Make your own Google map envelope

The next time you send a letter via snail mail, be sure to place it in a custom envelope that features a Google map inside. Imagine the delight your reader will experience when they open your letter and are greeted with a custom message on the inside of their envelope. Of course I can only imagine some of the places you could have appear inside. Head on over to mapenvelope.com and give it a try.

Sharpie Stainless Steel Permanent Marker

I’m a long time fan of Sharpie markers and I have a bunch of them all over the house in multiple colors and sizes. Sharpie just introduced a new stainless steel marker with the Sharpie logo laser etched on the side. It retails for $8.99 but has a unique feature – it’s refillable. That’s right. For a cool $2.49 you can reload this bad boy. This is must have for any Sharpie enthusiast. Buy it here.

Bottoms up shot glass

This clever shot glass features an ambigram – a design that can be read as one or more words when viewed from different angles. Simply drink the shot, turn it over, and the word DRINK magically transforms into DRUNK. It also gives you a heads up which end to fill. Unless of course you’re past the point of no return!

Drink several glasses of wine in one sitting!

This unique wine glass comes from the creative minds at Kyouei Design firm in Japan. According to the designers, this glass is designed for people who like to drink alot! The device consists of a bulb shaped container with the glass opening just below. Because of it’s unique design, it will not overflow and will keep a steady amount of wine in the glass.

Order one here.

Innovative product design from black + blum

I have been a huge fan of product designers black + blum for many years. I personally own several of their products and they have certainly stood the test of time. I first picked up a “Jimmy” in Amsterdam way back in 2000. It still hangs, or should I say ‘climbs’, on the side of the refrigerator today. Not only do they have exceptional design prowess, but they also have clever names assigned to the products.

Loo-roll holder / magazine rack

Give your bathroom a cool accent with “Loo Read”. Its wire frame holds magazines, newspapers and of course loo rolls… two of them, just in case one runs out! [I wonder if Lou Reed is aware of this special honor!]

Loose change bowl

A sculptural polished aluminium bowl for all your loose change, keys, bits and bobs. Drop everything in and then easily pour it out into your hand again.

Keyring - bottle opener

…will magnetically climb your fridge door to store your keys and also opens bottles while holding onto the top afterwards.
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Move over Billy Mays, Vince is back with Slap Chop!

“Stop having a boring tuna, stop having a boring life!”

America’s favorite new pitchman is back with “slap chop.” “You’re going to be in a great mood all day because you’ll be slapping your troubles away with Slap Chop” proclaims Vince. You know, Vince from Sham Wow. This time he’s pitching the the perfect kitchen chopper.

How is this chopper different from the bazillion other choppers out there you ask? Simple. Slap chop is easy to clean. One, two, and bingo, it pops open. The other choppers get bacteria in the food. Not Slap Chop! Face it, those other choppers are worthless because you can’t clean them.

Looks like there’s a new sheriff in town Billy Mays. And he’s gunning for you!

Extend your iPhone battery life with a Mophie Juice Pack

Finally an iPhone battery pack that fit’s all my criteria. The Mophie Juice Pack has a beautiful form-fitting design and it’s definitely one of the best I’ve seen. It is also lightweight and features a soft-touch coating. The pack also doubles as a case for added protection.

One of the features I really like is the fact that once the juice pack is attached, it’s intelligent power distribution tells the iPhone to always drain the pack first. This always leaves you with a fully charged iPhone ready to go. Simply adding the pack will more than double your iPhone battery life! There are also four LED status indicator s so you will always know exactly how much power is left in your juice pack. This feature alone is a competition killer.

Sure it’s a bit more expensive than alternative choices out there. However, few look as nice or are as full featured.

Get one at the Apple Store.

Preview kids books before buying

Lookybook.com is a cool site which allows parents flip through kid’s books before buying them. You get to see the whole book showcased in a clever page turning flash app. Other sites like Amazon allow you to preview the first couple of pages but that’s about it.

Click the eyes on the top right of the book box above for a larger version.

Ikea rules!

Ikea is probably one of the best known global brands. Thank god they finally built one in my neck of the woods.

Their top notch design, no nonsense approach is at the heart of their success. It’s hard to walk through, what seems like miles of aisles, and leave empty handed.

Posted from iPhone.