Cutesy Little Designs for Your Office

Today’s cutesy little designs were picked in honor of those who have to go back to school this month (and for the rest of us who are forever looking forward to another new week at the office.) Each of these little animal creatures will make your work experience a little lighter and brighter. And maybe even a little more productive at times.
Cutesy 1) Now you can bring your pet to work and not suffer the mess. These dog and cat staplers are eco-friendly office products from See Jane Work. Eco-friendly staplers? That’s a new concept to us as well. Apparently, the dog and cat stapler can attach up to four sheets of paper at a time without traditional staples. Once you slide your papers inside, the Staple Free Stapler punches through the sheets to create a tiny tab that holds the sheets together. Lightweight and portable, these little pets are perfect for your home, office, and school. $9
Cutesy 2) These animal critters are the latest toy craze in Japan. Called Hop Pops, your desk will instantly become more inviting once you have a cute duck, panda, frog, monkey, or bear sitting next to your computer. They bob their heads along with sounds and vibrations, making a tense work moment instantly lighter. Available for $17 each or $88 for all six.Cutesy 3) You don’t have to be a UNIX lover to adore these little penguins. What are they? A USB flash drive of course! The penguin head lifts up to reveal the jump stick underneath. At 1 GB of memory for $34, these adorable critters seem like a reasonably good deal. The only tricky part might be ordering one off the Japanese website. Cutesy 4) Our next find is a little more whimsical. A spider screen cleaner is probably not on top of your office supplies shopping list, but how could you smile at the concept? With soft velvet bellies, the spider, caterpillar, or fish attach directly onto your computer monitor. When you need to clean your screen, simply pull on the retractable cord and wipe the dirt away. $6.99
Cutesy 4) Our final cutesy find combines two workspace essentials: a pencil sharpener and a paper shredder. Granted, these little elephants can’t handle massive internal memos, but they’re just the right size for shredding credit card receipts and little pieces of important paper. They even have suction cup feet to hold them in place. $7.99

Can you afford eco-couture? Linda Loudermilk designs green for the stars

As we’re constantly reminded, living green and stylish is not always synonymous with cheap. Because of the higher cost of producing environmentally friendly or organic materials, environmentalism and luxury now go hand-in-hand. The truly hip and fabulous, and those who don’t mind spending a little green to wear a little green, are fueling the trend towards eco-couture.
Linda Loudermilk is a leading fashion designer with a flare for the natural. Outfitting celebrities like Jane Fonda, Debra Messing, and Jennifer Beals, Loudermilk applies her high fashion skills to textiles made from sasawashi, bamboo, sea cell, soya, and EcoSpun fabric. Her creations have been described as channeling nature’s punk energy and feminine grace. Her brand of clothing bears the “Luxury Eco Stamp of Approval,” given to products with a high degree of aesthetic design and luxury quality that also come from a carefully reviewed, environmentally friendly manufacturing process. Loudermilk mixes her exotic fabrics with sophisticated silhouettes and surprising design twists. Not only are her creations earth-friendly, many bare the colors of terra firma, draw inspiration the creatures that live here, or follow the shape of waterfalls, rivers, and forests.
While most of us won’t be digging into her duds any time too soon, Loudermilk deserves praise for leading the trends towards bringing environmental awareness and sustainable style to society’s elite list.

DIY T-Shirt Design #3

With this do-it-yourself t-shirt design, you can refashion something that’s a little drab and baggy into a new fun creation perfect for a casual day at work or at school.
Materials: 1 short sleeve recycled t-shirt, beads of any kind or decorative bangles, scissors, needle and thread, jumbo safety pin (optional)
DIY: If you have a white or light colored t-shirt, try dying it a nude or tan color with strong tea. As a more colorful option, you can take a brightly colored juice, like cranberry or grape, and soak your shirt in the liquid for 20-30 minutes to stain it a pink or purple shade. Once your shirt is dry, lay it flat and cut off the sleeves at the shoulder seams. Cut about 1” off the bottom hem of the shirt, and save this extra material. On the front of the shirt, cut the neckline down in a V. Don’t get too carried away though! You may want to try the shirt on first to mark how much décolletage you’re comfortable with. Once you have your V cut, take your thread and (starting near the base of the V) knot it through on one side. String beads along the thread and pull across to the other side of the V. Stitch the thread through on the opposite side to secure the beads. Repeat slightly higher up the V. As an alternative, you may want to string beads on a jumbo safety pin and pin this across the V. You can also sew a button, bead or decoration and the base of the V for added ornamentation. Using your leftover hem fabric, cut two 4” long strips. Wrap each around the shoulder seams of the shirt to gather the fabric. Tuck the edges of the strip underneath the shoulder and sew them in place to finalize this DIY t-shirt design.
For more, see DIY T-Shirt Design #2 and DIY T-Shirt Design #1.

Cutesy Little Designs

Because every day needs a little bit of spunk, we’ve picked out our favorite oddities of the moment to share. Functional or not, there’s no reason design shouldn’t make you smile once in awhile. Here are our top four cutesies of the moment.
Cutesy 1) Emotibles has the most unique iPod accessory we’ve seen so far. These little doohickies look like a caps key crossed with a bag of tropical Skittles. Do they have a function? Sure they do (if fashion accessory counts as a function). They’re Emotibuds, plastic charms that grip your iPod headphones. At $4 a pair, they come in a huge array of stylish colors, and each one has a strange little face based on emoticons. With names like Frisky, Starry-eyed, Brilliant, and Befuddled, there are at least 16 little personalities to jazz up your pod. Also at Emotibles, check out the tees, free wallpaper, and custom ichat avatars.

Cutesy 2) If you ever thought geeks have no style, you’ve obviously never seen Mimo Bots. Perhaps marketed towards those of us who can’t live without storage sticks or perhaps geared towards those who just like nifty looking gagets (USB what?), the Mimo Bot has more personality than anything you’ve ever plugged in. Designed by toy studio vs consumer electronics brand Mimoco, these are USB flash drives with soul and style. The Mimo Bots run the full gamut from fairy to monster, depending on what mood your electronics normally take. Data storage has never had such attitude.
Cutesy 3) This might be the least functional of the batch, but who could resist? It’s Mr Tofu Robot! Apparently served fresh in a sealed package, Mr Tofu Robot comes from a favorite store of ours, Spicy Brown. Although we primarily like Spicy for their apparel, if you’re in the market for tofu gone gizmo, they’ve got you covered.
Cutesy 4) And finally, if you don’t Google, you should. Yes, iGoogle. The web dominators have several options for those search savvy followers who may get bored with the monotony of white day after day. We like the seasonal theme for our iGoogle. If office work has you down, give it a try. Functional? Yes. Efficient? Not so much. Office work is now more distracting than ever with customizable news bars, tips, horoscopes, and jokes. However, short of a coffee break, that may be exactly what you need.

Purple Passion: This Fall's Top Color

As a color once reserved only for the rich and powerful, purple has again hit it big in the fashion world. A regular favorite in the fall season color lineup, purple has been plucked out as the “it” hue for this fall’s fashion trends. The rich, deep, plume shade has always been a hit when crisper weather arrives. Purple integrates well with earth tones, shades of brown, and a more neutral schema. Plum, dusky lavender, and deep wine shades look bold but not glaring when integrated with dark denim, black, burgundy, and chocolate brown. When shopping for the perfect piece, be sure to choose an article of clothing with rich undertones, like a deep velvet violet or a shade of rich purple wine.

These go best with an understated palette and can be combined with other shades like mustard, ochre, or dusky cobalt for an exciting color combination. As a jewel tone, purple is an excellent choice for eveningwear or accessories. Look for brighter shoes, shiny purses, and sequin tops for a night out and about. For more help coordinating colors, check out this season's color chart

Purple is a creative color, and because it was so expensive to come by (in the ancient times, purple dye came from a mollusk), purple is known throughout art and history as the color most associated with kings, emperors, and wisemen. Check out these indie designers for more fashion inspiration.

Empire Gown by AngelRox at Unsung Designers $228
Old Friends hand screen printed top from Little by Jenny $34
Georgette Top by Scott Gibson N.Y.C. at Unsung Designers $220
Purple Marsh T-Shirt by The Red Prairie Press $25
Flashdance Top by Robot Arms at Unsung Designers $60

Go Global! Nomad Fashion from Independent Designers

Feeling inspired by this fall’s nomad fashion trend? Ready to wear some bold ethnic prints, layered textures, and free flowing fabrics? If you like the eclectic and adventurous look of this season’s global fashion exchange but don’t want to pay top dollars for the premium designer brand, check out works by these independent designers.

Venni Caprice offers custom handmade-to-order pieces based on her red carpet designs. This empire waist dress features a tribal African design and her batik dress is just right for fading from summer into fall. For more information, check out her Etsy store or her blog.

There’s a summer sale going on right now at Asian iCandy, an online boutique store offering Asian ethnic inspired fashion from artists worldwide. The shop offers authentic and unique apparel and gifts for those who would like to blend a little Asian inspiration into their day. Also on Etsy, check out the wide leg linen Capri pants for easy movement in an earthy brick red color or the all-natural linen mermaid skirt for a free flowing bottom with a bold decorative pattern.