The Mineral Makeup Mutiny was founded to encourage consumers to buy indie self-made mineral cosmetics, instead of overpriced makeup that were repackaging wholesale micas from companies such as TKB Trading, or publishing contradicting ingredients lists and sending Cease-and-Desist Letters to unfavourable reviews. Miss K of Aromaleigh, founder of the Mutiny (and former seller of repackaged wholesale hues, which she's discontinuing in favour of original colours), demonstrates how mineral eyeshadows are made. [more inside]
posted by divabat on Nov 7, 2009 - 33 comments

34 industries, 62,000 stalls, 320,000 commodities for sale, 4 million square meters of selling space: welcome to the world-famous Yiwu Wholesale Market in the Zhejiang Province of China, "where Santa Claus comes to shop." [more inside]
posted by DarlingBri on Oct 16, 2009 - 8 comments

The Self-Storage Self (NYT) [more inside]
posted by backseatpilot on Sep 9, 2009 - 61 comments

David P. Barash argues that our addiction to economic growth is a Madoff/Ponzi scheme.
posted by mareli on Sep 1, 2009 - 75 comments

The amazing products and lifestyles that would be at your fingertips if you lived 50 years ago and had a magazine subscription.
posted by jtron on Aug 25, 2009 - 17 comments

The Most Expensive Journal blogs about $4,200 computer keyboards, $2.7 million guitars, and $11 million watches.
posted by Joe Beese on May 2, 2009 - 44 comments

Are we living in an age of "Mass Intelligence" or "Commodified Intelligence"? The Economist's Intelligent Life spin-off debates whether the masses are "wising up" rather than "dumbing down" or if, in fact, we have ended up consuming rather than appreciating culture.
posted by patricio on Mar 25, 2009 - 39 comments

Product Panic - Bruce Sterling on industrial design in the slump.
posted by WPW on Mar 20, 2009 - 20 comments

SighFilter: In light of other Black Friday tales of horror or posts urging a more sober consumerism, now comes this story of a worker trampled to death at Wal-Mart and a woman who miscarried in a stampede. They ought to have read FEMA's Black Friday Advisory.
posted by resurrexit on Nov 28, 2008 - 135 comments

Apropos on Black Friday, Charles, Prince of Wales addresses the Foreign Press Association with a comprehensive lecture on the dangers of unchecked consumerism and the need for an increasingly holistic worldview in light of the global social, economic and environmental challenges. The credit crisis is a side effect of a throwaway society and consumerism is no cure for depression, he says, and we need to question the concepts of "Modernity" and "Economic Growth" we take for granted.
posted by infini on Nov 28, 2008 - 102 comments

We've discussed dead malls before. But did you know that the world's biggest mall is also its deadest?
posted by Afroblanco on Jun 16, 2008 - 36 comments

Perhaps more widely known as the New York Times' "The Minimalist", Mark Bittman implores us to change the way we think about and consume food during his December 2007 talk at TED. The related NYTimes article. His NYTimes blog, "Bitten".
posted by blatant gizmo on May 31, 2008 - 9 comments

The Government Is Trying to Wrap Its Mind Around Yours. Why the Next Civil Rights Battle Will Be Over the Mind.
posted by homunculus on Apr 13, 2008 - 54 comments

Irritated and indifferent -- consumers in the Expectation Economy. [more inside]
posted by tkolar on Jan 23, 2008 - 20 comments

Monkey Portraits: Allegories of Brand Loyalty, by Laurie Hogin. [Via Right Some Good.] [more inside]
posted by homunculus on Jan 4, 2008 - 10 comments

...you cannot run a linear system on a finite planet indefinitely. The story of stuff.
posted by allkindsoftime on Dec 5, 2007 - 61 comments

Time for Black Friday again and people just losing it and going fucking insane.
posted by Foci for Analysis on Nov 25, 2007 - 168 comments

I pledge to buy handmade this holiday season, and request that others do the same for me. Why? Better gifting experience, better ethics, better for the environment.
posted by divabat on Nov 23, 2007 - 95 comments

Debtor Nation. The rising risks of the American Dream, on a borrowed dime.
posted by four panels on Aug 14, 2007 - 96 comments

John Doerr: Seeking salvation and profit in greentech. This is a grim talk from a man who is well-connected with the tech industries best and brightest. He spent a year talking with scientists, experts, and politicians the world 'round about industry and the atmosphere. And as a result he has put a few hundred million dollars toward disruptive technologies... because he is scared -- scared shitless -- about what lies ahead. He also calls us to action.
posted by five fresh fish on Jun 2, 2007 - 55 comments

Exposed: I'm not a plastic bag! Queues this week have gone around the block for a designer cotton bag designed by Anya Hindmarch available at Sainsbury's, the British grocer. The bag, which was designed to raise awareness of fair trade and ethical issues, was actually mass produced by sweatshop labor in China and is neither fair trade nor organic. Bags are selling for as much at $200 on Ebay. Anya Hindmarch herself has not apologized for the bag, saying: "We will be launching I’m Not A Plastic Bag in the US in June (in a limited edition navy blue) and in Japan in July (in a limited edition bottle green)."
posted by parmanparman on Apr 27, 2007 - 36 comments

Scents from the Bible The world's first spiritual perfume, "Virtue® was conceived out of our desire to provide a perfume that would allow a person to be reminded of their Spiritual Self, by a simple whiff of it's fragrant essence." Smell the holy! (Post not inspired by previous )
posted by SansPoint on Apr 15, 2007 - 37 comments

The Lorax by Dr. Seuss. [25 min Google Video.]
posted by homunculus on Mar 27, 2007 - 37 comments

Since April of this year, the blogger over at PlaidStallions has been dutifully scanning the most interesting/unique pages from 1970's department store catalogs (among other things) and posting the images online with commentary.
posted by jonson on Dec 1, 2006 - 24 comments

Some folks really like it sweet. Some will start a six-year campaign to get it. Some blame Canada and France for not getting it, when it was perhaps better to blame the Swiss. Some want it healthy while others want the romance back. Some make it part of higher education, while others just want to get higher. Even vegans want in on the gooey action.
posted by Blazecock Pileon on Aug 30, 2006 - 20 comments

Best designed stuff of '06. The Industrial Design Excellence Awards. Winners include the 2 second tent, a new coffin and the hover creeper. Want more design? See what shaking in ecodesign, gadgetry, or concept cars. Perhaps you just want to know what's cool or what those crafty Germans are up to. Then again, maybe it's all just too much to handle.
posted by cubby on Jul 2, 2006 - 22 comments

365 days. One brown dress. A one-woman show against fashion. "So, here's the deal - I made this dress and I'm wearing it every day for a year. I'll throw snowballs in it (wearing additional clothing layers in cold weather for health & safety), garden in it, rehearse in it, travel in it, dance in it, cook in it, prune my pear trees in it, drink wine in it, sing my baby to sleep in it." The project was launched July 7th of last year and is nearing completion.
posted by arcticwoman on Jun 19, 2006 - 106 comments

"Brands are an important influence on our lives. They are central to free markets and democratic societies. They represent free choice. They also have a profound impact on our quality of life and the way we see our world. They color our lives. They reflect the values of our societies. Global brands can even embody the spirit of many nations, if not the spirit of an age. Most importantly, strong brands bestow value far beyond the performance of the products themselves. Brands that do this possess an idea worthy of consumer loyalty. The more inspiring the idea, the more intense and profound the commitment. And the more the consumer believes in the brand, the more value the brand returns to its owner."
posted by j-urb on Jun 5, 2006 - 53 comments

'The work is located on the outskirts of Valentine, Texas near Marfa on desolate ranching land with no other visible trace of civilization. As one drives toward the artwork it will appear to be a large minimalist sculpture, as one gets closer it will look like a luxury boutique where a display of Fall 2005 high-heel Prada shoes and bags will be seen through the store front windows. Yet, one cannot open the door, it is a sealed time capsule and will never function as a place of commerce.'
posted by driveler on Mar 7, 2006 - 27 comments

From the Hands of Slaves: Common products of forced labor. [Via MoFi.]
posted by homunculus on Feb 25, 2006 - 18 comments

It's Irrational Consumerism day at last, so fold a rose, bake some tasty desserts, dress your self or your SO in something flimsy (previous two links may be NSFW), buy some love potion (via), and throw on some tasty mashup (via).
posted by sourbrew on Feb 14, 2006 - 7 comments

The Compact "About 50 teachers, engineers, executives and other professionals in the Bay Area have made a vow to not buy anything new in 2006 -- except food, health and safety items and underwear..." And presumably gas, insurance, electricity, water, etc. Oh, and Internet service-- they have a blog and a Yahoo group. Did I mention one of them currently works as a marketer and another one is a currently a professor in marketing?
posted by keswick on Feb 13, 2006 - 95 comments

Tim Yang's TV Commercial Blog is sweet, sweet succor for those of you who miss the heyday of AdCritic.
posted by grrarrgh00 on Dec 13, 2005 - 7 comments

Coverpop is mostly a bunch of stuff coded into a mouse-over mosaic.
posted by The Jesse Helms on Nov 8, 2005 - 4 comments

That "liberal bastion" PBS and that "wacky" Christian Right AGREEING on something? Does the "Sith Lord of unbridaled capitalism" really deserve to be hated? Does it bear watching? A new movie will take a look: (Registration -free link). Why are growing numbers "ready to join the ranks of all right-thinking people the world over in declaring Wal-Mart an outpost of hell on earth"??? The full 60 minute Frontline program video is available online.
posted by spock on Jun 6, 2005 - 28 comments

Intolerable Beauty — Portraits of American Mass Consumption "these images take the viewer on a tour behind the façade of the American Dream into the underbelly of our consumer society, where the vast cumulative effects of our individual consumer choices are more visible."
posted by dhruva on Apr 16, 2005 - 56 comments

The Retail Alphabet Game I guessed about a third of these, but I really want to know where that letter Q comes from. I'm not desperate enough to buy a clue.
posted by mokujin on Mar 18, 2005 - 50 comments

Unblemished and uniform in size. The price is low as consumers destroy Central American farmers by way of giant supermarkets.
posted by orange clock on Dec 28, 2004 - 44 comments

Your distinguished panel chooses Fortune Magazine's 25 best product designs of 2004.
posted by mr_crash_davis on Dec 12, 2004 - 19 comments

Hate consumer culture? Authors of the new book, Rebel Sell, argue you've been co opted by the very consumer culture you thought you had rejected
posted by squeak on Dec 12, 2004 - 196 comments

Buy Nothing | Buy Everything. On the one hand, curbing conspicuous consumption, but on the other hand... oooooh, shiny.
posted by Capn on Nov 26, 2004 - 36 comments

Human Beans Fictional Products. The Karmaphone, the Live Cigarettes and more
posted by ronsens on Aug 12, 2004 - 0 comments

Who says shopping's a sin for a socialist? On and on it goes, this notion that a political stance wraps everything you are expected to say in a neat brown paper parcel. A nice little meditation on political ideology for your Sunday morning from the Globe and Mail's Heather Mallick.
posted by Quartermass on Jul 11, 2004 - 21 comments

Consumers send 'warning sign' to US brands Tom Miller, the managing director of NOP World, said worsening attitudes to the county's products could damage US business. "It's not like there's a massive boycott," said Miller. "Instead, it seems to be an erosion of support. It's not falling off the face of the earth, but it is clearly a warning sign for brands."
posted by Rastafari on Jun 6, 2004 - 27 comments

... A creature with a huge mouth and an enormous gut, no brain and no soul...... How does one get past the firewall that ensures the consumers never actually talk to a grocery-store manager?...

This article from the Globe and Mail struck a chord in me. Decline of the empire or simplistic disavowal of the grease that runs the machinery?
posted by ashbury on Mar 10, 2004 - 24 comments

A Consumption Manifesto.
posted by monju_bosatsu on Dec 2, 2003 - 11 comments

Freeland's We Want Your Soul video is a cynical look at the american dream and keeping up with the joneses. Whether you agree with the point of view, it's still a pretty cool and amusing use of camera effects. (note: large quicktime on that page) [via randomfoo]
posted by mathowie on Sep 28, 2003 - 14 comments

For $40,000 your little princess can sleep in Cinderella's Carriage. At that price it better come with a team of white horses. Next to that, the Fairytale Cottage for $5,000 seems like a steal! Or with all the pirate mania... maybe they'd like this pirate's ship for a mere $25,000? Low on funds? This paupers pirate-themed ones is just $4,000. Not into all the European legend junk? Or maybe a tee pee for $3,066? Or a vintage race car for $25,000. And there's even more if you want to torture yourself for being a moneyless loser.
posted by Dome-O-Rama on Jul 28, 2003 - 21 comments

Is RFID inherently Evil? Not a chip in your body, like EvilCorp Applied Digital Solutions proposes, but in your household products, your clothes, and your car. And it's here now. With almost no law anywhere to restrict its use. But then again, how often do you use products made or sold by Benetton, Prada, British retailer Tesco, Proctor & Gamble, and Wal-Mart? Phillips Semiconductor alone has already sold half a Billion of these chips.
posted by kablam on Mar 11, 2003 - 34 comments

Stop. Selling. Che. Doctor, Revolutionary, Murderer? Whoever he was, it don't mostly matter when he's this generation and the last's favourite rebelposterboy. Does it even matter, any more, the history behind such powerful brand semantics? It is, apparently, enough to be a symbol nowadays, even if in the end you're one of only ignorance. Is this the ultimate in simulacra? And will They ever stop marketing our martyrs? So who was Che Guevara? And what does he want with our children?
posted by armoured-ant on Mar 1, 2003 - 42 comments