LSN : News : These earrings are designed to keep AirPods in place

Levi’s and Lego tap into DIY fashion

Lego and Levi’s

Global – A new capsule collection co-created by Lego and Levi’s allows consumers to take style and creativity into their own hands.

The forthcoming Lego and Levi’s collection playfully elevates Levi’s classics by adding Lego’s iconic baseplate on some selected garments. The silicon panel is attached to the majority of pieces, including trucker jackets, a pair of 501 jeans, hoodies, sweatshirts and accessories. By providing 110 Lego Dots, the wearer is encouraged to create personalised mosaic-like designs on top of the baseplates. The t-shirts, which don’t carry the customisable element, feature bold imagery instead.

‘This is such a fun collaboration celebrating self-expression, creativity and nostalgia,’ says Karyn Hillman, chief product officer for Levi’s, and adds: ‘With the customisable baseplates, Levi’s is now literally a new blank canvas for Lego play.’

In this way, the brands are targeting a new DIY fashion consumer who has emerged amid the pandemic. Explore our DIY Dressing Market to learn about similar creative product approaches.

These earrings are designed to keep AirPods in place

Pebble Pods by Misho, US

US – Jewellery brand Misho is launching a series of earrings that wrap and clip onto Apple AirPods.

The versatile creations act as supports to stop the AirPods falling out, as well as adding an aesthetic element to the product. The Pebble Pods, for example, feature a sculptural design and gold finish to mimic Misho's popular Pebble rings, while a more subtle version integrates gold or silver stud fastenings into the pods themselves.

Suhani Parekh, jewellery designer for Misho, says: ‘Jewellery is so incredibly personal and in a way so are these devices that have become inextricable from our lives, like the jewellery we wear, your phone or your headphones – they've become a second skin. Who you're speaking to, the music you're listening to and what you're wearing – it's all so personal. I love that there's a poetic connection there.’

As Leila Saad argues in her opinion piece, products are increasingly failing to adhere to problem-solving purposes, paving the way for new innovations that support and personalise consumer technology.

A card game that inspires inclusive design

London – Cards For Humanity is a practical online game that aims to encourage creatives to design more inclusively.

Inspired by Cards Against Humanity, the UK-based design studio Idean has elevated the controversial party game and created a tool for a more thoughtful design approach. When visiting the site, the online game deals a pair of cards: a person and a trait. The combinations challenge stereotypes and force players to think about new ways to serve complex user scenarios.

On the back of each visualised card the player can find relevant information such as how a disability or special need affects a person’s everyday life and how many people are affected by it. By further asking the question ‘How can you meet their need?’, the game intends to help creatives reveal their hidden biases and consequently create products, services and businesses which are more inclusive.

For more brand initiatives, concepts and campaigns that are championing diversity and inclusion, explore our Intersectionality series.

Cards For Humanity, UK

Stat: Women lack information about the perimenopause

Uzza, Barcelona

A study by Avon has revealed a global lack of information among women when it comes to the perimenopause.

Revealing the topic as still largely taboo among consumers, the research reveals that 44% of women across the world were still unaware of the perimenopause until they started to have symptoms. Meanwhile, 46% of the women featured in the study stated that they didn’t expect the perimenopause to start when it did.

‘Menopause is a commonly understood term, but the preceding process, the perimenopausal phase, is far less understood,' explains Dr Sarah Jarvis, a GP involved in the research. 'Officially, you reach the menopause when you have your last period. But the perimenopause, leading up to your final period, can last anywhere from a few months to four years. I see that in my surgery all the time, and these findings demonstrate that this is a truly global information gap.’

In order to support women beyond offering tokenistic products, brands should consider ways of positively Rebranding the Menopause.