SUMMER SO FAR ACCORDING TO MY IPHONE PICTURES

If you've been wondering why we've been slow on updates this summer, it's because I was in a really bad bike accident in June and broke my hand. It's still really difficult to type, so giving you a visual update is much easier. Follow us on instagram and twitter to see what we're up to and making.

FREE SHIPPING ALL SUMMER LONG! AND AN INTERNATIONAL SHIPPING UPDATE, TOO!

Summer is the perfect time for plants to be in bloom, and for you to incorporate them into your wardrobe. To celebrate summer, we're offering free shipping on US orders over $50 from now through Labor Day (September 2)! We know that international shipping can get expensive, too, so we're also offering $10 shipping on all orders over $50 (USD) to all destinations outside the US.

Free shipping automatically applies at checkout when you spend more than $50 and applies to our standard shipping by USPS first class mail, on all domestic orders over $50. Faster shipping options are still available.

We also have good news for our international customers. All orders that ship after July 28 to the following countries will include tracking information:

• Canada
• Australia
• Belgium
• Brazil
• Croatia
• Denmark
• France
• Germany
• Great Britain and Northern Ireland
• Israel
• Netherlands
• New Zealand
• Spain
• Switzerland

If you live in one of the above countries and place an order between now and the 28th, let us know if you would like us to ship your order a few days later so you can take advantage of the new international tracking.

Okay, that's enough about shipping. Go outside and enjoy the good weather!

BIKE PLANTERS ON THINGIVERSE

Our original Bike Planter, initially designed for the Sopo Bicycle Cooperative (a non-profit, community-based bicycle repair shop in Atlanta, GA) Art Bike Show, is now available on Thingiverse! You can now 3D-print your very own Bike Planter on your Makerbot or RepRap. While such a large print would be too costly to offer for sale, this design is perfect for at-home printing. Simply add 3mm elastic cord and attach directly to your bike for an awesome way to take your greens wherever you go! 

If you want to print your own bike planter, you can find the files on Thingiverse.

BIKE STYLE: HAND-PAINTED HELMETS BY DANIELLE BASKIN

Recently our friend Danielle Baskin of Belle Helmets painted a helmet just for us! I'm really looking forward to summer rides along the Atlanta Beltline wearing it!

Danielle hand-paints every helmet in her New York City studio. Danielle founded her business after graduating from NYU, and she paints helmets for other sports as well. Her helmets would be as at home at a skate park as riding your 3-speed through town. Her helmets are not only stylish, but safe as well- the paint does not afect the durability or other safety features of your helmet. 

If you're in the market for a new helmet, be it for cycling or other activities, you should check out Belle Helmets. You can find her products at Houndstooth Road in Atlanta and at other stores throughout the country. You can read our interview with Danielle on her blog.

NEW BIKE PLANTERS FOR SUMMER

It's the beginning of summer, and we're rolling out some new items to make your enjoyment of the warm weather even better!

Our new bike planters are smaller our other ones, and they're perfect for holding a few blooms you've found while riding around town. You can get them here and on our Etsy shop.

HOW TO DYE YOUR 3D PRINTS

3D printing is currently a big buzz word in the design, arts and crafts, and technology worlds. We make all of our jewelry with 3D printing, and in the time we've been make 3D printed creations, we've learned a lot about ways to manipulate the material to change its color and appearance. 3D printing is also known as additive manufacturing  and produces objects from CAD files by building up material layer by layer to create the final form. You can 3D print in a wide range of materials from squishy rubber to hard metals. 

Have you created something with 3D printing? A lot of design students and hobbyists now have access to the technology thanks to 3D printing services like Shapeways and Ponoko. If you printed your object in polyamide, you can dye them at home to whatever color you want. Polyamide is a porous material that accepts color really well. Some companies offer dying of your prints for you, but that adds extra processing time and is only available in a small range of colors.

If you're tired of the boring white that many 3D prints come in, we will show you how to add color to your prints. This is a tutorial for dying nylon (or polyamide) 3d prints with fabric dye. This material is known by different names at different printing companies. Shapeways calls it White Strong and Flexible, Ponoko calls it Durable Plastic, Sculpteo White Plastic, and iMaterialise Polyamide. We'll use Rit brand dyes in our tutorial since it is easy to find in craft, fabric, and grocery stores. You can also dye your 3D prints with Jacquard brand acid dyes in a similar process, but that will require carefully measuring vinegar to change the acidity of the solution and constantly heating the solution.

This process is similar to dying fabric with, and we learned a lot about how dye 3D prints by reading this article on dyeing techniques by Rit.

Step 1: Gather Your Materials

The first thing that you will need to do is gather your materials. You'll need your nylon 3D prints, your desired color of fabric dye, a bowl to do the dyeing in, measuring spoons, and boiling water (not pictured). We also recommend having access to a microwave to reheat your solution while dying as need.

Decide which color you would like to dye your prints. Rit has a great guide to tell you which colors you can dye your prints with their dyes and other brands of dye will have similar guides. Nylon absorbs the dye really quickly, and we usually use slightly less dye than the guides recommend. For this batch of bike planters we will be dying them using Rit's Sunshine Orange. We're using 1.5 tsp of powdered dye to 1.5 cups of boiling water.

Remember that you are working with fabric dye that will stain clothes and shoes. So if you care about the clothes that you are wearing wear an apron or change into something that you don't love so much. Fabric dye can also stain your skin, so wear latex gloves if you don't want tinted hands. Rit dye will come off easily with scrubbing, so if you do get some on your skin, it can be easily removed.

Step 2: Soak Your Pieces

Before you begin the dying process, soak your prints for at least 30 minutes. We recommend doing this overnight if you have the time. Having your prints saturated will allow the dye to color the piece more evenly. This will also help remove any dust on the surface of your prints left over from the printing process. If there is residual powder on the surface of your prints, it will affect the color of piece. The powder will be dyed, and will come off easily when the piece is dry, leaving a white spot underneath.

This piece had some leftover powder stuck to it when it was dyed, and you can see the large white area left behind from removing the powder.

Step 3: Add Color

Carefully measure your required amount of dye and add your boiling water. Stir it really well so all of the powder is dissolved in solution.

Add your prints to the the solution and stir. Agitate the solution frequently to ensure that your prints are colored evenly. The longer that you leave your prints in the solution, the more saturated the color will be. These prints stayed in the dye for about 6 minutes to achieve the color. If you need to leave your prints in the solution longer, microwave it at 15-30 second increments to reheat the water to near boiling temperatures. We've noticed that some dyes require higher temperatures to stay in solution than others. In our experience pink and blue dyes require hotter temperatures and longer dying times to achieve their desired colors.

Step 4: Rinse 

Rinsing your prints is very important. You can rinse it with cold water to remove the excess dye. We also like to let the pieces sit in boiling water for a few minutes for any excess dye to soak out. If you're going to be dying jewelry or anything that will be worn close to the skin, this is a very important step as excess dye could stain the skin or clothes.

Step 5: Dry

Step 6 (Optional): Seal

Nylon is a porous material that will readily absorb particles and dirt it is exposed to. We recommend sealing your prints with a polymer varnish (like liquitex) or clear acrylic paint to protect the color and your piece from getting dirty.

Step 7: Show it Off!

 You just put all of this hard work into your 3D Printed object- show it off and tell everyone about it!