We want the rare and the unique, we like the stuff that´s difficult to get. Instead of going into a deep psychological analyze of why we want as much infrequency as possible in our lives lets just savour it in the perfect situation: TOY MADE ONE

Toy is an independent business that works collaboratively with a hand picked selection of artists across product, motion, print and screen.
Next Friday Toy celebrates its 1^st year anniversary with an 6 hours lasting exhibition. For the special occasion they brought their favourite, un-shown art of last year from Manchester, UK to Berlins UNDPLUS Collab Room. Accompanied by Special Guest Djs´s “Stop Making Sense” we are definitely not going to miss this one.

The flyer design is a thrill of anticipation for my eyes!

February 26^th, 4-10pm
UNDPLUS Collab Room, Torstr. 66

Gazelle feat. Weez – Just Now – filmed by Simon Steuri

“In this modern day satire, while the west is giving money as aid to Africa countless of corrupt African rulers return to the source to exchange the same money for luxury goods.

During Art Basel 2009 Gazelle staged a public performance art piece that commented on this situation in the hope that the wealthy of the world that visits the Art Fair had something to think about (…)”

Last weekend saw the fabulous Frisbeer Freestyle Frisbee Tournament where players from around the world met up in the cold Eastern European city of Prague. The city was cold but the Czech people are so warm and welcoming that you forget how cold you are. This mid-winter tournament is in its third year and the guys showed again how to make an indoor Frisbee tournament. Aside from displaying amazing Frisbee skills, players also demonstrated impressive drinking skills in order to keep their bodies hydrated from the physical exertion.

It´s official!

Slowly but surely snow and ice, which have been reigning over Berlin during the last month, are melting. We welcome the first sunbeams and singing birds with a big smile and say bye, bye snow, see you later this year.

Before we all go and throw some discs in Bikinis on a beach here evidences of what FSM and Berlin Jammers have been up to during winter. That’s the real spirit!

Bibi is wearing jacket, shorts & leggings by Nikita.

Sasch is wearing Shirt & Hoodie by Ecko Unlimited, shorts by Nike, shoes by Adidas.

Rockton is wearing shoes by Kangaroos & vintage outfit. Ozzy is catching the FSM disc designed by Eley Kishimoto. Bags by Eastpack & Eastpack by Christopher Shannon.

Toby Cannone is wearing shorts & shoes by Kangaroos, vintage jacket by Adidas.

Photography: Jason McGlade
Styling: Nele Schrinner

“There Is Love In You” is the new LP,  on Domino Records, by Four Tet aka Kieran Hebden – its a great album, effortlessly mixing gentle ambient folky melodies with pre/post club tracks.

The featured video is presumably named after Plastic People, the brilliant club in east London where he’s had a residency for the last couple of years (it finished last December).

Always wanted to spend a bunch of money to throw a BigBlastParty in BoomTownBerlin? Now you get the chance.

Create your own party. Select among the finest locations, Live Acts andDJs. Create your own poster. Promote it.

The most voted party will be realized by you and Smirnoff on April, 23rd. To participate, vote and check more flattering prices click here.

Have a hankering to live in the 1970’s? Look no further than Speedie’s Vintage on Redchurch St, East London. He has everything you need to deck your home out in kitsch patterns, from sofa’s to record players, kitchen utensils to lava lamps. The shop is laid out in a lounge / kitchen / dining room formation, like being in an amazing time warp and pretty much a ready made 1970’s set. Which is why the FreeStyle Magazine fashion team braved the treacherous snowy conditions of January in London, to shoot six fabulous models as they indulged in a spot of retro wife swapping…..

We also caught up with storeowner, Speedie for a little chat:

How did you get into buying and selling vintage?
I started a weekend job in the Stables Market, Camden Town 10 years ago. I enjoyed it immensely and continued to work in various vintage retail positions for the next 7 years.
I’ve always wanted to own and run a shop, I’m a hoarder and lover of all things vintage, retro and kitsch, so it seems fitting that I own a store and deal in these items on a daily basis.
Believing that I was born in the wrong decade helps as I reject modern technology and styles in favour of the obsolete and dated but desirable design. I don’t really know how to properly use a computer, unless it’s an early 80’s Commodore. And I still make actual mix tapes with cassettes recorded from my vinyl collection. (Commodore and cassettes available in store!)

Where do you source your pieces and furniture?
I hand select from many different sources from around the UK and mainland Europe.

Is this your first store?
Yes, it’s been open for 18 months.

What are your favourite pieces in store at the moment? I have an early 1970’s black and red vinyl sofa; it’s the most comfortable sofa I have ever sat on!

Who is your style icon?
I’m not sure if I have a style icon, as I usually make it up as I go along, I do appreciate 70s fashion, such as the band Mott the Hoople. I have many different styles that I embrace one day I could be an early 80s punk the next mid 70s newscaster with a bit of nerd thrown into both.

What are the origins of the store’s and your name?
The store was named after me and here’s the story of my name. I was on a trial day at my first job in the Stables Market, this was also my first trip to Camden Town and it blew me away. So many vintage stores packed into a vibrant market environment were just too much!
The owners of the store were all really nice and fun, so I was extremely keen to land the job. I did everything they asked of me really, really quickly. They liked what they saw and named me Speedie. I worked there for the next 7 years and got to be known by this name, it was when I dropped my real name to avoid confusion that the name had really taken…

What is your real name?
That is a closely guarded secret.

Check out the full shoot in our Spring / Summer issue, out soon!

Summer seems to be far away, but many disc lovers form aroud the word found their way to Prague this weekend for the legendary Frisbeer Cup.

This is one of the biggest Frisbee Freestyle indoor competitions in Europe.
Today, the Freestyle Magazine is giving out the Fred Morrison memorial award in honor of the Frisbee inventor who died last Tuesday.

http://www.frisbeer.cz

Walter Fredrick (Fred) Morrison, best known as the inventor of THE Frisbee, passed away February 9, 2010 at the age of 90 at his home in Monroe, UT after a long period of declining health.

Fred Morrison had just “the right stuff” to invent the Frisbee!

Tall, with a wiry athletic build; inquisitive, with a razor-sharp mind honed by western wit; generous to a fault with the biggest, kindest, warmest, people-loving heart around. Not known for being humble, Fred was nevertheless self-effacing: he readily admitted to not being overly handsome. (He was also a distant cousin of Marion Morrison…better known as John Wayne.)



The idea for flying discs didn’t start out as the Frisbee(c). Like most boys and girls since the dawn of time, Fred experimented with flat, round objects he found laying about his small town neighborhood in Richfield, Utah. Flipping them to see how well they would fly, Fred developed a lifelong fascination with flight.

They found that a cake pan “borrowed” from Fred’s mother’s kitchen flew even better. They practiced at the beach until they became so skilled that one day an admirer offered to buy the cake pan for twenty-five cents. A lightbulb went off in Fred’s mind. Cake pans then sold for five cents. Trading nickels for quarters had definite possibilities! A new business was born: “Flyin’ Cake Pans” were soon available whenever the two showed up at beaches and parks throughout the L.A. area. Sufficient profits ensued to fund dates, and finally, a wedding ring.

A year later, he and his boss, Warren Franscioni, decided that producing the Whirlo-Way in plastic might have commercial success. In 1948 their little business, called PIPCO, launched the world’s first plastic flying disc, renamed the Flyin-Saucer to take advantage of the new U.F.O. craze. However, despite intense efforts, Flyin-Saucer sales were tepid…attracting no major toy distributors. In early 1950 Fred and Warren parted company.

In 1954 Fred bought more Flyin-Saucers (by then made of the new, flexible polyethylene plastic) from the original molding company to hawk himself at local fairs. As a long-time wheeler-dealer entrepreneur everything was BIG-TIME with Fred: big ideas and big gambles…always with the hope of a big payoff. Thus, when he soon discovered that his margin of profit would be greatly increased by developing a mold of his own, he immediately sat down at the kitchen table and designed the legendary Pluto Platter—now regarded as far superior to the original Flyin-Saucer—and the archetype for all modern flying discs.



By late spring, Rich Knerr, president of Wham-O, had heard that some college students in New England were referring to the Pluto Platters by another name…a name they had co-opted from the Frisbie Pie Co., a local bakery whose empty tins were tossed after classes. “What the heck, if that’ll boost Pluto Platter sales back East, we’ll call ‘em that, too.” Not knowing how to spell the odd name, he settled on “Frisbee” to trademark. The marriage of Fred’s plastic flying disc and the catchy name was complete: the Frisbee was born.

If you have the chance today, go out and toss a Frisbee for Fred, keep on Flying!

Gil Scott-Heron, musician and poet, has released his first LP in 14 years today on XL records. After releasing two seminal LPs in the 70s, he spent a long time in obscurity (and prison). Scott-Heron influenced a generation of hip-hop artists thorough his music, his proto-rap style poetry and his political and civil rights activism, with songs like “The Revolution will not be Televised”, “The Bottle”, “Home Is Where The Hatred Is” and “Johannesberg”.

Here is a statement from the man himself about his new LP:

There is a proper procedure for taking advantage of any investment.

Music, for example. Buying a CD is an investment.
To get the maximum you must:

LISTEN TO IT FOR THE FIRST TIME UNDER OPTIMUM CONDITIONS.

Not in your car or on a portable player through a headset.
Take it home.
Get rid of all distractions, (even him or her).
Turn off your cell phone.
Turn off everything that rings or beeps or rattles or whistles.
Make yourself comfortable.
Play your CD.
LISTEN all the way through.
Think about what you got.
Think about who would appreciate this investment.
Decide if there is someone to share this with.
Turn it on again.
Enjoy Yourself.

Gil Scott-Heron