Twelve South

Departures, the gorgeous magazine published by American Express for its Platinum and Centurion members (read: very best customers), now has a hip online featured called “Departures Dispatch: 5 Essential Things to Know This Week.” One of those 5 things is called Whim, and last week our BookBook was the Whim of the Week.

Yes, that’s us right there, and here’s what they had to say:

“Despite the many delights afforded us by portable computers, no one takes pleasure in lugging a laptop from place to place in a purse or a briefcase. Twelve South, a design firm that caters exclusively to Mac users, is out to change that, adding a little whimsy to an arduous task. The BookBook, one of 12 Twelve South accessories designed for Apple products each year, is a carrying case that disguises laptop computers as vintage books. The case features two leather hardback covers that are distressed by hand, lined with velvet and bound by a sturdy, weathered spine. When zipped shut and tucked in a purse, it looks like a tome plucked from the darkest corners of the library, stealthily misdirecting potential thieves and lending a literary air to even the most plugged-in tech lover.”

That’s what the people at Departures have to say…we say don’t leave home without it. Get your own BookBook here — for iPad and iPad 2, for MacBook Pro, and of course, for MacBook Air!

It’s always so neat for us to see our own Twelve South products featured in international publications. Today’s highlight was this feature in “Escape 360,” which is Scandinavia’s leading travel magazine. Of course, our ability to translate Finnish at the present time is limited to use at IKEA stores (and that’s not so much translation as appreciation for all the cool things they come up with), so we can only hope the BookBook article is positive! (We have a good feeling about it.)

This is definitely a magazine we’ll be picking up next time we’re overseas, if only to look at the pictures — the photography is gorgeous!

Like what you see? Get your own BookBook now — for iPad and iPad 2, for MacBook Pro, or for MacBook Air. Many volumes available now!

We hear a lot about people customizing their BookBooks. Some of you have even gone so far as to publish images if your customizations online, or you’ve emailed them to us. We’ve seen the BookBook reimagined as Harry Potter, as a witch’s Book of Potions…and now, we’re happy to share a true classic, Geoffrey Chaucer’s The Canterbury Tales. (And it takes us back, way back, to a Humanities course in high school whereby we had to recite, from memory, the introduction. In Middle English. And we still remember it. Freaky. But also, a good bar trick.)

But we digress. Here’s a lovely BookBook “custom-made” to inspire you on this Monday by BookBook owner and fan Michael Smith, who was kind enough to email us photos he’s happy to share.

Want to get your own Book Book? Sure — get it here for iPad or your new iPad 2. Want to get it customized? If you live in North Carolina or thereabouts, the word is that this one was customized at Custom Bindery & Specialties, Charlotte, NC, USA.

Customized your own BookBook? Be sure to send us a photo to: marketing (at) twelvesouth (dotcom)!

Quick, 80s fans and other cultural anthropologists: Remember plaid skirts, penny loafers, chinos, and polo shirts with turned up collars? Yes? Then surely you also recall having your own well-worn copy of The Preppy Handbook, Lisa Birnbach’s masterpiece field guide to preppy life.

Birnbach’s back with the newly released True Prep in which she explains how to not talk about money, and other blue-blood advice updated for the real world, including topics like “dad’s new wife” and rehab. Whee!

She also includes a few things necessary to the preppy life, and there you’ll find our BookBook. From page 93 of True Prep:

B O O K B O O K

In the new old-world department, add the Book Book to your virtual shopping list. Introduced on January 21, 2010, it is a laptop case that looks from the outside like an antiquarian book, and from the inside like a . . . laptop case. Andrew Green designed it for TwelveSouth, the company he operates with his wife, Leigh Ann, which makes accessories for Apple. Based in preppy mecca Charleston, South Carolina, TwelveSouth can barely keep up with the demand for the classic cover, which sells for $79.99. “I enjoy the juxtaposition of something old containing the most modern technology.” So do we.*

Before you read the publisher’s fine print, you can get your own copy of True Prep here. And then get your own copy of BookBook here…for your MacBook, for your iPad or iPad 2. Both are best sellers, guaranteed to be well worn and popular in certain circles for a long time. (And BookBook is more fun than plaid socks. We had to say it.)

*Excerpted from True Prep by Lisa Birnbach with Chip Kidd. Copyright © 2010 by Island of Mommy, Inc. and Charles Kidd. Excerpted by permission of Knopf, a division of Random House, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.

3D Artist Magazine is a UK-based title made just for 3D artists. And, we are happy to note, this rather discerning audience loves BookBook!

Here’s a beautiful photo spread of a few of their favorite things…our BookBook is named “Product of the Month!”

Want to enjoy their “Product of the Month” in your own 3D environment? Order yours here, for MacBook or iPad, or both — your choice!

If you were in New York this holiday season, you may have heard about the annual pop-up store that WIRED Magazine puts together. It’s made up of a hand-curated collection of WIRED’s favorite things, and we were so happy to learn that our BookBook for MacBook Pro made the cut for the section they called “Gadget Lab.”

It’s not actually a “store” in the traditional sense — they don’t pack up your bags there or anything or walk you to your car (as if; you’d have taken the subway anyway) — instead, it’s more of an “experience.” You can get hands-on with items you might not see in person every day, and then order them online at the end.

Here’s how they describe it:

“The WIRED Store is not just a shopping destination — it’s an interactive experience that allows you to touch, test and tinker with the most “wired” products out there for the digital gentleman, gadget girl, gastronaut, smarter upstarter, adventure capitalist, maker, or culturazzo in your life.”

While we are big fans of adventure capitalists, we’re not entirely sure what a “gastronaut” is — maybe an astronaut who has had our chili?  But we were pretty pleased with how the Wired Store turned out, and our page in the Gadget Lab section looked great!

Get your own BookBook for MacBook Pro here…the red is H-O-T this Fashion Week!

Well, those Wise Men (and Women) over at MyMac have done it again. This time via their podcast “TechFan” for December (recorded on Christmas Eve), “It’s a MyMac Christmas!” they give a shout-out to several of our products, including BookBook (a gift for the teenage daughter of one host) and Compass (a self-purchase of another host).

In the 57th minute of the show, they talk all things Twelve South, best gifts for Christmas 2010, and entrepreneurship.

Give it a listen here, or subscribe for free/download on iTunes.

And be sure to bookmark the site to listen to future editions:

http://www.mymac.com/podcast/TechFan/TechFan-12.mp3

We all love having the latest in technology, whether it be a MacBook or iPad, but sometimes it feels good to have that modern tech wrapped in something a litte more familiar. The New York Times is also a fan of what’s known as “modern retro” and featured our BookBook for MacBook alongside other 21st century retro gear.

In their words…

Sometimes, retro designers cloak the electronics in something other than older electronics. Makers of laptop covers usually brag about the high-tech materials they use: high-impact plastics, advanced neoprenes or carbon fiber. Twelve South brags that its MacBook Pro and iPad cases use old-fashioned bookbinding technology. The covers are leather-bound and distressed to look like a collectible volume. The cases have a hard cover on top and bottom, with a zipper around the center to keep your computer secure.

The BookBook covers are priced at $80 to $100, depending on the size of your computer. The company says the covers disguise the device inside and could deter thieves — unless they know that many collectible books are worth far more than the next new thing.

Want one for that new Macbook Pro or iPad you got from Santa this Christmas? (Hopefully you were a good boy or girl this year since an iPad is certainly waaay cooler than a lump of coal!) Retro yourself with a BookBook for MacBook Pro and/or BookBook for iPad today.

The (Charleston, SC) Post and Courier begins its article on BookBook this way:

“Devotees of the book, those steadfast defenders of the actual physical volume, may have to rethink their resistance to the cold techno-gizmo that is the electronic book. Buyers on the fence may finally topple off. A Mount Pleasant company (Ella: that’s us, Twelve South!)  has devised a product that lends an organic feel to an iPad or MacBook, offering great security in the process.”

As they say, here’s the rest of the story, including an explanation of the Twelve South Product Philosophy from our Creative Director and Co-Founder Andrew Green.

“Meet the BookBook, the latest foray from Mount Pleasant-based Twelve South, a 16-month-old firm dedicated to rendering Apple products as user-friendly and convenient as possible, but with a certain elegance of design.

BookBook for iPad ($69.95) is a handmade, hardback leather case with a vintage look that doubles as an adjustable stand. Not only does the case afford the sensation of holding a book, it disguises the contents when closed.

“To us, it just makes complete sense,” says Twelve South co-founder and Creative Director Andrew Green, who started the company with his wife, Leigh Ann.

“The BookBook gives you something warm to curl up with, rather than a cold instrument.”

First designed for the MacBook laptop computer, and now improved for the iPad, the BookBook was an outgrowth of its creators’ drive to have something more protective than a simple neoprene case typically employed as containers for their notebook computers.

“But we also wanted it to look more interesting,” Green says. “Enclosing a high-end piece of equipment in what looked like a venerable old book made sense for a MacBook. When the iPad came out, it made even more sense. We experimented quite a bit to create the BookBook as it is now.”

With its hardback cover and spine, the case offers crush protection that a folio or other form of sleeve does not.

“It goes well beyond the schtick of putting a tablet in a book. It has much more structural integrity than a soft, wrap-around material, and it doesn’t scream ‘Steal me!’ in a coffee shop. Neoprene cases are so recognizable that they are an open invitation to thieves. We’ve actually had buyers tell us they accidentally left their BookBook in a cafe, came back an hour later and it was still there.”

“That was a secondary feature for us as we were designing it, but buyer feedback made us believe it’s really a primary one.”

Twelve South makes accessories exclusively for Apple hardware. And the company name reflects a sensible goal.

“Apple products are our passion,” says Green, who moved to Charleston here from Nashville five years ago. “We’re lucky enough to have a great relationship with Apple retail stores, and many of our products are in their stores all over the world. The title of the company symbolizes the fact that we don’t want to produce hundreds of products, but about 12 good ideas a year. We don’t want to throw hundreds of ideas against a wall and just see what sticks.”

Thanks for the great coverage!

BookBook is carried in Neiman Marcus and select Barnes & Noble stores, as well as right here at Twelve South.

Talk about being in good company! Our BookBook was recently featured in the FineBooks & Collections Holiday Gift Guide, alongside such artistic items as a library necklace from Etsy and Typography Soap from Soapy Love.

Editor Rebecca Rego Barry writes of BookBook:

“Slip in your computer, and voila, protection from the elements and any Luddites lurking nearby!”

Love it! (And your MacBook or bookworm friends will love it, too. Get yours here.)