Friday, Friday, Friday the 13th and, yes, evil things have struck here at EWC: Phil is doing the Friday Props this week since Ed is deep in the world of code. Buckle your seatbelts, kiddos. I'm going to take this opportunity to push my own agenda of awesomeness since there's only a few more hours in the office for me. First off, a quick giggle to the funny peoples who make their mark on the internet with the simple humor that always surrounds aging action heros.They are the ones that truly make this country great. Rounding the bases and headed to second like a chihuahua after a dropped piece of beef jerky, I want to steer your Friday Props to a friend of ours down Barnard way. After our time exploring the Mariana Trench south of Japan, Chris Wilson dedicated himself to the art of baking and sweets in various establishments. The bad news was that only a few people ever got to experience his creations until recently when he started his own little confection business. Here's a nod to you, Mr. Wilson Without breaking stride, third base is coming up quick! Don't slow down now! The weekend is so close! To [....] Read More >>

Another Friday means another round of Props going out for the cool, funky, groovy, neat, things we've run across that we like. Hello, Nerf First up ... new guns from Nerf. As you are probably aware Nerf gun battles are a part of the culture here at Edgeworks Creative.  Foam dart hail storms are now simply of a part of life at the office. One never knows when a storm might break out.  We're giving out Props this week to a whole new group of arms being offered up. The new N-Strike Elite blasters have an incredible 75 foot range! Looks like we might need a bigger office.   Sun Boxes in Vermont Props are going out to  Craig Calorusso for his audio artistry that's happening right here in our back yard! Calorusso is bringing his Sun Boxes to Vermont State Parks in July and August. His soundscape project is made up of twenty speakers spread over a large area. Each Sun Box is powered by solar energy and connected to a PC board that has a musical piece recorded onto it. These pieces of music are then played in loops. Because each piece is of a different length, the overall musical experience changes over time [....] Read More >>

I spend so much time in front of screens doing my work that sometimes I yearn for different tactile experiences. I'm not eager to be a paper pusher by any means, but I thought for this weeks' Friday Props I'd do a theme to honor those folks who do crazy cool things with paper. Join me in giving accolades for these astounding projects and their creators! Phone Books are so 80's But turning phone books into works of three dimension carved portraits? Timeless and way cool. Props going out to Alex Queral for his Phone Book Carvings.  Queral uses an X-ACTO knife, an acrylic medium and a black wash - nothing more. His work uses phone books which are (of course) destined to be thrown away and makes them worth keeping again. He creates portraits of famous people as well as abstracts. Visit a gallery of his work  for more examples.  You'll find many that you recognize and I promise it will blow your mind.   Is This Even Possible!? I can fold a couple varieties of paper airplanes and with the help of a book I can even do some very basic origami. But Simon Schubert gets Props for his paper building made by folding paper. There is no better [....] Read More >>

It's time again for another round of kudos for the cool kids on the block. What time is it? This week we're sending out a shout-out to Richard Birkett  for the wild clocks he builds. These treasures are all one-of-a-kind and made from industrial debris. He takes bits and pieces of broken machines from typewriters to cameras to VCRs and gives them new life as whimsically designed clocks. Keeping stuff out of landfills and giving us groovy time keepers in the process earns him Props. Check out his collection at http://fantasyclocks.com/ and find him on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Fantasy-Clocks/239654963641?ref=ts San Francisco ... One Toothpick at a Time You gotta hand it (Props, that is) to anyone with the persistence to develop something requiring not thousands, not tens of thousands but over one hundred thousand parts and to turn those parts into something so much greater. Scott Weaver  is just such a person. He's created a sculpture of the city of San Francisco using toothpicks - over 100,000 of them. It's taken him over 35 years to make and it includes multiple ball runs that allow you to go on "tours" of different parts of the city.  Giant Paper Flowers Intricate, graceful and stunningly beautiful paper flowers fill the Gothic Abbey of Sanit-Riquier in [....] Read More >>

Another Friday rolls around and another chance to send out some Props so let's get right to it! The most amazing Robot Dance This guy is simply astounding - check him out. His play on the theme of Wall-E is well done and beautiful. This is from Kyrgyzstan got talent - and evidently they do.   Oru the Origami Kayak Really? Seriously? An Origami Kayak!? Believe it. This is just awesome. Oru- the Origami Kayak from Anton Willis on Vimeo.   Props out to the crew at  Moosach Bikes. This Dutch brand of bike rolls out twelve bikes a year, each a refurbished vintage, road bike frame with new parts. They are made to be excellent and gorgeous and each with a story. The retro look and feel and the hot design certainly worth note. Read More >>

It's Friday which means its time to spread some love. Meghan Vogel Just watch the video. Class act. 17-year-old Meghan Vogel is a junior attending West Liberty-Salem High School in Ohio was in a 3,200 meter run at the state track meet on Saturday June 2nd,2012. She saw Arlington High School sophomore Arden McMath nearly on the track in front of her nearing collapse. Instead of passing her, Vogel helped her to the finish line in front of a cheering crowd. The rules say doing this could get both runners disqualified, but officials declined to take action. Cork Truck I'm a sucker for things that remind me of the I Spy books. I can't imagine the number of hours spent with my kids looking over those pages. Some of the artwork done by Jan Elftmann simply reminds me of this. The  Blue T-Rex and Safety Pin Curtain are my personal favorites. http://www.corktruck.com/artwork.html         3D Printers and Makerbot If you are unfamiliar with 3D printing technology I am pretty certain that won't last for long.  The folks over at Makerbot are bringing the ability to create your own 3D plastic model prototypes, toys and more to a much wider audience. Read More >>

Entanglement This is one of those games that can be very addictive. it has a timeless sense of play to it. By turning tiles you create paths and the reward for each segment of path you create is a cascade of points and a waterfall of sound and music. It's really quite pleasing and deserving of Props. Entanglement is available for the Google Chrome browser in the Chrome store. Props going out for a delightful, addictive, quality gaming experience.   GTD: Getting Things Done The book by David Allen, Getting Things Done, is a groundbreaking work-life management system ideal for information workers. It moves you toward an integrated system of stress-free productivity. Whether you are an executive, student, or run a business and/or household, GTD will teach you the tips and tricks of how to get--and stay--on top of it all. The beauty of GTD is that it is both effective and simple and is agnostic as to the tools you use to implement it. Some folks do GTD on paper while others go completely digital.  Props going out the David Allen for GTD. 99% Invisible Podcast and Radio Show You need only listen to one podcast from this show to understand why we're giving it Props. [....] Read More >>

According to the Urban Dictionary: Props is a slang term for "accolades", "proper respect", or "just dues". Popularized in the 1980s by rappers who shortened the term "propers" which was in turn being used as an abbreviated version of "proper respect" at least by the 1960s. The increase in this term's usage during the late 1980s and early 1990s coincided with an increasing fascination with the mafia within rap circles. Both communities have traditionally placed great emphasis on the importance of earning and giving respect. Our Friday Props series is simply a look around the web at cool things being done. We're giving out Props to those people, projects and ideas that are simply awesome. Without further explanation, then, here are the shout-outs for this week: RedBall Project The RedBall project is a really cool mobile art installation that travels the globe from city to city. The giant red ball is wedged in the oddest of public places. It causes great amusement and the interactions with the accessible art installation are great. The project is the brainchild of Kurt Perschke - an artist who works in sculpture, video, collage and public space.  You can read more about the project , the artist, or check out the Flickr group for [....] Read More >>