Imagine the perfect blend between calm-mannered, informative Mister Rogers and inspiring, energetic Mary Poppins. Loved by children for her playful nature and adored by parents for her gentle compassion, such a blend exists in Ruby, the bright-eyed, spunky star of the newest award-winning DVD series for kids, Ruby’s Studio. Celebrated for its artistic focus and
Five years ago, scientists predicted that as early as 2013, we’d hear rumblings of lab (or in-vitro cultured) meat creeping into grocery stores across the country. And although I haven’t spotted any test tube steak at my local butcher shop, the thought isn’t too far from a reality. So if engineered meat is the culinary future, who decides what it should look like?
According to a recent study, a third of today’s parents think that playing with their children is boring. So boring, in fact, that many of us are succumbing to technology to occupy our time. The Tumblr Parents on Phones features dozens of moms and dads checking their phone during picnics, school programs – even birthday parties.
Oprah has deemed it “the most shocking thing” she has ever seen. Scientists have estimated it to be twice as big as the entire state of Texas. Indeed, the Great Pacific Garbage Patch is today’s biggest threat to our ocean life (and beaches) with confetti-sized pieces of trash outweighing plankton 6 to 1. Even worse? 90% of it is plastic. So how can a single chair slew the Goliath that is the the world’s largest landfill?
Ward 6, a waterfront district in Washington, D.C., is shining a bit brighter today. With the recent mural installation by Hense, an Atlanta-based artist, a once historic church now stands tall – decked out in bold, vibrant colors and painted textures. Hense’s process was astonishingly similar to that of your everyday graffiti artist, slowly and meticulously layering the exterior of a building with spray paint, rollers and brushes. The only difference? It was entirely legal.
Although the earliest known paper dolls originated in Europe in the 1700s (and were created to entertain adults, no less), it wasn’t until the 1930s that “The Golden Age of Paper Dolls” gained steam. Yet with the introduction of Barbie‘s 3D (or should I write 3DD?) dolls in 1959, the pastime slowly faded from the
French designer Mathieu Lehanneur created a porthole-inspired device for palliative hospital patients which projects an image of tomorrow’s weather forecast. Designed to provided hope for the seriously ill, the innovation begs the question: What if the forecast is rainy? Does weather have an effect on our mental state? And is it ethically wrong to project a sunny image to the terminally ill – even if the forecast calls for storms ahead?
We’ve seen fruit-shaped crayons, but what about fruit-tasting crayons? Luxirare blogger Ji Kim has boggled the minds of every DIY-loving mom, creating a series of food bars to be molded and formed in the shape of crayons. The kicker is – they actually draw…