If you’ve ever thought that traditional playing cards with all their fleur-de-lys and fussy designs are a bit old hat in this brave new world it appears you’re not alone.

Enter “Helveticards” -  a clean, Swiss-style minimalist take on playing card design.  Sure, it’s not rocket science, but they do look pretty nice…

Helveticards – $10 USD per pack (uhhh… 7 quid?)

(found via Cool Material)

Well it’s that time of year again, and although I haven’t seen many April Fools today Firebox came up with a few good fake products on their website…

Fancy a weather-sensing, wi-fi enabled clothes peg which sends alerts to your iPhone about impending rain?  How about the Adult Naughty Step – updating the childish disciplinary technique for misbehaving grown-ups?  Or perhaps the DIY Carbon Freezing Kit is more your cup of tea, allowing you to “do a Han Solo” and wake up 5-30 years in the future.

My favourite though is this Family Slanket – with 10 armholes and able to accommodate 2 adults, 3 kids and a dog.  It’s even available in faux Burberry!  The thing is, it may well be a joke but someone somewhere is going to start making these…

Happy April Fools Day!

I realise we’re a bit facial hair obsessed of late, but if you’re on a roll you’re on a roll, and how can you fail with a dog sporting a moustache?

This is actually a rubber ball with the moustache attached – so when your dog picks it up in his mouth he looks like Super Mario* (insert your favourite moustachio’d icon here).

Unfortunately there is only one style – I think they’re missing a trick by not extending the range to include at least The Shogun Warrior, The Burt Reynolds, The Gay Biker, and dare I say it even The Hitler.  Still, playing fetch will never be the same again!

The “Humunga Stache“ – Available from Firebox

I’m sure that all of you fine gents reading this already have an impressive array of facial hair, but most of us know somebody who would be improved with a little hirsute headgear (the wife for example?) or failing that just like the idea of bearding up your workmates.

For just £1.19 you can add beards to as many people as you like.  No need to check your emails on the train for something to do anymore, you’ll be far too busy…

BeardMe on iTunes Store

(found via Swissmiss)

]]> http://www.mantrends.co.uk/2010/03/beardme-the-most-useful-iphone-app-ever/feed/ 1 http://www.mantrends.co.uk/2009/11/drive-a-sofa/ http://www.mantrends.co.uk/2009/11/drive-a-sofa/#comments Mon, 16 Nov 2009 12:47:04 +0000 admin http://www.mantrends.co.uk/?p=233

Struggling what to get as a Christmas present for a driving-mad bloke who has already done a Ferrari track day?  Struggle no longer!  For £100 Firebox is offering the ultimate in mad driving experiences.

Remember Wacky Races?  Well, you don’t get to drive the Bouldermobile or chat up Penelope Pitstop in the driver’s lounge but this is probably as close as you can ever get to being Dick Dastardly in real life.

Drive around a track on an office desk (shirt and ties provided), blast around the countryside in a street-legal double bed, pilot a 87mph leopard-print sofa around a track and take the controls on the “double decker”, a bizarre creation which is steered from the top deck and powered from below…

It’s not likely to be quite as serious as kissing the apex in an Aston Martin, but I’d be hard pressed to decide which sounds like more fun…

Wacky Racers Driving Experience – £99.99 from Firebox

EMI and Apple have joined forces to announce the forthcoming launch of this custom USB stick containing The Beatles’ full digitally remastered catalogue – that’s some 14 albums, in case you were wondering.

In addition to all the Fab Four’s music ever, the unique 16GB device comes pre-loaded with 13 mini-documentaries, album art, liner notes and rare photos.

Limited to 30,000 units worldwide and costing £200 this is probably one for the committed, but it’s a great gift idea for the die-hard fan.

Release date for the UK is 7th December 2009 – you can pre-order via the official Beatles UK Store.

The full track listing is a monster, see how many you can remember/how old that makes you below!

Please Please Me

1. Taste Of Honey
2. I Saw Her Standing There
3. Misery
4. Anna (Go To Him)
5. Chains
6. Boys
7. Ask Me Why
8. Please Please Me
9. Love Me Do
10. I Love You
11. Baby It’s You
12. Do You Want To Know A Secret
13. There’s A Place
14. Twist And Shout

With The Beatles

1. It Won’t Be Long
2. All I’ve Got To Do
3. All My Loving
4. Don’t Bother Me
5. Little Child
6. Till There Was You
7. Please Mr Postman
8. Roll Over Beethoven
9. Hold Me Tight
10. You’ve Really Got A Hold On Me
11. I Wanna Be Your Man
12. Devil In Her Heart
13. Not A Second Time
14. Money

A Hard Day’s Night

1. I Should Have Known Better
2. If I Fell
3. I’m Happy Just To Dance With You
4. And I Love Her
5. Tell Me Why
6. Can’t Buy Me Love
7. Hard Day’s Night
8. Anytime At All
9. I’ll Cry Instead
10. Things We Said Today
11. When I Get Home
12. You Can’t Do That
13. I’ll Be Back

Beatles For Sale

1. No Reply
2. I’m A Loser
3. Baby’s In Black
4. Rock ‘n’ Roll Music
5. I’ll Follow The Sun
6. Mr Moonlight
7. Kansas City
8. Eight Days A Week
9. Words Of Love
10. Honey Don’t
11. Every Little Thing
12. Don’t Want To Spoil The Party
13. What You’re Doing
14. Everybody’s Tryin’ To Be My Baby

Help!

1. Help
2. Night Before
3. You’ve Got To Hide Your Love Away
4. I Need You
5. Another Girl
6. You’re Going To Lose That Girl
7. Ticket To Ride
8. Act Naturally
9. It’s Only Love
10. You Like Me Too Much
11. Tell Me What You See
12. I’ve Just Seen A Face
13. Yesterday
14. Dizzy Miss Lizzy

Rubber Soul

1. Drive My Car
2. Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown)
3. You Won’t See Me
4. Nowhere Man
5. Think For Yourself
6. Word
7. Michelle
8. What Goes On
9. Girl
10. I’m Looking Through You
11. In My Life
12. Wait
13. If I Needed Someone
14. Run For Your Life

Revolver

1. Taxman
2. Eleanor Rigby
3. I’m Only Sleeping
4. Love You To
5. Here There And Everywhere
6. Yellow Submarine
7. She Said She Said
8. Good Day Sunshine
9. And Your Bird Can Sing
10. For No One
11. Dr Robert
12. I Want To Tell You
13. Got To Get You Into My Life
14. Tomorrow Never Knows

Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band

1. Sergeant Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band
2. With A Little Help From My Friends
3. Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds
4. Getting Better
5. Fixing A Hole
6. She’s Leaving Home
7. Being For The Benefit Of Mr Kite
8. Within You Without You
9. When I’m Sixty Four
10. Lovely Rita
11. Good Morning Good Morning
12. Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band (Reprise)
13. Day In The Life

Magical Mystery Tour

1. Magical Mystery Tour
2. Fool On The Hill
3. Flying
4. Blue Jay Way
5. Your Mother Should Know
6. I Am The Walrus
7. Hello Goodbye
8. Strawberry Fields Forever
9. Penny Lane
10. Baby You’re A Rich Man
11. All You Need Is Love

Yellow Submarine

1. Yellow Submarine
2. Only A Northern Song
3. All You Need Is Love
4. Hey Bulldog
5. It’s All Too Much
6. All Together Now
7. Pepperland
8. Sea Of Time
9. Sea Of Holes
10. Sea Of Monsters
11. March Of The Meanies
12. Pepperland Laid To Waste
13. Yellow Submarine In Pepperland

The White Album – Disc One

1. Back In The U.S.S.R.
2. Dear Prudence
3. Glass Onion
4. Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da
5. Wild Honey Pie
6. The Continuing Story Of Bungalow Bill
7. While My Guitar Gently Weeps
8. Happiness Is A Warm Gun
9. Martha My Dear
10. I’m So Tired
11. Blackbird
12. Piggies
13. Rocky Raccoon
14. Don’t Pass Me By
15. Why Don’t We Do It In The Road
16. I Will
17. Julia

The White Album – Disc Two

1. Birthday
2. Yer Blues
3. Mother Nature’s Son
4. Everybody’s Got Something To Hide Except Me & My Monkey
5. Sexy Sadie
6. Helter Skelter
7. Long Long Long
8. Revolution 1
9. Honey Pie
10. Savoy Truffle
11. Cry Baby Cry
12. Revolution 9
13. Good Night

Abbey Road

1. Come Together
2. Something
3. Maxwell’s Silver Hammer
4. Oh Darling
5. Octopus’s Garden
6. I Want You (She’s So Heavy)
7. Here Comes The Sun
8. Because
9. You Never Give Me Your Money
10. Sun King
11. Mean Mr Mustard
12. Polythene Pam
13. She Came In Through The Bathroom Window
14. Golden Slumbers
15. Carry That Weight
16. End
17. Her Majesty

Let It Be

1. Two Of Us
2. Dig A Pony
3. Across The Universe
4. I Me Mine
5. Dig It
6. Let It Be
7. Maggie Mae
8. I’ve Got A Feeling
9. One After 909
10. Long And Winding Road
11. For You Blue
12. Get Back

Past Masters

1. Love Me Do
2. From Me To You
3. Thank You Girl
4. She Loves You
5. I’ll Get You
6. I Want To Hold Your Hand
7. This Boy
8. Komm Gib Mir Deine Hand
9. Sie Liebt Dich
10. Day Tripper
11. We Can Work It Out
12. Paperback Writer
13. Rain
14. Lady Madonna
15. Inner Light
16. Hey Jude
17. Revolution
18. Get Back
19. Don’t Let Me Down
20. Ballad Of John And Yoko
21. Old Brown Shoe
22. Across The Universe
23. Let It Be
24. You Know My Name (Look Up The Number)

You’d be forgiven for thinking that you’re looking at a photo of a Lamborghini Murciélago, but you’re not.  That’s real in-game graphics from the latest in the Xbox 360 racing franchise, Forza 3 – a game which is prompting comments such as “the very best racing game there is on the console market” from reviewers (IGN).It’s not just the graphics which set this game apart though, each and every car featured has been modeled painstakingly, to get the driving experience as close to perfect as possible.

This is a game for car lovers as much as for gamers – boasting an army of 400 cars and 100 tracks you’re going to have to be pretty unlucky if your dream car isn’t in there somewhere!

Forza 3 is available now from Amazon for £34.99.

]]> http://www.mantrends.co.uk/2009/11/forza-3/feed/ 0 http://www.mantrends.co.uk/2009/09/welcome/ http://www.mantrends.co.uk/2009/09/welcome/#comments Tue, 29 Sep 2009 10:08:37 +0000 admin http://www.mantrends.co.uk/?p=1 Welcome to mantrends, home of all things manly.  Here you’ll find the cream of the crop of fashion, gadgets, cars and all sorts of other gentleman’s paraphernalia – all selected with the modern British scoundrel in mind.

Whether you’re interested in the most stylish threads, the shiniest new toys or the best birthday presents – we aim to keep you up-to-date!