Man Made DIY

Take this one to the bank: never give a guy a tie for Christmas. Ever. 

Unless, of course, it's a handmade tie, that you not only sewed, but did so from a handmade pattern on fabric that you designed and printed yourself, that is.

Says author Michele Beschen, "When I was asked to share a project that was geared towards geeks and dudes, I immediately started contemplating the many interesting ways I could incorporate code into something. I don’t even know what much of that tech jargon means, but I sure like how it looks — the text, the symbols and the layout. I played around with different ideas and just kept seeing it on a tie: not a stuffy, business-like tie, but a tie that looks great worn loose and casual with a vintage short-sleeve button down. Keep your dude in stylish duds this holiday season, and add a little personality with this "power of code" tie that you can create in an… read more

American artist Brian Dettmer rescues trashed books headed for the landfill and creates unbelievable paper sculptures. "With the precision of a brain surgeon, he teases books into something else, graphic statements of an expressionist talent that is truly awesome."

In the last two years, there's been a huge increase on the digital SLR camera scene - prices are dropping, megapixels are becoming more affordable, and the availability of introductory models means that anyone who has even a moderate interest can take really, really good pictures for fractions of what it would have cost even five years ago.

Though with the increase in flexibility and quality, convenience and portability take a hit. A DSLR can take amazing vacation, candid, and art (and step-by-step how-to!) photos, but they don't slip into your pocket very easily. Which means your stuck with an expensive object hanging from an… read more

Sliceforms are "are geometric models constructed from interlocking sets of planar pieces," basically a 3D model made of flat pieces, creating a grid. Mathematically-minded folks, of course, can create super complex structures with the technique, but it can be scaled down to make simpler structures, like this 3D Christmas… read more

Some tasty humor on a dreary day; from the Mount Royal bagel factory in… read more

Nothing is more stressful than the shakes and tremors of the towering wooden edifice that is a great game of Jenga. All the middle ones have been removed, leaving that one on the side that if you just work quickly and carefully enough, you might be able to...

Shudder.

Matthias Wandel's Jenga pistol, on the other hand, can knock out an entire level, dropping the entire structure, in less than 1/20 of a second.

Watch this video to see it… read more

This year, Chanukah starts on December 1st, this Wednesday night. As for most holidays, we wanted to find appropriate decor to match the ManMade goals - guy-friendly, contemporary, and handmade.

We found it in this industrial menorah, or chanukkiah, which was assembled entirely from pipe fittings easily found at the hardware store.

Here's how… read more

I have no commentary, so just the facts:

A 20 lb. pig, stuffed with an 8 lb turkey, a 6 lb duck, a 4 lb chicken, a cornish hen, a quail, a bacon and croissant stuffing, held together with bacon and sausage glue, and a glaze of 6 lbs. of butter and Dr. Pepper.

79,046 calories, 6892 grams of fat

I *guess* I appreciate the ambition, but I'm more impressed that they got the cooking times and temperatures all figured out.

And what sort of gravy for this guy? 

See it… read more

Artist Don Kenn sums up his work and life thusly: "BORN IN DENMARK 1978. I WRITE AND DIRECT TELEVISION SHOWS FOR KIDS. I HAVE A SET OF TWINS AND NOT MUCH TIME FOR ANYTHING. BUT WHEN I HAVE TIME I DRAW MONSTERDRAWINGS ON POST-IT NOTES... IT IS A LITTLE WINDOW INTO A DIFFERENT WORLD, MADE ON OFFICE SUPPLIES."

We don't think carving a turkey is an essential man skill, with grandpa (who didn't have anything to do with the planning or cooking of the meal) standing at the head of the table, steeling his knife and taking all the credit.

Nope, we thinking that properly carving a turkey is an essential people skill, and the best way to take advantage of all the hard work that went into… read more