GROWN UPDATE: Our FREE iPhone/smartphone APP is here

We just got our Fanpage app up and running!  If you have an iphone or other smartphone and want a direct feed to our fanpage info, photos and offers, you should check out our FREE App!  Why?

• It's FREE!
• You love Apps!
• You love GROWN just enough to make us part of your day.. everyday!


Let us know what you think!

Shocking Proof of How the Sun Ages You

This man is 69 years old, but half of his face looks much, much older than that. He was a trucker and, for 28 years, his face received much more sunlight on the left side, resulting on premature ageing.
We all knew that being exposed to the sun makes you age prematurely, but seeing the dramatic difference in a single face is just stunning.

His condition is called unilateral dermatoheliosis, from the Greek dermis and helios, skin and sun. It’s also called photoaging, and it results from chronic exposure to the Sun’s UVA and UVB rays. In his case it only affected him on the left side because of his work. As he drove, he received much many hours of sunlight through the left window of his vehicle.
The case was discovered and studied by Jennifer R.S. Gordon and Joaquin C. Brieva, dermatologists at Northwestern University, and published in the New England Journal of Medicine:
A 69-year-old man presented with a 25-year history of gradual, asymptomatic thickening and wrinkling of the skin on the left side of his face. The physical examination showed hyperkeratosis with accentuated ridging, multiple open comedones, and areas of nodular elastosis. Histopathological analysis showed an accumulation of elastolytic material in the dermis and the formation of milia within the vellus hair follicles. Findings were consistent with the Favre-Racouchot syndrome of photodamaged skin, known as dermatoheliosis.
The patient reported that he had driven a delivery truck for 28 years. Ultraviolet A (UVA) rays transmit through window glass, penetrating the epidermis and upper layers of dermis. Chronic UVA exposure can result in thickening of the epidermis and stratum corneum, as well as destruction of elastic fibres. This photoaging effect of UVA is contrasted with photocarcinogenesis.
Since UVB and UVA can cause DNA mutations leading to skin cancer, the doctors recommended their patient to use sun protection and topical retinoids, as well as periodic monitoring for the apparition of skin cancer.
This is a perfect reminder of the negative effects of excessive sun-tanning. If the risk of skin cancer is not enough for you, perhaps knowing that the sun will accelerate your ageing by a decade or two will stop you from being careless. Remember, if you are going to be exposed to the sun in any way — even if you are not at the beach— use UVB and UVA protection, for the good of your skin and your eyes.

Source Jesus Diaz- http://www.gizmodo.com.au/2012/06/shocking-proof-of-how-the-sun-ages-you/

GROWN: Behind the Lens, Part 4

Recently,  photographer Matt Shepherd (aquaseen) met up with a few of our gorgeous Brazilian friends for a 7am beach shoot near Kirra, on the QLD/NSW Boarders here in Australia.  The Surf was a bit flat, but the weather was perfect and the water was nice and warm! 

Our intent was to capture something natural and simply let the girls just have a bit of fun with it.  Not having a fully planned out shoot can really pay off sometimes and what can come out of it are really natural shots.   Matt was using some of his Nikon gear with a long range lens to facilitate this idea and keep from constantly being right in their faces, or a distraction.

We were stoked with the results below, and ended up with some really crisp and brightly colored natural images.  A great summary to another great shoot!  You can see more of the days photos in the GROWN photo Gallery.

GROWN: Behind the Lens part 3

In 'behind the lens' part 2 we offered a rare perspective of Photographer Matt Shepherd (aquaseen.com) taking some underwater product shots.   This time we are showing some snaps from a shoot at the beach in laid-back Byron Bay where we were working with Skatergirl Hailey and our World-traveller friend Jordan.   It went a little something like this:

"click" ...... "click" 

"uh... you wanna go for a swim? "   

"Ok!"

... and back to it...

repeat

add a surf

repeat.

Not surprisingly, but after a VERY laid back day we got some great shots!  See the final edited snaps on the GROWN website.

Skating is Part of Hailey's daily routine, luckily we caught her right out of the surf!  She took some great pics!

GROWN: Behind the Lens Part 2

This is Part 2 of our ongoing raw and uncensored peak behind the scenes of GROWN operations.  Do you ever look at a photo in a mag and wonder what was happening on the other side of the camera?  Here are a few behind the lens snaps from one of our product shoots with none other than multi-award winning underwater photographer Matthew Shepherd! 
Be sure to go to growndesigns.com to see the final results and of course follow Matt and check out his personal portfolio at aquaseen.com, he has some of the Worlds best Underwater shots and you won't be disappointed!

Surfing Pipeline: Completely Blind...

Derek Rabelo is just like any other normal 19 year
old surfer, except for one amazing difference; he was born completely blind.   Derek hails from Guaranpari on the Northeast Coast of Rio in Brasil and a video released last month has been blowing up throughout the surf world, and spreading an amazing sense of awe to anyone who views it.   The Video (below) features Derek, not only surfing, but fully shredding barrels in the North Shore's famous Pipeline!

Rabelo proves again and again that being blind doesn't have to be an obstacle as he uses his other senses to guide him through the rips and onto his waves. 

Derek says he is still working on pulling through the entire tube at The Pipeline.  Check out the video and pass on this truly inspirational story!

The Musical Ninja; Blake Noble

Percussive 12-string guitarist and didgeridoo player, Blake Noble is a force to be reckoned with.  Impressive is an understatement for this predominantly instrumental guitarist from Byron Bay, who plays his guitar more like a drum kit while simultaneously hitting funky bass lines and stunning melodies and harmonics.

Blake's stunning songwriting skills, blended with his amazing NATURAL talent for guitar (he has never had a single lesson!), have already taken him far; and people are taking notice!
Blake is about to embark on a life and soul changing move to America where he is lining up a tour schedule and looking to hit the ground running.    The Good news for us is he has promised to keep us posted with Blog/Vlog updates from the good ol' U.S of A.


In the meantime, check out some of his vids below and hit up his site at blakenoblemusic.com

 

Above:  'Ninja'
The video below is for a song called 'Bundjalung' and is the first 'lap tapping' song Blake wrote and was inspired by the guitarist 'Erik Mongrain', and the Bundjalung (Arakwal) people of Byron Bay and surrounds. The Bundjalung nation are the traditional owners of Byron Bay, the most Easterly point of Australia. The song also hit #10 on the Triple J unearthed roots chart and stayed in the top 25 for four weeks!