dVider blog | the vinyl word

When did the world become so small?

2009-01-12T17:15:05Z

The other day I was talking with someone in the dVider studio and they noticed our world map. He questioned if all of the pins were places we had sold. "Indeed," I replied. We have sold stickers and room dividers around the world . . . cue Daft Punk.

Around the world, around the world.

(photo of Daft Punk's 'Around the World' video)

Word of dVider has traveled quickly over the last few years from New York to LA to Japan to South Africa to Finland. Just today we received an inquiry from Norway!

In a world with transcontinental text messaging, e-mail, skype, and Gmail chat people that live across an ocean suddenly don't seem so far.

So why was it so difficult for me to go to the grocery store 2 blocks away?

For reasons you may not understand . . .

2009-01-08T19:47:58Z

I totally love this internet meme.

That's all I have to say today.

A screenplay.

2009-01-06T15:16:22Z

This is my very, very, very short screenplay about me, Kris and two iPods. And the Vinyl word became less and less about stickers . . .

Chracters:

Kris - Ohio native now living in Queens. Makes $$$ at dVider and a small school in Chinatown. Thrifty, but not cheap. Wears glasses and blue pants. Yes, the same pants. Every day.

Kerry - from upstate New York, now living in Brooklyn. Makes $$$ at dVider. Thrifty, but sometimes extravagant without reason. Buys vintage nightgowns in Amsterdam and tells everyone in New York that they're dresses.

(Scene opens in the dVider studio. Kerry is traveling to a faraway land in the coming days. The journey will be long and difficult. She will hope for the kindness of strangers to get her by. She receives a package from the UPS man. Inside is the refurbished iPod touch she ordered. Kris is curious. He's never seen such a thing.)

Kris: It's fancy, man. How much was your iPod, like a million bucks?

Kerry: I think it came to around $200 which isn't too bad. I don't know how I'd make it through a flight over an hour without it.

Kris: But how much music can it hold? Like 5 songs?

Kerry: My old, old, old and quite sad iPod had 4GB, and I just filled it. This one is 16GB, has WiFi, crazy applications, and a bunch of other stuff I really don't need, but might be fun to have.

Kris: ****. I think I'm gonna get one.

Months pass.

Halloween.

Thanksgiving.

Christmas.

Days grow long and dark.

Kerry: So how is this iPod action working out for you Kris?

Kris: Oh, man. It's so much easier to carry this than my old walkman and all those tapes. Even if I became entirely bored of a tape, I'd still listen to it because maybe it's the only tape I grabbed and put in my bag that day. It's a whole new world.

Kerry: Oh, I'm so pleased to hear. Have you found any cool podcasts?

Kris: What the **** is a podcast? I don't get it.

Kerry: Oh man, Kris. It's like a radio show to go. You can scan through tons of radio shows, concerts, new reports, and more and play them right away or download them to your iPod and save 'em for your next subway ride. You can even subscribe to 'em so that everytime you plug your iPod into your computer the newest podcasts will be downloaded to you iPod.

Kris falls even more madly in love with his iPod. He listens to internationally reknowned professors, the world news, historical speeches, and, once in awhile, a concert. His iPod and him live happily ever after in his basement apartment. Kerry bought her around the world ticket and fled New York never to be seen from again.

Norway, the land of our ancenstors.

2008-12-19T17:22:08Z

I know very little about Norway, but the few things I know, I like.

So, what do I know? Two things.

1. Our current guest artist, Alexander Dawson has some serious Norwegian heritage.

2. A great movie came from there called 'Reprise'.

The movie did two great things. 1. It made me laugh and cry. (I'm counting both expressions of emotion as one thing) 2. It reminded me of a great dance like it's 1999 sort of song by LeTigre called 'Deceptacon'.

The laughing and the crying happened for two reasons. 1. Sometimes, I felt happy. For example, well, I can't tell an example because it will spoil the movie for you. 2. Sometimes, I felt sad. Again, don't want to spoil it for you.

Directed by a young guy named, Joachim Trier, it's been called the 'best Norwegian Film in years. . .' I suppose that means people agree with me. See it. Appreciate the party scene (images below). Appreciate this group of young guys. Then listen to Le Tigre.

Best Gift Ever - (besides a 'sticker by dVider', of course!)

2008-12-17T22:31:36Z

The best gift ever is officially the mix tape. There's no beating around the bush. It's just the truth. At least for me. Perhaps I should clarify for whom a mix tape is the best gift ever.

Example A. She's fifteen and overloaded with hormones. You're a sixteen year old boy hoping to kiss her at midnight, you don't want to relive that lonely moment from last New Year's Eve. But how? A mixtape. If she's anything like I was at that age, go with Sinead O'Connor's 'Nothing Compares 2 U', Al Green's 'Let's Stay Together', and Peter Frampton's 'Baby I Love Your Ways'. She'll be yours before midnight and probably before she finishes the tape. Just make sure her Mom doesn't see you kissing her or you'll never be allowed back in the 5 bedroom raised ranch.

Example B. He (could be a she, we'll just use he for now), so as I was saying, He's in his thirties and has recently lost his coolness. He has relationship challenged cat, hockey equipment in the backseat of his car, utilizes facebook just to prove to his two older brothers that he is somehow cooler than them, and magically scored a beautiful wife whom fortunately has an uber cool sister that keeps him up date on new music. He still loves music. He has 5 iPods, all different models. All 5 are full. He has one pair of serious headphones that cost his parents a small fortune in 1996. He is my brother-in-law. And, as mentioned, he's lucky to have me. Without me, he'd never know about Justice remixes, bands named after countries, ie. Beirut and Iran, or performers with cute acronyms such as MIA or CSS. Unfortunately for him, I've been holding out on divulging such information to him as I'm mastering his Christmas gift. Fortunately for him, he only has about one more week of waiting. One more week til' he can again be super cool, if only for a week. Then, more new music will come out and I will share one or two songs with him on a monthly basis. He will become old, but not bald. He seems to be holding on to his hair. The question is if this mixtape will inspire him to discover more cool action on his own, or if he will simply revert to his ways of moe.

To brother-in-laws!

Sometimes life is really hard.

2008-12-15T17:13:08Z

Man, writing today's entry has been a struggle for me, so I am opting for something like a news brief. I've got a lot to say, but understand that when checking our blog, you probably aren't seeking to read the first chapter of my new book, though that may be coming in the near future. Anyways, expect a lot of links.

Good evening. I'm Kerry Nolastname and this is the Vinyl word.

Over the weekend Swedes around the world celebrated St. Lucia, or as I like to call her, the patron saint of magical saffron buns.

I started reading 'The Places in Between' by Rory Stewart. Rory walked across Afghanistan. I can't put it down. No, really. It's glued to my hand. Just kidding, it's that good.

Full frontal - of Max's apartment on design*sponge today. See the action here.

An Iraqi journalist hurled his shoes at President Bush. This is no joke. Read here. See the video here. It's worth noting that the video is the most 'digg'ed, er, dug(?) thing in the last 24 hours.

In honor of the recession, I will no longer order lunch in, but rather see how long my body will put up with instant soups by Thai Kitchen.

I could share a lot more with you but I figure I should leave a few things for the New York Times, BBC, and NPR to tell you about.

For no other reason than I think I'm way cooler than I am.

2008-12-11T17:00:05Z

It's true. I've been known to have a bit of an ego at times, but I think that comes with living in this metropolis. I think I've discussed the concept of ego with about a half trillion people since Saturday. Really. The point is, I think I'm cool and since I think I'm so cool, I'm going to tell you about the cool stuff on my Christmas list this year as posted at thethingsiwant.com. All while listening to Last Christmas by WHAM (Kathryn's favorite Christmas song).

Do I smell another another countdown? Letterman style? I do! I do! And images galore!

10. An oversize sweater to wear, like this one from Newport News, with shiny leggings and boots.

9. Polaroid 600 Instant Film will be discontinued at the end of this month! No more Polaroids! That's why my roommate, not the guy on the Brad Pitt Fight Club workout routine, but the other guy that shot Fifty Cent and Kid Sister, aka Gavin Thomas and I are stocking up!

8. I remember having a Rubik's Cube as a kid, and while I never could solve it, I never really wanted to. I did however enjoy having something to play with while pondering why some people were allowed to have breakfast for dinner, and others were simply not. (Thanks for making us a house that was allowed, Mom!)

7. A sort of microphone for my iPod - for the band, of course.

6. I saw Into the Wild last year and because I'm trying to show off, I'm going to tell you I saw it in Berlin (because apprently Berlin is uber hip now, so it makes me sound hip that I went there, right? but it makes me sound super American that I saw an American film there). I knew nothing about the book by Jon Krakauer until I brought the movie up at a dinner party. Of course, everyone says the book was better, so now, I have to read it so that I can decide for myself, but I feel confident I'll like it and I might like to own it. So, I'm asking for it. Remember how cool I am? I went to Berlin.

5. I don't know if this is allowed, but I really want this leopard print sweater on ebay.

4. I've heard about David Shrigley before and I've written his name down a million times, but I still know little about him. All I know is that he has cute titles for his books and makes fun, childlike drawings. But I don't think he's so kid friendly. I'm asking for 'Ants Have Sex in Your Beer'.

3. One of my favorite artists is Egon Schiele and I saw this huge crazy book on him at a shop in Brooklyn. Crossing my fingers that it will be under the tree!

2. Almost there . . . headphones! I'd love some super cool ear covering headphones for this winter season. Keep your ears warm while listening to your favorite song ever.

1. And . . . the number one item on my Christmas list . . . is . . . ta da! Fourth Ring Membership for the New York City Ballet! What exactly is that, you ask? Basically, you pay $20 to join a club. The Fourth Ring is the ring of the absolute highest seats, the nosebleed section. But, if you belong to this club, you can get these medium style seats for $15! I've only been to the ballet once, but I totally fell in love and would love to be there once a week through the season. We'll see. I'll be sure to write about the ballet if I get this.

Do you like us?

2008-12-09T17:52:23Z

Well, do you?

If you do, maybe we should be friends. The fabulous Pat recently created a bodacious Facebook page for dVider. And now, dVider is making tons of excellent friends! So, why should you Fan our Facebook page? Here are my top ten reasons (other people may have other reasons and I would encourage you to leave a comment with these reasons!)

Countup or countdown? I like it Letterman style, so we'll count down.

10. 10% off. It's true. Just Fan us on Facebook and we'll send you a code to save 10% on your next dVider purchase!

9. Don't know where to stick your sticker? Check the Installation of the Week photo album for ideas.

8. You can tell us what you're up to, what you think we should make, and perhaps, what we should listen to! Write on our wall and tell us what's up.

7. Because I said so. (small cartoon below simply for kicks)

6. Follow links to random stuff I find when I'm pretending to work at my desk. Click here for an example.

5. Did you put your sticker somewhere cool? Are you just really proud that you put it up all by yourself? Add an image of your installed sticker in our Fan Photos section!

4. You're cool. We're cool. Cool people need to stick together. Haha, no pun intended! Really!

3. Check out our Favorite pages and see what's good.

2. Receive once in awhile updates about new stickers, promotions, and more!

1. You can totally stalk all of us. We're all on there. Just kidding. Don't stalk us, but I mean, I guess you can do what you want, that's why they call it Stalkerbook, er, Facebook.

Crashing corporate parties is a good idea.

2008-12-04T20:29:49Z

So, back in the day when the economy was a bit better, corporations would just throw money around (some of them still are!) Not sure how well a particular Philadelphia company is doing, but a few weeks ago they were doing well enough to throw a little party for their employees. My roommate crashed. This turned out to be much to my advantage.

For this particular story, we'll refer to my roommate as the guy on the Brad Pitt Fight Club workout routine. So the guy on the Brad Pitt Fight Club workout routine happened to go to Philadelphia and happened to follow his friend to her corporate event, a big party at a bar with games and prizes. Being social, the guy on the Brad Pitt Fight Club workout routine participated in many of the games . . . and won many of the games! He was doing so well that the guy on the Brad Pitt Fight Club workout routine decided to crash corporate parties all weekend. He won more prizes than one could imagine. He should have played the lottery. From vacations to cars, it was all his! Simply for crashing parties! The guy on the Brad Pitt Fight Club workout routine came home bearing gifts for all, but above the Porsche and vacation to the Bahamas was something for everyone. A gift we could all appreciate (though I will be one of 4 going on the vacation to the Bahamas). The gift was, drum roll . . . the guy on the Brad Pitt Fight Club workout routine brought home the game of 'Cranium'!

Ta da! Man, I couldn't wait to play. I think 'Cranium' is one of the best games invented because it includes the best part of all of your favorite games from charades to old school board games to the games you made up in the car as a kid. It's fun. You should play.

I choo choo choose you!

2008-12-02T16:29:13Z

If you remember this Simpsons episode where Lisa gets the valentine from Ralph, then you caught on to my title. If not, it would be cuter with a little train visual . . .

The reason for the title is recently we've been receiving a lot of inquiries from folks wondering how to choose a sticker! I agree it can be difficult to decide. So today I've elected to share my method with you.

In the morning, I never know what to wear (except on the odd occassion that I have some sort of genius outfit idea before I go to sleep), so I choose one item. Today, it was this old white thermal that is magically still a bit white.

I had ideas. I could go basic with jeans, 90s grunge with this plaid dress and black dress (serious layering action), or layer with this shift dress and my Doc Martens. . .but I was kinda feeling more in a moccassin mood . . . ah, so many ideas. Ok, but back to the thermal. I was feeling cold, but I wanted to ride my bike so I opted to go basic with jeans. Start with one thing, and the rest will follow.

By the way, if you need some reliable thermals, I recommend your local thrift store or American Apparel (worth mentioning they have some racy marketing on their site, click on the link at your own risk!) For the dependable jeans, I recommend the Acne Tube Jean. And, for the reliable mocassins, you can't go wrong with Minnetonka. See images of jeans and mocassins to the left.

So, I'm thinking that perhaps all of you out there that can't decide which sticker to choose should first select a trait for your sticker. Perhaps you will pick a color or a category. In the past, I selected a color. I went with the gold. Gold would look best in my creamy colored bedroom. Then I thought of the style I have already established, hmm, Rummage Grunge Kerry? Nature styles seemed like they would suit me best, or possibly a pattern. I checked out the patterns but couldn't quite picture any in my room. Then I tossed with a couple nature ideas. My style is a bit unisex (does that make sense?) So a delicate floral just wouldn't work. Ultimately, the only one that I saw fitting into my room was the branch, Nature 09.

I also thought it would look great if I layered an art piece or framed photo over it so that it's still in the background a bit. Needless to say, I think my odd decision making process worked. If it makes any sense to you, I encourage you to try it as well.

Thanksgiving kind of?

2008-11-25T15:42:18Z

I feel like I should write something about Thanksgiving, but with holiday stickers shipping out of the studio, Christmas trees already up for sale on the sidewalks, and constant efforts on my Christmas list (my Mom insists we make Christmas lists for her no matter how old we get) it feels like Christmas already! So, I thought I'd share my sticker gift ideas for friends and family with all of you. Here I go . . .

I actually brought a set of these (Holiday 12 in silver $38) to my Grandma in upstate New York a short time ago to put up on her apartment windows. They've been massively popular with the 75-105 year old crowd (I'm totally serious, though they've also been popular with the 0 -75 crowd as well) . . .

During the holidays, everyone is so welcoming! I love going to these small dinner parties and visiting old friends back home. Like my Mom though, I always want to give a little something to the host when I drop in. Our little mistletoe (Holiday 15 in red $18) is perfect. It may also assist you in getting those two friends of yours together at last.

Oh man, my Mom. We're like the same and total opposites. I love this wreath (Holiday 04 in gold $46) that was designed for the current holiday collection. As I have a million roomates, ok, 3, but it still can make for some not so easy compromising. The point of this is, I knew my Mom would love it. She has a huge window in the dining room and as the dining table is so full of food at the holidays, there's not so much room for fancy centerpieces. Enter, the wreath sticker! My Mom has already instructed me to bring this home to her so that she can put it on the window to replace the pizazz missing from the lack of a centerpiece. Plus, it looks great for the full Holiday Season.

Ah, and last but not least, my dear roomate. He's been asking me for months which one he should get for bis bedroom. As a little surprise, I'm going to give him one for Christmas. He's got this whole zen thing about him. He's super calm and super happy and can alter your mood faster that the speed of light (in a really good way). This year, I'll be giving him the branch sticker (Nature 09 in brown $46) found in our nature section.

Perhaps I've inspired you a bit? For more ideas, check our gallery here . . .

I think I heart Joy Division.

2008-11-13T22:38:14Z

I never knew that I knew who Joy Division was until I saw this video piece at the Guggenheim a few
years back.

Wait, I just lied to you. I am so familiar with Joy Division (see photo above) I didn't even know it. New Order is the remaining members of Joy Division post the demise of Ian Curtis and New Order's song Ceremony is one of my personal all time favorite songs since forever, as well as a favorite amongst the dVider staff.

The other night I was home, checking out what we (I've got a few roommates) got from NetFlix. I had requested some random films including 'Control', a movie about Ian Curtis and the development of Joy Division. Filmed entirely in black and white, it is high on my list of great films. A film worth watching (but only if you're prepared to be addicted to your Joy Division albums for the next few weeks). I only watched it once, but I kinda coulda watched it over and over.

'Control' was super amazing and as most of the actors were relatively unknown in my mind (though they could be famous, I'm not always on top of my pop culture) it was easy to see them as the

characters they were playing, not to mention that fact that they are all wonderful actors. Watching Sam Riley, playing Ian Curtis, on stage was more than convincing. His presence was astonishing, and I quickly became a fan of the dance moves. I don't want to spoil it, so I'm just going to leave you with 'watch it.'

Lobby Lobby Lobby

2008-11-12T16:58:03Z

Sometimes you say words too often and they sounds so strange. Lobby. Lobby. Lobby. Hmm.

Our lobby here at 10 Jay was a little sad, not so strange (like the word), just sad.

There's the traditional mailbox wall and then a big rounded wall and then the elevator. There were no paintings, no colors, not even our address. So, Max decided to do something about it. She asked the folks upstairs if we could put some stickers up, add a little something to the space. After showing them a draft of our intentions, they gave us the ok. So, a week or so ago Caroline and I went downstairs and had 'Installation 11000'. It was also meet your neighbors day 10000. No better way to meet the neighbors in the building than spending an afternoon in the lobby. Who knew there were so many cool people here? Wish I could link to you all! See photos below.

Various current & custom 'stickers by dVider'

Nature 08/Nature 01/Nature 09

Pattern 04/Animal 11

Thanks for the support from 10 Jay tenants! We received so many smiles and kudos on a super rainy afternoon. Glad the stickers brightened a few days.

As always, if you have a keen installation, send us the photos! We'd love to see 'em and perhaps blog about 'em! E-mail them to kerry@dVider.com or post them on our soon to be lightly blogged about dVider Fans page on Facebook!

Have you been?

2008-11-06T22:02:39Z

After I finished college, I wasn't really itching for a job (I was just looking for a little something to pay rent when I met Max), I was itching for adventures which has brought me to a couple interesting places (and I'm always looking for suggestions).

A year ago, my friends told me they were thinking of getting married in Morocco. I said I would be there. I bought my ticket before the invitation even arrived. Sign me up. I RSVPed for 2 and wasn't too worried about finding a travel partner. Anyone want to go? They were more than a few hands in the air, but before I called on any I asked my, ahem, older sister whom was often confused for being two things 1. my YOUNGER sister and 2. Moroccan!

Words can't describe a trip like this, as many of you may understand. Nothing can be compared. When you see Roman ruins and walled cities that are compared to the that of Jerusalem, you realize that you're surrounded by a history that could take a lifetime to learn. And while there are a lot of questions about Morocco I still have, I simply had to embrace each experience, moment to moment.

We were fortunate to meet a lot of amazing people at the wedding, at the small riad (comparable to a bed & breakfast) where we stayed, and often times when we were lost in the Medina (follow the link to grasp the concept of the Medina!) Below is a local whom I couldn't chat with because we didn't speak the same language, but he was kind enough (and seemingly proud!) of his 'catch of the day'!

And while I don't think I tried the stingray (menus were typically in french and my french is less than sparing), I did try a few interesting items that I won't write about as to spare the vegetarians and vegans out there.

And, if the stingray photo op didn't make you salivate, I believe the photo below will . . .

. . . and it was all delicious!

The photo above is a fine example of mosaics and carvings that I saw throughout the Medina in Fes. Everything, including the people, in Morocco is gorgeous. It's clear that attention is paid to the most minute details. Every cup I used, seat I sat on, and door I opened was simply beautiful.

In closing, go to Morocco! And if you make it to Rabat, stop by this small shop in the Medina near Dinarjat and say 'Al salaam a'alaykum' to Abdellah and Zouhair!

I am proud to be an American.

2008-11-05T19:18:59Z

Last night kazillions of us watched together as Barack Obama became the soon to be 44th President of the United States of America. I know that the outcome is one that many of the people close to me and I were hoping for, and while some of you may have voted otherwise, I think it is fair to say that yesterday evening, we all saw how far America has come.

It is indeed a new day.