Category Archives: Practices

'TiMER' & Technology-Augmented Romance/Dating Trends

By Simone | Published: July 14, 2010

The other day I stumbled across a movie called ‘TiMER’ which presents an interesting and enjoyable discussion of the use of technology in the world of romance, dating, and marriage.

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Trend Photography Guide Part II: Technical Tips

By Simone | Published: July 2, 2010

Below are some guidelines that can help you not only find and visually capture trends of interest, but also return from shooting with photographs that accurately document that which you wish to analyze.

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Trends in Graffiti & Knit Bombs in Berlin

By Simone | Published: June 30, 2010

One of the first things I noticed upon arriving in Berlin was the fabulous graffiti. It’s everywhere- and one can find all sorts- slaps, tags, throw-ups, stencils… even the newer graffiti trends can be found- yes! Knit bombs!! Here are some I spotted…

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Lolitas in Berlin

By Simone | Published: June 13, 2010

While wandering around Berlin’s Charlottenburg Palace a week ago, I came across a group of Lolitas (both goth and sweet) setting up for a picnic in the gardens. I was so pleased! In the past, I have only seen Lolitas in more contrived situations outside of Japan (where one may expect to see them anywhere), such as around a Lolita clothing store, or at an anime convention or Japanese culture festival.

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Trend Spotting Lesson 4: Making a Trend Book

By Simone | Published: June 3, 2010

Many trend spotting consultancies publish books on trends or the trend spotting process to augment their product offering, establish a reputation, and (if the book is good enough) establish another income flow.

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The New Incentives

By Simone | Published: May 28, 2010

Just watched Dan Pink’s animated explanation of what motivates us- it’s great!

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Trend Spotting Lesson 3: Social Media Scanning

By Simone | Published: May 10, 2010

Companies used to pay considerable amounts of money to hear what their customers had to say about their products and services- now they don’t know what to do with the litany of feedback available. Thanks to the explosion of social media in recent years, there is a litany of information online- not only that related to specific brands, but also regarding new social movements, technologies, modes of thought, and pretty much anything imaginable. This information can be tapped by trend spotters who can utilize it to scan for new trends- as well as engage in deeper investigation of new theories and find more information on preliminary research.

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UP THERE

By Simone | Published: May 5, 2010

UP THERE is a documentary about the art of hand-painted advertising murals.  Apparently, vinyl has replaced hand-painted pieces in pretty much every US city except for New York and Los Angeles. This is an amazing art- one that takes years to learn.  The men interviewed describe apprenticeships which hearken back to the way things were [...]

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Object Lesson: Engagement Rings

By Simone | Published: May 4, 2010

Ah, the engagement ring. Even though I have no romantic prospects, I already have mine picked out (The Tiffany Setting, if you please, Mr. Right). How did this strange, expensive object become a cultural artifact of such importance?

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Happy Choose Privacy Week!

By Simone | Published: May 3, 2010

Happy Choose Privacy Week! To kick off the privacy goodness, I’m going to rant, as people are wont to do.

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