Here's to more Britney Spears

It has been a pretty good year.

We have received numerous messages and support from people who has stumbled upon our blog.

It has also helped us open some doors that had us meeting some great people, one of which is our current employers.

To which we thank all of you.

However we are getting bored now.

The very existence of the blog is to do something different. That is what we (try to) pride ourselves against. And we have seen enough people doing the same thing these days that makes us want to do something different.

Do not get us wrong. We did not invent this whole blog/potfolio showcase and this idea thing. Credit must be given to Martin and Theo, The Staufenberger Boys and personally, a certain creative team's book I saw at TBWA about 2 years ago.

Besides, over the last month we debated that we might have veered off course a bit. Posting irreverent images and texts that probably make no sense.

So here we are, back to basics and sticking to what's true of what we first set out to do.

We do not know what it will be yet. But we may have an idea.

Here's wishing everyone a great New Year ahead and may Paris and Britney continue to be friends forever.

Janson

PS As a personal side project, here something I've realised.

Life's too short

I desperately want the new Sony W950i phone.

Doesn't help that O2 refuses to give it to me for free.

Worse, my gf got it for free from Carphone Warehouse. She simply phoned up and blagged it.

So I went to ebay to browse and see if I can get a good deal.

And this auction I came across had me in stitches.

When I put up something up on ebay, I try to be as precise as possible. Sometimes it took me about 15mintues to research then write the description.

But this guy wrote about three lines and said, "Life is'nt long enough to list all the details and functions..."

How true.

I should make better use of my time.

Watch them waste away.

Since the summer everyone out east and maybe west have been wearing these 5 bucks shoes. I've gone through around 3 pairs so far and have finally upgraded to a proper pair of leather converse. But cuddy our in house graphic designer is still going dispite the bad weather. So i thought i would document the downfall of these shoes. This is the first shot ohhh dont they look nice.

There's light...

Coach journeys are horrible.

And I just feel that train companies are underselling their 'product' a bit.

Or it's probably complacency.

Train journeys are like flying.

Except it's far less restrictive, more comfortable and actually city-to-city, if you know what I mean.

If there are numerous award winning ads for airlines, I don't know why train companies can't achieve the same.

Especially in this country.

Maybe it's an aspirational issue.

Flying is, afterall, sexier than any other mode of transport.

But train beats coach anytime, anyday.

When the going gets tough...

We are almost certain they are put up in corresponding order...



Bless her.

Just say no.

Since we moved to Cunning we have been using our friendly local convenience store TESCOs on a daily basis. What struck me was the amount of paper being collected due to people getting receipts for buying an apple.
Its funny, anytime i've ever wanted wanted a receipt i have had to ask for one yet Tecso gives them away with everything. People take it and then throw it straight in the bin. So i'm jumping on the green band wagon by urging you to say NO.
I've started doing it with Carrier bags when i have ample room in my man bag and now i'm turning my attention to receipts.
I'm gonna head down today see if there is any method in their madness or is its that they can't shut the bloody machine off.

See you after lunch
Ollie

What's that coming over the bridge?

Saw this over Farringdon Bridge, near Clerkenwell.

It's still there.

Nice use of the media and something otherwise plain and boring.

Simply visually pleasing.

Flickr Free

Flickr is probably the best thing to happen on the internet, next to Youtube.

Especially in this business.

It is no longer just a place to display photos. It is increasingly becoming a community for like minded people to share their interests.

And it puts google images to shame with their search options, the sheer numbers of quality photos and of course the non-stock images.

And then there's people like us who use it as an online portfolio showcase/critique.

I've been doing quite a bit of searches on Flickr and is surprised at the number of artistes doing the exact same thing (I'm not saying we're the first to do this).

From doodles, sketches, paintings to amazing adobe processed files.

There is such a massive collection of work, artistes/illustrators and communities that it feels a bit like walking into college on open day.

Maybe Flickr could do this. Charge, say, £1 for every picture downloaded and 80p will go to the author of those pictures. In that way everyone will want to constantly update and put up more pictures online so they can get paid for it.

Even better there should be a 'live brief' section where say if I want "A life-like but in colour pencils drawing of a smiling cat standing on top of a statue, waving at the camera, portrait, the cat preferbly with light brown stripes, the statue must be in marble...".

I will have to pay a premium price of say £25 for it. Anyone can respond to the brief and the author of the selected work will get paid a premium sum as well.

Supporting a Nocturnal Nation

Here's an Idea for Iceland; the frozen supermarket, not the freezing country.

(Although we did do a camapaign about the country some time ago and I've always thought it was quite sweet. Will post it up.)

A documentary styled program following a guy who takes on different night jobs.

From a minicab driver to a bouncer, an undertaker or even a tesco packer.

Showing the trials and tribulations, the funnies and the weirds of working when most of us are dead in sleep.

And when he returns home in the wee hours, he finds solace.

ITV's 'The Mint' is on, friends around, a cup of hot chocolate and some frozen food (from iceland) in the oven.

It will not be heavily branded. Just a product placement idea.

And I found out recently that product placements are banned in the UK.

WE'VE MOVED AGAIN

I've got to take this opportunity to say sorry to the man J for not posting more often.

Well we've moved home again on what seems to be a never ending search for getting a job.

We left Karmarama two weeks ago after two months down there. It was a great experience to be at a company which is on the up. We had a chance to work on some great briefs including the new Conservative work which should be out mid november.
Great thought which i can't believe Big D signed off. Big thanks to Sarah and Gina for all their help and support xxxx

We've just finished our first week at Cunning. It seems to be a pretty exciting place they have a new creative director by the name of David Dao and some good solid clients. We will keep you posted with the progress.

Karmarama have a blog now thanks to digital Craig at Karma HQ which we've linked so be sure to check that out.

Look How Jamie Has Grown

Saw this, neatly arranged, at Borders a while ago.

Nice photolog we thought.

Anti-clockwise from bottom left.

Remember that flying feeling?

PAPER PLANE, originally uploaded by adsareboring.

Yup.

Other 2 campaigns here.

Comments?

Credit: Illustration by Han Lee

At the end of a storm...

...there's a rainbow in my home.

Janson

ROUND 1 - FIGHT

The London Paper vs London Lite

Han - Solo

Special shoutout to our very good friend and the very talented, but only an illustrator, Han Lee, for being part of the team that was involved in the design of Beck's latest album.

It's a really cool idea where you can pluck out the stickers and design your very own Beck album cover.

It's featured in this month's Creative Review.

Also Han had 8 freaking pages to himself and named 'Future Illustrators to look out for' (or something to that effect) on Graphic Magazine last month.

Janson

PS Stickers are cool. There should be more ads and communication using stickers. I get really excited when I see a Don't Panic pack with stickers.

Random Photography

Took this picture when I woke up in the middle of the night and realised I had left the bathroom light on.

There's something quite symmetrically aesthetic about it, I think.

It also looks like one of those pictures you put with crap motivational lines at the bottom you see selling at cheap bookshops.

"A door left open..."

Ok I shall resist.

Janson

The rules of engagement

It's so horrible it's funny.

I was told someone made this as a joke. I certainly hope so.

Which made me think... wouldn't it be fun to do politically incorrect ads?

Of Music Videos

I read a few days ago that Universal Music is on the verge of filing a multi million lawsuit against Youtube and Myspace.

The reason? Broadcasting music videos online.

Universal Music said that they made the mistake of allowing MTV to broadcast music for free 20 years ago and MTV went on to create this phenomenal product based on something they got for free.

It just goes to show how out of touch the music industry is.

Napster shook them almost 10 years ago and since then they have been playing catch up and still are today. Music videos are unlikely to cause a simliar ripple effect but to restrict and ban the broadcast of music videos online is just another step in the same direction.

Wheter it is doing a synchronised dance on treadmills to frolicking on the beach or performing in a big room, slowly to be filled with erm... oil, Youtube has only helped raise the profile of bands and artistes (I for one have no idea who OK GO were).

Besides you can't even download the clips. You can only watch, admire and send it to your friends so they think you are pretty damn cool.

And your friends will watch them, think it's cool and send it off to their friends so that those friends will think your friends are pretty damn cool too.

In another world, another product, those marketing men will be having multiple orgasms.

Janson

PS Speaking of music videos, who watches MTV these days?

We're with Hoff

One of the things we do on a friday afternoon.



The day we felt like we're on Entourage.

An Hour Lunch Revolution

Dave from Finance, originally uploaded by adsareboring.

Something we did a while ago for Pret but we'll probably take it off from our book.

Comments? Feedback?