Carryology » Liking

Liking | wejetset

Leather — Wed, 20 Apr 2011 06:46:25 +0000

Liking | wejetset

Who Are They: The tagline reads, “the store and voice of modern travel culture”. The about page reads, “Established in 2007, wejetset brings together the products and information that every smart traveler needs.” As we see it, wejetset is the place to find out about all things travel related in a tightly curated platform. You want the best (by that we don’t mean luxury, we mean functional, design, use) travel related products, news and ideas on places to visit then wejetset is a site you need to bookmark.

Why We Like It: An online store, notes from around the world via their contributors, images that get hyped to explore and travel. And not just typical travel scenarios, but other elements like events happening at night, clubs to see, show and exhibitions to visit, so while it is travel related, you can find stuff that’s going on in your local are. What’s not to like? For us, it’s the hypebeast of travel websites/stores.

Who Else Might Like It: Anyone who enjoys the magic of travel and the knowledge it can bring. Even if you’re not aiming to travel, being made aware of various places and product from around the world is great in itself. Add to that the curation of events/shows/exhibitions and product and it’s quite a well rounded site for the modern online voyager…

Where They Are: It’s a website, so it’s global and they have contributors from a lot of different places across the globe. But we’re pretty sure that Taj, who started it all, is kicking around Philly in the USA.

Find out more about wejetset:
website
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Liking | Go Out Japan

ando — Mon, 28 Feb 2011 07:21:19 +0000

There exists a world without pain. It’s a world where the sun is always shining, and it’s inhabited by happy, healthy, wonderful people exploring the outdoors in technicolor splendour. It’s the world of Go Out Japan…

Who are they: Go Out are part of the Outdoor Style network – a retail and media group sharing the stoke of outdoor products with an appreciative Japanese audience. They are the folk behind The Backpack Book, which we have previously raved about.

Why we like them: Japanese carry goods are on the whole inaccessible to gaijin. Their language and characters keep our search engines away, and the size and sophistication of their domestic market means many brands don’t even bother exporting. With Go Out publications, we can get a little sneak peak into their exciting and exotic carry market.

Who else might like it: Lovers of whacky and different carry gear. Lovers of otherwise extinct brands like Dana Designs. Streetwear and outdoor crew looking for something really different.

Where they are: Japan. Nowhere else really. Just Japan. Check their website here, and ask Google to translate it for you.

Wallets We Love | Liking

Leather — Sun, 26 Dec 2010 19:54:55 +0000

Wallets We Love | Liking

Who Are They: Wallets We Love is a blog about the thing we carry around to keep our valuables in – Wallets.

Why We Like It: Obviously we’re big wallet fans, so it got us quite excited to see a new site pop up that is as equally, if not more, obsessed by them.

Who Else Might Like It: Anyone who has a wallet. Or in a more detailed answer, anyone who is interested in furthering their wallet knowledge. And beyond that you can see some of the great wallets released and have a giggle and the ones that somehow made it to production…

Where They Are: Online! You can check them out at walletswelove.com

Superfolk | Liking

Leather — Thu, 14 Oct 2010 11:20:03 +0000

Superfolk | Liking

Who Are They: Led by Irish designer, Gearóid Muldowney, Superfolk is a design studio that was established in 2008. They currently work out of a studio in Dublin, Ireland and create an assortment of products, from gorgeous laptop bags to tables and jewelry.

Why We Like It: It would be a crime not to like what they do. But if you need some prodding, how about creating gorgeous looking products that blend hand crafted with industrial design. Products that are created with an aim of longevity and sustainability while working with their local community to progress the use of natural resources such as wool, wood and leather.

Who Else Might Like It: Anyone who has a fetish for good quality hand made stuff, can appreciate great yet simple design ideas.

Where They Are: Dublin, Ireland is where the Superfolk gang work from. We have found one place that seems to sell Superfolk – The Irish Design Shop. But can’t find much more than that, sorry. If you know of anywhere, please let us know!

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I shouldn’t be writing much more than the above, but if you get a chance, please go and treat your eyes to a look at their site. Their products are amazing, and while I haven’t personally used any, I’m rather excited to try and track down ‘The Table’ or one of the smaller Aran laptop bags. Overall, I reckon this is my most liked ‘liking’ yet. You?

Hlaska | Liking

Leather — Sat, 14 Aug 2010 02:16:08 +0000

Hlaska | Liking

Who are they: Hlaska started out creating wallets and bags. Nowadays they have thrown menswear into the mix as well. An understated luxury brand for men. One half of Hlaska is a guy who co-founded a little video sharing site called youTube.

Why we like it: While we aren’t always advocates of the luxury market, these guys do a good job of not allowing that luxury sentiment to shine thru in the products. Plus, their use of delicious caramelly leathery goodness is visual candy.

Who else might like it: People looking for some luxury pieces to add to their staple of bags and wallets. Like that car you only pull out for a drive on Sunday…

Where they are: Burlingame, CA, America. Or as they put it – the 51st State of America.

Maxx & Unicorn Bi-Fold Wallet

ando — Sat, 08 May 2010 00:00:24 +0000

This is a short post about a wallet. But a really nice wallet, that we’ve loved for ages.

The Maxx & Unicorn Bi-Fold wallet comes from a young Brooklyn designer who makes really interesting accessories. His carry items all have an innovative twist – with the wallets usually made from a single folded piece of leather.

You can get the Bi-Fold in a large variety of colors and leather treatments, with most of them produced in pretty low runs.

They’re available at Alter, Supermarket, and a bunch of other nice boutiques.

Or if you’d prefer to buy what we think is a ‘remarkably similar’ design, there’s always the Woolrich wallet that looks almost identical and is more expensive to boot.

Note: If we got this wrong, and this was in fact designed independently, please let us know. We checked with Alter, and they also believe that Woolrich has ‘borrowed heavily’.

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UPDATE

If you don’t read the comments on Carryology, you often miss out on some really rich dialogue. In the case of this wallet, we now know that Woolrich did indeed copy the Maxx & Unicorn. And we have also discovered a design used amongst leather workers for many years that is most probably the inspiration for the Maxx & Unicorn wallet. Here are some pictures from a 2003 journal kindly provided by one of our readers Peter (an avid leatherworker).

Swiss Miss | Liking

Leather — Fri, 16 Apr 2010 05:44:33 +0000

Swiss Miss – Design Blog

Who are they: Swiss Miss is a design blog that started back in 2005 by Tina Roth Eisenberg. Tina started Swiss Miss as a personal visual archive that has now grown into a site that garners an average 900k unique visitors a month.

Where they are: Swiss Miss first kicked it over in the Alps of Switzerland before relocating to NYC.

Why we like it: Tina seems to find the querky little bits of design that not many others unearth. And heck, what’s not to like about the Swiss design aesthetic– modern yet humane.

Who else might like it: People looking to supplement their NOTCOT blog

One Bag | Liking

Leather — Wed, 10 Feb 2010 12:20:38 +0000

That’s all you need right? One bag? Jack of all, ace on none type of bag – does everything, excels at nothing. Kinda sounds like me, damn it.. But this isn’t about me, its about One Bag. OneBag.com to be exact.

OneBag.com is one of those sites that you stumble upon and just go “yessssssss!!, I can’t believe I hadn’t found this earlier”. It’s a site that lives on the borderline edge of passionate vs OCD. Luckily for us – and you – OneBag’s obsession is luggage, and how to reduce your luggage weight before traveling.

Sooo, OneBag is run by a dude who gave himself the name of the ‘Go Light Guru‘ – but his mum knows him as Doug Dyment. Doug obsesses over ways to reduce the weight, bulk and hustle of luggage when traveling, he has come with ways of folding to avoid creases (aka, the bundle fold), segmented packing checklists, substitution ideas for liquids, and a heap of resource links that are your mouse will have a field day of clicking with..

The true travel geek will love this site, think George Clooney in Up In the Air -“Bingo, Asians. They pack light, travel efficiently, and they have a thing for slip on shoes. Gotta love ‘em.”

But there’s also bit’s n piece’s in this site that cater to less frequent travelers – all in all if you are struggling to meet your baggage allowance, or sick of waiting for your checked bags, you might score a valuable tip or two about avoiding a luggage crisis next time you fly, drive, bus, train it anywhere..

The site is pretty text heavy, so don’t go there expecting an amazing graphic experience. This is utilitarian travel, with a utilitarian look.
Check the site out and be that dude who is at the front of the taxi queue, having slid straight past all the other airport suckers.

Our favourite versatile messenger bags

ando — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 06:46:58 +0000

For a full size version of the poster click [HERE]

A good messenger bag will let you live at the intersection of worlds

A good messenger bag lets you hop between places, accessing on the go. While not great for extended periods of carrying, they make up for that in convenience. While the original messengers were not much more than simple sacks, the recent trend of adding a few more pockets helps you deal with your abundance of modern gadgets.

“People who live in the intersection of social worlds are at higher risk of having good ideas.”– Ronald S. Burt

We’ve pulled together a number of messengers that we think offer good performance in a variety of environments. These messenger bags should all:

Work well both in the office (or university), as well as getting to and from it. If you work amongst pin-stripe suits, you may want to check some other more formal bags (Jack Spade & Mandarina Duck have nice options).
Carry all your indispensable bits of technology, including a laptop (some of these need a sleeve, but we’ll let you know which ones).
Let you jump on a plane, train or big boat, and explore the world. This requires an ability to expand for clothing, food, and really big headphones.

More discussion on the bags after the jump…

We’ve arranged the bags according to where you are most demanding; work/study or activities. We’ll start with the more work oriented bags:

Hard Graft 2 Unfold

Positives: A huge number of configurations, beautiful leather and details with old world craft, still pretty rare and unique.

Negatives: That deluxe Nappa leather doesn’t leave all that much space for your actual contents (better suits minimal packers), and they’re not great straps if you want to raise a sweat.

http://shop.hardgraft.com/bags/2unfold-laptop-bag-brown

Incase Nylon messenger

Positives: Covers all the basics at an affordable price (in most countries), various size options (we like the mid), a great silhouette, and minimal dangly bits.

Negatives: Having pockets only on the front of a satchel is inefficient (a power-pack can ‘fill’ the satchel), no compression options, and the componentry is only ‘good enough’. If you up-spec to their more premium bags, they start to get pretty fussy and lose the essence of a messenger.

Crumpler Cashmere Blazer

Positives: Really dialed and refined construction, durable, looks after all the basics, good padding.

Negatives: There’s no great innovations, the Crumpler brand is a little NQR these days (especially European Crumpler which is managed by different crew), and you might end up feeling like a cliche uni student.

Nike ACG messenger

Positives: There’s some really clever (yet subtle) innovations – the bag can extend to fit oversize items, there’s good yet discreet compression, there’s big pockets with internal splits, and there’s loads of versions available (including an XL).

Negatives: You need a laptop sleeve, the rubbery PU fabric used under the flap does not age well, and the hooks can be a little fiddly.

Chrome Citizen

Positives: A super comfy soft form, a cavernous main section, multiple size options, and some tasty shape details.

Negatives: It’s pretty basic on the pocket front, it needs a laptop sleeve (their Buran Messenger has a laptop pocket, but it’s not as sexy), and the seatbelt buckle used on their straps is love or hate.

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Any feedback? We’d love to hear if you’ve used better, if you’ve found the same, or if you think we’re tripping. Just fire us a comment and join the conversation.

PS: Crew in England, Australia, and many of the colonies might call these satchels. But that sounds a bit naff, so we reckon we should join the rest of the world in calling them messengers.

Our favourite versatile backpacks

ando — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 00:35:53 +0000

If you want large version of the image above click [HERE]

There’s some great backpacks around, but there’s also a lot that suck really badly. We thought we’d pull together a spread of packs that we rate – they work well, they look appropriate for their intended use, and they should help you get out and enjoy new experiences.

We wanted to narrow this list down a little, so we’ve chosen our favourite versatile packs. A great all-rounder is not easy to do, so there will still be some compromises. We’ve arranged them from more of a work focus, to more of an activity focus. Just pick where you best fit.

Quality = Fitness for purpose

These backpacks should all:

Work well enough from the office to the outdoors: They’ll carry a mix of items, and look appropriate across a variety of environments (unless you are in full suit city).
Carry your tech: They have pockets for all those modern devices, generally including a laptop (we let you know if they need an additional sleeve).
Deal well with travel: Travel requires a pack that can expand for a jacket or contract for an overhead bin. You need to stash food without squashing it and digital toys without scratching them. The best travel packs can open wide on their backs for packing on a hotel bed.

More discussion on the backpacks after the jump…

So, starting from the most work suitable, and building towards the most active suitable:

Incase Nylon backpack

Positives: Loads of great tech pockets, a geometric silhouette that looks great in urban environments (and yet still OK in the outdoors), efficient spaces for square work items, and a nice compromise on price vs quality.
Negatives: The harness and straight body shape are only OK for more rigorous activities, there’s not much expansion ability, and there’s better packs if you want to free your spirit (take it climbing, surfing, boarding, etc).

Gravis Metro

Positives: A really affordable pack that sits quite flat, yet seems to keep growing while you need it to. There’s convenient pockets, sensible sections, and loads of colourway options from crazy all-over prints to stealth black.

Negatives: The laptop pocket is a side opening, which means if you ever forget to do the section zip up, your laptop might meet the floor in a hurry. There’s not much structure or padding, so fragile items (like sunglasses) can feel a little exposed – but that’s not too big an issue for most.

Chrome Ivan Roll-top

Positives: A really different looking pack that gets loads of curious looks. Weather protection is great, with a relatively water-tight hanging pocket that we use for our 17″ MacBooks. While the Ivan is our favourite size roll-top (mid), there’s also the Pawn (small) or the Sultan (large).

Negatives: This is classic courier style, with big pockets and sections that take everything. You need to be creative to find good nests for all your tech, otherwise it just swirls around with everything else. The velcro can be loud when opening the main section, and it’s a pretty wide pack (not great for power walkers).

Rip Curl Escape

Positives: This pack was built for travel, and it shows. A huge main compartment can take a weekend’s clothes, there’s a wide waste harness, and we love all the features like wet sack, insulated pocket (that fits big Bose), and more.

Negatives: It could do with a couple more internal pockets, and it doesn’t compress well, meaning you need to keep it on the full side or your stuff can get jiggy in it.

Da Kine Heli Pro

Positives: A snow industry foundation piece, it looks epic, works for skis or snowboards, has a load of colourway options, and fits the body well for freedom of movement. Various sizes available, with our preference for the 20L.
Negatives: This is the least well suited to a workplace, needing a laptop sleeve and some creativity to make it work well. We also wish it was more water-tight.

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So that’s our take. We’d love to hear if there’s some amazing bags we’ve missed (just ping us a comment).