| Nov. 15, 2009 | Posted by: Sheri |
In an effort to think cradle-to-cradle Starbucks is taking on the 58 billion paper cups American’s use annually. As a company contributing an estimated 3 billion cups into the waste stream annually, Starbucks goal is to make all paper cups 100% recyclable by 2012.
| Nov. 10, 2009 | Posted by: Sheri |
In a twist of sustainability meets alchemy, Washington, DC-based Envion can turn plastic back into oil, producing a net gain in energy recaptured. The Envion Oil Generator™ uses proprietary low temperature thermal cracking technology to transform almost any type of plastic (without presorting or cleaning) into light oil, medium oil, and emulsified oil.
According to their website this is possible because as a derivative of petroleum, plastic has a high level of stored energy content. Apparently the energy stored is almost equal to gasoline and is 51% higher than the energy stored in coal.
| Nov. 8, 2009 | Posted by: Marc |
MSLK’s AIGA award arrived last week in a most unusual form: as a stool.
A shallow USPS Flat Rate Box containing confetti, five pieces of particle board, and a sheet containing brief 3-step instructions was all there was. This was a bit of a head scratcher at first, yet the instructions explained the following:
“Tasked with designing and manufacturing 26 awards for the 2009 AIGA (Re)Design Awards, cypher13 teamed up with Rocket-fly to create a sustainably-minded and eco-friendly award. Desiring to design an award that would prove useful, be fun to interact with, and that could not be deemed a waste of time, materials, and energy, cypher13 and Rocket-fly settled on the notion of a stool. With Their only real design limitation being size due to the awards having to ship in flat rate USPS boxes(12″ x 12″ x 5.5″), a flatpack design was chosen.”
| Nov. 6, 2009 | Posted by: Marc |
MSLK was recently honored with Second place in the Sustainable Design category of the 2009 AIGA (Re)designAwards. The winning pieces include identity, print collateral, web, video, package design, wayfinding, and exhibit design from designers, student designers and agencies across North America.
Receiving recognition from the AIGA is quite an honor as the competition is always steep. The fact that we were recognized for our sustainable design work was especially humbling.
Click more to see some photo montages of our latest installations of Watershed!
| Nov. 1, 2009 | Posted by: Marc |
Everyone thinks that all designers talk about when we get together is fonts, bad logos, all while drinking wine in a fancy setting. Well, the funny thing about stereotypes is that they’re often true, and that’s exactly what happened last Friday.
“Dead Brands” was an event hosted by the AIGA’s new Metro North chapter, who are solely dedicated to focusing on the “Branding Arts.” Held in a grand old mansion (extra spooky for Halloween’s eve) in the town of Sleepy Hollow (maximum spookiness). This event featured a talk by renowned designer Michael Bierut, as well as a costume contest for the best dead brands.
| Oct. 29, 2009 | Posted by: Marc |
I can’t say exactly when, but there came a time when the old MSLK website no longer suited our needs as a company. After nearly ten years of gradual evolution, the site seemed fine to most casual visitors. However, as our range of services expanded, we were finding the need to tell increasingly complex stories about our work. On top of that, we were fielding calls from new prospects asking us about our capabilities… things we thought we had been clearly stated online, yet clearly were not.
Looking back, there were clear signs that we were adding patches to the site to try and show more than just the end-result of the work. And these signs all pointed to us being the proverbial shoemaker’s children: branding experts who excelled in creating innovative online experiences for others (just don’t look at our site). In December 09 we started to think about what was needed for us to lead by example. We knew it would be an immense endeavor, and require a sustained commitment of nearly everyone in our studio.
And it did.
| Oct. 27, 2009 | Posted by: Sheri |
Last night SVA honored Advertising and Graphic Design Department Chair, Richard Wilde for 40 years of excellence in design education. MSLK was invited to cover the event on Reactions in order to bring the inspiration of his philosophies to you.
| Oct. 24, 2009 | Posted by: Sheri |
Be sure to visit the last day of BoHo bodega tomorrow! This temporary pop-up store is reinventing the quintessential NYC bodega by introducing consumers to green food, drinks and household products – all at wholesale price with proceeds donated to charity!
But don’t delay, the bodega will be over, tomorrow October 25th! Kuddos to our new friend Mia Sakai, for making this wonderful project happen. Be sure to check out the bodega furnishings including a recycled cardboard ceiling and tin can lighting. Mia is a real DYIer!
220 Lafayette St. just south of Spring.
| Oct. 23, 2009 | Posted by: MSLK |
A German design magazine reports on how New Yorkers are making trash into art.
“Asthetischer Abfall”
Page Magazine, magazine
October 2009
| Oct. 22, 2009 | Posted by: MSLK |
Thank you to everyone who joined us for our webinar on Social Media, with marketing expert, Sheri Koetting and social media consultant, Shannon Nelson.We hope you gained some new insights into the power and potential that platforms like Blogs, Facebook, and Twitter hold. As we discussed they not allow you to reach millions of users, but give unprecedented access to data about your fans and their daily lives.
We’ve had several requests for the presentation from those of you who couldn’t join us and those of you who were riveted and need to watch it again. A recording of the presentation is posted here for your convenience.
