Running a small store? Freelance business? Pushing your wares on the streets? Accepting credit cards tends to be something out of reach of most tiny business owners. But if you have an iPhone, Square is here to change that. With a small device that plugs in to your phone you can accept credit card transactions anywhere, email or text a receipt to your customer, and all with no monthly fees. This is what technology should be doing, making our lives easier, and this most certainly alleviates some heavy costs and hardware.
Panasonic GF-1
Feel limited by your compact digital cameras, but also intimidated by larger, professional DSLRs? Look no further than the Panasonic GF-1. A hybrid of sorts, the GF-1 uses the Micro Four-Thirds lens system, which allows the camera to retain a small, compact body, while also utilizing professional grade, interchangeable lenses—in lay man terms, it’s small but you can still use great lenses like the pros. In addition to shooting amazing 12 megapixel photos, it even shoots 720p HD video. You can pick up the Panasonic GF1 with an accompanying 20mm lens for $900, and while we’d love to rave further about the quality, we think this review says it better than we ever could.
William II by John Lobb
Founded in 1849, Lobb is one of England’s oldest makers of bench-made shoes. Everyone from Royalty to Hollywood has had a pair of John Lobb’s. The William II shoe, which is by far the most popular John Lobb shoe, is a double buckle monk shoe with a hand stitched toe cap. Special care is taken to select the leather that will be used and the traditional British stitching on the bottom of the sole is done entirely by hand. William II shoes can be found online at JohnLobb.com for $1,240, or at all Hermes stores.
LaCie iamakey Thumb-Drive
Thumb drives are ubiquitous these days—if you work with a computer daily, odds are you have one, or two, or three. Odds are, you’ve probably lost a few over your career. LaCie is here to change that by putting our thumb-drives on something we can’t live without—our keychains. When you think about it, that’s really what a thumb-drive is after all, your digital key. The LaCie iamakey is available in sizes from 4GB to 32GB, which range in price from $21 to $103 at Amazon, we’re sure this is a thumb-drive that you’ll only lose between the couch cushions for an evening. We recommend the 8GB model at $28 as the best value.
Magic Wallet by J. Crew
More than a money clip, less than a wallet. The Magic Wallet by J. Crew is perfect for those of us who are likely to carry more credit cards than we do cash. It carries just enough credit cards and IDs without having to deal with an extra fold in the wallet, and a compartment in the center can easily hold cash if that’s how you roll. Buy the Magic Wallet at J. Crew for the modest price of $25. As of this posting, the wallet is unavailable until April 7th of this year, but if you’re in luck if there’s a local J. Crew store at your nearby mall.
Alexander McQueen Heart Peep-Toe Pumps
The recent passing of Alexander McQueen is a tragedy and a loss for the fashion industry. We’ve had a few items suggested to us from his catalogue of work, and this is the first of them. The Heart Peep-Toe Pumps feature a black leather construction about 5 inches high with a 1 inch platform and stiletto heels. The front of the shoe features the heart-shaped peep-toe, and the undersole is available in a variety of daringly bright neon colors. Available for $699 from Zappos.
Livesurface — High Quality Blank Stocks
Since you can’t photograph what doesn’t exist yet, sometimes you need a realistic way to present your work before it’s ever been produced. Faced with this situation yesterday, we found Live Surface, a set of downloadable .psd files that allow you to show your work as if it was already produced. Priced at $29 an image, and available in environments or photo shoot settings, we feel it’s a small price to pay for a more professional design presentation.