above: one of the more uusual wooden toy cars, Tomoki Azumi's 'Would You Like A Slice Of Toast?' 
Matteo Ragni has gathered together 100 masters of design from all over the world including Karim Rashid, Marcel Wanders, Barber Ogersby, Fernando and Humberto Campana, Jaime Hayon, Fabio Novembre and Setsu & Shinobu Ito to name but a few. With these globally renowned designers and the support of Alessi, Ragni created “100% TobeUs: 100 designers for 100 new toy cars.”
TobeUs was born as a result of a designer who had become a father and couldn't stand watching his own children captivated by toys just for a few hours and then destroying or growing bored of them. According to Matteo Ragni the easiest solution to this is to give children the possibility to 'love' an object.
To accomplish this, Ragni felt the right choice of material with a recognizable smell, an unquestioned resistance to impact and texting, and, ultimately, a dignified end: recycling or re-utilization was the way to go.
This is how the idea of TobeUs was born: toy cars made of cedar wood, strong and sweet-scented, beautifully and cleverly planned by skillful and passionate designers.
above, clockwise from top left: Fabio Novembre, Paolo Lomazzi, Setsu & Shinobu Ito and Donato Durbino
Some resemble architecture, others dinosaurs. Some are incredibly aerodynamic, while others have multiple angular components. And still some are inspired by present automobiles and others double as everything from pencil holders to puzzles.
Here are some of the more unusual examples from the collection of 100:
Karim Rashid - Tobek:
Fernando and Humberto Campana - Untitled:
Marcel Wanders - Journey Of A Cedar:
Matteo Bazzicalupo - Fakir:
Barber Osgerby - Three, Two, One:
Miriam Mirri - Bed and Breakfast:
Alberto Meda - Solar Car:
Duilo Forte - 3CV:
Paolo Orlandini - Archicar:
Kazuyo Komoda - Doll Dining Car:
Mario Trimarchi - H-Onda:
Spalvieri Del Ciotto - City Car:
Marco Dessi - La Transportamatite:
Raffaella Mangiarotti - Superfast Sketch Holder:
Since its inception, designers who wanted to draw their own TobeUs have multiplied. It seems that everyone has an idea for a wooden toy car. But the project has caveats - TobeUs is made by two cuts in a wooden stump that always have the same size, so it's a project and design exercise that imposes clear limits.
You can even try your own hand at it with a downloadable template:
See all 100 designs here.
The exhibition at the Museum of Science and Technology in Milan (Museo della Scienza e della Tecnologia di Milano) runs from December 5th through January 13th, 2013.
100 Wooden Toy Cars By 100 Different Designers: TobeUs
Countdown to Christmas Eve With Google's New Santa Tracker, Chrome App and Interactive Website.
For the past few years I have been writing posts about Norad's Santa Tracker (once a partner of Google's) and how it works as a nice online activity to enjoy with your children and friends. Now that Microsoft's Bing has partnered with Norad, Google has gone all out and created their own Google Maps' Santa Tracker and until it launches on Christmas Eve, you can explore a fun interactive animated site with plenty of games and goodies or download a Google Chrome app for added entertainment.
above: screen grabs of the Village briefing and windtunnel
Santa’s many developer elves, who are hard at work in the North Pole helping Santa prepare for his big day, have combined their elf magic with the latest and greatest in Google Maps technology and sleigh engineering to allow you to follow his progress around the world, and also learn a little about some of his stops along the way. 
above: a sneak preview of the Google Santa Tracker which launches on Christmas Eve.
Even without using Google chrome as your browser, you can enjoy the following at the Google Santa Tracker Site:
•Create a Custom Phone Call from Santa in the form of an mp3 file you can send to your friends (This is really cool. It takes a few minutes to make the first one, but it's worth it.)
•You (or your kids) can play one of three games that operates with your keyboard.
Present Drop:
Village Racer:
Jetpack:
If you use Google Chrome, you can download the app and enjoy even more fun like a dashboard tracker, play around with Santa's blimp or elf bus and write messages on a frosty browser window.
•You can Follow Santa on Google+
The friendly elves have also invited you to explore Santa’s village while Santa gets ready for his journey. So go ahead and explore his village, you might just find some fun activities and meet some interesting elves.
The Google Maps Santa Tracker is created and developed by Google, with a little help from Santa’s elves. Need help or have another question? Visit their Help Center to learn more about Santa Tracker.
Related links:
Energy Efficient Natural Vaporizing Tabletop Humidifiers In Three Fun Designs.
DIY Natural Formula Vaporizing Humidifiers in three fun colors and designs. Green Forest with elk and bunnies, Blue Arctic with penguins and Pink Outback with elephant and giraffe.
Just pop out the pre-cut shapes, slide them into the slots on the base and fill it with water and voila! An energy efficient tabletop humidifier.
The unique humidifiers combine super quiet passive action with a Do-it-Yourself edge to make them both cool and functional (not to mention energy-efficient).
Made especially for Gizmine. $49.99 each. Buy them here
You Thought Bouncy Castles Were Cool? Check Out Life-Size Inflatable Stonehenge!
A life-size bouncy castle version of Stonehenge, entitled Sacrilege is touring the UK this summer as a part of the London 2012 Festival and the Mayor of London Surprises Program.
Sacrilege Part 1 The Making Of Video:
Designed by Jeremy Deller, the winner of the 2004 turner prize, it's a great way to bring history to life for both young children and adults. I just wish it were touring here in the United States. Maybe someone will create an inflatable Grand Canyon.
Part 2 the Launch in Glasgow:
Sacrilege is a Co-Commission between the Mayor of London and Glasgow International Festival of Visual Art. Sacrilege will be popping up across the UK and London as part of the London 2012 Festival and the Mayor of London Surprises programme, an amazing series of free performances and projects throughout the city from 21 June to 09 September.
Tour Dates:
21 June – Carmarthenshire, Wales
24 June – Redruth, Cornwall
26 June – Exeter, Devon
29 June – Marlborough, Wiltshire
4 July – Southend On Sea
7 July – Flag Fen, Peterborough
11th July – Wakefield, Yorkshire
15 July – Gateshead – CANCELLED
20 July – Fishermead, Milton Keynes
21/22 July – Greenwich, London
25 July – Brent, London
28 July – Westminster, London
29 July – Sutton, London
31 July – Ravenscourt Park, London
1 August – Hampstead Heath, London
2 August – Clapham Common, London
4 August – Southwark, London
5 August – HIllingdon, London
7 August – Newham, London
9 August – Crystal Palace, London
10 August – Alexandra Palace, London
11th August – Christchurch Green, London
12 August – Lee Valley Park, London
18 August – College Green, Bristol
26 August – Belfast
9 September – Preston,
Sacrilege
Old School Wood & Slate Versions of Laptops and Smartphones For Kids.
If your child looks to pursue a career in our multimedia-based world, you should introduce him or her to state-of-the-art technology as early as possible.
i-Wood and i-Woody are old school takes on modern technology, with a smart minimal look. Made of 100% natural wood, the ecological versions of today's tech serve as a blank canvas that encourages imagination and can be wiped clean for endless fun.
i-Wood/ My First Laptop:
Wooden fold-up 'laptop' with chalk screen & keyboard.
Dimensions: 24cm x 35cm x 2.5cm
Not suitable for children under 3 years. Please note: irregularities and colour discrepancy within the wood may occur naturally.
buy it here
i-Woody / My First Smartphone
I-Woody/
My first Smartphone
Design: Donkey Creative Lab
Wood · includes chalk & sponge · ca. 11.5 x 6 x 1 cm
Not suitable for children under the age of 3 years.
100% Natural Product. Irregularities and colour discrepancy within the material may occur naturally.
Buy it here.
Donkey Products is an international Design Label based in Hamburg that develops and designs original, humorous products. And yes, they do ship worldwide.
