How Big?

Starbucks rolls out its belated entry into the super-size category, the bladder-bursting Trenta (that's "thirty" in Italian)— 31 ounces of iced coffee, milk, and sugar—in 14 states across the USA. The coffee-drinker's version of the 'Big Gulp' will become available nationwide by May 3. Lord help us all.

Not only does the drink contain the caffeine equivalent of four cups of coffee, but, as the excellent graphic from Canada's National Post demonstrates, it's nearly equivalent to the average stomach capacity and about a quarter the volume it could take to rupture your stomach.

WOW.

You also end up with an alarming-sounding proposition if you scale up an iced hazelnut mocha made with semi-skimmed milk and whipped cream (from Starbucks' UK offering). As a Trenta this would add up to 929.2 calories, 24.3g of saturated fat, and 122g of sugar.

And of course for most people, the problems with a 916ml iced coffee will be purely logistical - where do you put it, how quickly can you drink it and one may have a slight apres consumption toilet issue?

In a nation fighting obesity, the arrival of a giant new cup in the US coffee shops of Starbucks might leave some people scratching their heads.

Hair of the Dog? A Big Dog.

So, engaging in some mid-week 'public house' action seems like a good idea until you wake up with your tongue stuck to the roof of your mouth and your head beating like an African drum. I can safely say I cannot cope with even entertaining the idea of boozing on a school night any longer.

But is there really anything you can do to relieve the morning after the night before? S

Such is the desperation to find a hangover remedy (at this very moment in time), that I'm going to do a minor bit of research to hunt down THE cure. If all else fails, I should really just go to bed and stay there until the world becomes clearer.

Milk thistle

Theory: An extract of the milk thistle plant — available as a tablet or a liquid — is thought to aid liver function and help the body to metabolise alcohol more quickly.

Hangover rating: 2/5 Milk thistle contains silybin and silymarin that have been shown in some studies to protect the liver from toxins and to possess antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. However, most studies have been carried out on alcoholics and there is no proof that it can help TO cure or prevent a hangover.

Bacon sandwich

Theory: It is the hangover cure for many — its smell and taste often prove irresistible. Tradition has it that the bread soaks up the alcohol.

Hangover rating: 5/5 A recent study at Newcastle University’s Centre for Life confirmed that a bacon sarnie can indeed provide relief. “Bread doesn’t soak up alcohol but is high in carbohydrates that boost blood-sugar levels and speed up the metabolism, helping to get rid of alcohol quickly,” says the researcher Elin Roberts. “Bingeing on alcohol depletes brain neurotransmitters but bacon, which is rich in protein, contains amino acids that top these up and make you feel better.”

Black coffee and paracetamol

Theory: Caffeine is thought to kick-start your system, while paracetamol can ease the aches and pains.

Hangover rating:0/5 Black coffee alone can make your hangover worse, according to researchers at Temple University in Philadelphia. Take paracetamol, too, and the effects could be deadly, suggest scientists from the University of Washington. Caffeine triples the amount of a toxic by-product created when paracetamol is broken down. It’s the same as the substance responsible for liver damage when alcohol and paracetamol react together.

Isotonic sports drinks

Theory: These contain tiny, easily digestible particles of carbohydrate that makers claim can help to rehydrate at a faster rate than water.

Hangover rating: 4/5 Dehydration causes loss of body salts, or electrolytes, including magnesium, potassium and chloride. “Sports drinks are probably among the best remedies as they also help to restore blood sugar levels,” says Louise Sutton, a dietician from the Carnegie Centre for sports Performance and Wellbeing at Leeds Metropolitan University. “The drink will provide some calories and can rehydrate the body up to 40 per cent more effectively than water.”

Exercise

Theory: According to new research from the Government, one person in five believes that sweating off a hangover is the most effective approach. Findings from a recent Department of Health survey suggest that 3.8 million adults pull on their trainers the day after over-indulging on alcohol.

Hangover rating: 0/5 No chance it will work, says Gillian Merron, the Minister for Public Health. “You’re not going to compensate with a workout.” Sutton adds that exercise will simply compound the body’s fluid debt.

Water

Theory: Drinking water throughout a drinking session and before bed will negate the effects of alcohol.

Hangover rating:3/5 According to Sue Baic: alcohol is a diuretic so many symptoms are linked to dehydration. If you alternate alcoholic drinks with water, it will dilute some of the nasty by-products of alcohol.”

Hair of the dog

Theory: Having another drink can ease you into recovery.

Hangover rating: 1/5 Withdrawal symptoms from alcohol do contribute to suffering, but drinking more is not advisable. “Although another drink might alleviate symptoms, you are really postponing the point at which you will feel better,” Sutton says.

Prickly pear cactus

Theory: Available as a powder or in pill form, an extract of this cactus plant taken prior to a night on the tiles could reduce the likelihood of a thumping head.

Hangover rating: 4/5 It could help, according to a study at Tulane University in New Orleans, published in the Archives of Internal Medicine. Researchers tested 64 healthy medical students and the extract reduced three of nine hangover symptoms — nausea, dry mouth and loss of appetite — and halved the risk of a severe hangover.

Alka-Seltzer

Theory: The effervescent tablets contain aspirin, paracetamol and caffeine, and the idea is to take them when you get home rather than the following morning, when you might not be able to keep them down.

Hangover rating: 1/5 They can be helpful for a headache and to neutralise excess stomach acid. “But the main benefit probably comes from the water they are dissolved in,” says Sutton. ”They are worth a try unless your stomach is sensitive, in which case they could prove an irritant to the lining.”

Artichoke extract

Theory: Extract of artichoke leaves help the liver to process alcohol.

Hangover rating: 2/5 The journal Phytomedicine last year showed that a supplement containing a 400mg extract of artichoke leaf extract (such as Cynara Artichoke and Digestiherb) helped stomach problems, and there is anecdotal evidence that it reduces indigestion, an upset stomach and nausea. But not all experts agree and a review in the Canadian Medical Association Journal said that it does nothing to cure a hangover. A review of herbal hangover cures in the British Medical Journal a few years ago found none of them to be beneficial.

Eggs

Theory: Often consumed as part of the hangover fry-up, eggs are also consumed raw by some who believe a substance called cysteine helps to fight free radical damage to the body.

Hangover rating: 1/5 “I can’t imagine anyone wanting cooked eggs, let alone raw ones, when they feel queasy,” says Sutton. “Eating helps and the albumen in eggs could offer relief to the stomach, but toast and water is an easier option.”

Sleep

Theory: James Garbutt, a professor of psychiatry at the University of North Carolina who specialises in alcohol studies, recently concluded that no hangover cure will work. So, why not crawl under the duvet and sleep it off?

Hangover rating: 3/5 In theory it will work; in practice many symptoms are an indirect result of a chemical called acetaldehyde, produced as your body metabolises booze. It makes you hot and sweaty, increasing your heart rate and making your stomach churn. It is when acetaldehyde accumulates that you vomit. But the metabolism of alcohol interferes with rapid eye-movement sleep, which means that you find it difficult to drop off or you keep waking up. You could try the Hangover Pillow (ruthwhiteyoga.com) stuffed with juniper, fennel, mustard and peppermint, designed to prevent a sore head.

Worcestershire sauce cocktail

Theory: Jeeves confronted Bertie Wooster’s hangover with a supposedly magic cocktail of raw egg, Worcestershire sauce and red pepper. “Gentlemen have told me they have found it extremely invigorating,” Jeeves said.

Hangover rating:0/5 “I can’t imagine anyone being able to stomach Worcestershire sauce, nor having the patience to follow a recipe,” says Sutton. And eating a raw egg could increase the risk of salmonella poisoning. Not quite what your stomach is after.

To conclude, the only real way to deal with a hangover is with gumption. Bring it on and make a mountain out of it. I'm now lining up water on my desk, contemplating eating a huge amount of pasta for breakfast, telling my colleagues my head is about to fall off and speaking to my partners in crime, explaining that I'm NEVER going to look at a bottle of vodka ever again. Standard. Oh, and I believe a cream cheese sandwich can pretty much cure anything and that is what I shall consume for lunch.Apparently it's all in the balance of carbs and fats for the perfect way to treat a hangover.

My new rule. Prevention is better than cure.

That'll work until circa 12 noon tomorrow when I frequent Supper Club for Love Brunch. Oh dear.

Fancy some Scarlett bubbly?

No one could ever really accuse the sultry and mysterious Scarlett Johansson of being bubbly.

Moet & Chandon has announced its new international advertising campaign featuring Scarlett Johansson, the ambassador for the brand since March 2009, and shot by British photographer Tim Walker. The campaign took place on the Moet & Chandon Estate in Epernay, France. Walker's new photographs bring to life the rich heritage and savoir-faire of the world's leading champagne.

Judging on these pictures, sales of the champagne are no doubt set to go through the roof.

The 'Plane' Truth

An anonymous flight attendant recently posted an open letter “to the flying public” on the Internet: “We’re sorry we have no pillows. We’re sorry we’re out of blankets. We’re sorry the airplane is too cold. We’re sorry the airplane is too hot. We’re sorry the overhead bins are full. ... We’re sorry that’s not the seat you wanted. We’re sorry there’s a restless toddler/overweight/offensive-smelling passenger seated next to you. ... We’re sorry that guy makes you uncomfortable because he ‘looks like a terrorist. ...’ ”

This sorry state of affairs ends with an admonition: “The glory days of pillows, blankets, magazines, and a hot meal for everyone are long gone. Our job is to get you from point A to point B safely and at the cheapest possible cost to you and the company.”

Let us now observe a moment of silence for the golden age of travel.

The changing dynamic of airline service seems to parallel the shifting role of airline personnel, whatever they’re called. In the earliest days of commercial flight, there were teenage “cabin boys,” and the first female stewardesses had to be registered nurses. (Such know-how would have been most welcome several years ago when, en route to back from Australia, I cleverly gave myself food poisoning from the sushi I consumed mid-journey in Hong-Kong airport.It’s bad, very bad, when you hear “Is there a doctor or nurse on board?” over the loudspeaker and realise it’s for you.)

From a feminist perspective, it was progress when flight attendants won the right to gain a few pounds, to let their hair go gray, to be pregnant, or to have a Y chromosome: The Civil Rights Act of 1964 insisted that men could do the job, too, thus making a little full circle back to those early cabin boys. Fishnet stockings and hot pants were replaced by androgynous trouser suits. But as the dress code changed, so did the up-in-the-air experience. Air travel became democratic and accessible. The 800 million of us who pass through airports all over the world every year now comprise a remote and motley crew. We book our flights online, check in at kiosks, board in T-shirts and flip-flops, and withdraw under headsets and earbuds.

There’s a slightly schizophrenic message from the industry these days, as if it’s taking the temperature of public nostalgia for the era of “coffee, tea, or me,” at the same time that technology is replacing the “me” factor. Continental is experimenting with subway-style “self-boarding” that bypasses an agent at the gate. The most overt sign that airlines no longer view flight attendants as personal service providers is Virgin America’s touch screen for ordering food on board; the intimate exchange with the person who brings your meal down the aisle approximates the bond with a delivery guy who brings kung pao chicken to your house. No tipping.

On the completely opposite hand, Virgin Atlantic has a new commercial featuring stunning young women in lipstick-red uniforms and super duper high heels pointing out the exit rows with vampy choreography and ripping open their bodices to serve ice cream.



So what’s it to be? Androids handing out peanuts, with a hologram showing how to inflate a life vest? Or stewardesses in stilettos and Spanx? Perhaps a return to teenage boys, recruited out of the Scouts?

Until the industry decides on a paradigm for the 21st century, better pack a sandwich and fasten your seatbelt. It could be a bumpy ride

Top 10 things to throw yourself off

Have you had a good plummet lately? No? Nor have I.

It seems to have come to light that, after reading the top 10 list of 'things to throw yourself off', I have a distinct lack of accomplished 'weightlessness'.

I have achieved 1/10. I obviously need to up my game.

I managed the 15,000ft dive over Lake Taupo, one of the last remaining active-volcano regions in New Zealand. Snow-capped volcanoes beckoned me whilst I was roaming the word. It was epic to say the least. (See picture).

Well, if you’d like to add an adrenaline rush and an element of danger to your next trip, see below for a list of ten of the best places around the world to enjoy the feeling of weightlessness you can only get from the perfect fling. Are you ready to take the plunge?

1. BASE jumping the New River Gorge Bridge, USA

2. Bungee jumping at Victoria Falls, Zambia/Zimbabwe

3. Skydiving over Lake Taupo, New Zealand

4. Paragliding Sedona Red Rocks, USA

5. Zip lining the treetops of Dugango, USA

6. Hang-gliding the mountains of Barlioche, Argentina

7. Paragliding Mount Baba Dağ, Turkey

8. Hang-gliding the Sierra Nevada mountains near Granada, Spain

9. BASE jumping from the Sky Tower, New Zealand

10. Cave-diving in the caverns of Cenote Dos Ojos, Mexico

Chanel Makeup Meets Robots In Disguise? Yes, Please!

Animating Chanel from lionel bui on Vimeo.

Talking about creativity, while taking sips of my morning grande skinny vanilla latte (with an extra shot), I stumbled upon this animated short film from Chanel.

Makeup guru, Peter Philips, Chanel's Global Creative Director of Makeup, conceptualised the animation and whipped up this ridiculously epic short film (I believe semi Transformer inspired).

Cleverly titled "Here Comes the Beauty Pack," Philips fashions compacts, glosses, lipsticks, and brushes into a flying robot, a spider, a model, and more. It creatively features such adorable characters as a jet-propelled robot, a spider, a Sun God and a miniskirt-wearing model—all created entirely with Chanel's compacts, glosses, nail polishes and brushes.

Animation has never been so chic.

Makeup powers, activate!

(Extra bonus points for creative use of Chanel's tweed blush!)

Familyship

My Step-Mother decided it was 'time' to purchase 'familyship' bracelets.

Not wanting to go down the generic Links or Pandora route, we all fell in love with Antonio Ben Chimol's leather rainbow bracelets in a little boutique in a nearby village of Ashburton (Devonshire).

Antonio Ben Chimol knows how to mix passion, courage, elegance, irreverence and provocation into each of his designs.

It is quite obvious his inspiration is taken from unusual places. Technology, mechanics, or aeronautics, which have influenced his creations in their usablity, resistance and originality. What impressed us the most about these bracelets is the versatility. Chimol became known as the first jewellery designer to use the magnetic locking clasp, giving these bracelets a unique edge, simplifying the ease of use as well as increasing their durability.

Made from the finest quality Italian leather and in a range of colours, the bracelets suit both my father (who owns a more sturdy 'manly' version), as well as my teenage sister.

They are definitely a mark of sophisticated style, and a reminder of my strong 'Familyship'.

The only problem is that I now want one in every colour.

Guerilla for Ray-Ban

First came colours. Now, Ray-Ban is proud to introduce Rare Prints, a collection of colourful new patterns.

Some brands and concepts seem to be born into the world via alternative marketing, marketing using the streets. Ray-Ban is doing just that and have just launched a massive global marketing effort to target the young, brave and nonconformist consumer in Paris.

Guerilla marketing is all about reaching a large audience, creating buzz and increasing ROI...all with a very minimal budget.

Ray-Ban's campaign consisted of printing out Ray-Ban sunglasses and sticking them on random posters, statues and other public artefacts.

Whilst guerilla marketing campaigns seldom provide excellent visibility, it must fall back on something...press coverage.

Come to London please.

The Eye of the Beholder...

It began as a global search for the most inspirational and provocative nature photography and you are now able to see the magnificent, inspiring and unique images captured by the best of the best.

Veolia Environement Wildlife Photographer of the Year called on photographers of all ages to enter images that reveal the natural world as it has never been seen before.

Some photographers wait for weeks in order to catch that one great action shot, some set up elaborate timing systems, others have simply seen an opportunity, grabbed a camera and produced a unique picture of the natural world. Each holds a magical story, and each and every image captured me like never before...

After spending almost 3 hours memorized by the 100 plus photographs, I almost fell in love with them all, however below is a snapshot of my utter favourites, along with their stories...



Sharp reflection:
Jochen went to the mountains of Aiguilles Rouges in the French Alps specifically to take photographs of ibex. These wild goats are high-altitude grazers, well adapted to the steep, rocky terrain of the Mont Blanc region. Having spent all afternoon taking photographs of ibex, Jochen set up his tripod to photograph the pin-sharp reflection of the jagged mountains in the smooth surface of the Lac des Chéserys. 'There were interesting cloud formations, and with no wind, the reflections were perfect,' says Jochen. 'Then a lone ibex walked by in the distance, completing the image.'



Turtle in Trouble:
It's an image that communicates in one emotive hit the damage being done to the world's oceans. Jordi came across this desperate scene when sailing between Barcelona and the Balearic Islands, hoping to photograph dolphins. 'I spotted the abandoned net drifting along the surface,' says Jordi. As he dived down to investigate, he could see the loggerhead turtle tangled up in the netting. 'The poor creature must have been trapped for some days, it was so badly knotted up.' Though it could just reach the surface to breathe by extending its neck, it was still sentenced to a long, cruel death. 'I felt as though it were looking at me for help as it tried to bite through the netting.' Jordi released it, allowing one individual a second chance. Given that all species of sea turtles are endangered, they need all the help they can get.



The Moment:
'Today, as it's Christmas Day, we'll photograph a cheetah kill,' Bridgena announced to her family. They promptly fell about laughing. They had, after all, spent five days watching a trio of cheetahs in South Africa's Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park without seeing any activity. But Bridgena had discovered that the cheetah brothers had a favourite watch-out dune and a routine. By driving out at dawn to the spot, she hoped to be in position before rather than after any hunt. It was a good call. The cheetahs were positioned up on the dune, only the tops of their heads visible. When a trail of springbok passed by below, the brothers ignored the adults. But the moment a young springbok appeared, they sprinted after it, one heading it off, one tripping it up and the third making the kill. Within ten seconds it was over. The cheetahs had their meal and Bridgena had a phenomenal shot.



Fire on the Pantanal:
Walking back one evening from his hide to the farm where he was staying, Bence first smelt the fire. Turning off the trail, he came to 'the awe-inspiring sight' of a curtain of fire stretching across the Pantanal. It may have been started naturally or by cattle farmers clearing the land to stimulate grass growth. 'The tallest flames must have been nearly 5 metres [16 feet] high,' says Bence. 'With such intense firelight, it was a challenge to work out how to photograph the scene. I used a long-exposure and stretched out my arm to cover the flames with my hands to expose the stars. Then, for the last second or so, I took away my hands to expose the flames.' With the crackling noise and the intensity of the heat, it was a memorable event. 'At times, the smoke was terrible. But at least it kept the mosquitoes away.'

Handmade to Perfection...

This ad for the Volkswagen 'Phaeton' is superb, and possibly the best i've seen for a while. Quite impressive use of shadowplay techniques, a great art direction and post-production by the Germany based studio Deli Pictures.

Isn't it beautiful what hands can do?

Pretty damn cool.

I went, I saw, I ate...

I am aware I have a common food theme. This will be the last for a while. Promise.

Looking through my travelling photos I was swiftly reminded of my Indian travels. Not only did I fall in Love with India as a country, I feel into a deep love affair with the food.

I wasn't Indian food aficionados before I visited India, possibly due to New Years Incident. One New Years a few friends and myself participated in an Indian 'cook off' prior to 20 others joined for a rather large supper party.I proceeded to concoct THE strongest curry blowing our brains out with the hottest food I’d ever encountered.

I recall wincing and sweating...and what followed for us all did mean henceforth, I “didn’t like Indian food.”

Nearly three weeks in Mumbai and Goa produced good eats along with stunning photos.

Everything about India was overload – colours, sounds, flavours. Diesel, ammonia, incense, smog, curry spice and refuse mating with one another to create something that is genetically India.

It seems ridiculous that I would love a country that is so dirty, crowded, hot and teeming with disease, but I love it despite and because of those things. Walking down dirt roads in the midst of a cornucopia of aluminum, mud, stone, woven baskets and a smattering of livestock to the strangest symphony of life-threatening traffic you have ever seen, you could happen upon anything and it would be a normalcy to Indians when to you it's the most unforgettable thing happened in your whole life!

For me that is the allure, the intoxicantcy, the joy and the sorrow mingled of the beautiful India. I deeply understand why the former Queen of England once called India the Jewel of her Crown.

Beneath the poverty and all of India that is foul and disgusting there is a brooding of the potential to be the most majestic destination in all the earth. India is teeming with disease but it is also teeming with resources. Woven fabric of brilliant colours, marble, spices, and where it is unspoiled, gorgeous jungles as a backyard.

I think I semi fell in love....

X-rated: The Edamame

I don't know about you....but I find edamame in the pods completely addicting. Slightly salty and steamy hot, I just can't stop myself when they're set out before me.

I think a bowl before dinner is not only a delicious and healthy way to start a meal, but it's also a great way to gather the troops around the table as you put the finishing touches on whatever the main course might be.

And though I was first introduced to edamame in Japanese restaurants, they needn't strictly be a precursor to Asian feasts.

The Edamame is a versatile little dude. It taste great on its own, but what makes it completely addicting to me is the simple pairing of really good salt to compliment its natural nuttiness.

Add chilli for a lip tingle. Of course you'll lick your fingers and exhale with satisfaction as your reach for another, and another. You won't be able to stop

A healthy pinch and squeeeeeze of highly aromatic lemon just adds to the sensuality.

…have you been Travel Snobbed?

It's funny when you talk to some travellers. By this I mean, no matter how many places you have seen and new cultures you have experienced someone will always try and out do you!

“Travel Snob!"

Like the idiot who told me I haven't travelled properly through in Asia until I frequented Nepal. Hello, but I’ve been to Tibet. Does that not count?

When mulling over the topic of travel snobbery, and whether is truly exists, the first question seemed to be a bit of a no-brainer as I personally felt the collective answers would be a resounding “Yes."

Travel snobbery exists. It’s probably going to ooze all over this very blog in the guise of anti-snobbery. I imagine it as a slobbering beast that roams the globe, almost always “off the beaten track”.

Its backpack will be the lightest, it's been away the longest, and of course its tales are the tallest, and capable of usurping even the hardiest of travellers. It can usually be heard coming with the battle cry of “Why didn’t you…”, which echoes through the most secret dorm rooms and rarest cabanas of the world.

Interestingly, it’s nearly died one more time than you and definitely spent a pound less.

It’s cooked eggs with remote locals, and trekked where no man has EVER been before.

The most fascinating element of the snob is, perhaps tellingly, ‘it’ travels alone.

QR Code Cupcakes

Oh, I would like some of these.

Montreal based clevercupcakes have come up with a blinder this time...cupcakes with a QR Code on top!

OK, so great thing about these cupcakes is that the QR Code actually works. (only with an iphone, and I seem to have a blackberry #FAIL) So, apparently, if you have an iPhone with the ScanLife App you should end up on the Montreal Science Center Website. COOL.

Between a Rock and a Waterfall

Visiting Cape Town I'm sure it would be ridiculously easy to follow the beaten track and explore the many tourist attractions that lure throngs of visitors, but the Mother City has so much more to offer.

Welcome to the extreme sport of kloofing, South Africa's ramped-up version of canyoneering. The only way out is down.

All manner of walking, scrambling, climbing, swimming, plunging, jumping, bumslides (i like)or abseiling 'rappelling' could be involved.

FYI: The recommended technique for jumping into water is the 'pin drop', which apparently involves hitting the water with your body as straight as possible and your hands held firmly by your sides. Closing your mouth completely is probably also a good idea (to avoid biting your tongue).

Looks like I'm off to South Africa then...

Spin If You Dare...

What's your destiny? Find out using this cool little site that will have you thinking Zoltar? is that you?

WHAT? Gravy IN Biscuits

Since the New Year I seem to have seen a great variety of wonderful food inspiration. The standout this week is an abundance of foods wrapped in carbs of some sort(even though I'm attempting to cut down on carbs, they seem to be calling out to me).

Every culture seems to have their own take on this combination. Dough is great. It’s made from pantry staples, and has served for centuries to stretch out limited food supplies through the lean months. It once extended life spans, but is now an delicious opportunity for indulgence. The dumpling/calzone/empanada remains a great comfort food, connecting us to that part of our culinary history.

It is in that spirit that I love that some creative cat has turned a breakfast favorite inside out! Mini Gravy IN Biscuits, is like a savory cream puff or bao!

HOW TO:
Simply fold semi-frozen veggie sausage gravy inside biscuit dough and then bake. The freezing of the gravy gives the biscuit dough time to set, and keeps the outside on the outside and the inside on the inside. They are best hot out the oven and have the same delicious familiar flavors of the classic breakfast...just slightly out of the ordinary.

Blumenthal Schmumenthal

Down a cobbled-stone street in north London, lives ice cream magic. Chin-Chin Laboratorists, behind a haze of white gas, servers sporting lab coats and science-class goggles whip egg custard instantaneously into dense ice cream courtesy of liquid nitrogen. Scaffolding links and color-coded boxes seal the laboratory-deal for this, Europe’s first ‘nitrogen ice-cream parlour’.

First, you get to choose the flavor of your choice, from Madagascan vanilla bean to basil to lemon curd. Post-transformation, the steaming creamy concoction is then finished off with a range of flask-filled toppings, like macadamia brittle or violet marshmallows. Heads up Blumenthal; there’s a new mad scientist on the block.

Chin-Chin Laboratorists
49-50 Camden Lock Place

The Green Green Grass Of NYC

Exhibiting at the Invisible Dog Gallery in Brooklyn, New York, these growing grass sculptures change every time you see them. Made of soil and wheat seeds with a structure from recycled metal, they're the creative work of mixed media artist Mathilde Roussel-Giraudy.

"The natural world, ingested as food becomes a component of human being," Roussel-Giraudy says. "Through these anthropomorphic and organic sculptures made of soil and wheat grass seeds, I strive to show that food, it's origin, it's transport, has an impact on us beyond it's taste. The power inside it affects every organ of our body. Observing nature and being aware of what and how we eat makes us more sensitive to food cycles in the world - of abundance, of famine - and allows us to be physically, intellectually and spiritually connected to a global reality."

The Agency List

The Agency List is a visual resource showcasing innovative agencies leading the industry into the next generation. The Agency List features those who continue to enhance our digital experience and stimulate our creativity.

With so many resources on the web, the guys at 'The Agency List' decided to create a central repository where users can view details for cutting-edge projects from featured agencies, and easily retrieve an agency's contact details, twitter handle, or link to the agency's website.

Each agency is hand picked and churn out the most exciting and innovative work.

Check it out.

GrannyTunes

If my grandmother had an iPod it would definitely look like this.

Food Snob much?

I love this. The developed conception of the package shape resembles an udder, which presents the first half of the message in that soy milk is identical to that of a cow. The second part of the message is delivered via the colour score and décor of the packaging, which concentrate on the phytogenesis of the product, creating an image of nature and health.

This brings me to mention a recent 'situation'.

I had some friends stay for New Year. I've known them for a long, long time, and it was fun to have them. But I was surprised to discover an area of life where we seem to have little in common: food. Now, I am not a food Nazi. I (attempt) to run quite regularly, and enjoy keeping fit. Plus, I have a slight intolerance to lactose. What this translates into is that I prepare/consume mostly food fresh, and try ridiculously hard not to snack. I also drink/use on cereal soy milk.

My friends think I am a freak. So, this special diet you're on. Can you have bread? Can you drink milk? Wow, what a commitment! It’s not exactly a medically regimented diet. She was also unimpressed with the contents of my fridge, giving it a cursory glance and a shrug. For breakfast, I offered homemade whole wheat blueberry pancakes made from scratch. She opted for a full fry up. I'm surprised how strongly I feel about this. Many people do not seem to share the passion for fresh vegetables. They have never even been in a Whole Foods store, and it's not because they can't afford it. None of this makes them bad people. They are in fact very pleasant people. They're just not food snobs. But I apparantly am. And it's an issue. Not a big one, not one that I would bring up in a million years, but it's there. If you would have asked me, I would have never said that food can separate people. But now, I see that it can. And a couple of times my friends stay I felt like saying, "Drinking soy milk does not make me weird!"

I'm going to go have a tomato.

R.A.K.

When it comes to the mega trend of GENERATION G (that's G for Generosity, not Greed), there’s no better way for a brand to put its money where its mouth (or heart) is than engaging in Random Acts of Kindness (R.A.K.). Consumers' cravings for realness, for the human touch, ensure that everything from brands randomly picking up the tab to sending a surprise gift will be one of the most effective ways to connect with (potential) customers in 2011 - especially beleaguered consumers in North America, Europe and Japan.

For brands, a serious (and sincere) R.A.K. strategy may mean no longer being seen as inflexible and unwieldy, but as more compassionate and charismatic instead. Something which is, of course, priceless and actually fun.

Fueling the R.A.K. trend is brands’ ability to actually know what’s happening in consumers’ lives (good or bad!), as people publicly and knowingly disclose (from Facebook to Twitter) more and more about their daily lives, their moods or their whereabouts.

Social networks also enable acts of kindness to spread far beyond its recipients, as they will gladly tell their friends and followers about the unexpected good news (see SOCIAL-LITES). Two fun examples to copy or improve on in the next 12 months:

Flower delivery service Interflora has launched a social media campaign in the UK designed to brighten up the lives of Twitter users by sending them flowers. As part of the campaign, Interflora monitors Twitter looking for users that it believes might need cheering up. Once found, the users are contacted by tweet, and sent a bouquet of flowers as a surprise.

Dutch airline KLM’s ‘How Happiness Spreads’ Foursquare-based campaign employed a ‘Surprise Team’ to give passengers tailored, unexpected gifts at the airport. Throughout November 2010, as soon as someone checked-in at a KLM Foursquare location within its network of airports, the Surprise Team went online to find more background information about the person, decided upon a suitable gift and gave it them before they flew. For instance, one traveler tweeted he would miss a PSV Eindhoven football game while he was in New York. The Surprise Team, accordingly, gave him a Lonely Planet guide book of NYC with all the football bars highlighted in blue.

Bleached Out

Givenchy are expecting us to see double in the Givenchy Spring/Summer 2011 ad campaign. This ad campaign is suppose quite confusing since the images do not flow with one another, but it somehow it does still works together.

The Givenchy Spring/Summer 2011 will feature animalistic themes and futuristic themes. Shot by photographers Mert Alas & Marcus Piggott, the ads will send shivers down your spine. From leopard print shirts to bags, the Summer/Spring collection will please a lot of fashion-lovers.

Personally, I am not a huge fan, however, Carlsberg does seem to offer undoubtedly the best of the best when it comes to advertising.

With no need for explanations, watch the video...

A Champagne Extinguisher

Inspired the Jim Morrison quote: “I just want to get my kicks before the whole shit house goes up in flames.” this little beauty is the epitome of haute couture of the fire extinguisher world.

(Dom Pierre Pérignon (c. 1638–14 September 1715) was a Benedictine monk who made important contributions to the production and quality of Champagne wine in an era when the region's wines were predominantly still and red. Popular myths frequently, but erroneously, credit him with the invention of sparkling Champagne, which didn't become the dominant style of Champagne until mid-19th century).

Lucky Duck, a new brand of wine, with adorable branding from Dragon Rouge.