All this talk about augmented reality is cool, but this is a really cool application of this technology. The design basically involved tattooing a simple barcode onto someone’s arm.

What happens next? Well, check out the video below – when a camera views the barcode, it’s transformed into a flying dragon.

strong>Click to View Embedded Video Clip

The augmented reality tattoo was developed by the Buenos Aries based ThinkAnApp/a> studio. They developed specialized software to recognize the AR barcode on a curved surface like an arm.

via Designboom/a>

Read more here:
augmented reality tattoo can fly off!/a>

Darth Bane received this from lightninglisa/a>, a fellow member of the Brotherhood of Darkness, as a birthday gift. It was immediately Force Lightning’d to ashes (along with the gift-giver). Bane took the gift as the last straw, another sign of the Brotherhood’s… weirdness, and so he left to establish his own Sith Order.

One thousand years later, his Order would defeat the Jedi and the Republic. Had he not received this cross-stitch, who knows what would have happened?*

(* none of the events mentioned here are canon)

via Geek Crafts/a>

The rest is here:
the dark side’s soft side/a>

If you haven’t already bought a Valentine’s card for your sweetie, you’re probably screwed. But if you’re looking for an idea for next V-Day, check out this amusing iPhone inspired greeting card.

Crafter yummypocket created this clever Valentine designed to look vaguely like an actual iPhone. It measures roughly the size of the real deal, and is made from black foam, blue card stock and grey vinyl.

While the only app it runs is “I love you”, it’s also a whole lot cheaper than a real iPhone. Want to stock up for next year? Head on over to yummypocket’s Etsy shop/a> and place your order now.

Memo to tech geeks: If you get one of these for your girlfriend and she’s not a gadget-o-phile, it might send the message that you love your tech toys more than her. Caveat Emptor.

View original post here:
iphone valentine’s day card: will you hold my hand(held)?/a>

Craftster forum member whateverjames/a> knows that in life, as in Tetris, all good things come to an end. You can’t keep on clearing line after line forever. Not all of the shapes you’re given will fit and stack the way you want them to. In other words:

Craftster should have a series of works with this theme – the “Game Over” moments from video games. And then they should be turned into T-shirts. Then the proceeds from each design should be sent to me, because I came up with the idea. Ball’s in your court, Craftster.

Read the original here:
an important lesson from tetris, immortalized in cross-stitch/a>

Will we ever run out of creative uses for those primitive little LEGO bricks? I think not. Brickfan (Reasonably Clever) Chris Doyle/a> has created a functioning LEGO remake of the infamous Picture of Dorian Gray. Chris actually retitled his version A Portrait of Dorian Bley, a reference to a “controversial” blue-grey LEGO color that replaced “Classic Slate,” oh my.

At first glance, the image just looks like a giant portrait of a smiling yellow Minifig. But as you move past the face of the portrait, the dark (blay) side of LEGOland comes out.

Doyle managed to achieve an effect similar to those lenticular moving images by using alternating blocks of angled LEGO wedges/a>. Check out the video below to see the illusion in action.

strong>Click to View Embedded Video Clip

Chris, I’d say that was more than reasonably clever.

via The Brothers Brick/a>

Originally posted here:
dorian gray gets lego-fied: legos go lenticular/a>

If I didn’t have my glasses on, I’d probably be fooled, but you won’t. This LEGO Big Mac Combo was created by the Japanese LEGO artists Sachiko/a>.

It’s kind of cool to think that LEGO artistry is actually a profession, or maybe more of a hobby. Either way, this LEGO Big Mac Combo isn’t fit for consumption. It’s kind of amazing the amount of details he was able to add to this LEGO sculpture.

The designs for these LEGO builds were made to scale and only standard LEGO bricks were used. There’s the infamous Big Mac, with even some melted cheese and a sesame seed bun.

French fries and pop accompany the Big Mac, as they should.

via DesignBoom/a>

Continued here:
lego big mac combo: and no, you can’t eat it!/a>

Blizzard will soon unleash cute plush pets for World of Warcraft fans, starting with the Wind Rider Cub and Gryphon Hatchling.

Each adorable widdle monster will come with a special code that will unlock its virtual, non-combat, account-bound equivalent. No word on the price or exact date of release yet, but they will be sold exclusively at Blizzard’s online store/a>.

If Blizzard starts selling level 80 character stuff toys or action figures or whatever with codes for their in-game equivalent, I bet a lot of lazy gamers will snap that up. Maybe they should also start selling plush gold coins with codes for their in-game amount. Take that, gold farmers!

via Destructoid/a>

Go here to read the rest:
warcraft invades our world with wow plush pets/a>

I barely even notice most purses, which is pretty simple because I’m a guy. But hey, this looks like a great purse to me!

This makes the perfect Valentine’s gift for your girlfriend. On top of showing her how much of a geek you were for buying it, she gets this great purse that’s actually made out of 393 individual computer keys! The intricate purses shown here were designed by Portuguese artist Joao Sabino/a>.

Unfortunately, if you’re a spendthrift, the 130 € ($180 USD) pricetag might turn you off. Fortunately, for you cheapskates out there, Neatorama/a> is selling a cheap copy of this bag for just $40 bucks.

More here:
keybag: computer keyboards get new life as a purse/a>

Star Wars were meant to happen a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away, but what if they actually happened on Earth? French photographer Cédric Delsaux/a> imagines the scene if Star Wars was set in Dubai of all places.

You might wonder why Dubai. The main reason is that with the current economic crisis, a lot of buildings under construction haven’t been completed. The city is littered with cranes that aren’t building anything anymore. Needless to say, this creates an eerie, surreal backdrop for these images.

Delsaux’s series of photos is called The Dark Lens and is worth a gander over at Fubiz/a>. These are my faves.

via Fubiz/a>

Go here to see the original:
start wars: star wars under construction in dubai/a>

Science fiction fans know the name Ralph McQuarrie/a>. The illustrator and designer has contributed to the look of some of the most popular films and TV series, including Close Encounters of the Third Kind, E.T., and the big one: the original Star Wars trilogy. eFX enlisted 3D modeler Jay Kushwara to turn one of McQuarrie’s most favorite concept sketches of Darth Vader’s helmet into a premium collectible. The limited edition helmet – priced at almost $900 (USD) – has already pre-sold out/a>, and I think it’s easy to see why:

This mask erases any ambiguity regarding which side Darth Vader was on. That’s the most menacing frown I have ever seen.

Makes one wonder why this wasn’t the version used in the trilogy. Maybe because Anakin became good in the end? You can read more about the making of the helmet at eFX’ website/a>.

via Wired/a>

More here:
darth vader ralph mcquarrie concept helmet: force scowl/a>