Eric at Modern Self just made a great post about how to craft an arty LED Lightbox all by yourself (mommy will be proud). While I haven’t experimented with any sort of illuminated art in my own house, I can definitely see the draw. It allows you to create a bright and unique focal point in any room you need one. The basic materials for this project were a Ribba frame and Trettioen LED light strips from IKEA. While it took Eric and friends a good amount of time to complete the project, you should have a quicker and easier time with it thanks to Modern Self’s thorough directions. It’s nice to know that for well under $100 and a little craftsmanship, you can create a piece of art for your place that will have everyone asking “how’d you do that?”

As much as I love my Apple Blackbook, I don’t think it could provide me with the service that this Panasonic CF-M34 laptop provided to an American soldier in the 82nd Airborne Division on duty in Iraq. Word is, the soldier started carrying his laptop with him to help him fulfill his duties– something tells me it came in most handy for a task that he never foresaw. No word about where the shot came from, or how high a caliber shell, but the Panasonic Toughbook stopped it right in its tracks and saved the soldier from, at the very least, a trip to the hospital. Looks like our brave and dedicated overseas are now even doing the work of advertising agencies. I don’t think Panasonic could have wished for better publicity for their Toughbook line.
Via BoingBoing

I’ve just received word that Marlene Haring, the same artist that brought us the ‘Sucking Marks’ Exhibit at Scope Miami, is going to be performing ‘Secret Service‘ in New York City tomorrow. What is the ‘Secret Service Society,’ you ask? It is a meeting of fixed duration, on a given day, in a single place of an unspecified number of people. Everyone attending the meeting enters into a non-disclosure agreement which states that all transactions taking place during the Secret Service Society shall not be disclosed in any way to anyone else who has not been part of that Secret Service Society. On entering the agreement the Secret Service Society member is given a secret sign which will identify all the members of that particular Secret Service Society. God only know what Ms. Haring has in store for you all this time; but if it’s anything like Sucking Marks, you’re in for a treat! So if you’re in NYC tomorrow, from 1-8 PM, head to the International Studio & Curatorial Program (ISCP), 323 West 39th Street– take the lift to the 8th floor. And if you can’t make this event, catch up with Marlene at Scope New York.

The Just a Moment Clock by Reddish design studio is a quirky mix between analog and digital representations of time. Each time component is separated giving the appearance that hours, minutes and seconds are all different time zones. Maybe they’re all different dimensions, or maybe this is just a unique way to look at a clock–either way, I love it.

Italian designer Francesco Cappuccio has come up with quite the interesting new coffee table design. Dubbed “Canvas,” it’s inspired by Piet Mondrian’s 1918 painting “Composition with Gray and Light Brown” (obviously). “Canvas” represents the attempt to investigate the relationships between art and design, and I think Francesco does that quite directly here. He even added some individual flair by creating a secret door that comes right out of the design pattern, so you can hide your weeeellll, whatever you want. I know that the piece was produced by Artitude, but no word on whether or not “Canvas” is available for purchase; you can send Francesco an email from his website contact page and ask him if you’re interested.

Check out this incredible desk concept by Danish designer Soren Kjaer (serial entrepreneur behind Castit, the online casting agency, and founder of new media agency In2media). He teamed up with Holmris Hansen A/S to create this futuristic desk simply called Milk. The desk includes a hydraulic raise/lower feature, cable drawers and wire exits throughout, an innovative box feature along the left that serves as a place for a small fish tank, pen holder, trash bin and storage box. The desk was made to perfectly match Apple’s brushed aluminum look and accessories. No word on pricing or availability yet but I know I want one!