Brooklyn by Bike

Found this fantastic gallery of photos from Brooks Saddle factory in Smethwick England.

Metal parts are stamped out and heat-treated, flat pieces of leather are soaked and then formed in molds and the parts are all assembled by hand. After seeing how much work goes into a single bike seat, these famously expensive saddles start to look cheap. [via Doobybrain via Wired]

The beautifully designed Bikestation, a facility that provides secure bike parking, changing rooms, lockers, bike rental, bike repair and retail sales has opened in Washington DC.

It will be staffed 66 hours per week and available to members 24/7. The Bikestation location at Union Station allows commuters to take public transportation to the station, pick up their bicycles and go to work, shopping or entertainment. [via Bikestation]

[pic via Copenhaganize]

NYC sure could use an equally stunning facility like this!

Brush and Spoke is a simple art portal which features cycling art. There are “no critiques, no reviews, no opinions, just one post after the other of bicycle related art.” Ed, the creator of the site goes by, the less obtrusive the better. On the site you’ll find large examples of art, with a link to the source, along with those involved, and some tags to help better sort the content.

I was immediately drawn to the visual aesthetic of Brush and Spoke much like Hufnagel Cycles and found quite a few items I’d like to purchase. Check it out for yourself and find the rest of my interview with Ed below.

Why cycling art?

My reasoning behind Brush & Spoke was pretty simple. I love art, bicycles and the internet. I own many genres of bicycles, and have been riding since I was a little kid. I was recently looking to decorate my office with some wall art, so I looked online and ran across a bicycle print by Anthony Cozzi titled Drop Sequence. I immediately purchased it, and continued searching online to see if there was a resource that feature that type of art elsewhere. Since I was unable to find one, I decided to build my own.

How do you find the art work you feature on your site and do you get a commission?

The process involved in finding the art that is featured on Brush & Spoke, is pretty hit or miss at the moment. I have a growing list of sites that I scour, looking for the latest bicycle related updates. From art blogs, to personal portfolios, to flickr groups, to twitter updates, I find myself looking anywhere and everywhere. There is also a submission form on the site, which I encourage my viewers to use as much as possible. It’s with their help that I have found out about some amazing art, and without them, I wouldn’t have had nearly as much content on the site, as I do now. There is currently no commission, or advertising system on the site.

Anything else to add?

If I could thank some of the sites/people that have made Brush & Spoke possible that would be great! UPSO @ http://upso.org ,Chris @ http://chrisforrette.com, Mikey K, and everyone @ http://yayhooray.com.

You can also find Brush and Spoke on Twitter @brushspoke.

Hambone bags “give you a place to stash the most important of your cargo. Keep your wallet, cell phone, and tools close at hand with a bag that easily goes from your ride to the party.” [via Hambone]

I stumbled upon this site yesterday trying to decide whether or not to sign up for Escape NYC when I noticed they were giving these bags out as prizes. I’m guessing if you are crafty enough, you can create something similar yourself, but we like to support craftsfolk here at Brooklyn by Bike. They definitely beat my Velcro strap camerabag rig and they look so much better than those things that attach to your saddle.

Click the photo to check out their Etsy store

Hey, Threadless.com, that nice t-shirt/design site is having a 9/9/09 sale today which means all their t-shirts are $9…not bad! Check out some of their cool cycling type shirts and stock up.

"I Scream"

"Infinity Miles Per Gallon"

Chrome jumps in the cycling shoes business. We love non-ugly cycling shoes over here and particularly these shoes’ “Propulsion Plate stiffeners!” I think that means hard sole.

Iconic messenger bag label Chrome makes their footwear debut this Fall. Committed to using the best materials, hardware and design, a number of bike specific features were worked into the sneakers, including: a Propulsion Plate stiffener to support the midsole with a slam pad; Cordura laces with steel aglets; reflective heel patch; and a small lip at the toe to assist flipping into pedals. [via HighSnobiety]

This bike light design makes so much sense. I’m shocked they haven’t already appeared in bike shops.

Taiwan designer Hsieh Jung-Ya and his firm, Duck Image, won kudos from European design comps, like Red Dot, for his concept of a wind-powered bike light. A mini turbine is mounted on the handlebars and uses the bikes momentum to drive the blades. These in turn power a 1700 lux LED light. Unlike the problem with many hubs that stop working when the rider stops, this gizmo comes with a rechargeable lithium battery for constant light. [via Treehugger]

[Hey, did you see we have a ride this Sat @ 11am? Join us!]

The folks over at Ride Project out of Prague blog about good stuff like fixed gear, design and urban culture. They’ve complied a few different bike centric fonts including Biketype by Emma Webb (below), which we love.

For more font love including bike chain font, check out Bike Project.