Chicago Tribune

Guide to quirky creative gifts

"Nothing ruins a day at the office or football field more than a sore bottom from prolonged sitting. Made of cushy foam, this colorful, indoor/outdoor seat cushion"

CritBuns.com gets noticed

CritBuns.com featured on CSS Heroes - a site that catalogs beautiful web sites! Major props to Horace Ko who helped implement the vision for CritBuns' presence on the web.

CSS Heroes allows fans to rate the design. Cast your vote for CritBuns here.

CritBuns featured NOTCOT Holiday Gift Guide

As a avid reader of design and culture blog NOTCOT, I was thrilled to discover they selected CritBuns for their 2007 Gift Guide! Check out the buns, and all the hard work they've put into curating a collection of some really unique gifts. Each day will have a new addition to the gift guide, an entire page in fact, so check daily. With 28 more days to go, you're bound to find the right present for that certain someone. Thanks, NOTCOT!

Tokyo, we love you too

The results are in - Japanese have an affinity for soft curvy seat cushions. At least the ones who showed up at the 100% Design Tokyo Designboom gift mart. I went with a full box of 42 CritBuns, and after 5 days at the show, left empty handed (thanks for translating, Min). More Tokyo pics posted in the photo gallery.

Read the Core77 event coverage here.

Pecha Kucha, round 2

When Pecha Kucha asked me to come speak at November's event, I could hardly pass up the opportunity. This month's volume was sponsored by Oracle, and tied in with the massive Oracle conference taking place in San Francisco. Held for the first time at the Yerba Buena performance center, presenters had one heck of a set-up: a stage, giant projection screen, wireless mic, catered food, cash bar...and over 500 people in the audience!

Rather than repeat the entire CritBuns story from February, I did a product medley consisting of four short stories about four current entrepreneurial ventures: CritBuns, Ecolect, "Untitled" (coming soon from Citizen-Citizen), and Air Bed & Breakfast.

User Image: The Breakfast Nook

Thanks for sending in the photo, Angela S.!

Do you have an image? Mail to design@critbuns.com.

New Store: Chronicle Books

This is a big year for Chronicle Books, the well known San Francisco based book publisher. They celebrated their 40th anniversary, moved into new headquarters, opened their first free standing gift store under the Chronicle name. Located on Union Street near the Marina neighborhood, Chronicle's retail approach looks to compliment their books with unique gift products; so CritBuns feels right at home. Glad to have you on board too, Chronicle.

Read their blog for more on the store launch, here.

New Store: MoMA NYC

After two very long years of not-giving-up, the folks at the MoMA Store agreed: CritBuns is made for their audience. Coming to the New York City location on 53rd Street, the MoMA will be retailing an exclusive blue colored CritBuns for the 2007 holiday season. Availabile on their website, or take a visit to their store in New York.

100% Design Tokyo

I'm not exactly sure what happens when you mix a design crazed country with CritBuns, but we're about to find out. I'll be exhibiting with 25 other entrepreneurial designers from around the world at the designboom giftmart from October 31–November 4 at 100% Design Tokyo. A limited number of CritBuns will be available for purchase, orders will be placed, test chairs used. Come say hello.

Chronicle Books goes buns

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

September 10, 2007 - San Francisco, CA: Award winning publisher Chronicle Books has outfitted their new building with Lime Green CritBuns. The move aims to bring comfort and more productive critiques for the design department. The location at 680 Second Street is Chronicle's newly renovated headquarters. CritBuns will compliment the brand new Knoll furniture throughout the building.

"Bringing in CritBuns just made sense," said inventor Joe Gebbia. "It's an innovative product for an innovative company."

In only one month of use, the design teams have reported that crits improved over 700% while sitting on CritBuns.