Brought to You by the Letter F

Hello boys and girls, today we’re having Fun with the letter F. F is For Fudge... and Family Fun... and Facebook and ... and Fu... dge and hopeFully also some good tranquilizers that make all the bad F-y things go bye-bye in the coming days of jet lag recovery.

As the last week oF the Great Escape oF the Summer oF 2009 (trademark pending) draws to a close, I thought I would pattern this edition oF Fresh Ziggy on some oF the surveys my ‘Friends’ (oh yay, another F word) on Facebook have been sending me. In order not to be quite as dreary, drab, and dreabby as some oF these surveys tend to be (“check here iF you’ve ever watched television or brushed your teeth!”), I have invented several oF my own categories For your viewing pleasure. Please Feel Free to also Fill out same with your own clever anecdotes and snippets about how the bread at the restaurant last night tasted a little stale and you had to send it back... Wowzers...

Most ‘I Have to Correct This Real Quick From the Last Entry, Sorry Anna’ moment:
Anna Bullus - she oF the cool Caterpillar(and muchos muchos more) Fame - From last time’s interview did drop a quick line to point out that the picture I had used oF her was somewhat dated. Not that she has changed that much (presumably), but instead that the Gumdrop Bin itselF has become much more user-Friendly, sleek and gum ball recycle-ablellally in its appearance.

Here is an updated photo as sent in by Anna For everyone’s perusal. Again, check out her neato stuFF at either www.annabullusdesign.com or also www.gumdropbin.com For more!

Coolest Updates Sent in From Past Interviewees:
First oF all, it does seem that many oF you are EXTREMELY busy these days, both with orders and special projects, as well as getting ready For many oF the global Fairs and conFerences that should start kicking oFF here any day.

Shahar Peleg sent in a new catalogue ‘blurb’ Featuring a Few new Fun creations. Shahar has a special place in the annals (watch it!) oF my Family, as he was the designer that saved Christmas last year with especially his neato ultra-thin magnetic Flower vases. Check it out via the previous interview and visit his website For more, including my own Favorites, the new magnetic Floating Arrow bookends thingie as well as Key Pete (or is that Pete's Keys? Not sure, will get back to you on that)!

We were also glad to hear From our Fellow Alsatian neighbors, namely Jacqueline and Gerard (not shown here) From the PaciFic Art Design crew. They’ve added some really cool updates to their own website and are working like mad to get ready For the upcoming Autumn Maison&Objet show in Paris, one oF their regular stop-oFFs. We’re still desperately looking For a date to celebrate liFe, liberty and the pursuit oF really good wine, but as happens too oFten in liFe, our schedules have clashed recently (they were busy, my wiFe was in school, I had that troublesome prison sentence to Finish up, you know how it goes).

Coolest ‘Hey I Know That Designer’ Moment
Some oF you have seen this via my Facebook page (pwease will you be my wittle Fwiend?), but it was very very cool indeed to be in the NY JFK airport recently and walk down one oF the endless tunnels and see upon exiting a shop plastered with posters oF Julien Vallee’s Famous ‘spray-can’ paper sculpture. He had the ‘honor’ (?) OF recently being the ad provider to SWATCH watches new ‘the Artist Collection’ series and he not only had his work grace the store Front windows, but also these here Fancy brochures as well.

Julien did comment he was glad For the work (noting said company quite oFten doesn’t give credit For contributing artists), but I have to agree with his assessment that they didn’t use the best lighting / background color combination to show oFF his talents. Still, the FLASH version was kind oF cool on the home website (not sure iF its still up, hang on... yep, take a look HERE).

And now For more V highlights:

Most Embarrassing ‘Okay I conFess I’m A US Citizen Moment’:
IF any oF you have Flown For any amount oF distance lately, you’ve noticed the airlines are cutting WAY back on service (‘Sir, I don’t care iF you’re choking and need a drink oF water, we do not provide aisle service again For another 6 hours!’) and instead occupying their captives with not only relatively poor movies but also relentless barrages oF incredibly bad US TV programming.

In our case, we were treated to a Few sitcoms that I believe have already been outlawed in several states owing to their quality, but also game shows. One in particular - ‘Deal or No Deal’ - raised quite a bit oF consternation throughout the cabin, but not in any kind oF ‘oh golly, I hope that woman jumping up and down wins the jackpot’ kind oF way. Instead, our row 14 neighbors (we was in row 13, try to keep up here ya’ll) broke up several people by commenting in rather loud tones ‘Where is zee intelligence or skill required in zis show? Zey are only peeking zee boxes...’ Sadly, the consensus was that a suFFicient amount oF smarts did NOT seem to be a required option. ThankFully we were interrupted by the captain at this point For several minutes (‘Uuuuuuhhhhhhhhhh..... ladies and gentlemen, we seem to be ..... Uuuuuuuuuuuuuhhhhhhh mumble mumble uuuuhhhhhhhhh.... seat-belts and uhhhhhhhhh....’).

In a similar circumstance however, this was our Most SatisFying ‘No, the Obama Health Plan Does Not Call For Pushing Old People OFF CliFFs No Matter What The CNBC Mouth-Frothers Are Saying’ Moment
First oF all, I love my Aunt and Uncle M on my mom’s side. I honestly do. They are decent, hard-working people that treat their grand-kids like they’re the most precious creatures on Earth, and they’re not Far oFF (aFter my kids that is... sometimes ... maybe next week, we’ll see).

However, we do tend to diFFer slightly in our political views. I tend to vote For the candidate that speaks loudest to my needs and belieFs, and they worship Sarah Palin, Full stop (For those oF you that don’t know ex-Guvner Palin, she’s shown here with 2 dead baby seals around her neck). No, we’re talking not just the kind of love that says ‘put her in the White House ASAP’, but the kind of adoration that says simultaneously put her in the Vatican and any other high position post you can think oF. That’s the quickest way I can sum it up Folks and hey, I’ just being honest here.

So anyway, we caught up For a brieF visit at the beach together and they were making some, uh, ‘comments’ about Obama having actually stopped oFF some miles away that same day For one oF his ‘town-hall meetings’. It seems that the counter-argument that is being generated by many Foes oF these plans run along the lines oF ‘This plan is the same as in both Canada and France - where they For example take anyone over 65 who coughs in public and puts them in a kind oF Star Trek ‘dissolving chamber’ in order to quickly dispose oF their bodies.’ Well, at this point I thought I’d try a wee question to their inputs along the lines oF ‘have you talked to - or even bizarrely enough - ever met someone From these countries?’

When they sheepishly pointed to my wiFe (she’s French, not Canadian, she’s French, please do not conFuse that!), I then asked ‘well, have you ever asked her about the health care quality there?’ again we received an almost embarrassed ‘no.’ So we proceeded For the better part oF 30 minutes to give our side oF the argument - also occasionally agreeing with the ‘how’s’ might not be as easy as some would have the denizens here to believe. But it was a highlight that shan’t - SHAN’T I SAY! - be Forgotten soon and even illicited one or two ‘oh that doesn’t sound so bad’s’ From the two Palin Pals. Well I will remember it iF I’m allowed to continue living on our return, aFter all, I do have a slight case oF the sniFFles....

Neatest New People Met During Our Trip
Without a doubt From the strictly ‘new’ people list, we have to put Princess Charlotte (shown here during her rousing victory at the 2026 Wimbledon tournament) and Saint Stephen at the top oF the list. We also met a really nice group oF Octogenarians (I think that’s the word that means ‘people in their 80's’ right? But these Folks seemed more like 40 year-olds, what a gang!) that were both very kind and giving, but the Scott’s deserve the over-used ‘Great Scott’ accolades For sure. Both are really quite cool - especially li’l Charlotte who iF you can picture it is like a 40-year old in a 5-year old’s body. But no, to answer your next question, we won’t go into detail why Stephen’s status has been elevated at this stage... aFter all, there’s still 48 hours until Dr. A. Scott (one day she hopes to be Dr. THE Scott... thank you and good night, ladies and gentlemen!) pays us the required ransom Fee to keep quiet about certain ‘details’ oF her managing to pass undergraduate Biology.

And speaking oF which:
Proudest Moment Involving a Non-Family Member
No, it wasn’t the chicken eggs (cute story, more in next time’s tome). I swear I almost stood up and shouted ‘Alleluia!!!’ to the heavens above when we were guests oF our new Friends at their pool and a little girl swam up and said, “Dr. Scott, can you help me please?”

Okay, yes, she was being attacked by about 30 hornets at the time (the little girl, not Dr. Scott), but to hear that phrase ‘Dr. Scott’ used in such a Formal sort oF ‘kids show the good Dr. some respect’ or even 'stand aside children and let Dr. Scott pass, she's a Very Important Person' just made me so proud (said Dr. and I having essentially grown up together). Just too cool and just too ‘oh man, who saw that coming’ For my wee brain? Hm, I’d better shut up, too, I may be just remembering that the ‘got a little dirt on you, too, you know’ pendulum could swing pretty quickly back my way.

Best Realization that My Therapist Will be Glad to Hear
It’s been an up and down Few months, but this trip really made one thing clear to me and you’ll have to excuse me For getting all mushy on you. But it was indeed reFreshing just to step back and realize how much I love my kids. They’re great even iF sometimes we do want to reserve them seats OUTside the airplane. But they are wonderFul, Fun and I love every day watching them grow up and participating in their amazing lives.

Plus, it was Fantastic just to be able to stand back and know with all my being that I am hopelessly and very passionately in love with my wiFe. Yes, it’s true, I conFess, sorry iF that’s a little weird in today’s day and age. But I really think that sometimes we lose sight oF that when things get too hectic, so I was glad to Feel that through and through during our voyages. Okay, I’ll stop now and move on past my ‘Chick Flick’ moment.

Best Music Related Moment(s)
Although my wiFe was disappointed to see that her Favorite singer’s much anticipated album had not yet been released (no, not Green Day, that CD rocked!!), but I had some good ‘new’ and ‘classic’ moments. First oF all, our usual ‘record store’ (realizing that many oF you reading this are too young to know what that is, or better said, was) is de-stocking and most likely going out oF business (or just changing to a ‘pure porn’ Format, whatever works best).

However, this led to many oF my Favorite ‘oh man I need that in my collection’ classic CD’s were just waiting to be nabbed. So I grabbed a Fantastic WHO compilation (one oF my last conversions to the CD Format mind you, as the old 8-tracks are wearing out) as well as a Pete Townsend Greatest Hits. And Furthermore, I also picked up Billy Idol’s Greatest Hits Collection. DO NOT LAUGH: Billy may have relied solely on illicit drugs, enough hair gel to break through walls and gallons of piped in gaseous testosterone to get his message across - but his concert I saw in the mid 80's still ranks as one oF the BEST SHOWS I’ve ever seen, I kid you not. And at my age, a little extra testosterone doesn’t hurt either (the CD came with a memorial cannister oF same).

And also, in terms oF NEW music, the latest Chris Isaak CD was being released (maybe it had been out For a while, but deFinitely not so in Europe), aFter he had taken a multi-year hiatus. IF you know him and his music, get out and get it, it’s classic Chris. IF you don’t know him and your name isn’t Paddy (The Philistine), and you like the kind oF Elvis, Roy Orbison crooning style, check him out! Go ahead, I’ll wait... well, didn’t I tell you? Isn’t everybody there now like totally turned on? (Pfyf, I told you to shut it!!! You and your ‘oh Celine Dion is way cooler’... yeah right, iF only she had drowned with Leonardo DiCaprio in that gods awFul Film ‘Titanic’... )

Most Complete ‘OH Man, you ARE a soFtie’ Moment
No joke, I saw my First bald eagle in the wild. It swooped in over the lake, picked a Fish out at like at 100 mph and Flew into the Forest across From us to enjoy it’s lunch. I know many may not get this, but I had tears running down my cheeks, that was so great. First one ever. ‘NuFF said.

Most Naturally Funny Moment That Happened in, uh, Nature
On our last day at the beach, we went out early to walk along at low tide and make one last sweep For shark’s teeth, many oF which are millions oF years old. This year our ‘catch’ wasn’t as big as some years - maybe not in numbers but certainly in the size and variety we Found - but there were some good ones, especially the large, hooked Tiger Shark teeth my wiFe Found (I specialized this year in the pointy Sand Shark type, as well as some Macaw types, etc.). We switched roles this year in that usually she brings the numbers and varieties and I bring in ‘the big ones’. There’s probably also some joke in there about me getting old, but I’ll just pretend I didn’t think oF a Few...

But anyway, back to the story : as I was enjoying the semi-sunrise, I noticed that one oF our neighbors was chest-high in the surF Fishing. He had been really successFul the day beFore and probably was testing to see iF his luck was still running high.

About that time I looked down and a seagull was STEALING HIS BAIT, which consisted oF Fish parts in a plastic baggie. So this guy looks back From his Fishing to see me running towards him, shouting ‘SHOO SHOO!’ and Flapping my arms like a madman. It was several seconds beFore he realized what I was in Fact doing (thank gods that large Fire arms are outlawed at the beach whilst Fishing), but that moment in time was just hilarious. The picture here in Fact shows the bird trying again aFter the guy tried unsuccessFully to hide the bait under his Fishing box.

Worst Moment That We Wish We Could Just Make Go Away
Not too much detail here you’ll understand, but we Found out a Family member has breast cancer. She means a lot to so many oF us and we wish that this awful thing would just go away. NOW. HopeFully, everything has been detected early enough to encourage a speedy recovery, but I mention this primarily so that she knows we love her and are thinking good thoughts For her every day. Get well soon Gigi, you do mean so much to us and we want to keep you around For a long long time to come...

Best Lesson Learned For Using Internet Tools
Okay, I’ve had my newcomer couple oF months playing with FACEBOOK. I was happy to sign up and catch up with a couple oF Friends, both old and not so old, Fresh and even Fresher. But to tell you the truth, one oF the things I enjoy the most is that iF Folks are signed up that aren’t Friends or in some way aren’t Friend-worthy, then you can clean ‘em out. Just like that! I highly recommend it especially iF you are also someone aFFected by this next category:

Best LiFe Lesson Learned
There’s about 5 million talk shows in the US and I don’t know which one it was, but I got hooked into watching one when they were talking about ‘getting the toxins out oF your liFe.’ No, not necessarily like iF you smoke or have a problem with drugs or alcohol; in this case, it was aimed at getting TOXIC RELATIONSHIPS out oF your liFe. True, these could be ones that cause you to drink or take drugs (is it time For another F word announcement?), but I don’t think that was a prerequisite.

And I realized that it was time I did something about that. There’s someone out there that’s always brought out the worst in me and vice versa I’m sure, no doubt about it. So clip, like some cosmic umbilical cord, I’ve decided to cut the whole thing Free. And like the guy on TV was telling us, I don’t give a rat’s patootie who’s to blame and who is the most demonic in the whole situation, but I am OVER IT! And I Feel healthier already. ‘NuFF said Part II.

Best Materials Family Got to Work With
As you may (or probably may not) remember, I took classes in ‘stained glass’ while I was here although it went beyond the traditional ‘Frame and cut glass’ stuFF to also include modiFications involving Fusing or melting or other combination techniques. It was very cool as well in that I was able to use some oF my Formal training and experience with polymers and colorants as well in the entire process (I know what a glass transition temperature is, I rock!). There will certainly be more pictures oF these endeavours in episodes yet to come.

Even though the whole experience was valuable albeit not in line with my expectations more on a personal level (looooong story, let’s not go there), I did and still do Find myselF very motivated to try the things I learned as-is and also very diFFerently. Whereas I highly value my ‘teacher’s’ input and will always respect their work and have even collected same For many years, I am also thrilled by the possibility oF trying diFFerent techniques to get diFFerent textures or Forms and more (I’m the kind oF chemist that insists on having something go ‘BOOOOM’ every now and then). So it was good to go through a sweaty, bloody Fingered ‘beginner’ course - but it’s only made me want to try more! Which I guess is more than you can ask From ANY training session in the arts, eh?

I’m also happy to report that the Mrs. And the kids got to try their hands at POTTERY making, which had also been a ‘I really want to try that’ thing high on my wiFe’s list. They really had a blast and my wiFe thoroughly enjoyed herselF. So we’ve both gone From ‘gosh darn, I need a Fun hobby, what should I try?’ to now arguing about who gets to use what part oF the house as their Future ‘studio’. We’ll see. No, not we’ll see in terms oF who will win this argument - she will, I assure you (hey, she can kick my tush For sure!) - but how quickly and / or cooperatively we’ll get it all set up!

And Finally I am pleased to present you
The Best Name For A Band We Thought OF Based on All the Bloody Pharmaceutical Ads in the USA
AFter several days oF being told to, quote, ask our Doctors about the latest pills because we’re too Fat, that we don’t have (or want better said) enough sex, that we go to the bathroom too much or too little, that we need to supplement our diets with gods know what kind oF green gooey warty stuFF, we are determined to start within the next decade the First band to ever preForm their ‘Reunion Tour’ prior to their First tour.

Ladies and Gentlemen, I ask you to envision the powerFul Rock Power and Power Rocking oF

Swollen Colon!

Move over Mick and Keith, we’re going to grab the old guy / sugar daddy crowd pronto. Finally a band that doesn’t sing about love and other yucky stuFF, but addresses the real heartaches and other pains that the over 45 crowd Faces every day. Even potentially with corporate sponsorship by Viagra or Rogaine Hair Growth Tonic, not to mention Kellogg’s own ‘Colon Blow’!! Rock on everybody yeahhhaaaaargh, oh no, I think I broke my hip!!!

Ciao...

Chew On This (Then Recycle, Please)!

An Interview with Designer Anna Bullus

Click on any picture to enlarge it to original size
Part 1 of 2 (link to Part 2)

It would be perhaps easy to state that Anna Bullus is obsessed with pink and leave it at that. After all, she answered our enquiring questions in pink coloured font. And of course her newest project – The Gumdrop Bin – and the subsequent new web-site she has created for it, www.gumdropbin.com – do feature a lot of pink coloured (or is it flavoured?) pictures and graphics to peruse.

However, upon further examination, you realize that her work – and of course then this specific project – go so much further. If nothing else, the sheer financial aspects of the problem she is addressing are staggering. Some facts that Anna has gathered paint then this picture very clearly:

=> On average (no, it is not clarified who did the counting or how) it seems that approximately 30,000 pieces of gum are irresponsibly and wantonly discarded everyday on Oxford Street (London) ALONE;

=> Not only that, but if everyone immediately were to STOP doing this – again on this one Street alone – it would still take over 4 months just to clean up the existing ‘gum paddies’ that exist today, noting that it seems as well that 9 out of 10 paving stones have at least one piece of gum on them;

=> PER PIECE of gum, it costs about 3 times the amount of a single piece of gum to clean it up off the street. Note clearly this does not even take into account if gum is properly disposed of and later stored in something as proper as a land-fill or garbage dump;

=> NOW GET THIS – the British Government spends about 150 million BRITISH POUND-STERLING EACH YEAR on cleaning up gum off of the streets of the United Kingdom. If that doesn’t hit close enough to home, then note that this is well over 173 million EURO, or getting closer and closer to 250 million US dollars per annum (which is very close to the amount my pension fund has lost over the last few weeks)!

With that in mind, Anna has set out for her endeavour GUMDROP a very straightforward mission statement, one that not only highlights the targets of this project but also describes very well her own passion for design:

GUMDROP is a belief in a cleaner, greener planet. GUMDROP believes that with its new breakthrough in recycling, people will be able to see an attractive alternative to their previous habits of gum disposal.

Our Mission is to educate and inspire the public to give gum a second life.

As such, we’re very pleased to welcome Anna to this interview:

Hi Anna, thanks for sharing some of your valuable time. First of all, how would you describe your obvious passion for design to someone that either doesn’t really understand the art or purpose of design? Let’s say you’re speaking to, oh I don’t know, a newly discovered tribe of indigenous people in the Amazon, a classroom of elementary students, or even an ultra-conservative Investment Banker that hasn’t started his or her prison term yet...
Well, if I was describing it to the Newly Discovered Tribe, I'd probably say it's like catching enough food in 1 hour to feed the whole tribal village for a whole week.

Describing it Elementary Kids – well, it's like going into a sweet shop and being able to have anything you wanted as long as you had a good, imaginative reason to justify each helping.

And finally, for the Conservative Investment banker – I'd say that the motivation and satisfaction you get from a great deal, I get that feeling every day from design and what I invent.

Can you share a few more details about your background? For example, I’m fascinated to learn what a degree in Three Dimensional Design offers vs. say a ‘classical’ design curriculum, if such a thing exists?
I studied Three Dimensional design at Brighton University. It was great, compared to a classical product design course. I think it was probably how it was before technology took over a lot of design (Bauhaus).

We had the opportunity to gain skills in wood, ceramics, metal and plastics. And all we would do all day - really everyday - is make things. It was very experimental and a lot of fun.

My fascination was definitely in the plastics workshop where I spent most of my time making all sorts of wired and wonderful things. It was where GUMDROP was born!

I read that you knew you wanted to be a designer at an early age owing to your love of materials. What were your biggest influences in terms of art and/or design growing up or coming up through school?
I definitely knew that I wanted to be a designer of some sort from an early age; I had such a wonderful imagination. I would always be dreaming up new products and drawing out products things that I thought were definitely needed. This could be anything from a toy to a mechanical pencil case that did all your homework for you!

Throughout my school years my favourite lessons were always Art and DT (Design Technology). Even in primary school, I would make elaborate marble ruins!

For my secondary school, I chose to go to Bedales, a school that specialises in Art, Design, Theatre, Music and Science. It was here where I was really encouraged to develop my passion for Design. In fact, this is where I made The Caterpillar.

As with anyone, it's hard to pin point what exactly influences or has influenced you throughout your development. For me, I think it was a mixture of things: my teachers, the people I used to hang out with and the environment in which I lived. But of course these influences constantly change as you change.

Looking deeper at your fascination with materials: What has been your favourite material or medium to work with so far?
Plastics.

What materials or skills have you NOT worked with that you’d like to try?
Wax and knit.

How would you like to continue to – in the words of the Five! promotions – challenge the viewers’ perception of everyday objects?
I would just like people to have to think about a product that they are using.

Also, what do you do to ensure that you are living up to your mantra of ‘striving every time to be more creative than the last design’?
I learn from each design I create. So I hope that having learnt from the previous design, the next one will be in some way more creative than the last.

The picture of you in the lab is actually quite convincing, though I might have proposed having some dry ice bubbling away in the background for effect. How much chemistry experience did you have before you stepped in and started mixing concoctions?
Absolutely no experience what so ever! The picture of me in the lab is completely genuine.

For me, chemistry is a mix between cooking, common sense and multiple-choice questions. And in many ways like design: if you're patient and persevere and exhaust every avenue possible to try and meet your goals, you will succeed in the end.

What did you take from that experience of ca. 4 months in the laboratory besides your technique for recycling gum?
Really a new style of working. I really found the approach to be very methodical and thorough.

I would like all my work to develop in this way as I think you get such good results.

I assume your process is very hush-hush and you won’t divulge its secrets here. But are you patenting (or have you patented) the process?
I have indeed applied for a patent.

In terms of the so-called ‘mass production’, I am working on that bit now. However, it is quite hard to put this into practice when you’re trying to hold onto the Intellectual Property at the same time.

As I do speak from (not always good) experience, I am curious how you’ve dealt not only in terms of the Gumdrop bin but even other pieces that involve human contact (e.g. ‘One Cup or Two’) and the requisite safety and health issues.

One Cup or Two was a little 1-day project that I set myself as a design target. It was huge amounts of fun, especially when I got all my friends to come round for a tea and sugar party.

I wasn’t particularly worried about health and safety as it wasn’t something I was intending to sell. However, I have had huge amounts of interest and feedback to this piece. So I am thinking of redesigning the project so that it could be produced and sold ‘safely’.

Have you run into this with the Gumdrop bin, as I suppose you’re mixing materials that have had ‘biological’ exposure (albeit sterilised) with bio-resins and perhaps even additional colorants?
Well, again, I can't divulge too many 'trade secrets' yet, but I can tell you that bio resin plays no part in the making of this new material and GUMDROP!

A last chemistry question: my children (age 5 and 9) chew gum incessantly and it drives me nuts. Can you give me any tid-bits of advice or other information that would help me get them to stop? Like is there something REALLY REALLY gross in gum I could tell them about?
No! I need them chewing as much as possible, so that I can collect their gum!! You should encourage them! Sorry!

And I can't think of anything too gross either... although synthetic gum does contain latex.

It must be quite satisfying to so much success so early in your career, including with Five!, Caterpillar, and of course Gumdrop. Can you describe that feeling you get when you begin to sense that the public is reacting positively to a piece?

It is an amazing feeling that even one person gets what I'm trying to do and likes it. It makes me just all the more motivated and focused on my next designs!

continued in Part 2

Chew On This (Then Recycle, Please)!

An Interview with Designer Anna Bullus

Click on any picture to enlarge it to original size
Part 2 of 2 (link to Part 1)

Anna, I’m sure that Gumdrop is taking up a lot of your time now. In such a situation, do you feel a little torn between the time you’re investing in an EXISTING piece vs. the time you’d like to spend making new things?
It is true that I currently spend about 80% of my time on GUMDROP. But I don’t feel torn at all. I just feel that I have to invest nearly all my time in order to give this product a chance.

On one hand, my other products have been relatively quick to do. However, GUMDROP just happens to need more attention, possibly because it is a product that could hopefully make a significant difference to our environment. So definitely with that in mind, I want to give it all I got!

I like to call the moment of discovery the ‘Wow Moment’. It can be that one moment in time where you get the perfect idea (‘Eureka!’) or that a piece your working on comes together oh-so-right. Can you then describe your 'Wow Moments’ in terms of not only knowing that you wanted to be a designer (and that you could be successful at it) and also specifically your GUMDROP idea?
I don’t think I have experienced the ‘wow feeling' for design as I am still at the very beginning of my career. If I ever do get that feeling, though, I hope it will come at the end of my career when I can look back and reflect on what I have achieved.

I think the same mentality applies to the GUMDROP project. I tend to really focus on the 'now' and because I am in the midst of GUMDROP, that's where I'm investing most of my energy.

I would add that I don’t think there is such a thing as ‘the perfect idea’. I believe something can always be improved no matter what it is. For me, that is really the beauty of design and technology.

Perhaps when I get GUMDROP off the ground and running the way I want it to, I hope to have the feeling that things are coming together!

While the financial implications are amazing just in terms of clean-up costs, I am still curious if you’ve had a ‘carbon footprint’ measurement made, that is, looking at the energy and costs needed to recycle and reform the waste gum vs. just, for example, putting a convenient new plastic bin out for people to at least not dump their finished ‘chewies’ on the street?
You're right to bring this up and it is something I am looking at the moment. Currently, what I can say is that it has the same environmental effect as making a standard bin using a recycled polymer. But I definitely hope to improve on this.

I was also quite fascinated by your work with the Hulger ‘Pluemen Project’. How did you get involved in this?
I did an internship with them and this is one of the projects we did whilst I was there.

How do you see such aesthetics playing a role in the acceptance of energy-saving light-bulbs?
If the cost of making a good-looking energy saving light bulb is cheaper or the same as existing ESL’s, then I hope it would attract a lot more people. I think Hulger are trying to get to this point, as you can see at http://www.plumenproject.com/ .

I do think though this approach is important to explore, especially in this area because no one has designed anything that appeals practically and aesthetically to the household consumer. But when the household consumer starts buying, you know someone has found the secret to success!

Looking ahead a little bit, where do you see yourself in the next years? Are you able at all to get a grasp on the ‘situation’ in terms of a design career at this time what with the economy?
I see me working for myself forever and ever! For me to be happy and to succeed it is very important to be in control of my own time.

And despite all the global gloom and doom about the economy, I believe that this is the perfect time to be starting up a new sustainable venture. I just that that by the time such a new business does get off the ground - say within 2 - 4 years - the economy will be slowly getting back up on its feet. I also see more and more people then looking to invest in ‘green schemes, ideas or ventures’.

From your picture, it seems you have at very least (a) very nice, strong and clean teeth and (b) healthy mandibular (sp?) muscles. Are you in fact a secret gum-chewer yourself that may have some skeletons (or globs of gum) hanging in or sitting on the floor of her closet?

I will confess that I am a serious gum chewer now I have started this project! However, I didn't chew gum very often - and I have to be boring and say that I always threw it properly away in the bin or put it in paper and into my bag.

But the GUMDROP project came about because I can’t stand how we have come to accept these little splodges that pave our environment!

I also saw that you’ve travelled to both Australia and the United States to ‘research’ the issue of gum disposal. What did you learn from those trips?
That gum litter really is a global problem that no one is tackling head on and there is a definite market for GUMDROP.

What would be your dream in terms of fulfilling the ‘ultimate sustainable design’ approach or even object (money being no issue in this case)?
A project or product (I hope it is GUMDROP) that significantly makes a difference to our environment globally.

Agreeing whole-heartedly with your appreciation of the Sussex countryside, have you nevertheless (is that a word?) had at any time in your education or even career right now a kind of ‘wanderlust’ that is, to go out and try different settings such as New York, Tokyo, Paris or even Ramsbottom (just outside of Manchester)?
I grew up in Portugal, moved to London and then moved to West Sussex when I was 13. I have enjoyed all of these places.

However, combining the fact that I was 13 years old and thus was in my most adventurous phase, Sussex remains my favourite. I am back in London now. But I am someone that likes travelling a lot. But again, home to me is England, so I wouldn’t want to live and work anywhere else.

Looking ahead: What can we expect to see in the Gum Drop Shop?
Weird and wonderful limited edition products made from recycled chewing gum!

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Anna Bullus was born in London, England in 1984. She left Bedales School in 2003 to go to Camberwell College of Art (2004 – 2005) to do a foundation course where she specialised in 3D Design and left with a distinction. Anna then went on to the University of Brighton where she graduated in Three Dimensional Design with a first class honours (2005 – 2007).

After leaving University Anna gained experience as a product Designer with Hulger where she was given the task of redesigning the energy saving light bulb, again for more please check out her ‘namesake site’ under the Plumen Project. She also worked at Case Furniture as a junior product developer and press liaison in London. She then left this group in June 2008 to set up her own company GUMDROP Ltd to tackle the global problem of gum litter.

Some of the places where Anna has showcased her designs include Cologne, Singapore, Shanghai, Milan and London. Most importantly, she points out clearly that she is completely passionate about design. Anna is a strong believer in the mantra that materials and processes should be understood thoroughly in order to push properties to achieve innovation without loss of quality. Problems are only there to be overcome by simple, clever and comfortable design that recognises daily social and environmental trends and needs – striving every time to be more creative than the last design.

Among the awards she has been, well, awarded include the following:
2009: Hidden Art Polymers Award for overall performance
2008: Winston Churchill Memorial Trust Fellowship Travel Fund
2007: Nagoya University of Art: Outstanding achievement in Design
2007: Burt Brill and Cardens: Outstanding achievement in Design
2007: British Council Top Ten

Although at the start of what will no doubt be a long and illustrious career in design, Anna has had several key hits and expects big things to come in the months and years ahead. We wish her continued good luck but nevertheless raise again the need to get our darn kids to stop chewing so much bloody gum!

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All pictures used with the express written consent of Anna Bullus. Many images were taken from her websites including www.annabullusdesign.com as well as www.gumdropbin.com . Some images used from previous articles referenced by Anna with her kind permission.

Poetic Passings From A Plane Ride

Click on pictures to enlarge them to original size
To be read in a ‘relaxed’ 16-beat cadence… seriously

This week's Fresh Ziggy comes to you wholly and completely in rhyme
I mean I'm stuck in an airplane, I've got more than plenty of time
I always laugh when I hear 'folks it's time to get on to the plane'
Thinking George Carlin's 'why not in the damn thing?' (but much more profane)

Speaking of which, this clip shows this poor guy's guitar so mistreated,
Had it been me, the song’s lyrics would be half-bleeped or deleted
He reminds me of the Brothers Wilson, Owen and, uh, Woodrow (?)
That's sarcastic as heck (their movies waste time or money to go)

The past days were eventful but quiet, sometimes up, sometimes down
A lot like my painting: 'Aah, I wanted orange but got greenish-brown!'
A little bit stressed, a little relaxed, time spent somewhat thrifty
Now that 40's farther away (I'm getting closer to 50!)


A time for reflection, words of wisdom to ponder or peruse
More time for my writing or those pounds, a stone or two we should lose
I think I'll get to it, maybe a jog 'round the track or our block
Take it easy, a voice says, don't send your gut too quick into shock

Big news 'round here: on the 18th we hosted some bike tour in France
30 seconds of speed trials flying by with some guy they call Lance
But we really can't complain what with the new sidewalks (they spend loads!)
Let's have it next year, maybe we'll get more for our 2 little roads!

But lately what's bothering me above all the more and the most
Is it seems Earth - at least to the Moon - is not a very good host
You see the Moon is moving away, not fast but stop and just think
3-point-8 centimeters per year, ‘way to some orbital brink

So the past days I have studied our circling satellite, uh, thing
Formed from a rogue orb hitting Earth (told you!), first giving a space-ring
Later it grouped, forming rock foreboding, lifeless, distant and cold
It was even ten times closer than today (or so I've been told)

Here we are at a time where it's positioned just perfectly right
Perhaps more than chance we're here, crawling from tides at suitable height
And think how perfectly it fits during an eclipse of the sun
In millions of years such events will not be nearly so fun!

The whole thing freaks me out, so then I've googled diagrams galore
Perhaps though I'm ranting, I can be so often such a real bore
But if the moon is as big as the U.S., an estimate crude
Why show it as an East German, ball-throwing Olympian dude?

In other news I have to say thanks to my friend, Editor Man
Who just ran two Ziggy's at site X (oh yeah, sign up, be a fan!)
By the way, our plane trip did finally end - but wait, there is more
We saw J. Vallee's 'spray can' poster on front of many a store!

And while we're shouting out to folks we respect and find all the rage
Thanks to JV and J. Breton for putting us on their own page
I include here links of V, B, for each at xymara-dot-com
I just feel so giddy and hip, gotta add 'oh man, dey da' bomb!'

Other than that, I finally broke down and signed up for FACEBOOK
Not tried it yet? Hint: ask someone you know, and first take a quick look
But I've signed up, always a late user (but I found a few friends)
Though most searches landed nowhere (or in prisons), lot's of dead ends

Well, time to end my self-serving mag out plus-minus bi-weekly
Just as expected: no punch-line, suspense, and just a tad meekly
But join us for this week's interview, here's one heading to the top
With Anna Bullus, she created this cool thing she calls GUMDROP!

There lot's more cool stuff coming out and just sitting there on our plate
Interviews pending that you'll find swell (oh darn I should have said great)
Might even write about adventures in stained and fused glass learning
A creativity rush that I've had, a long time my yearning!