Reknit it

Waste not want not - the old adage has never been more appropriately applied than in the case of mother and son team, Reknit.

This guy's mum will knit a brand new piece of clothing for you if you send her an old 'sweater' (it's in America). She'll unravel it, knit it into something and send it back to you for the very reasonable price of $US30. Each month they have a new offer, this month it's a scarf, and if you're not much a of a scarf person, you can vote for what the item will be next month.

There's a downloadable shipping label on the website and nothing to suggest you can't be a part of the fun from outside of the states.

So if you're sick of people mistaking you for Don Burke in winter, you best visit the website.
www.rekn.it

Behind the 'blong - A work in progress…

Welcome to the first installment of 'Behind the 'blong'. A look into the seedy underbelly of New Farm's most feared design studio - Oblong + Sons.

Here's a scale mock up of a signage job in progress for a property client in Sydney and Oblong's own in house Prima ballerina, Emma, executing a textbook jeté.

Emma would jeté all day if we didn't tell her to stop.

The new growth area in packaging

Soon we might be throwing our old packaging on the garden as fertiliser.

In the world of packaging, it's hard to avoid polystyrene because it can be made cheaply in whatever shape you need. Unfortunately, it comes at a price – it's made from petroleum and doesn't biodegrade, making it one of the biggest forms of pollution on the planet. In the US it makes up about 30%(!) of all landfill.

Now two young New Yorkers have developed a way to grow packaging which does many of the same things as polystyrene. It uses agricultural byproducts such as rice husks and cottonseed and binds them together with mushroom roots. This is all grown in moulds to create an infinite variety of shapes.

The result is compact, light and can resist extreme temperatures. Best of all, it's fully biodegradable and its manufacture takes about one tenth of the energy of polystyrene. Learn more about it on their site.

Eben Bayer, one of the twenty-something brainiacs who came up with it, says the long term goal is to "replace all plastic and foams and mitigate their environmental consequences." Here at Oblong we'd love to see him succeed, and quickly.

MAPS for Artists

MAPS for Artists is a support management service for artists involved with producing independent works at Brisbane Powerhouse and Metro Arts. MAPS is dedicated to helping raise the bar of Brisbane’s new creative works to an international standard. After the success of Lisa O’Neills ‘The Pipe Manager’ in November, it’s clear they are already reaching their goal. Due to MAPS helping hand for artists, Brisbanites are able to see more and more progressive and dynamic performances in our city - cheers to that!

We at Oblong had the rare opportunity to work with MAPS to create a new, easy to use website www.mapsforartists.com.au. We have since become inspired by the range of works spawned by this innovative service and are looking forward to a provocative season of events in the new year.

Just rewards

Oblong had a pretty good showing at the 35^th Annual 2009 Brisbane Advertising and Design (BAD) Awards recently, picking up two bronze awards for corporate identity and self-promotion.

Black Sheep Coffee won it for us in the corporate identity category. Their logo was designed to give them their own distinctive, cheeky personality in a traditionally cluttered and serious market. It’s worked well so far.

The other award was for our little Oblong ice cream truck do-it-yourself postcard model. We’ve received a lot of positive feedback for this piece and really enjoyed putting it together.

We love what we do, and it’s good to see that it’s reflected in the final product. Nice work, us!

BITS Festival 2009

The Brisbane Independent Theatre Sampler (BITS) Festival 2009 is a raw and rapid one day event showcasing the most exciting acting talent this town has to offer.

The festival is a 'sampler' to test the waters for a fully blown Brisbane fringe festival for 2010 and participants only get 10 minutes to show what they can do, so it is destined to be a whole lot of chaotic fun.

Oblong thought it was such a great idea we offered to do all the design work and a website for it. BITS Festival 2009 will be held at four different locations around central Brisbane including The Fringe Bar, The Joynt, Book Nook and Top Floor.

Registration closes November 10, and the event is taking place on one action-packed day on November 28.

For more information on BITS Festival 2009 visit bitsfestival.com

We love our Nanna

It's a proven scientific fact that nannas are the most resourceful and intelligent people on earth. These freaks of nature are part of a super breed of humans who can make, fix, mend, grow or bake anything they choose.

In a world where consumerism rules and wasteful living is an afterthought to convenience, a couple of inspired Australians have created 'Nanna Techonology'. This online resource paves the way for a better future by channeling nanna skills and applying them in a modern day setting.

Nanna Techonology draws from lessons learnt in simpler times like growing your own food, sewing to repair clothes, and saving and reusing household items.

It sounds simple, but it works.

The blog relies on reader ideas and contributions so give your nanna a call for some tips and get cracking!

www.nannatechnology.com.au