I turn my live into a better one

After trying a new organic toothpaste from Trader Joe's I had a hard time getting used to this really odd taste even though it says peppermint... muhaha! But after about a week I started to like it and it feels so healthy!
So I thought they might also have toothbrushes and there we go: My first organic toothbrush. I remember a student that had a hard time designing an organic toothbrush or at least a recycable looking one and so I am quite impressed by this very simple brush I found and the very well thought marketing.

It is random that this brush is green, they were also available in pink and blue. The basic design idea is to take old yoghurt cups and turn them into toothbrushes. What I really enjoyed to see was that the designer just kicked the bi components and just used one! Of course! Critics might ask how to implement a grip: The brush has three molded rips - done! And it works pretty well. Same like the paste: I had to get used to the curve of the handle but quickly realized that this made a much more ergonomic way of brushing possible, with much less arm motion. I'd be missing this brush in Germany already. But as all good things it might swep over to Europe.

And now comes the clue: After a three months use you just put the brush back into the handle and ship it back to the company for free. Soooo easy! Please buy! And save our planet!

Christmas Time

For Christmas, I tried some self-made postcards for my family and friends. They are still looking very self-made, maybe I should print them to be more professional but then I would not have this nice paper (1) and also not everybody would have their individual Christmas card (2).

An improvement would be to add type or paper card to clue on top, maybe also some Christmas items like plastic snowflakes. Though, I like the cards because they kind of represent my fashion experience with the water color. The gold is acrylic.

3DS Max: How to render

So, one step has been missing still and this is rendering in 3DS Max. This is a step between putting color and doing a movie. I tried to combine the two videos that I did but could not come up with a video in appropriate size... So, it's two that belong together.

This tutorials have been a lot of fun and though I cannot listen to my voice, I think I explained things well. Next time, it would probably be helpful for the audience if I would zoom in in between. Andrew Kramer from Videocopilot.com is my idol, though he is a bit crazy. But I think that he is both entertaining and explains the issue on a top level. Every time someone asks me about AfterEffects, I recommend his videos because they are just so great and full of insights.

3DS Max learning blogs

So, after I found out that videos don't have a voice on my blog, I put them on YouTube. Please select the one that's interesting!

http://www.youtube.com/user/IDexchange?feature=mhee
In this video, I explain basics of how to set a scene, importing an IGES file into a 3DS Max scene and prepare the bodys for further work.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dPZBhJHGB8E
This video deals with the basic material editor. Really, really basic! But, so far, I made all of my renderings like this and it always looked great. Also, last semester, I rendered a short video with my skills that really made an impression. I guess it's just important what you make out of your skills!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wy0f8p0tUZY
In the last video, I make a little movie ;)

3DS Max: How to import IGES files

In this video, I try to explain how to import an IGES files and how to prepare the body the best way for further work. I regret that I cannot show how to export a SolidWorks data because I have a legal student version of SolidWorks that does not let me export in any other format than SolidWorks or eDrawing ;) I love you SWguys!

Fashion Final

For my final, there were some more sketches to do, but also creating a cover page for my two sketch books. The problem was, that the sketchbooks have a pretty solid yellow color page that also has some prints and a sketch on it and as it is a ring binder, I cannot cover this yellow page with my sketch. So I decided to create two cover pages digitally for the sake of having a thick paper, being able to include nice typo and also somehow playing with the yellow.
I ended up with a gradient that is as close to the yellow as it can be. Glued on my sketch books, these paged do pretty well.

My phone

One of the worst products I ever bought is my current phone. That is not very surprising because it cost me $10 and its edges are so sharp you can get hurt. The worst is that it does not always receive calls...
Anyways, there is one thing that I really appreciate about it: The alarm funktion!
As I am a student and I have different times to get up during the week, I used to re-set my German alarm every day. This phones offers 6 different alarms! So I can choose my early week alarm, my late week alarm, my nap, the weekend alarm and a second early week alarm, just in case. Also, and this is the clue: The phone makes me choose the days of the week seperately.

 Maybe it is because I have a very old phone in Germany, but I was really surprised how convenient this function is. If only this phone would work like this on every area!