deconstructed: Jacques Tati

I love little (bike-centric) surprises... like this post card from the Museum of the Moving Image of French film director Jacques Tati. Thanks to my husband!

one fall day: bikes in SoHo

Yesterday was one beautifully perfect crisp fall day -- a few snap shots while on my lunch break...

nice waterproof Amsterdam-stylin' panniers

love seeing a personal touch on this Kryptonite NY Chain cover

a Nantucket (pet) Bike Basket which they attached in reverse -- I'm guessing so they can easily hinge it open while on the bike rather then getting in front of the bike.

Also, couldn't resist these two wheelers...

... a single glove left behind

design hearts bikes: Charge Bikes @ The Conran Shop THIS Wednesday in NYC

If your in NYC, join the preview party for Charge Bike's 2012 line of bicycles including their collaboration with Sir Terence Conran...

Wednesday, November 9th
Preview from 10am-6pm
The Conran Shop NYC -- lower level of the lovely ABC Carpet & Home
888 Broadway, between 18th and 19th Street

Charge's Creative Director/Brand Manager, Nick Larsen, who previously worked for Pashley Cycles, had the good design sense to do a collaboration with Sir Terence Conran (yes, Conran of The Conran Shop) on two "simple, practical, low maintenance, and affordable" bikes... the Conran X Charge Bikes Hob and Plug

... 2 bicycles which closely echo Conran's philosophy that good design gives you pleasure and improves the quality of all of our lives through products that work well, are affordable and look beautiful.

With a classic steel frame and 3 speed Sturmey Archer internally hubbed gears the ladies and mens bikes are design classics with an understated yet contemporary style . Fitted with Charge's multi-award winning saddles and with an upright riding position, the bikes are not only comfortable but practical and allow great control and visibility in urban environments. 

While Charge Bikes has been around for a few years (mostly distributed widely in the UK, Japan, Korea, Europe, Australia and New Zealand) they just recently signed up with a major US retailer who will be selling a range of their city, single-speed, mountain, and cyclocross bikes -- so your likely to be seeing much more of them soon!

images via Charge Bikes

Oh, and did you see this great little peice about Sir Terence Conran's extraordinary 60 year career in the NYTimes T Magazine this weekend?!

at home: bike storage using IKEA and DELTA racks

Over the years we've had a number of bikes come and go in our apartment but all in all there have never been fewer then five at a time -- hence the need for super compact bike storage. I am finally getting around to posting some photos of the set up in our living room for three of our nicest (as well as lightest)...
 
Fortunately we have a doorway we don't ever use which turned out to fit three of those super minimal Delta Leonardo Single-Bike Racks side by side! As for the assembly... using a 1.5" thick board which spanned the entire door frame, I screwed each hook 15" apart (center-to-center) which is the closest you'll likely get away with -- though partly depends on your handle bar style/width. Once the hooks were in place on the board, I pre-drilled the holes into the board, and used 4" long screws to anchor it into the wood framing of the door. Drilling directly into the wood door framing created a super secure attachment. 

And to deal with the all the bike tools which were previously spread amongst two different toolboxes and under the sink storage bins -- I was able to consolidate almost everything into one of IKEA's "ALEX" drawer unit! It has six shallow drawers and comes with casters so you can easily wheel over your tools to wherever you please. Little enhancements I made included lining some of the drawers with industrial felt padding to help keep them in place and used some old petri dishes to keeps tiny parts organized. One thing I'm considering doing is reinforcing some of the drawer bottoms which are holding lots of tools since they began to bow a bit.

Spending the $161 ($14 (x 3) on hooks + $119 on drawers) was well worth it for space saving benefits!!! If you've come up with a crafty indoor bike storage option - do share!

 

For those of you who know me well, I know what your thinking... what happened to the Bike Utility Bench you designed? What can I say, there is really that much stuff to store at home -- and use the bench for larger items like extra helmets, gloves, accessories!

tuft love - DARGELOS' new reflective tassel

DARGELOS (my awesome sister) recently added the sweetest accessory to their inventory... reflective Tufts which come in Antique Brass, Gunmetal or Rhodium hardware! They measure 3" in length and would make any zipper pull - be it on your jacket, sweatshirt, bag or purse - that much more special ♥

a transportation theme Hall-o-ween

Last night's Annual Park Slope Civic Council Children’s Halloween Parade was packed with super adorableness and (kid friendly) fabulousness -- but I particularly loved all the transportation related  costumes! Travel by land, air and water... from the kid as the Roosevelt Island Tram, to the terrifying ghosts on roller blades (who were moving too fast to take a photo) and those ghosts soaring above our heads, and the gigantic ship float, however... 'Best in Show' would go to the Brooklyn Bike Lane guy!!! Awesome - even the white lines appeared to be reflective!

happy (white-ish) halloween

image via Mission Bicycles

A few timely mentions...

San Fransisco-based Mission Bicycles did a sweet post on a few ways to dress up the ol' two wheels for the occasion. Their website includes directions on a few tricks, including crafting wheel disc above.

Team Estrogen, one of my go to places for (womens) cycling apparel, is have a 'SPOOKY SALE' until midnight TONIGHT... 20% off any one item! What a good opp. to grab a pair of lobster gloves, shoe covers or even windproof thermal layer before it starts getting seriously cold.

And meanwhile on the East Coast, this past weekend's nor'easter left us a white coat... of snow! Little remained today but is was nearly a full on White Halloween in NYC -- meanwhile other parts of the country are still shoveling. Crazy. Sadly the wet heavy snow downed trees and branches all around here... including Prospect Park below. All this weather (tornado and hurricane) has really paid a toll on this city's trees.

 

Feats Per Minute spins... records

Such a fun concept by group of Dutch designers -- who rigged up a record player onto a bicycle's rear wheel! Video below. As they point out, you need a steady cadence to have it properly play... oooh, they could partner up with BBOX Radio and broadcast a show with guests 'spinning' their favorite records!!!

More about the project via their website:

What if you would be able to generate music by the simple act of riding your bike? This project started with that question. We have build the first prototype and thanks to Jeffry Sol and Vincent Beijersbergen we were able to do so in a month. And yes it was pretty difficult, but loads of fun…. the idea is pretty simple; basically, a wheel and dynamo work the same way as a record player. But it was not as easy as it looks. First, we had to come up with a solution for the wheels; how can we change the records? The fork was blocking the wheel. That’s why we changed a 30 year old bike into a lefty bike; and build a construction that would still support the weight and would be strong enough for people to ride on it. The biggest challenge of all was to make sure that the needles would stick to the record and follow the grooves, without skipping too much. Therefor we bought two vertical record players and took them apart, to see how they worked. Also; we wanted our bike to be as low tech as possible; that’s why the only “extra” energy we used was a 9 volt battery to support the amplifier. In order for the records to run smoothly, we also had to change the crank of the bike and the chain. After that, we build our own horn, to have some extra volume, and we sprayed the whole bike black. We had some sponsors like bike stores, handy people and DJ’s and that’s how our dream in progress turned out to be real… Here’s to the crazy ones; thank you guys, you rock. - Merel, Pieter and Liat

video via Adverblog / image source of record player
THANKS, Michiyo!

gearing up for post-summer rain

Ortlieb / Performance Ripstop Rain Pants / Loeffler Randall rain booties

Unlike warm summer rain falls, when one can dry off easily wearing shorts and sandals,  last Wednesday's commute forced my rain gear favs out of the closet...

• waterproof backpack by Ortlieb   I never ever worry about water getting into my Ortlieb Velocity. No exterior pockets or zippers - just a simple top loading bag with a roll top (and a very convenient pouch that snaps inside for your cell phone and such).

• rain paints from Performance (on sale right now for $29.99) There are few things worse then arriving to work after riding through the rain in completely drenched clothes - which is why rain pants rock. Yes, you can't care too much about what you look like in them but they are SO EASY to throw on top of whatever pants (or tights) your wearing that day and have articulated knees making it easier to pedal. I have a black version but love this version in HELLO yellow!
  
• rain booties I was so excited when Loeffler Randall came out with these slip-on versions of their rain bootie. Reminds me of my father's galoshes. But these are so cute they can be worn even on a sunny day! The 35mm wedge also gives you a little lift. If the price tag scares you, Jeffrey Campbell makes a similar version I spotted on Refinery 29.
  
  

• clear rain jacket by Louis Garneau An awesome option at about $24 -- made translucent to keep racers jersey sponsor logos visible, but also allows your rear red light on your belt loop to shine through! Since it's waterproof, if you perspire there will be condensation but the mesh sections help with ventilation. I have an older version made of PVC but these days they're made of EVA -- a waterproof material that contains neither cadmium nor lead.

And a rainy day item I have on my wish list...

• helmet cover by Louis Garneau Visibility in the rain is difficult - whether your cycling, walking or driving THUS I try to always have my front and rear blinking lights on. The icing on the cake would be this bright helmet cover which would also keep my hair dry, like Matthew's!
  

happy riding - rain or shine

view from a Manhattan Bridge bike commute: UVA for The Creators Project

This photo is one of the reasons why I bike - just can't get enough of magnificent views and serendipitous moments. For the past few evenings, while biking over the Manhattan Bridge's south side bike path, you've been able to get a glimpse of magnificence... not only of the glowing Brooklyn Bridge and Jane's Carousel (the glass jewel box housing the newly restored 1922 carousel), BUT what really took my breath away was that red glow to the right. It's the view into open air Tobacco Warehouse where the UK collaborative UnitedVisualArtists (UVA) installed a gigantic interactive LED cubic sculture sponsive LED cubic sculpture as part of The Creators Project -- which hosted a bunch of live concerts last weekend in DUMBO. The photo above doesn't it do it any justice so check out THIS video!  

image via thecreatorsproject.com

a minimal Bicycle Purse Rack

When it comes to women and biking in the city, it's difficult to escape the issue of what to do when carrying a purse. I recently wrote about this very topic on Oregon Manifest's blog... and was very excited to come across this super simple spring loaded rack to keep your bag safe and secure! The Bicycle Purse Rack is an exclusive product of CycleChic in the UK and their sister site The Bicycle Muse in the USofA. It attaches to your handlebar stem with just 2 screws and bolts and is chrome plated steel to prevent rust. Pretty simple.

Now I haven't tested it out myself but I wouldn't go overboard and throw on my largest/heaviest bag (after all the rack itself is W: 22cm, H: 21cm, D: 13cm) but a medium sized one with the necessities should do fine. Plus, carrying an extra little bungee cord would not hurt!

Tulip Fun Fun - the bendable bike rack

images via Keha3'

Just cracked open this week's New York Magazine and came across Keha3's 'Tulip Fun Fun' designed by Margus Triibmann. Yeah, FUN! The Estoni-based designer developed the rack from metal cable, covered rubber hose, and hot galvanized metal plate -- allowing you more options when locking up while also protecting your frame with it's rubber coating. Love imagining tons of these racks installed in the city, bending like wheat in a field. You know?! Well, anyhow, while looking at some of  Margus' other designs, I recognized the 'Sea Buoy' which I've admired in the past for it's cleverness, 'vandal-proof/impact-proof housing', possible indoor/outdoor applications, and after all it's waterproof. While not bike specific, it would be awesome to carry around in your bike basket (like so)!

images via Keha3'

a DYI bike light in a pinch

When leaving the office last night I realized I had not one bike light with me! Panic I did. Sure, I could have ran to the nearest bike shop but with a drawer full of bike lights at home and honestly do not need to add to that collection. There are a few things that I REALLY hate doing and one of those is biking (at night/dusk/dawn or in the rain) without my bike lights -- thus I started combing through my filing cabinet of oddities and fortunately found... a small yet powerful LED flashlight!

One light is better then none and since my commute route is hardly speeding car free I decided to rig up a rear red light with supplies around the office...
1. small flashlight
2. red film (which I used, but you can also turn any piece of white paper bright red with a red Sharpie)
3. clear tape
4. electrical tape
5. scissors

The clear tape helped secure the red film and electrical tape to secure the light onto my frame. Would have been awesome if the flashlight had a blinking mode -- but I'll be returning to my fav light set up tonight.

Oregon Manifest's Utility Bike Design Challenge glory

Love looking through the results of Oregon Manifest's Design Challenge -- all the features frame builders incorporated in making the ultimate utility bike to encourage more people then ever to... bike!  Loads of great ideas were presented -- I particularity enjoyed spotting U-lock slots integrated in the frames or racks, use of (Halo Coatings) patented retro-reflective powdercoat finish, accompanying bag systems, lockable storage compartments, double kick stands galore, three wheels for load distribution, considerations for carrying kids, and a sweet lil' sidecar.

If you haven't already, check out bike portraits of the winners, the people's choice award, and all the entries on Oregon Manifest's site and Core77's chronicles. As previously posted,  Oregon Manifest real-life factor competition didn't solely judge on looks, nor the fact they had to incorporate urban necessities: anti-theft devices, fenders, lights, load-carrying capability, and a stand while parked, BUT were also judged on PERFORMANCE carrying a predetermined baggage load (including a mailing tube!) -- on a 50 mile road (and trail) course that looked like serious fun...

photos above from Core77's photo gallery

this one via QuixoteCycles by S Mirk