

Wonderful Wanderlust graphic posters of  the 7 continents: Africa, Antarctica, Asia, South America, North America, Australia and Europe. I want! via JoshSpear

this city needs a bike rental system

It’s been about 2 months since I’ve arrived in this sprawling city of Beijing. I find myself keeping quite active with exploring and meeting some great people. Though, I continually wish for a more walkable city and more manageable scale. I wonder how long it will take me to fully adjust, or if I will. […]

flagged umbrella

A tour guide with her flag and umbrella.. clever and inventive way of combining the use and function of 2 products:

China aims to move away from OEM

Interesting article with growth of Chinese design and moving from OEMs (original equipment manufacturers) to ODM (original design manufacturers) to more importantly, OBM (original brand manufacturers). China’s design industry experts are calling for greater government support in order to help the country’s manufacturers raise the competitiveness with innovation. Zhu Tao, president of China Industrial Design […]

‘Beijing design’ embraces cultural roots

An article published at Design Week, before the 2008 Summer Olympics discusses the shift and change in Chinese design, particularly Beijing. I’m curious how things are continuing to progress and re-shape, almost 2 years later. ‘China has been gradually getting its confidence back after the fast development of its economy,’ says Hank Chao, who heads award-winning Shanghai […]