I was floored when I received an amazing package in the mail from my kindred spirit Sarah. I had made her a plushie last month; a jellyfish named Princess Squishy (an incarnation of a nickname/drawing conjured up in the delightful minds of children Sarah worked with).
In return, she sent me the most amazing collection of trinkets: classic Bigelow Rose Salve (it’s delightful), a Liz McGrath limited edition tin, and a phrenology head pocket mirror!
But the most incredible gift was this handmade necklace. An anatomical heart seasoned with tiny gears, axe in a glass case, black flower and a locket filled with meaningful symbols. Does this girl know me, or what?
All of this for a plush invertebrate! What a talented and beautiful soul she is. I’m so grateful.
Been a bit under the weather this weekend, but I found this post sitting in my drafts folder. I had forgotten about it!
I came across this awesome Brain Salt and Pepper Shaker a while back, and it got me thinking about clever spice devices. Of course, this one is my first choice:
On a side note, I’ve noticed a trend in “aggressive kitchen ware” lately. Not that it will surpass bacon or ninjas as the next big cultural meme, but there definitely seems to be a market for it. Take, for example, the Ouch Toothpick Holder. Voodoo-licious!
Like an anatomical cross section of your favorite childhood coin storage piece.
Side note: it has occurred to me that I I’ve neglected to use a “meat” tag on my entries. For a blog containing as much meat as this one, it must be remedied.
I’m fascinated by random cultural explosions that take place around arbitrary objects. Bacon has become a veritable phenomenon over the past two years, and I’m noticing steady growth of the toast trend.
I’ll refrain from posting images of pictures burned into toast…it’s been done ad nauseum. I will, however, show you this meta-toast mosaic:
Who can forget the 1990’s pioneer of these crumbly, starchy heroes, POWDERED TOAST MAN?
High-velocity raisins, corrosive croutons, acidic marmalade, flying butter pats…and of course, flight. He had it all.
Years later, we meet Mr. Toast and his mini empire. There are countless variations of Mr. Toast images and products. Personally, I’m a fan of Vampire Toast:
(Love the shiny cape…very classy)
Slightly more menacing is this toast from one of my favorite web comics.
Never thought toast could be sad? Well, My Paper Crane proves that it can be, if aware of its ominous scorching fate.
If you prefer your toast enraged and screaming, you can now purchase a Mini Toast Pocket Friend:
In fact, angry toast does seem to be all the rage (pun intended).
And my own soft toast creations, circa 2006 (and part of a complete plush breakfast) were pretty happy too:
Yummy Pancake’s Mr Toastee flickr set runs the whole gamut.
Happy…
Dressed up…
Drunk…
Whole wheat, original and rye (together in perfect harmony)…
Some modern toast creations include bizarre, counter-intuitive designs like this Soft Toaster Cell Phone Holder, complete with bear face and ears:
(The toast, also with a face, is supposed to “wipe off” the phone…wonder if it’s large enough for touch screen phones)
Are you…
(Image source link now dead)
What are your feelings about the growing Cult of Toast?
I can think of a few vinyl lovers who would appreciate this as much as I do. Michael Rogers Press makes these fantastic LP notebooks with cut records albums, hard bound with black cloth.
This pretty much sums up the past decade of my life. I might have to make one of these.
Adorn your desk with one of these, lest you forget that life is nothing but an uphill battle and a pointless exercise in futility. Or imagine that the little guy really CAN push that big rock with ease.
This election has encouraged more artists, manufacturers and enthusiastic people to try their hand at creating a unique Obama product, and the trend is not unique to America. This Obama mask has become a top seller in Japan.
According to the report, “people are using this mask for business and pleasure.” Supposedly it captures that Obama energy, though I’d be more inclined to say it captures a unique and enthusiastic creepiness.
, which add a periodic table flare to any dining setup: 
There are countless variations of Mr. Toast images and products. Personally, I’m a fan of Vampire Toast:
SheWalksSoftly 