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Fashion synthography

An artist I follow on Instagram is Tim Tadder. He is a fashion photographer and recently his fashion photos have all been AI co-generated. These images are no more (or less) synthetic than most fashion photography, and a lot more imaginative. We should call them synthographs, and Tadder, a brilliant synthographer. — KK

Maker tips

I continue to be impressed by Gar’s Tips & Tools, a newsletter that we co-publish with Gareth Branwyn. Every week Gareth scours the internets and the youtubes to find practical tips for makers of all stripes. His sources range from weekend crafters to hard-core professional workshoppers, from sewing cosplay to blacksmithing to woodworking. I generally find at least one or two tips I did not know about. All in a one quick read with ready links.— KK

Mini sketch book

One of my daughters draws for hours a day, and she carries an Arteza 3.5×5.5″ Mini Sketch Book Pocket Notebook everywhere she goes. She’s tried out different brands, including Moleskines, but prefers the Arteza sketchbook for its texture and versatility. It works well with pencil, ballpoint pen, ink pen, and markers. — MF

Buy your inner critic a retirement gift

I recently heard a story about a woman who asked her “inner critic” to retire. The “inner critic” being that self-critical voice that pipes up under the guise of protecting me from failure or pushing me to be better. Inspired by this idea, I bought my “inner critic” a retirement gift — something tangible I can see or hold in my hands — so that when the doubting, perfectionist voice speaks up I can gently remind her she’s been retired, and show her the small of token of appreciation I bought as proof. Shifting my focus from anxiety to gratitude. — CD

Different ways to organize your books

I love book shelfies and snapping photos of people’s personal libraries, so I was really excited to see this headline in the Washington Post: How to organize your books, according to people with thousands of them (possible paywall). I learned that the most versatile bookshelf is still Ikea’s Billy series and the ideal way to organize is by genre and then alphabetically, with rare books kept on higher shelves. — CD

Netflix games

I’ve been a Netflix subscriber for a long time, but I recently discovered that my subscription includes ad-free mobile games for both Apple and Android devices. You can check out the game selection here. Currently, I’m enjoying Terra Nil on my iPad, which is a SimCity-style game where you restore a wasteland into a thriving ecosystem. — MF

— Kevin Kelly, Mark Frauenfelder, Claudia Dawson

04/16/23