Brownstone

I like this new typeface designed by Alejandro Paul, "inspired by historic buildings in Brooklyn, NY." It looks handlettered. Check it out on Veer.

Latest Block Print

This design was inspired by Swedish folk art (what else) and I originally planned the project so that I could donate 5 sets of 8 cards to the Etheredge Adoption Benefit tonight. The packaged sets are the ones up for the auction tonight. I think I'd like to give some of the remaining cards as gifts, or try to sell some on Etsy.

Mr Eaves

I was pretty excited to get the newest Emigre catalog featuring their new font, Mr Eaves, a companion to the trendy Mrs Eaves designed by Zuzana Licko. Here's a little about the latest Mister:

Mr Eaves Sans and Modern

Mr Eaves is the often requested sans-serif companion to Mrs Eaves, one of Emigre's classic typeface designs. Created by Zuzana Licko, this addition to the Emigre Type Library expands the versatility of the original Mrs Eaves with two complimentary families: Mr Eaves Sans and Mr Eaves Modern.

Mr Eaves was based on the proportions of Mrs Eaves, but Licko took some liberty with its design. One of the main concerns was to avoid creating a typeface that looked like it simply had its serifs cut off. And while it matches Mrs Eaves in weight, color, and armature, Mr Eaves stands as its own typeface with many unique characteristics.

Read more here

Letterheady / Letters of Note

Found Letterheady as referenced on the minted blog. It features famous letterheads both old and new. It's awesome! I especially love the pixel flicks design, where the different shapes trade places and reorganize to form the words on the last line. And look how much space many of the designs take up, as if they were braver and more confident than lots of designs nowadays are.

Here are a few favorites/shockers:

Letters of Note is the sister site, and features "correspondence deserving of a wider audience." Many "fascinating letters, postcards, telegrams, faxes and memos. Scans/photos where possible." It's definitely worth checking out. Read more in an interview here.

Wuthering Heights cover redesign: I hate you

If you've noticed the earth moving and it hasn't been the devastating earthquake in Haiti, it is probably Emily Bronte rolling over in her grave.

HarperCollins has redesigned the cover of Wuthering Heights in favor of a new Twilight-inspired design. Wuthering Heights is a favorite book of vampey main characters Bella and Edward. So, a classic has been given the fresh young face of a badly written romance novel. Could it get any worse? you ask. Oh, but it can. If the Harper US version isn't bad enough, check out the Harper UK version with that pseudo-Art Nouveau/Curlicues typeface and cover shot that is inconsistent with the photography on the Twilight series. Oh, and let's not forget to mention that tag line: "Love never dies." Read more here at Media Bistro and here at Guardian.

Is this new cover design a smart move on part of HarperCollins in order to draw more teenagers to a classic, or it is another case of compromising great material in favor of extra sales? You know what I think. What do you think?

Left to right: Twilight cover; HarperUK Wuthering Heights cover; HarperUS Wuthering Heights cover

Give me a Treehouse, or give me Death.

I want to live in a tree house. I once read a feature in a magazine that profiled several different real treehouse houses and rooms. That only fueled the 20-year old fire that grew out of the spark that was Swiss Family Robinson (and to add two more layers of destiny: my long-time crush Tommy Kirk and my ever-increasing desire to become a woodland creature or fairie, or both).






So for starters I want this book, The Treehouse Book, so I can learn how to build my own and live there. This book sounds good, too: New Treehouses of the World.

And I don't want some lame looking Hobby Lobby house on stilts. It has to be a new shape and creation all its own. It needs to either be elvish or be made entirely from salvaged materials, with circular doorways and lots of nooks and crannies for reading, storing, and looking out at the other trees and woodland creatures. Lots of details and opportunities for working by hand. But it can't be pretentious. It must be authentic, and it will be, if it's a true treehouse and not a faker low-level, crafty, perfectionist one.

Check out this lucky fella, the tree house guy.

Cole & Son

Cole & Son has beautiful wallpaper. I've loved this Woods print for years. But the question is, which color scheme is the best?

Advent Conspiracy

thanks to Cathy for showing this to me. It reminds me of the one for The Girl Effect. maybe the same people did both?

Advent Conspiracy from MBCC on Vimeo.

Cool New Artist: Erik Otto

I especially like his installations.

He's got prints and other things available for sale, too, and 2 books (here and here) via Blurb. Maybe they'll go on my Christmas list.

No more Frostone?!

I am so sad!!! I just found out that French Paper discontinued Frostone! Boo hooo!!! There was nothing else like it!

RSMc monogram

I designed this monogram for my mom. It was influenced by the Vienna Secessionists and I wanted it to be more clean and architectural--drew it with my calligraphy pen and then scanned it. We're having it letterpressed onto 2.5" square enclosure cards and onto monarch sized white cards with cloud (pale blue-grey) colored monarch envelopes.

Cool New Artist: Carl Van de Roer

I like this series by Carl Van de Roer. It was featured on 20x200, which is one my my faves.

Here's a bit about the series:
The term "orb" is typically used to describe circular artifacts in photographs—artifacts which have been interpreted by some as spirits. Despite being debunked and explained (most commonly as backscatter from precipitation or dust), there's a surprisingly widespread belief that orb photographs document the supernatural. There are organizations, conferences, hunts, field experts, detectors and websites dedicated to spiritualist orb photography.

This photographic search for something larger than ourselves was the starting point for this project. I photographed people in landscapes that are partly obscured by precipitation. The subjects are seen searching for or interacting with orbs, which are represented as dots covering parts of the scene.

Read more here.

Paste

Ok, Ok, I know, I know, I am renaming the blog again! I really loved palate/palette and wanted a single word with a double meaning. Mom actually came up with Paste--Perfect!

And I know it's also the name of a magazine, but if it fits, it fits!

Avoca

Mom and Dad brought me back some great things from their trip to Ireland--two wonderful cookbooks and some local pottery! I love these Avoca cookbooks (or go to the Avoca store). Mom said that Avoca reminds her of an Irish Anthropologie. They sell home goods, food, accessories, etc. The cookbooks have beautiful one-color illustrations and expressive type as image throughout. I wish I could find some photos of the spreads on the web---either that, or a working scanner--so I could show you the inside.

1930s-40s in Color

This wonderful set of photos on Flickr was posted on facebook by a co-worker of Roy and Holly and Jeff. I've loved looking through them tonight.
Here's a little about it:

These vivid color photos from the Great Depression and World War II capture an era generally seen only in black-and-white. Photographers working for the United States Farm Security Administration (FSA) and later the Office of War Information (OWI) created the images between 1939 and 1944.

The FSA/OWI pictures depict life in the United States, including Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands, with a focus on rural areas and farm labor, as well as aspects of World War II mobilization, including factories, railroads, aviation training, and women working.

The original images are color transparencies ranging in size from 35 mm. to 4x5 inches. They complement the better-known black-and-white FSA/OWI photographs, made during the same period.

The Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division preserves
the original photographs and offers the digital copies to ensure their wide availability.