It may look like an ordinary old stagecoach, but, in truth, there’s nothing ordinary about this colorful masterpiece.

After seeing a smaller model of a stagecoach made from toothpicks in the window of a store, Terry Woodling  decided he was going to build his own life-size replica. This was back in 1981, but he didn’t really get started until Thanksgiving of 1994. Also known as “Me. Toothpick”, 72-year-old Terry spent 15 years of his life working on his one of a kind toothpick stagecoach, in Warsaw, Indiana.

More than 1.5 million flat toothpicks went into the project, bound together by a whole lot of glue. The fact that it’s glued was  actually why his stagecoach didn’t get acknowledged by the Guinness Book of Records. But Mr. Toothpicks isn’t too disappointed and decided to donate it to the local Warsaw Museum. But his extraordinary creation caught the eye of Ripley’s Believe It or Not and got a place in their famous museum.

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With a price tag of $3.14 million, the iPhone 3GS Supreme, designed by Stuart Hughes, is the most expensive cell phone on Earth.

The exclusive gadget has a solid 22 carat gold casing that weighs 271 grams as well as considerable number of flawless diamonds. The iPhone 3GS Supreme was designed by British artist Stuart Hughes for Goldstriker International, a company that specializes in creating extravagant mobile phones.

It took ten months to complete, but the final result is more opulent than you could have ever imagined. The front side of the iPhone 3GS Supreme features 136 flawless diamonds, while the Apple logo on the back is made from 36 diamonds. The directional key of the phone is  a rare 7.1 carat diamond. It also comes in an over the top 7 kg case, made from a single block of granite.

Unfortunately you’ll never get to hold this technological treasure in your hands, as it has already been acquired by an anonymous Australian business from the gold mining industry.

via gizmag

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We all know sleeping in a bear-inhabited forest can be pretty hazardous to your health. That’s what artists Eiko Ishizawa was thinking when she designed her Bear Sleeping-Bag.

Unless you take all the necessary precautions, like wrap the food and hang it in a tree as far away as you can, chances are you’re going to be mauled by a bear, while camping. Ok, so it doesn’t happen that often, but the point is now you have an extra safety measure. The bear-shaped sleeping bag makes you look just like a bear and if you’re lucky enough, hungry bears will probably mistake you for the real thing and leave you in one piece.

But there are some risks once you strap on this comfortable outfit. You might run into a horny bear who wants to have his way with you or maybe some rednecks with guns could spot you and see nothing more than another hunting trophy. The point is you should think twice before sleeping in the Bear Sleeping Bag.

Just in case you feel you want one, check out Eiko Ishizawa’s official site and see if you find one for sale.

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One of Britain’s most bizarre racing events, the annual Pantomime Horse Grand National Race is also one of the most fun.

Designed as a parody of the Grand National horse race held in Antree, the Pantomime Horse Grand National draws in thousands of people to the city center of Birmingham, all eager to watch the competitors and bet on the winner.

Contestants pay a 50 pounds fee to enter the competition and slip into their plush horse costumes for a chance to win the grand prize, a bottle of champagne. I know it’s not much, but it really isn’t about the winnings at all. All the money raised from entrance fees, sponsorships and betting on the sidelines go to the Lord Mayor’s charity funds.

This year, the 7th edition of the Thomas Vale Pantomime Horse Grand National had contestants competing in a grueling 12-jump course. In the men’s race James Bamber and his “horse” Hoof Hearted claimed the no. 1 spot, while in the girl’s challenge Nicki Mills and her Spank The Donkey came first. The funny event raised around 4,000 pounds.

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Dani Lugosi braved the rain and staring eyes of passers-by in an attempt to raise awareness to cruelty against animals, at Pitt Street Mall, in Sydney, Australia.

Wearing only a skin-colored pair of underwear, a sign that said “Ink, Not Mink” and a bunch of tattoos, Miss Lugosi started her first naked PETA protest. Nervous and hesitant at first, the attractive model relaxed when people started approaching and taking photos with her.

Miss Lugosi said she became interested in the ethical treatment of animals after watching a video of rabbits being skinned alive. Yup, that will definitely make a person take off her clothes and pose in the middle of a mall.

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The PL Peace Tower in Tondabayashi, a town close to Osaka, Japan is by far one of the most “bizarre yet cool” buildings I have ever seen.

One of the many structures located in the PL Holy Land, the PL Peace Tower was built back in 1970, using the newest construction technique at the time. It belongs to the Perfect Liberty Church, a religious movement founded in 1924 that teaches its followers that “Life is Art” and they should express themselves in everuthing they do.

The shape of the PL Peace Tower, resembling a single finger pointing at the sky, symbolizes one of the church founder’s revelation that ” the truth is one”. It’s also an international symbol of world peace. Inside the Peace Tower you’ll find an unlimited list of people who lost their lives because of human wars.

The PL Peace Tower is 180 meters high and thanks to a low center of gravity (only 12 meters above ground), it can tilt up to 45 degrees and swing back to its original position. This makes it extremely resistant to earthquakes. Its strange but fascinating shape was achieved through the use of shotcrete, spaying concrete onto wire netting.

Photos via Juergen Specht

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19-year-old Annie Drew has developed a new painting technique by applying paint with a piece of hardwood a little bigger than a matchstick.

The talented painter from Torquay, Devon thinks she might be the only artist in the world who uses this technique, which she calls the “pixellation technique“. It’s a really meticulous job, but it was the only way to “create a piece of wildlife art in mosaic” without turning to pointillism, which is completely accidental.

For example,to create the silverback gorilla painting bellow, Annie Drew applied 75,000 paint dots in 40 different colors. The whole thing took over 100 hours to complete.

Photos by APEX

via Telegraph.co.uk

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Ed Bing Lee, a talented artist from Philadelphia, has been perfecting his knotting skills for the past 25 years and is now able to create practically anything using basic macrame knots.

His “Delectables” series features some of the most delicious art pieces I’ve ever had the privilege of seeing. They may not be edible, but Ed Bing Lee’s knotted foods sure look good enough to eat. Using as many as 500 half-hitch knots per square inch, the artist managed to transform into a unique art form.

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The Blood Pen, invented by Bob Partington, is a must-have accessory for any respectable vampire writer.

I know some of you have seen the Blood Pen ever since early 2008, but I just found it today and had to post some photos of it here. This creepy gadget features a syringe and a pen nib, connected by a plastic mechanism. After you fill the syringe with your own blood (seems reasonable enough), you stick it in place and start writing your bloody memoirs.

As you can see in the video at the bottom, it’s not the best writing tool, as it often drips more blood than you’d like, but the idea in itself is enough to impress you. I don’t much like the flashy silver feather attached, but I guess that’s just a matter of taste.

via Gizmodo

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Chris Gilmour is a world famous artist who creates representations of every-day objects from cardboard.

You may have seen cardboard art before, but the level of detail and complexity of Mr. Gilmour’s works is simply breathtaking. Although he also works with “dirty cardboard” (salvaged from packaging cardboard boxes with labels and common writings), his “clean cardboard” pieces are he most astonishing. People often have the impression his cardboard sculptures are actually real objects wrapped in paper.

Take a look at some of his most famous masterpieces and be sure to pick your jaw off the floor.

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Located in Kowakien Yunessun, the biggest, most popular spa center in Japan, the outdoor has opened its gates once again.

Hundreds of gallons of Beaujolais Nouveau, the most popular wine in Japan, are used during the 12 day period the wine spa welcomes its guests. Four the last four years, Japanese wine lovers have had the opportunity to drink and bathe in the liquor they love so much, at the Hakone Kowakien Yunessun.

The red pool is constantly fed wine through the wine-bottle-shaped spring, while a sommelier stands by to fill up the glasses of those craving some more Beaujolais Nouveau.

Apart from a wine pool, the spa center also features a sake spa, green tea spa and coffee spa, where clients can bathe in the drinks mentioned.

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Mike Stilkey is an artist from Alta Dena, California, who creates amazing works of art by stacking spine-painted books.

Mike had been drawing on book pages for a very long time, even publishing a book with 100 portraits painted on old book pages, called “100 Portraits”, when he realized it would be a good idea to paint on the book covers themselves.

His plan was to paint the books and then place them all against the wall, but he eventually got it in his mind that painting the book spines would be even better.He wasn’t very impressed with his first work, but when he presented it during the second Artist’s Annual group show, it got quite a lot of attention. Now his book paintings made Mike Stilkey one of the most respected artists of his generation

Photos by Dave Kinsey

via Fecal Face

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These are the famous “fantasy coffins” used by the Ga Tribe, on the coast of Ghana to both mourn and celebrate the death of a beloved family member or friend.

The tradition of burying people in strangely-shaped coffins began roughly 50 years ago when a fisherman was set to rest in a funeral casket shaped like a fish. Ever since then photographers have been buried in camera-shaped coffins, people who like to drink in caskets shaped like beer bottles and avid smokers, you guessed it, in cigarette-like wooden coffins.

Families of the deceased spend enormous amounts of cash on these intricate caskets, sometimes even as much as $600. Sure, that may not seem like a lot to you, but in a country where the average income is somewhere around $50/month that’s a lot of money. The wealthier relatives usually put up  the most part of the sum with the rest of the families providing the rest.

The coffins of the Ga tribe symbolize the essence of the deceased, his profession, a vice or his place in the community.

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Mass: We Pray, you could say it gets you closer to religion in a virtual way. Made my point and did it rhyming, thank you very much.

First of all, this is no joke folks, Mass: We Pray is a real gaming system aimed to help you and your family experience the joy of Sunday Mass anytime you want, in the comfort of your own home. “”After all, a family shouldn’t have to wait until Sunday to worship the Lord” as it’s said in the game’s press release.

Mass: We Pray was obviously inspired by the revolutionary Nintendo Wii, but instead of Wiimotes and Nunchucks it features two cross-shaped motion-detecting remotes and kneelers for a genuine religious experience. You and your kids can participate in over 24 different ceremonies and compete in “fun” challenges like Ring the Church Bell,  Spray Holly Water or Shake the…Smoke Thingy Used in Church. The more you play the more grace points you collect and with them you can unlock the “uber-cool” holy mysteries. There’s even a downloadable expansion pack with even more “fun-packed” religious activities.

“Sadly”, Mass: We Pray will be available on Easter 2010, at the soonest, but you can pre-order starting November 20, 2009. So who needs boring games like Wii Sports, when you can have the heavenly Mass: We Pray.

Check the trailer at the bottom to see how happy it makes people. 😀

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Entitled “You Can’t Have Your Cake and Eat It Too”, the chocolate couch was created by Argentinian artist Leandro Erlich for an art-exhibit appropriately named “Let Them Eat Art”.

The chocolaty art-piece was covered in a thick layer of chocolate that not only made it look like a brown leather couch, but also feel like one. All the couch details, including buttons and stitching were made from chocolate.

That chocolate couch looks so real I bet there was someone at the gallery door telling visitors not to sit on it.

via mocoloco

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