Gents, the days of lugging around shapeless, frilly diaper bags is a thing of the past. Allow me to introduce the Scout by Petunia Pickle Bottom. This bag is boxy, I mean seriously boxy. Its sleek lines and antique brass hardware, put this messenger-style-manly-goodness in a league all of its own. I will end this post by predicting dudes that are not Dads will want to become a Dad just so they can rock this bag. -Just sayin‘.

Here are some of the features as mentioned on the Petunia Pickle Bottom site!

Designed with minimalists in mind, the new Scout Journey Pack "Compact " has all the same great features as its larger counterpart, just streamlined.

 

2 exterior bottle pockets that “snap-off”a

2 interior pockets for easy “reach and grab”

1 large interior magnetic snap pocket

1 interior bottle pocket and snaps for repositioning one of the exterior "snap-off" bottle pockets to the inside

1 wide flat back exterior magazine pocket

1 front exterior pocket with magnetic snap

1 lined cell phone pocket

Custom Scout monogrammed plastic wipes case in coordinating color

Adjustable shoulder strap adjusts from 41”-52”

Custom antique brass hardware with debossed logos

Easy to clean lining, inverts to dump out crumbs

Something has been bothering me for days now—I simply can’t remember where I read or heard the following quote:

"Your first release isn’t your product, it’s simply a way to trick your customers into talking to you."

Or some variation thereof. It has stuck with me due to its inherent truth. It sums up so succinctly what I try to explain to not only clients, but also internally to myself as I’m meticulously iterating concepts for both personal and client projects. The core of user experience design is to create amazing, incredibly easy and streamlined experiences out of the gate, but the reality in today’s economy is that budgets may not be available for extensive up-front user/market research and analysis. And even up front research pales in comparison to real users interacting with real websites or applications—issues will always be raised and new feature requests made no matter how extensive the initial discovery/planning phase. Time and money could be burned creating what is meant to be the Next Big Thing, only for it to flop and be off target since initial understanding of the target audience was off.  And that understanding could be off not only because assumptions were incorrect, but also because people can rarely articulate innovation before they see it. No potential customer told Steve Jobs the specs for the iPhone before it was built. It’s the nature of the web and technology, nothing is ever set in stone, so it is essential to embrace and plan for change.

Understanding this fluid environment is the first step in getting over First Release Anxiety, the feeling that your site or app may not be received warmly or could even hurt your brand. How can you provide an optimal experience for your customers unless the lines of communication with them are fully open? This isn’t to say that the first release should be made haphazardly, or without extensive up front design thinking and effort. On the contrary, those things are essential. But to continually re-think everything, pick and prod until deadlines are long gone and buried, is usually a waste of effort and funds. Don’t be afraid to get something out there, engage your customers and the next release will be far more on target than originally imagined.

Oh, if anyone can help me remember the source of the above quote, please chime in. Want to give credit where its due!

 French Duo Antonie+Manuel released a new book simply titled Compilation. Known for their 3D sculptures and one of a kind Furniture pieces, this book is super Fresh!

It’s been a long time coming since my last blog post, but rest assured, I am still alive. A lot of things have been keeping me busy, of which I’d like to blog more about once it’s all ready. One of those things is ZFExchange, a resource site for Zend Framework projects that I’ve been developing on and off for a little while.

Today I’m excited to extend an offer for beta testers to contact me for an invite. As a beta tester, you will always have access to the newest features that are coming through the pipeline. If you’re interested, please contact me on #zftalk, my nickname there is "rizza".