Heaven forbid that a woman would neglect her figure just because she’s pregnant! This maternity corset ad was featured in Ladies Home Journal in 1905. “This waist holds the figure at all times in proper position, bringing physical and mental comfort. It is a boon to the expectant mother.” The main feature appears to be that the steel stays are removable. Another reason to be thankful you live in 2014. From Weird Vintage.
(Photo: Stephen Ausmus/US Department of Agriculture)
Carrots are not naturally orange. We see orange carrots often simply because some varieties have been bred that way.
In 2004, the Agricultural Research Service, a division of the US Department of Agriculture, created this image to encourage people to eat more carrots. The premise of the marketing ploy is that people will be more interested in carrots if they're visually appealing. An orange carrot may escape your attention, but a purple one won't!
-via Twisted Sifter
Paul O'Rourke of Allstar Ink in Limerick, Ireland made this amazing tat. If you ever meet the man who owns this ink, resist the temptation to try to reach through his arm in the hole that O'Rourke installed. Despite all appearances, it's not a radical new type of body piercing.
-via io9
Paul G. Lind of Portland, Oregon loved to play Scrabble. When he passed away, his friends and family erected this custom tombstone that shows in Scrabble form what they remembered most about him. Lind now rests beneath this monument at the Lone Fir Cemetery in southeastern Portland. A year ago, after vandals defaced the tombstone, local Scrabble players held a tournament to raise money for its restoration.
It's an unusual tombstone, but one of only several in that cemetery. A 2009 article in the Portland Tribune describes others:
At Lone Fir, an artist is buried underground in a paint can.
And a bartender has a large concrete urn beside his grave from which he and friends used to drink, until he died in 1883.
And a man's laser-etched granite headstone depicts a drag racing funny car and the words, 'Gone home to horsepower heaven.'
-via TYWKIWDBI | Photo: The Stone Saver
Here be dragons!
Or rather, on the south side of Rabat, Morocco, there's a dragon growing out of the ground. Redditor seiteta snapped this photo of a tree that is growing just the right way to inspire a fantasy novel.
-via Geek Tyrant
It's unfortunate that I can't find the craftsman responsible because I'd like to congratulate him/her on such an outstanding job. The hood of an old Massey Ferguson tractor is now a kitchen table that combines both cosmopolitan and rustic ambiances.
-via Recyclart
(Photo: question_ev3rything)
Redditor question_ev3rything spotted this amazing tree root formation in Guangzhou, China. The persistent tree has pushed its away into the orderly, grid-lined human world.
A very patient artist could use this phenomenon to grow some impressive works of art.
-via Twisted Sifter
Do you trust a computer program to determine where your ad goes online in order to maximize its visability?
Well, considering how many companies have human-generated public relations disasters, maybe it's not a bad idea. Still, sometimes ad placements go over poorly. 22 Words has screenshots of 29 web ad placement failures.
Maybe the cake decorator should have stopped after “We can’t spell s-cces” or even after “We can’t spell.” The misspelling draws attention away from the unnecessary quote marks (the beginning quote is hard to see). And how they made “without” into two words. Honoring someone with a cake is a lovely gesture, and it’s even better when it comes with so many laughs. This picture is from the ever-entertaining Cake Wrecks.
(Photo: Cameron Spencer)
This is Tamarama Beach in Sydney, Australia, where it must be hot enough to fry an egg on the sand--if you have the right equipment. Andrew Hankin has provided it by building this enormous sculpture that looks like a frying pan lodged in the sand. It's his contribution to the Sculpture by the Sea program. Hankin calls it We're Fryin' Out Here. You can see more photos of sculptures in the exhibit here (warning: auto-start video).
-via Amusing Planet
Photographer Bertrand Kulik snapped this fantastic shot. There was a hole in the leaf where the spider built his web. From the right angle, it looks like the spider patched up the hole. You can see a close-up shot here.
-via Colossal
(Photo: jessyfastfinger)
(Photo: unknown)
(Photo: unknown)
Alex once told me to change the sign in front of the Neatorama factory. "What should I write?" "Anything is fine."
It was the last time that Alex sent me out to change the sign.
What can you do with a business sign? 22 Words has a roundup of 30 funny signs that businesses put out front to attract or scare away customers.
Aram J. French of Mandatory Roller Coaster (previously at Neatorama) may be on to something with his imaginings of what Mr. Pumpkin orders at the coffee shop. Let's hope the baristas are on the top of their game and he doesn't have a long wait.
-Via Laughing Squid | Image: Mandatory Roller Coaster
I can't say that I'm fond of this chair by the design firm Kalbut DSGN. It's rather judgmental of anyone who sits on it.
Of course, if you're big enough, you can sit on it and no one will be able to read the scale.
-via Recyclart
