Tansu

Forget for a moment – websites, posters, fashion, electronics, and furniture... here is an outstanding design firm that specilizes in shipbuilding... yachts to be exact! And what yachts they are – we just can't get enough of the design of these unique vessels. Some of them look like PT-boats, updated with a modern twist. The larger yachts have this sophiticated, military line to them, almost like mini naval cruisers. But that's just the exteriors... Tansu takes their vast experience in product and interior design, and pours it into an thoroughly obsessive attention to detail, styling and architecture that raises the entire boating experience to a higher plane of expression and usability—inside and out. Living at the crossroads of so many design disciplines, while crafting such beautiful, usable crafts is really just unfair. Damn right, we're straight-up jealous! All that, and a great Flash site too.... More

Also posted under Flash, art & architecture sites, sports design.

Tansu Yacht Design

the greencurve + alittlebettergasstation

This posting is actually two sites by BP—two sites which share the same branding, color scheme and purpose; to indroduce us to "greener" ways we can live our lives in conjuntion with gasoline usage. BP is savvy when it comes to grasping the idea of environmental impact, and has used it extensively in crafting their brand. In site one, (thegreencurve.com - see main link) we learn how well we are doing personally on the "greencurve" of environmental impact. In site two, alittlebettergasstation.com, we explore some new forward-thinking industrial design by BP in the form of their futuristic and eco-friendly gas station. This page contains a stand-alone Flash piece that uses animated, "cartoony" characters reminicent of very early TV ads for gas stations with a dash of Looney Tunes thrown in. Hopefully, this kind of thinking, and eco-friendly branding becomes more of a trend moving into the future.... More

Also posted under green design.

the greencurve + alittlebettergasstation.com

Kia Rondoism

Even if the Rondo is not a true "green" car, this design for the Kia Rondo site is very eco-friendly and happy—it is actually a mid-sized hybrid SUV with the fuel efficiency of a sedan... but it does not use any alternative fuels. And the bright copy and fictional marketing words like "giddyupidness" and "cabinocity" remind us a little bit of the Tour De France branding on TV in 2006: "The Cyclism". None of this is necessarily a bad thing! It's "enlightening" that car companies are beginning to base some of their marketing around eco-friendly appearing designs... it's just not truly eco-friendly until it's not creating pollution at all. But we loved the soft rainbow colors, and the happy marketing copy. We also liked the idea of small puzzle-based mini-games, enforcing the concept of a car for "smart" people. It maybe a bit too cheery for us, personally, but for... More

Kia Rondoism

Alternativ

A new Flash website in an austere style for Belgian furniture and partioning designer Alternativ. We liked how the site has a high attention to detail that is lacking in similar sites in this genre. And apparently, not only is the design very clean, minimal and beautiful, it is also functional and fully indexable by search engines. Ultimately, even though we felt the Flash transitions were on the slow side, the overall presentation makes the product photography appear artful – and distinctive.... More

Alternativ - furniture design

Meubelen Van Aerde

We've always been big fans of wood textures in websites – and even more so when it compliments the subject matter. In this case, the site is for a Belgian furniture design company. And like the furniture itself, the site uses classic grid-based design—pure simplicity with wood texture backgrounds.... More

Meubelen Van Aerde