as seen in...country living magazine

The June issue of Country Living Magazine is all about fresh ideas and they've got a few suggestions that are for the birds. No, we mean that in a good way. For house and garden, they're featuring blik Threadless design 7.00 to help you bring a bit of the great outdoors into your home. We love how they paired it with mounted bird houses - definitely a fresh idea.

decorate myspace - enter now

MySpace, Australia, is partnering with us to run its very first Arts & Culture contest. Inspired by the shared artwork they see on their website everyday, MySpace/Au thought it'd be awesome to deck out their offices with wall graphics designed by members. So, this is your chance to customize blik and play interior designer. Submit your designs along with how they should be laid out on the wall. The winning concepts will be made into wall graphics by yours truly then installed at MySpace/Au headquarters for all to enjoy...if you work at MySpace, Australia, that is ;) But of course you'll get a set for yourself as well.

We all can't wait to see what you come up with! Hurry, contest ends May 16th.

twitter me this

Hey everyone. blik is now on Twitter so you can keep tabs on us 'round the clock. Get the inside scoop on stuff in the works, things in the design world that's catching our eye, and other fun tidbits.

Hope to see you there! blik tweets.

dna 11 eye-popping pop-up gallery

DNA 11, the inventors and creators of custom portraits made from customers' DNA, has opened its first pop-up gallery called the DNA 11 House. The gallery marks the first location on the West Coast where authentic DNA 11 art is on display and available for purchase. Located at 218 6th Street in Hermosa Beach, California, the house is open to the public by appointment only now through April 1, 2009. We've known co-founders Adrian Salamunovic and Nazim Ahmed for years and manufactured the window graphics for this awesome house. But more importantly, we're psyched for these guys - their stuff is amazing so you should definitely make an appointment to check it out.

on the boards: hotel andaz revealed

We gave you the heads-up, now it's time for the big reveal. The 14-story Hotel Andaz - formerly the Hyatt Continental aka Riot Hotel - has opened its doors. The 257-room hotel boasts spectacular panoramic views of the Hollywood Hills on one side and the Sunset Strip and downtown Los Angeles on the other. Visitors will experience West Hollywood culture, such as quotes from local neighborhood personalities, art installations from Los Angeles artists and impromptu performances from some of the city's up-and-coming musicians. Pretty cool.

For our part, we decked out the rooms and public spaces with prose, blik Anise by Ilan Dei as well as customized pieces. We're psyched we were able to be a part of this historic update to an icon of the legendary Sunset Strip.

on the boards: SMPL

Abstract painter, Stanton Macdonald-Wright, amazed visitors when he unveiled the Santa Monica Public Library's landmark mural in 1935. Covering nearly 2000 square feet, the mural is both large in scale and ambitious in theme, detailing the history of humankind through the evolution of the creative arts and sciences. One-of-a-kind artwork, along with striking architecture, put Santa Monica Public Library (SMPL) on the map as one of the most beautiful in the country. What's more, SMPL is certifiably "green". Designed by Moore Ruble Yudell, the 104,000 square foot Main Library, which opened in January 2006, is the City's second major facility designed and built with the intent of significantly reducing the building's negative impact on the environment.

We were recently invited to design a four wall mural in the children's reading/entertainment room. The theme: sustainability, of course! So we're hard at work coming up with a design that's educational, fun and true to the character of our neighboring town, Santa Monica, California. We can't wait to show you the reveal, but in the meantime, here's a glimpse of what's on the boards.

cheetahmail gets customized

Experian Cheetahmail, is a leading service provider of online marketing solutions for top enterprises worldwide, folks like Borders Books, H&R Block, Barclays, Sears Holdings Corporation and Wyndham Hotels just to name a few. We were recently commissioned to design graphics for several large walls in their So. Cal. headquarters. They gave us concepts and objectives for the space and our crackerjack design team went to work. We also collaborated with TheNatureOrchestra, a supremely creative design studio located in nearby Santa Barbara. Here's what we came up with! Thanks, Cheetahmail, we had a blast with this one.

For additional images and more on our custom work, head on over to blik Custom.

on the boards: CHOP

You may already be familiar with The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, but in case you aren’t, this renowned facility opened its doors in 1855 as the nation's first hospital devoted exclusively to caring for children. It’s been the birthplace for many dramatic firsts in pediatric medicine as well as fostered medical discoveries and innovations that have improved pediatric healthcare and saved countless children’s lives.

We were fortunate enough to be asked to help infuse some positive energy into CHOP's Radiology Department. Specifically, we’re working on design layouts for 15 rooms where children will be screened or receive treatment. We’re thrilled to be a part of this project and can’t wait to show you the reveal! In the meantime, here are some mock-ups of what’s to come.

joy of text winner takes the cake

In December, we told you about the Joy of Text competition we were sponsoring from Threadless. The online community-based tee shirt company we know and love, challenged the public to manipulate text in such a way that it became the design, rather than just part of it. Philip Tseng did just that with A Piece of Cake, winning our wall graphics by Veer among many other groovy prizes. Congrats, Philip!

And stay tuned for more sweet wall graphics from Threadless and blik.

venice comes together

This morning, the day of President Obama's inauguration, our friend and neighbor Deborah of epOxybOx, hosted a Venice neighborhood viewing party and celebration. Folks came together for food and drink, gathering around a large-screen TV to watch the swearing in of our new President. On the windows, blik installed the words, "Hope is a verb"...We agree, don't you?

blik hits the sunset strip

Hotel Andaz is an innovative, new hotel by Hyatt Hotels set to open January 8th, 2009 on Sunset Boulevard in the heart of Hollywood, California. The hotel offers a blend of personal preferences with attentive and uncomplicated service. Sounds good to us! To add to the ambiance, Louey Rubino Design Group asked us to collaborate with them to create 260 custom rooms at the hotel. blik Anise by Ilan Dei makes an appearance as does Threadless Living in Harmony, along with original graphics designed by Louey Rubino.

This is just one blik custom project "on the boards." Stay tuned for more updates and photos as this and other projects come together.

blik goes to google

Google just opened their first official Canadian headquarters and kicked things off with an open house last week. Overlooking the Dundas-Yonge Square in Toronto’s downtown district, the new suite of offices and board rooms represent more than just another branch of the search engine giant. It also marks the completion of a research project into the creation of an innovative workspace that balances the philosophies of being environmentally-responsible with the creation of a relaxed working environment that is distinctly Canadian in its feel.

We were asked to manufacture some beautiful, photo-real graphics for the lounge (see photo above). In addition to our custom graphics, the lounge area includes a foosball table and a Nintendo Wii system for Mario Kart breaks. Employees are encouraged to hang out and chat, and to take in the view of the Dundas-Square activities on the streets below. Pretty sweet. Check out more info and photos of Google's new Canadian digs.

threadless loves text and so do we

Threadless, the awesome online community-based tee shirt company we all know and love, is kicking off another Threadless Loves competition. This one is all about the goodness of text. The challenge? Create and manipulate text in a way that it becomes the design, not just part of it. The prize? You get an opportunity to design two upcoming TypeTees, a Wacom Intuous Tablet, and some blik swag - our Veer Typography wall graphics or a $250 gift certificate - and more. So get crackin'! We can't wait to see what you come up with.

threadless kids invade chicago

Threadless KIDS! has just opened a retail store in everyone's favorite windy city, Chicago, IL. It's packed with tons of their kids tee shirts, all of blik's Threadless kid-friendly wall graphics as well as original prints of popular Threadless designs. They even have an awesome "coloring corner" where the kids can practice up on their design skills. Whether you live in Chicago or not, we think it's worth the field trip to 1905 W. Division St.

as seen in, and on, Oprah

We have lots of reasons to give thanks this month. Two of them center around our very close friend Oprah. Ok, ok, she's not exactly our friend, but we did recently appear on her show and now, we're featured in the Winter 2008 issue of O At HOME magazine, hot off the presses.

Earlier this month, Divine Design's, Candice Olson, starred in an episode of The Oprah Show along with clutter-wrangler Peter Walsh. Their mission: revamp NYC apartments overtaken by chaos. In one ambush, long-time blik fan (lucky us), Candice, turned Birds of a Feather into a headboard and installed a blik Chandelier to add sparkle to a kitchen.

As if that weren't enough, the current O At HOME magazine, "The Color Issue," features Grandfather Clock designed for us by BY: AMT of Studio Jan Habraken. So, like we said, we have lots to be thankful for and in turn, we hope these will lend some inspiration.

blik pops up at wired store

The fourth annual Wired Store has opened its doors to the public in New York City. From now until December 28, it will display more than 150 cutting-edge products including the latest electronics, toys and transportation, which can be purchased online. The Wired Store is also recognizing four different charities, and features a brand new green section created by Adrian Grenier and Peter Glatzer of Reconcile Productions. Awesome, right? But that's not all. Each week, the store is hosting different events focused on charity work, music, technology and more.

This year, we are not only psyched to be one of the brands available through the Wired "Pop-up" Store, but we also got to help deck out the space with some spectacular custom graphics. We hope you get a chance to check out this high-tech haven before it disappears into the ether.

it's a bird, it's a plane...it's Haring

For the first time (that we know of, anyway), Keith Haring artwork is debuting as a balloon in the 2008 Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. We love how beautiful and simple it is, don't you?

Though they're not quite as big, you can have your very own Keith Haring Dancers, in color or black outlines, to spread a little love in your home.

blik + Kaboodle = presents for you

Yep, it's that time of year again. In the holiday spirit, we've teamed up with popular social shopping community, Kaboodle, to give away some gifts of our own. During Kaboodle's $25,000 Wish-a-Day Giveaway, they'll be giving away prizes from one of their favorite retailers each day from now until December 24th. On December 15th, they'll choose 5 Kaboodlers to receive a $100 blik gift certificate. To enter, just add blik items to your Kaboodle.com wish list between now and 11:59 PM on December 13th. Winners will be announced on December 15th.

Any of you blik-ers who aren't already a member of Kaboodle, whatcha waitin' for? It's the one place you can go to get a bead on all things shopping. With so many consumer outlets and desires to be filled, Kaboodle's shopping tools allow you to organize lists, discover new things, share advice, feedback and product suggestions as well as access discounts on popular products and find the best prices. At the heart of it all, is a fun and engaging community of people who love to shop. Happy Holidays!

london calls blik to designer toy shop

On October 12, the much anticipated Designer Toy Lounge opened at Selfridges & Co in London. Located next to Christmas Shop on the ground floor, the Lounge is tailor-made for fans of all things vinyl and according to Clutter Magazine, features "six key brands" - Momiji, Kid Robot, Uglydolls, Mimobots, STRANGEco, and blik. In total, there are over 300 groovy vinyl products to choose from, all neatly displayed in a modern, museum-like space. See if you can spot blik Invader on the wall.