Friday, August 29, 2008

Cool Exhibit Design Tool: Spoonflower


The CoolTools website posted an article about an interesting new service-based web tool called Spoonflower.

Spoonflower gives individuals the power to print their own designs on fabric. The idea is that you upload a digital image to the Spoonflower web site and the company prints the design as a pattern on 100% cotton fabric.

You can see some real-life examples and read commentary on using Spoonflower via thaneeya's blog (like the side-by-side fabric and digital image comparison shown at the top of this posting) or get more nuts-and-bolts details on the Spoonflower blog.

Before you get too excited, Spoonflower is still at the invite-only beta stage, but you can get on the invite list via their website.

All in all, Spoonflower's services look like another interesting tool to add to the exhibit developer's repertoire --- I've already put my name on the Spoonflower beta invite list!

UPDATE: Spoonflower is now open for business to all. So what are you waiting for? Start designing fabric!

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Monday, August 25, 2008

Exhibit Design Inspiration: Cloud



The art and design group Troika was commissioned to create this amazing flip-dot sculpture, called "Cloud", for Terminal 5 at Heathrow Airport in the UK.

The surface of the five meter long sculpture is covered with 4638 flip-dots, similar to those found in traffic signs and train stations.

As you can see from the video above, Troika uses a computer to control the flip-dots to create the patterns seen on the surface of the sculpture.

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Saturday, August 23, 2008

Exhibit Design Toolkit: Cable Ties


Even the most ubiquitous exhibit tools, like cable ties, are not created equal.

In 1958, Thomas & Betts invented the Ty-Rap® cable tie to solve the problem of harnessing the hundreds of wires used in manufacturing aircraft.

Check out the Thomas & Betts website to revel in amazing cable tie-osity!

The variety of cable ties that T&B offers is pretty amazing. I am especially a fan of their "High Performance" wraps with stainless steel nibs that hold the cable tie in place (forever!) without the slip-prone plastic ratcheting mechanism found in cheaper ties.

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Wednesday, August 20, 2008

Become An ExhibiTricks Fan On Facebook

For those faithful ExhibiTricks readers that also use Facebook, could you please follow this link and become a "fan" of ExhibiTricks?

(I'm trying out the new Blog Networks application on Facebook.)

Many Thanks!

Friday, August 15, 2008

DIY Book Repair


Dartmouth College Library's Preservation Services has created a great website that details all the ins and outs of Simple Book Repair.

There's enough detail to get you through everything from simple cleaning procedures to repairing a book's spine.

I don't know about you, but I've got a big, fat old dictionary that's falling apart that I'm going to get to work on this weekend!

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Tuesday, August 12, 2008

Exhibit Design Toolbox: CleanWriter

The Pilot Pen people have developed a great magnetic drawing board called CleanWriter.

Think of it as a Magna-Doodle on steroids. (It was developed under the same patent apparently.)

It comes in sizes up to 48" by 36" and was developed for industrial "clean room" environments and hospitals so it is not messy, and as a bonus, the CleanWriter is much more durable than the familiar magnetic writing boards you might buy at the toy store. It would make a perfect replacement for chalkboards or erasable marker boards.

Unfortunately, Pilot corporate headquarters in Japan is thinking of discontinuing the CleanWriter at the end of this year because the sales volume is low, so if you have a project that could use this technology, contact Pilot now!

Check out the CleanWriter webpage (with product demo video) for more information.

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