Not sure what the story is with these photos, but I guess some Japanese website had this photographer take some real nice product shots of the Foot in the Door doorstop.
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A bunch of packaging I designed while I worked at Fred was featured in a brand new book 1000 Package Designs, put out by Rockport Publishers, and Grip Design. “[Fred] scored four pages of this gorgeous survey of contemporary package design. If graphics and packaging gets you excited, you might need some professional help. Join the club, and buy it HERE. [via: Fred]
[Via Fred]: “Heeb Magazine speaks to ‘the plugged-in and preached-out’ regarding everything from art and culture to politics. They also know their gadgets, and listed Cool Shooters as their number one item of the summer. See the posting HERE.”
Can one product make a person’s entire career? Not sure yet, but I’ll let you know. Stumbled upon this blogger who had a Guitar Hero drinking party featuring my Cool Shooters and Fred’s Cool Jazz. I like seeing how people use the ice shot glasses…glad I could contribute to your intoxication!
Another thing I designed while at FRED, that I stole off of his blog. Apparently some MIT grad student made 72 freakin’ cool shooters for a party, and used them for Sake Bombs. Genius! You know you’ve made it when your designs help people get drunk.
My former employer, FRED, is getting ripped off again, only this time by a mega-giant retailer. Getting ‘ripped off’ is all part of the game, especially in Fred’s business. However, Target took it to another level, and just straight up stole the design. I thought I would help spread the word by stealing Fred’s post from his site…I even stole the post title. Link at the bottom, thanks!
“They say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. We should be extremely flattered then, that Target has chosen to duplicate one of our most popular items, Ice Kabobs. How come we don’t feel so good then?
Target has just unveiled a new line by fashion designer Cynthia Rowley. The “Whim Line” is a collection of summertime party items ranging from table cloths to beach chairs, and yes, ice trays. To say that this tray was “inspired” by our product would be an understatement. Target has even named it the “kabob ice cube tray”. Clever! They have managed to cheapen it though, by making it smaller, using inferior materials, and packaging it in a polybag.
When companies like Target or Ikea release furniture that “looks” like expensive designer originals, many people (and I include myself here) tend to accept it and look the other way because they are making something available to the masses that previously only the elite could enjoy. But that doesn’t diminish the fact that the original design does belong to someone else, and is the product of their ingenuity, investment, risk-taking, blood, sweat, and tears. In this case, the original product isn’t even high-priced; it’s pretty much affordable to everybody – so the Robin Hood metaphor really doesn’t play.
I’m not quite sure how much control Cynthia Rowley or any of the name-brand designers have over their Target lines. This is pure speculation on my part, but I see this as more likely a situation where some gutless Target “merchandiser” bought a bunch of stuff in the specialty market, dumbed it down and squeezed out some of the cost (and quality), coordinated the colors, and sought a designer-for-hire to give it cachet. That’s not how we do things here at Fred & Friends, I can tell you that. We are strongly focused on original ideas, good value, and support of local retail. We really enjoy what we do, and thrive on the wonderful feedback our customers have been giving us.” [Via: Fred's Blog]
Here’s some rubber bands in silly shapes I designed at Fred. Rubber Undies, Rubber Duckies, and Rubber Chubby Folks. Function definitely followed form on this one, so I’m not sure what ever happened with these.
This is a Fred and Friends spot on TV from a while back, but it still cracks me up watching Joe on the news.
The Dieline is a blog that had some nice things to say about the some of the packaging I did at Fred.
