Ikea Packaging as Advertisement

Ikea is known for both their inventive advertising campaigns and for being the pioneer of flat-pack designed furniture. Here is an example of one of Ikea's flat-pack boxes used in a commerical advertisement. The box was hung behind glass at Brooklyn bus stops, informing locals about a new store opening in Red Hook. This advertisement catches your attention and provides an innovative use of packaging.  

Urban Homesteading Project (UHP)

Great performance piece at the 2008 Figment Festival involving used plastic bottles. From the Emergence - Creative Pioneers in Uncharted Territory show. Urban Homesteading Project (UHP) by Francisca Caporali, Laura Grace Chipley, Pilar Ortiz.

Quoted from the site.
"Concept: Over nine weeks, the structure will be gradually insulated with salvaged plastic bottles, re-purposed as receptacles for organic life. Within each bottle, living plants are cultivated in either soil or water.The dialogue and interaction initiated through the construction of the homestead in tandem with planting, cultivating, and harvesting is integral to sustainability. The collaboration between artists and audience patterns a simple model of a community.

Participate: Viewers are invited to donate plastic bottles and participate in the planting process. At the end of the summer, the wood skeleton will be recycled and the plants will be given away; transplanted to a new place in which to grow roots and emerge."

A Packaged Past

Classic packaging on display in a store on the West Village. As a designer its fascinating to look at the art and typography from another time period. As a consumer it's amazing what nostalgic memories packaging can stir from the past.

Happiness seeing packaging of your favorite toy or board game. Reminiscing on your favorite tv show. movie or cartoon when looking at an old lunch box. In this case the popcorn box evoked a flashback from grade school. Friday movie day! I can remember the smell of the buttery popcorn in the air as it was poured into the box just before the movie started.

Second life for a packaging not only when recycling but when it takes you down memory lane.

Notable Packaging @ Renegade Craft Fair

At the 2008 Renegade Craft Fair in McCarren Park Pool, Body Care Packaging dominated as the most creative and compelling. Check out who UD picked for Most Notable Packaging and all the runner ups. 

Biggs & Featherbell

Biggs & Featherbell Heath Conscious Body Care was chosen as UD's Most Notable Packaging. Their packaging is hand painted with bright colors and gives off a playful girly essences. Each item has a clever name and a corresponding illustration. Biggs & Featherbell products and packaging are made by sisters Kelly and Hasey Evick. Check out all the places you can buy Biggs & Featherbell. 

And The Runner Ups Are:

Dirty Loves Clean

Check out Dirty Loves Clean soup packaging made from New York City Subway maps and corrugated cardboard.

Honey Flower

Check out the Honey Flower Natural Skincare product line and Blog. 

Disquieting Designs

Check out Disquieting Designs body care products and their new Soytastic soy candles on their website where you can buy it all. 

Bunny Butt Apothecary

Check out Bunny Butt Apothecary hand-crafted soaps and excellent smelling perfumes.

Renegade Craft Fair

On scene at the 2008 Renegade Craft Fair in Williamsburg. Great turnout despite moments of heavy rain and sweltering heat. A DIY fair featuring over 200 vendors in McCarren Park Pool.

One booth of note was the body care packaging and products from Biggs & Featherbelle. The gorgeous illustration, typography and brown corrugated wrapper around a sweet smelling soap caught UD's attention.

Mast Brothers Chocolate

I found Mast Brothers Chocolate at Urban Rustic, a 100% organic and sustainable indoor farmers market along McCarren Park. Mast Brothers Chocolate is handmade in Brooklyn, NY and is wrapped in a vintage patterned paper. The self-described "Leaders Of The Chocolate Revolution," Mast Brothers Chocolate can also be found at Artists and Fleas, Spuyten Duyvil Grocery, Marlow and Sons and Blue hill Cafe in Williamsburg. 

East Pack Packaging Expo 2008

East Pack is the east cost's largest packaging expo and UnwrappedDesign was there to see it all. The convention featured the latest innovations in packaging, processing and technology. Two floors of the massive Jacob K. Javits Convention Center were filled with trade booths displaying each company's packaging, innovative new recyclable packaging materials, and assembly lines showing how the packaging was stamped out, assembled, filled with the product and labeled. Visiting the booths there was a common theme expressed of maximum product exposure with minimum packaging using recyclable materials. Check out some of the packaging we saw at East Pack 2008.

Inside the Jacob Javits Center

Bottles That Got My Attention

I'm constantly observing the packaging being sold all around me. When I walk down the aisle of a corner market or grocery store, I let the packaging on the shelves compete for my attention. I try to see whose label, shape, or interesting detail stands out most. 

Checkout some of the bottles I've picked up recently.  

East Pack

UD will be on the scene next week at East Pack 2008 to see the latest innovations and trends in the packaging industry. This is the biggest packaging expo in the east coast. New this year is the  Green Packaging product pavilion and looking forward to see what they have on display.

Big Belly Solar Trash Cans

I was in Queens (Long Island City) the other day and I was excited to see one of the Big Belly trash cans. Queens is the only location in New York at the moment to get the cans as part of the "Queens Clean Air Project". These solar powered trash compacter help with the issue of overflowing trash receptacles on street corners. They hold up to 150 gallons of trash and are great for busy city areas. The solar powered grid at the top of the can provides all the energy needed for compacting through out the entire day. 

Story Telling

In a 2007 issue of I.D. Magazine an article was written with packaging trends to watch for. The number two item listed was "Story Telling". This is a way to connect consumers with stories to help remember the product and give the item credibility. Text copy designed to makes us pause, read and engage with the packaging.

While waiting at the checkout line at the grocery store I find myself reading labels and packaging looking for these snippets. I really enjoy finding these little surprises while purchasing items.

Healthy and Environmentally-Minded Eats at /Eks/

When you walk into /Eks/ (pronounced "X") Frozen Yogurt you feel like you're stepping into a pop art Tokyo cartoon basement. The walls are covered in a cherry red stencil of large fruit scenes. This design is continued through the entire fro-yo shop right down to their packaging. Neo Kim is the owner and designer of /Eks/ and has made recycling a priority in his store. At the back of the shop you will find three large receptacles with corresponding recycling symbols above. There are no other trash cans in the entire vicinity so recycling at /Eks/ is second nature -- the way it should be. 

/Eks/ is located in Williamsburg on Driggs Ave between N 9th & N10th St. The frozen yogurt and fresh fruit are an exquisite combination. I always get plain yogurt with blackberries and honey. 

It's All in the Cards

In the spirit of UnwrappedDesign, do it yourself and second life the card stock of the UD business cards will be from discarded packaging boxes. A photo recap of the design and production process at the studio.