The Micro Bit

BBC's Micro:Bit is probably the greatest contribution made to IT students up and down the UK in history. It's all very well teaching British children how to use Word and other Microsoft programs, but ICT cirriculum's up and down the country should be pushing to teach children code and the work that goes in to making the interfaces we're used to using with our PC's. 

The Mirco Bit educational initiative is set to show year 7's all over the UK by giving away them away for free to every year seven student, helping them to get creative with the technology they spend so much time playing on. 

The miniature computer measures 4cm by 5cm, has 25 LED's, comes in a range of colours and can connect to mobiles, raspberry pi's and even plant pots, with the ability to connect to other kits and allowing for children to develop on the basic skills they learn. BBC mirco:bit will help children easily program with a easy-to-use software on the mirco:bit website that can be accessed on mobiles and tablets too. It's powered by a mirco usb cable put if you're wanting to make your micro:bit portable then you can pick up a battery pack for a couple of quid on the internet. 

I won't go in to the specs of the BBC micro:bit but a couple of the awesome features are the on-board motion detector that will allow the micro:bit to be turned in to a spirit level, a built in compass and the Bluetooth smart technology which means that the BBC micro:bit is more than well equipped for getting the kids hands on with their pocket sized computer. 

Lego be gone! Pinblock's are upon us!!!

Now I know this'll be hard to come to terms with but sadly Lego isn't the 'It' thing any longer. You know all those times you got a chunky yellow brick stuck in your foot? And you got aggravated with the basic 90 degree joints on all your models? Well with Pinblock's your feet are safe and you can now make your models around six rotation points!!! There's nothing better than rotation points. 

Pinblock started as a Kickstarter project aiming to re-imagine the building block, to bring these tiny, flexible pieces of plastic to market so that every creator and dreamer out there can surpass the limitation of conventional construction.

These bad boys are amazing in that you no longer have to search through the box for the right piece; because all the pieces are the same size, dimension, width; what I'm basically saying is that every brick is identical! And no longer are your models stiff and lifeless, they're flexible and able to curve; no more restrictions in your buildings and creations.

Pinblock's aren't just for creators, they're also for designers, they provide the perfect, slim material to create pixelated images with. These Pinblock's are so clever yet so uncomplicated! There's really no end to what you can do with them; build watches, make portraits, construct the Empire State Building!!! Whatever you want to do you can do it.

I happened to make a loose interpretation of Mickey Mouse in my first go at Pinblock's, proving that even the simplest of minds can get carried away with this awesome new toy.

What's even better is the variety of boxes available. Pinblock offer a choice of freestyle colour schemes, as well as kit boxes which give you a step by step guide to building rockets, ships and jets. The genius minds behind Pinblock's - great mates Vlad and Jun who decided to change engineering for the better - are really on to something here and I hope to see Pinblock's go global; encouraging kids and adults alike to get their build on.

At the end of Pinblock's Kickstarter campaign they launched The Manual Challenge, which was a race among pledgers to share pages and collect all fifty two pages of the Silver Falcon Model Manual for the chance to win a box of each of the Pinblock sets (seven boxes in total) for absolutely nothing! Pinblock's sent different pages out to each person and it was a battle on Facebook, Twitter and Kickstarter to send pages to each other and share their own in order to gather all the pages of the manual. Of course by sheer determination and brazen annoyance, yours truly managed to wrangle together all 52 pages first and nabbed herself the awesome prize.

And this week the box turned up all large and full of tinkling brick noise and I practically wet myself in excitement, eager to get my build on. And build I did; cathedral's, characters and other cute critters! I did my best to test the durability and flexibility of these Pinblock bricks and am utterly astounded by the versatility in one tiny 1 cm wide brick!

Well done Pinblock; live long and prosper.

Paper Fairytale

If you think you're journal is a one of a kind then you really need to get a load of these Polymer Clay Journals that really bring a whole new meaning to the word 'ethereal'. 

These Polymer Clay Journals are amazing feats of art that combine realistic 3D form with magical characters to create journals that are truly one of a kind and thought provoking. They're the work of Etsy shop owner Mandarin Duck who is a London based designer that specializes in Polymer clay artistry with anything from journals to jewelry to tutorials for you to experiment yourself. 

The life like creatures featured on the skins of these journals are gorgeous and so greatly detailed in they're layers, surrounded in the complimentary scenery, bound to make your writing more exciting and adventurous. And if you'd like a Polymer Clay Journal then it'll cost you around £300 for a bespoke journal, or roughly £15 if you'd prefer to follow a tutorial and try your hands at one of these unique pieces. 

Get Passive Aggressive!

I've left a few post it note rants in my time that end up spanning three separate notes - double sided might I add - which is when the Post-It Note Roller would have come in handy. The Post-It Note Roller lets you get your notes down without having to cram it all on one sheet, allowing you to roll out as much as you need all in one pretty pink go. 

No more restricted telling offs in the office, no more post-it notes losing their stick and fluttering around the place; with the Post-It Roller you can literally paste your notes on any surface as if laying down wallpaper. 

The Post-It Note Roller is spunky and fun, letting you be creative with your notes; making a great gift for the 'passive aggressive' post-it note culprit in your dorm room. And at roughly £8 it's a nice filler present. 

Take a hike

There's good weather on the way so there's no more excuses to stay indoors wrapped in in your duvet watching Youtube when there's a whole world out there ready to be explored. And if you do plan to be putting miles of gorgeous countryside and wilderness under your feet than you should go prepared by picking up some of these awesome, compact hiking and camping essentials. 

First up for handy camping gear is the Gerber GDC Essentials collection which feature assorted blades and tools that attach easily to your zips for quick access and light carrying. They feature a clip for easy removal and are a perfect carry companion for daily use; attaching to virtually any zip with a small, sleek form made out of durable stainless steel. In the GDC essentials collection there is a Hook Knife Ring, LED Light and Bottle Opener, Mini Key chain Knife, Hex mini multi-tool and Driver Mini Multi-tool. Anything you could possibly need for a camping expedition all within reach and perfectly compact. 

This next product is an all in one item that features anything you could probably think of needing. The Kelvin 23 Ninja (cleverly named for it's twenty three functions) is unique and designed for the everyday jobs, including; an ultra handy screwdriver, a bright LED light, a tiny yet nifty spirit level, a five foot tape measure, a powerful magnet to hold loose screws, a tiny hammer and 16 essential screwdriver bits to fit practically every fixture out there!

A Kelvin 23 Ninja on your key-ring or in your back pocket means you no longer have to scramble around looking for your hex key to tighten up the book shelf; probably the ideal gift for the college kid or new home owner who will encounter DIY for the first time. It may not be much of a camping essential but you're sure to find a use for it if you plan on getting crafty with nature.

The final tool on my list is the LighterBro which literally means you have to carry around a back pocket tool roughly the same size of a lighter. The LighterBro Multitool clips around your regular lighter to provide on the go tools such as; a micro Phillips screwdriver, a Flathead screwdriver, a super sharp knife, scissors, a bottle opener and a key chain attachment so that you can keep all your essentials in one place.

LighterBro is the perfect tool for camping/hiking with it's durable metal case and compact body; it's perfectly affordable and clips to your average Clipper Lighter. Even the reviews rave about how useful you'll find it and screaming praises for the swiss army style tool that wraps easily around your lighter; brilliant!

Let it Grow!

Bring the outdoors in with these awesome terrariums from Urban Outfitters as part of their Urban Grow movement. 

Terrariums are the perfect way to give your home some fun and fresh furnishings; these glass and metal planters are futuristic, almost like a tiny rocket-ship for your plant, with their geometrical forms and striking edges that give an outer-space vibe to your home. These Urban Grow planters come in all shapes and sizes ideal for letting you keep all of your favourite plants only a breathe away, and for little green fingers to create their own fairy gardens.

You don't have to be a botanist to use Terrariums either, as all it takes is some sand, bark and a couple of air plants to get your Terrarium set up. Easy as. And all because the air plants are self sufficient; surviving on nothing but the moisture and nutrients in the air so that you don't have to water them frequently or give them much attention except for when you want something pretty to look at.

And if you don't mind giving your new little house plant a little love, then you can get your hands on some pretty succulents and cacti. There are many health benefits to having plants in the house; for example in increase in oxygenation in the environment, terrariums allow for you to close them during the night time so that you're not breathing in all that carbon dioxide again. Also air plants filter dust out of the atmosphere; less dust equals better air or something like that...

These terrariums by Urban Grow are sleek and attractive with their metal and glass composition, suitable for any room be it on a table, in the corner of the room or hanging from the ceiling. By far my favourite terrarium is the Large Star Terrarium, which features only sixty facets, creating an intricate ornamental piece that allows you to build your own little garden in the comfort of your own home that needs nothing more than a quick spritz for maintenance.

My geek box

You're running low on cool action figures and need a new useless let utterly cool gadget to tinker with, then have no fear because My Geek Box are on hand to send you your monthly dose of madness. 

For £15.99 a month you can get a My Geek Box jam packed with awesome retro gear and geeky gamer gifts delivered right to your doorstop, ready for you to open up and play with. Your mystery items come with a different theme each time; ranging from zombies to heroes to video games and even your favourite films! All you do is sign up, select which shirt size you are, wait for them to pack your stuff and when you get your box you rip it open as if it's Christmas come every month.

If you doubt their awesomeness then you're going to want to check out their past boxes; they truly are well worth the money. And if you're looking to give a My Geek Box to someone who still has to hide behind the pillows when they watch Doctor Who then the Kids Geek Box is the one for you. Kids Geek Box is designed for padawans, with clothes to suit the age of the intended child with more appropriate and less horrific items to fill their room with. 

Shave it for later

Exams are coming up and there's no better way to get yourself organised than to begin with your pens, pencils and other stationary. (Okay, maybe revision is best, but pretty and functional things never fail to make everything better.) And if you do want to get yourself in order, then this Pencil Shaving Desk Tidy by UK based designer Clive Roddy is the perfect, quirky little accessory to get ready to hardcore hit the books. 

This neat and fun Desk Tidy was designed to mimic a giant pencil shaving, in which the natural spiral shape of the shavings provides a space to keep your abundance of stationary tidily stored away. Each Pencil Shaving Desk Tidy is handcrafted from sustainable Birch Plywood and can either be hand painted in any of the three primary colours; Yellow, Blue and Red, the colours you get on most pencils. 

Pencil Shaving Desk Tidy has a large storage capacity that lets you store up to 75 pencils, brushes, rulers you name it... The plywood spiral lets you organize yourself stuff in to separate sections between the layers of ply, keeping them compactly and amusingly stored. And for just £25 you can get your hands on a Pencil Shaving Desk Tidy; and I really can see these making a cool adornment to any studious kids desk, or even in the middle of the table in an art room to spruce the place up a bit. 

Tiko

It seems to be the case that 3D printers just aren't practical in size. They're bulky, and loud and give off god awful fumes, and don't even start on all those cables sticking out of the back. You see how I haven't even mentioned price yet? But what if someone made a 3D printer that's silent, compact, tidy and costs just $179? Well thank heavens for Tiko. 

Tiko is the unibody 3D printer that does it all and more; despite it's compact size of 39 cm tall, it has a relatively large printing space, with the electronics and mechanics behind all the hard work being shrunk in to a tiny compartment that looks both attractive and clean. It supports all the usual 3D printing materials; PLA, ABS, Nylon, Hips etc... With a spool chamber in the top that easily fits the average one kg roll of plastic. 

Rather than having tons of runners that control the movement of the printing head, Tiko consists of three sets of arms that move easily and freely without the shaking movements of many 3D printers, that lets you get high precision and accuracy with your printing. 

And because Tiko is enclosed, the wind and a slight breeze won't blow the arms about and mess up your design, and in corporation with Tiko's wireless function this means that you can take Tiko anywhere. Great for printing on the go and ace for repairs when you're miles from civilization, as Tiko can connect straight from your laptop to the device without any internet connection!

Tiko is flexible; which means that you don't have to fight to get your 3D printed item off of the bed, or leave it in a wash to dissolve the excess plastic over night, all it takes is one little bend and you've got your printed item ready to go.

It's so easy to use too with it's super friendly and easy software, meaning you don't have to fiddle around finding the right tools on the creation platform; making it fun and effortless. Tiko is light and strong, and after listing all these awesome features I'm wondering why I haven't headed on over to Kickstarter to get my pledge in?

My Retro

Gaming is in our blood; our father's did and our forefather's probably didn't do it, but that's only because they didn't have electricity in those days!

But now we do have electricity, and more games consoles than we know rightly what to do with, so why not stick your game head on and get your thumbs at the ready to punch those 'A' and 'B' buttons like mad? Because My Retro Game Box is sure to put you in the mood to fire up your old GameBoy Colour's, NES's and Sega Megadrive's. 

Much like a magazine subscription, My Retro Game Box is a service which sends you out at least three awesome new games for your console every month; but rather than ending up in your recycle pile, these games become your lifelong companions. My Retro Game Box don't rent games, oh no, they let you keep 'em. You tell them which consoles and games you have and they select games for you to work your way through each month on your retro gaming systems. And you won't end up with something you don't like; instead you tell them what sorts of games you do like and they'll do their best to meet your standards. 

And if you don't own the necessary consoles then relax a little, because they also sell the systems so that if you're not a retro gamer you can get in to it. At roughly £20/month it saves you from having to troll through Ebay looking for games you might like and waiting for them to be shipped from who knows where; so get on My Retro Game Box and subscribe! 

Sandwich Book

When it comes to Sandwich making we're all connoisseurs in our own right; there's the way we layer the gherkins - to touch or not to touch - and the right sequence of ham, cheese, tomato and then ham, to mayo or to not mayo, that is the question?!? But this Sandwich Book by Pawel Piotrowski will put any sandwich you've ever made to shame. 

The Sandwich book looks to challenge convention, bringing a visual treat to the hobby of reading and as you turn the pages of this book you'll find yourself examining the many layers of a sandwich. 

You start with the front cover of the book, which is a high resolution picture of a bread slice, and as you turn over you get the filling, enough filling to stuff your chops with, page upon page of cleverly cut tomato, onion and 3D lettuce. 

The Sandwich Book may not be useful, but it'll sure look quirky sitting on your shelf, or make a pleasant companion for the kitchen; making people think about book's in different ways. 

CDBITS

We're living in a digital age, and with CD's near enough disappearing to make way for mp3, what is there to do but use the plastic discs as ninja stars?!? Well, with CDBITS, you can turn your old and scratched CD's into a construction power house. 

These cleverly designed, 3d printed clips allow you to sandwich your CD's in to series of different shapes and designs, making boxes and sturdy storage mechanisms from something you'll otherwise chuck in the bin. CDBITS turn your old compact disks in to modular units that are both decorative and functional, and what better way to inspire upcycling than to let your child build in a more creative way with disused discs and tiny 3D printed clips. 

CDBITS are the invention of design company Avooq Creations, and can be downloaded from MyMiniFactory to be 3D Printed from home as well as purchased online. They're the cheapest and most readily available new building block on the market, and a great way to re-purpose and hack your stack of hoarded CD's. 

Current Local Time:

For the travel happy out there or those who have family abroad, the World Clock by ElevenPlus would be a great companion to keep on your desk. Asides from having a sleek cylindrical body with a glossy transparent plastic head, the World Clock can do much more than your average clock, as with a simple rolling motion you can find out the time in a different country. 

Independent working hands make this whole function possible, and by easily rolling the clock until it displays the name of the desired country on the top, the hands will be manipulated so that they correctly display time down to the last second. 

It's an inconspicuous and functional desk aid for the travel dreamer out there and World Clock comes in three matte colors of crimson, navy and slate grey, so you can know the time in all 24 different time zones.  It'd make a perfect gift for a loved one who's moving away, so they know what time to call.

Bringing books back to life!

Goodnight Lad is the genius book that merges technology with paperback to create an augmented reality story that allows a child to explore a book in the third dimension and to interact with many features of the story. 

The story follows young Logan who refuses to go to bed, so his parents hatch a plan to help him go down. Now what makes this story different from others is the fact that the book is compatible with smartphone devices and with the use of the Goodnight Lad app, the book comes to life with beautiful animations that let you really get stuck in to the book. And with 32 pages there is plenty of room for exploration. 

This augmented reality story is amazing as it helps bring back the dying tradition of reading to a child by melding it with technology. Goodnight Lad is a happy medium where technology use is not excessive, and the use of animation and hidden secrets inside the book mean that your not at risk of nodding off.

Goodnight Lad is available on Kickstarter for backing at as little as £19 (including postage to the UK), so why not get your hands on the chance to bring back the bedtime story? 

Fidget

For those who have the tendency to fidget when doing a monotonous or stressful task, then these Fidget Rings by Meg Dattoria are perfect for you. Designed to mimic the natural way our hands fidget, the fidget ring gives you something to actually fidget with so that you can calm down and keep control in a quiet and less obvious way.

These rings are a great companion for all ages; especially for sufferers of Autism, Aspergers and ADHD. They can help with focus and provide a good distraction from stressful subjects. If you're a health care or education specialist then you can get a reduced price lot of the rings with the 'Classroom Kit', which essentially lets you give the rings to people who need them.

There are rings that you can roll, slide, tilt and spin; each providing a different fidget for you to play around with. You can either get them in plastic (for practical application) or metal (which will look less conspicuous).

Uh-Maze-ing!

While going through her papa's old belongings one day, a young girl discovered these stunningly intricate maze's that her father had drawn over 30 years ago.

Defying expectation K.Nomura spent seven years of his free time as a school janitor at a university to draw these complex maps that seem to have no pattern and no clear solution. You could spend hours following an illusive trail only to find out you went the wrong way and hit a dead end; amazingly frustrating for all those who have attempted it. Papa's Maze has already featured in a popular Japanese web comic One-Punch Man and is set to continue baffling intellects and artists all over the world.

You too can attempt the maze as Spoon & Tamago are selling the A1 sized sheets for all those who are brave enough and patient enough to take it on.

Doodle By Stitch

For those who have to doodle everywhere they go, this is the perfect idea. Doodle By Stitch are a company that create products specifically so that you can draw on anything; from your bed, to the table cloth to aprons and pencil cases, pretty much anything you can think to draw on they sell. 

 

The rules are simple too: you use the Doodle By Stitch pens to draw on your material, then you chuck it in the wash, let it dry and doodle all over again. Simple right? With a range of different colour pens available and a reasonable budget for the product, it's a great way to avoid children drawing with permanent markers in no-no zones, and to prevent you from having to frantically search for a paper pad in the night when you wake up with an idea. Genius!

Photojojo

One website I've come across in my creative endeavours is Photojojo; a site that produces quirky camera accessories and attachments to make photo taking more fun. They have a range of interesting items from Spy Lenses to Photo-opoly to Keyboard Skins, all unusual items that definitely bring the fun to being a photographer.

Not only do they sell products, but they also have interesting tutorials attached to their website which give you tips on how to make the most of your cameras; for example this funky tutorial on how to make your own 3D camera using two disposable cameras!

Photojojo also have the facility for you to rent their strange products on a day to day hire, so that you can try out their items or use them for events; where you have your chance to play with their Poppy 3D Camera's and time lapse cameras.

Flutter-By!

Butterfly World, Hertfordshire, is a beautiful location completely overwhelmed with butterfly's, wildlife and gardens fit for the Chelsea Flower Show. They have green houses full of exotic butterfly's, as well as hatcheries with caterpillers where you can watch them grow and hatch. This is an epic day out for all those nature lovers where you get the opportunity to pick up creepy crawlies (such as giant snails and hissing cockroaches) and explore amazing gardens and fields where the butterflies are released. It's a great place to also experiment with a camera for all of those picture lovers out there.

Organised Chaos

Watch Diary- Wonjune Song

 This nifty little organiser by designer Wonjune Song is the perfect way to keep your schedule on time and to organise your day. 

In the middle of this journal is a watch which not only tells you the time, but allows you to plan your day to the hour with the ingenious page design that breaks the day down into manageable sections. 

 

Watch Diary

No longer do you have to make a list of your daily itinerary, because this fun dairy allows you to track your daily activities around the watch face that lies in the centre of the page, making it quick and easy to check if your sticking to the schedule.

This diary is especially good for around the clock  planning and to make it even better it comes in a series of sizes and colours for even more fun!