Rotem Gear is proud to be selected this month as one of the “fabulous independent designers” that will comprise the coveted basket of prizes at Grechen’s Closet. We are sharing this distinction along with the amazing Junk in Our Trunk (custom-designed clothes, bags and everything!), Milkshake (colorful paper-based handcrafts), Acorn (innovative, functional products made from recycled materials), and jewelry designers Linda Trent, Sharma Designs, Skyberrys, and Arbor Berry. (Say, what’s up with all the berries?)

The lucky winner will be receiving one of our “Lucky One-Eight” raglan cap-sleeve tops in white and red. The semi-hidden good luck message in the design (18 is the numerical value for “life” in Hebrew), the shirt comes adroned with a tiny evil eye pin for extra ju-ju!

This isn’t the only way to get one of our Lucky One-Eight shirts, of course. They are also available in our shop. No matter how you get one, you’ll be a lucky winner!

Grechen’s Closet (”It’s not you … it’s your closet”) is a fashion magazine and shopping portal that strives to present independent/up-and-coming designers alongside more established luxury brands. It is also publishes exclusive discounts for its readership, and articles on how to fill your closet with things you love, identifying the right styles for your body, and many other topics.

Technorati Tags: rotem gear, tees, t-shirt, grechen’s closet, fashion, lucky one-eight, hebrew, junk in our trunk, milkshake, linda trent, skyberrys, acorn, sharma, arbor berry

No, we don’t mean racy lingerie for post-ceremony festivities. We’re talking about an alternative to the tired old bouquet-toss.

The Sunamiya company in Imabari (Ehime), Japan, has introduced a device which it hopes will render the old bouquest-toss old hat — a party cracker that shoots out a teddy bear.

According to the Tokyo Times: “The gun-shaped device ingeniously allows blushing brides to effortlessly launch terrified teddy bears high into the air, and so as not to injure unsuspecting guests, the bears are equipped with parachutes, allowing them to gently descend to the presumably awestruck throng below.”

Developers hit on the idea after noticing that it had become a trend for people to throw teddy bears into the air instead of bouquets at wedding receptions.

Also interesting is that the Sunamiya company has a line of products called “Shalom,” among them postcards made from the wooden boards used in packaging kamaboko (fish cake). They are pretty cool, actually, but at this point the 6 degrees of separation between teddy bears, Japan, Israel and kamaboko gets a bit overwhelming, even for us.

Now, as fabulous as flying, parachuting bears are, we are compelled to share our own admittedly earth-bound, but still undeniably cute, teddy bears, who measure at a substantial and cuddly 9″ (which one can’t tell from the photos.) Shown here: one for Israeli Independence Day, one with the kanji for “chi” (energy), and of course, in honor of the Sunamiya company, the Shalom bear.

Props to always amusing Tokyo Times, MSN-Mainichi Daily News

Technorati Tags: bridal, weddings, brides, teddy bears, japanese, japan, shalom, kamaboko, novelties