Print of the Day > Physical Fiction

What makes this fox ever more fabulous is that it is printed using letterpress... but with lego pieces!
Sadly this one is out of print but see others for sale here (& read more about the process here)

Photography // Paul Octavious

I posted about this Kite Hill photograph by Paul Octavious awhile back now. I love the hill series & the video of snow day (all those *splats* at the bottom of the hill. he he)...





But today have been admiring some of his other work too. I'm abit in love with the books series. Such a simple idea but shot so beautifully. And those colours and covers... coming from someone with a colour coded bookshelf, they're just heavenly to look at!

Wow!

Who would've thought an object with such ugly connotations could look so amazing?! Part of a sculpture created by Yang Yongliang that is made up of black and white collaged photographs. 

(via design boom)

A week in Twitterland

+ Some gorgeous photography collages (above) by Abigail Reynolds. It's a good sign that I don't even know how to explain them!  (via Insideoutmag)

+ Beautiful handmade business cards on Creature Comforts (via creaturecomfort)

+ Curious little video of making a paper tattoo here (via strictlypaper)

+ Jessica Hische's 'Should I work for free' flowchart which has been all over the internet this week (via jessicahische)

+ An amazing signwriting flickr set 'Ghost signs' (via shelfappeal)

+ Circus identity design (below) by student, Nathan Godding - CMYK in all its glory!  (via designworklife)

Happy weekending wherever you may be. Am off to have sundowner drinks. hurrah!

Nativity // House Industries & Alexander Girard

Christmas is over now. I know this... all the same, if I had a spare wad of bills I'd be snapping up this wonderful creation from House Industries to have on display all year round! My parents have a really old nativity and hours of entertainment were spent shuffling the inhabitants around (often in not so biblically accurate ways i must admit)



What gives this set even more significance is that it's based on illustrations by textile designer Alexander Girard and this great poster in particular (& the famous little man above has the same arms as the angel in the poster) How great is that?!

Bucketloads of colour on The Design Files // Kate Banazi

If you haven't already checked out the guest blog on The Design Files this week then you must MUST must! Amazing things have been created and they all revolve around colour. Each day, illustrator Kate Banazi explores one great colour in all it's glory. Yellow, Red, Blue, Green & .... I can hardly wait to see what tomorrow brings!



Above is the downloadable desktop image for Day 1: Yellow (& almost even more great than the finished product is the video of Kate screenprinting it)



In amongst all the wonderful yellows my heart and eyes rested on this Kat Macleod image (below right). Wow! At first I thought it was the profile of a japanese girl (the black being the hair), but then i saw the pencil. This happy accident makes it doubley good!

Love is in the air(mail)

Any excuse to send messages of love is a good thing in my book... even if Valentines Day is supposedly a giant evil marketing ploy la di da. These beauties would make even the most cynical heart flutter.


Cards and customised prints from Rifle Paper Co.



Papercuts by Mr Yen



Cutesticks cards by Hello Lucky

Swedish allsorts // Hilda Grahnat

I came across these Japanese inspired postcards via Hildas great blog and I couldn't stop looking at them.
(I'm sure there'd be music coming out of that first one if you listened closely enough) Hilda takes the most beautiful photographs that ooze the kind of aesthetic that seems to be uniquely and brilliantly Swedish.



These collages and more are in her 2011 calender (pictures via her blog).



& if that wasn't enough talent for one lady... Hilda also makes these fantastical clocks from vintage books. The perfect bedside timekeeper wouldn't you agree!

The Coasters // Parliament of Owls

Drooling over all the horribly good design work over on For Print Only this morning and came across this coaster set by the clever ladies at Parliment of Owls.



This fine little set of 4 was designed as a promo piece for Cranky Pressman letterpress printers to show off their new die cut shapes. The characters, Edna, Cranky, Mr. Snogglebaum, and Adelaide & Mr. Pistachio are the senior citizens of beach community living — The Coasters! I love the little profiles on the back with corresponding cocktails. Cuteness!



(even cleverer if you're a print nerd like me is that it only prints with two inks... & a new green is born in the overlapping! Ahh, printing is a magical thing)

Turns out there are a number of other mighty fine coasters around the place too... a couple more to make you thirsty...



+ 'Lets Screw' set by Black Dog Press



+ Studio on Fire coasters printed at an AIGA event

(I've now added 'print coasters' to my list of Gocco pursuits for this year)

Christmas love // The Wooden Truth

We were lucky to get lots of love from afar in envelopes this christmas. A particularly special one was this 12 days of Christmas card from my dear friend Ellie. It was printed and designed by The Wooden Truth in Lewes, UK (the beautiful town of my last workplace).

(images below via The Wooden Truth)



They seem to be a fairly new company from what I can gather but am looking forward to seeing what other paper treats they come up with in the future (I don't think i'll ever tire of woodblock letterpress. yum indeed)

Objects to make you smile

Not a particularly papery post I know but these two wonderful and adorably simple design ideas made me feel a bit fuzzy in my design-heart compartment.

Bookrest/lamp for sale at Suck UK



'My Theatre' by Hina Thibaud
(I for one would love a little box of treasures such as this... must it really be only for kids?)

Hello 2011

I do so hope everyone had a most wonderful New Year and Christmas time.

So many festivities, so much food and such alot of sunshine... what a great season twas twas! Now it's back to work and though in theory that sounds sad, I'm in fact immensely excited about what this year will bring. No uprooting countries or job huntings to be daunted by this time round... just a whole pocketful of fun projects and adventures in store. And new things for this here blog?! My brain is a tickin'.

(Lovely foiled notecards above are by Seesaw Designs)