for the love of bikes: 2/1/10

26 February 2010

IDEO's children of the future

The design and innovation consultancy firm, IDEO, imagines a future shaped by electric power dependency... with a great soundtrack setting the tone, this future world view harvests children's energy by incorporating some low tech (pedal power!) solutions.

I'm particularly fond of the scarves worn - as I have dreamt of designing one which incorporates an air filter/purifier forever now... for when your stuck riding behind a bus or truck and try to hold your breath for as long as possible.

Produced by their Palo Alto 'play team' for the Living Climate Change initiative via Core77

fun bike friday

... Down Under the Manhattan Bridge Overpass

via Gothamist

23 February 2010

MODEL citizen

Public - the exciting bike start-up by DWR's Rob Forbes mentioned last December - is officially launching in Spring 2010 with a range of bikes and urban gear... are holding a "real people" MODEL CALL for their upcoming web/print launch campaign.

They are looking for those "who support our mission of getting more people on bikes and are willing to trade work for a bike or equipment"!!! The shoots in the US this spring include:

February / March - San Francisco Bay Area

May / June - New York City

If interested [click here] for the nitty gritty.

fits in your back pocket (really)

The sweet folks at BONESHAKER: A Bicycle Almanac shared a copy of their most recent edition with me.

Small in scale - the publication is easily transportable & instantly precious. I love that the format is "modeled loosely" after the War Department's 1941 Soldier's Basic Field Manual...

True to what you may expect from an almanac, Boneshaker editions have useful and interesting facts relating to the world of bicycles. The BA 42-400 is their 4th almanac and includes an interview with Jeff Mapes (author of Pedaling Revolution - my bible), short stories by cyclists, an article titled "Commuting In The Least Bicycle Friendly State", love letters, and reviews including one of Michigan-based Teamwork Bags made of salvaged sails and tractor tire tubes.

In this digital age - I still ♥ paper.

21 February 2010

dutch meets fold-up II

Last September I posted about Dahon's (inspired) Dutch style' fold-up bikes... but did a double take seeing Citizen's fold-up in a (very) similar style. It's Citizen's Barcelona - a 3 speed cruiser with a step-through frame & upright geometry on their site (on SALE this week at 1/2 the price) for $394, and if you are going for it, add on the basket.

My sister, who is in the market for a lighter and more practical commuter bike to add to her collection, is considering a Citizen... humm, I would go with the Barelona... in Ivory!

all photos via Citizen

transit patterns

BABY

Martha Kang McGill illustrates the commuting habits of eight major U.S. cities based on the 2008 U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey. The fine print...

via Out of Habit via Infrastructure

So curious to see the shift in the 2009 Census numbers...

20 February 2010

vintage (spray paint) inspiration

Love hearing about design inspiration... the Paper Label s project turned to discontinued vintage spray paint for colour schemes to graphics.

Paper Labels is a New England collaborative design project bringing together frame builders Independent Fabrication (Somerville, MA), apparel company Bodega (Boston, MA) and bag makers BaileyWorks (Portsmouth, NH).

Three concept bikes, four courier bags and three graphic t-shirts were created. Only 15 of each bike design will be made, each individually numbered...

photos via Independent Fabrication & Sneaker Freaker

19 February 2010

LV goes Cycle Chic

The cycle chic blog Riding Pretty did a great post yesterday on the trendy-ness of spandex cycling apparel (the bike short being key) this coming season... from the pages of TeenVogue to Louis Vuitton's Spring/Summer 2010 campaign (above).

Amazing to think that LV was formed in 1854 making custom trunks for traveling (before luggage was even something people owned - really before travel was something most people could imagine/consider doing) and grew into one of the most counterfeited brands in fashion.

Bike Shorts... on the 21st

No, not that kind of bike shorts.

Bike Shorts is a semi-regular film screening of bike-related short films. We screen short films about bikes every two to three months in Brooklyn, New York. At the end of every show, our audience decides which was the best film of the night, and that filmmaker wins $100 cash on the spot! Admission to the show is only $5, and everyone who comes gets to watch an hour of great amateur filmmaking and enjoy an evening with fellow bicycle enthusiasts.

The next screening is this Sunday, February 21st, starting at 8pm at Public Assembly - 70 N. 6th b/w Kent & Wythe in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. The deadline to submit for this Sunday's screening passed but you can join their mailing list to find out about future screenings/submissions!

18 February 2010

Moleskine in hand

Sketchbooks.

Wouldn't dare leave home without one.

Moleskines.

Their quality, look and feel always seems worth the price.

page from my watercolour Moleskine last summer

and came upon these...

pages from James Jean's for a NYC bicycle film festival poster

pages from Wil Freeborn's

page from Able Parris'

Unicycle Pierre Moleskine drawn by Erin Moniotte. She sells an assortment of pocket size Moleskine notebooks with her darling illustrations on the cover here.

17 February 2010

liberty love + Target = bike?!!

Floral prints have been popping up on everyday objects... from gardening tools to screw drivers, and for you Liberty of London print lovers out there - MARK YOUR CALENDARS!!!

On March 14th, Target will debut more then 25 Liberty of London prints on 300 items including their single speed cruiser 'Martha Grace' (above) retailing for $169.99 online.

via the pages of ELLE DECOR's March 2010 issue

hot pink snow

I could be accused of getting carried away with (hot) pink these days... but just loved coming across these pink accents with a bright white snow backdrop.

12 February 2010

returning...

in a few days!

hearts + bikes unite

Bici Cooperative's 2nd annual Heartbrakes Prom
[Birmingham, Alabama]

Bike Friendly Oak Cliff's 1st Valentine's Day Ride
[Dallas, Texas]

via Bike Blog NYC

messenger service Cupid Courier Collective logo
[San Francisco]

11 February 2010

covered up

As the east coast digs out from a record-breaking snow fall this week - NYC FINALLY received a hefty amount of power yesterday. Shot these at just the beginning of the blizzard while in Greenpoint.

huddled together

09 February 2010

Liberty love

My love for Liberty prints runs deep.

Needless to say the collaboration between the street wear label Trainspotter + Liberty of London is a dream come true. The Spring/Summer 2010 collection will include Trainerspotter x Liberty Jammers...

In 2003 Trainerspotter reinvented the iconic 1980’s Windjammer jacket with a literal interpretation of sport meets fashion. By taking the silhouette of a staple piece of sportswear and then (de) constructing it by juxtaposing the lightweight waterproof nylon against... Made in England from floral Liberty prints with British Millerain wax cotton, Nickel Swiss RiRi zippers, Worsted Wool rib cuffs and cotton cambric lining, each style of limited numbered editions and can be found exclusively at Liberty of London.

via Highsnobiety

Fortunately they also teamed with Nike a couple years back so you can go completely overboard with their beautiful floral prints...

love makes the world go round

The global cycle chic movement gets mapped out! The Santa Barbara bicycle style blog, Bike by the Sea, has created the (growing!!!) Bicycle Style Network map. Some new additions for your viewing pleasure: