Author Archive: Hazel Chua

The nuclear crisis that followed after the earthquake and tsunami rocked Japan caused a lot of people to panic. This resulted in geiger counters and radiation detectors selling out on the web a few hours after it was announced that the damaged nuclear plants in Fukushima were leaking and that trace amounts of radiation had been found to cross the seas onto the shores of California.

Earlier, I was singing to the tune of Corinne Bailey Rae when I was talking about the Vinyl Numbers Clock. Now here’s another thing that got me humming to the tune of another song. This time, it’s Rihanna’s “Umbrella” and I’m sure it’s a song that you’ll be singing in your head when you’re walking under the Fanbrella.

“Go, put your records on, tell me your favorite song…” That line from Corinne Bailey Rae’s song just began playing in my head the moment I saw this quirky and creative clock. These clocks are the brainchild of artist Pavel Sidorenko, who created a whole range of these wall clocks from recycled 12″ vinyls.

Will these conceptual wonders never cease? Designer Mac Funamizu has come up with a lot of designs in the past, but his latest called “Sophie” is truly something. What do you think about an iPhone case that also functions as a Polaroid printer?

Fans of the Hipstamatic app and the (virtual) lenses that come with it to make your shots appear retro and classic will not be disappointed by the HipstaCase. You’re already taking photos that look like they were taken decades go, so why not suit up your iPhone to make it look a bit more old classic timeless as well?

There’s no need to burn the midnight oil (or candle) anymore when you need to get some studying, reading, or work done on a night when your power dies on you. That is, if it was a really sunny day earlier and if you have one of these colorful and simplistic IKEA Solvinden Solar-Powered Table Lamps.

Sony Online Entertainment (SOE) has had a few rough weeks. Aside from the much publicized announcement by hacker group Anonymous about an impending take-down of the company’s sites because of the action they took against another hacker, Geohot, they recently had to hurdle another attack on their system where the perpetrator’s walked away with over 12,700 credit card numbers and information from 24.6 million user accounts.

Luxury cars, luxury toilets, and luxury watches have all had their run. Now it’s time for a luxury mobile phone to take the stage. And when I say “luxury,” I mostly mean “insanely expensive.” The silver version of these extravagant phones go for £6,400 ($10,560 USD) while the gold-plated one sells for a lofty £37,000 ($61,000).

I have a confession to make: I used to be a lazy brusher. As a kid, I didn’t really understand why I had to brush my teeth at least twice a day. My mom would make me brush after meals and I’d do an inward celebratory jig whenever she forgot to remind me.

I’m all for recycling and eco-friendly products these days. It doesn’t help that tons of harmful wastes and pollutants are released into the air and the world’s seas every second of every day. And it really just breaks my heart whenever I see photos of sea creatures choking on pieces of plastics or polar bears stuck on a floating chunk of ice as the ice caps continue to melt because of global warming.

Let me get this bit about me out into the open: I love calculators. I’m obsessed with them, especially scientific calculators. I blame my fixation on these calculators on Chemical Engineering, the course I took up in college.

Star Wars movie buffs will recognize this jacket without need for any introduction or background info. I personally only saw the Revenge of the Sith, the third episode in the Star Wars series, so seeing this fine-looking jacket motivated me to dig a little deeper into the scene where the Yavin medal made its appearance.

Can’t find Spotty or worried someone might’ve dognapped him? Squelch those paranoid incessant fears by clipping the Pet Loc8tor onto his collar. If you’ve got a particularly small pet and spend at least half an hour every day running around the house peeking under tables and sofas looking for your beloved pet, then this device is definitely for you.

“Freaker” is probably not a name I’d pick for a bottle/can/jar/glass insulator but that’s just what these folks named theirs. Of course, you probably wouldn’t expect something called the Freaker to be useful or functional, but this one surprisingly is.

A true testament that exhibits just how strapped for time everyone is nowadays is evident with just how many clocks there are out there. For example, there are two clocks in my room: one in front of the bed, and one hung on the space above the TV.

I’m egg-static to introduce this egg-citing new egg cup that will revolutionize how you enjoy your eggs. (Okay, I will stop with the egg-streme overuse of the egg-words now. I just couldn’t resist.) Anyway, remember those Ovalia Egg Chairs that were such a hit in the sixties?