Oct 19
Mind Vacations
In the olden days we shot film positives (slides) or film negatives and printed the images on paper--why, all of a sudden, do I feel like Mathew Brady. If you've got some LPs or cassettes around, you likely have some slides and/or some black and white or color negatives--perhaps some stuff that you haven't looked at in years. The problem is, the old pictures aren't nearly so convenient to look at or share as the stuff we currently are able to churn out on our digital cameras.
ScanCafe.com doesn't fit the normal subject matter of these posts, but I thought it was a good enough find to merit a special mention (thanks to my friend Daniel Will-Harris for pointing me to them). In short, you bundle up your negatives or picture album and send it off to a place overseas where the folks at ScanCafe scan and spend a few minutes optimizing the images (don't panic, they claim the shipping is VERY safe--mine got there without a problem). Then, you review the scans online and choose (pay for) only the one's you want. The originals are then returned to you along with a disc containing the scans.
Reasonable prices, good quality, and it's fun to see all those forgotten places and faces.
The ScanCafe...
The founder's blog...
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Jun 3
Shopping
When it comes to illustration, Bob Staake is the top tier. His list of corporate clients includes names such as Sony, Disney, and Hallmark; Publishers such as Random House, Simon + Schuster, and Scholastic; Publications such as The New Yorker, The Washington Post, and Barron's.
His finished color illustrations command thousands of dollars, but you can buy an original, signed Staake doodle that you design for $40? Yup, no kidding. To me, one of the coolest, most unusual gifts you could get or give. (I know this sounds like an advertisement but nope, no commission, don't know Bob Staake.)
Bob Staake's Doodlekaboodle samples...
The order form...
Some examples of Staake's work...
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Apr 11
Web Design
I did not write this book--but I sure wish I had. As someone who actively searches the Web for great design, I can testify to the thousands of hours it must have taken Patrick McNeil (of DesignMeltdown.com) to locate, categorize, and assemble such a large cross-collection of superior web ideas. Simply having a snapshot of these hundreds of sites at this time in the history of the Web is well worth the price.
The Web Designer's Idea Book by Patrick McNeil...
Oct 13
Shopping
How about something on the light side? I added a new category to the "Design Shopping" section of jumpola.com recently titled "Paper products." It includes distinctive manufacturers and resellers of paper-oriented products. In it you will many types of archive materials, blank books and stationery, calendars, office supplies, and so on.
Cavallini...
Exaclair...
Hollander's...
Paper Source...
QuoVadis...
Russell+Hazel...
Talas...
In the Ideabook Design Store: The Copywriter's Handbook...
Jun 4
Shopping
HistoryShots is a unique venture. As they explain it, “We started HistoryShots in 2003 in order to create a new type of information art that merged our interest in history, information graphics, and big picture ideas. Our inspirations come from many diverse people and graphical works, but in particular the works of Charles Joseph Minard and Edward Tufte of Yale University stand out.” Have a look.
Genealogy of Pop/Rock Music...
HistoryShots...
If you are interested, Tufte's resource page references Minard's work...
NEW in the Ideabook Design Store: Tintbook CMYK Process Color Selector...
Apr 25
Shopping
I have an affinity for illustration. I can't count the times a talented illustrator has made me look like I knew what I was doing.
Truth be told, I am more likely to hang a poster than a painting. Here are two sites where you can buy originals and prints of published and unpublished works by both well-known and not-so-well-known illustrators.
illogator.com...
and Thumbtack Press...
In the Ideabook Design Store: Graphic Artists Guild Handbook: Pricing & Ethical Guidelines...
Jan 19
Shopping
If you enjoy showing off the work of other artists, you'll appreciate the Lure Design Store and the many posters they offer.
An example of their theater posters...
And concert posters...
May 24
Shopping
Best known for helping to launch Wired magazine in 1993 and serving as its Executive Editor, Kevin Kelly is also the host of an online directory of “Cool Tools.” He defines a cool tool as, “any book, gadget, software, video, map, hardware, material, or Website that is tried and true. I am chiefly interested in stuff that is extraordinary, better than similar products, little-known, and reliably useful for an individual or small group.”
(Don't miss the long list of categories on the left...)
http://www.kk.org/cooltools/index.php
Mar 20
Shopping
The other day, as I was searching for Fling the Monkey, I came across sweatyfrog.com and their lineup of Kubricks, Minis, and Vinyls including Chihoohoo, DousDous OctoKakie, and the Peter Bagge Alien Family. Huh?
http://www.sweatyfrog.com
Jan 20
Shopping
If you do not yet carry a Moleskine pocket notebook, you probably have never held one. I find it to be a near-perfect design tool for sketching and note taking. Now available in the ideabook.com store.
http://www.ideabook.com/006_mlsk/moleskine.htm
Dec 5
Shopping
I've always been a catalog nut. I enjoy getting them in the mail and leafing through them to identify by specific item numbers, sizes, and colors, all the stuff I don't need. Plus they're a good source of design inspiration. If you're a catalog junky, you'll flip over Google Catalogs. They scan the pages of recent print catalogs (over one thousand of them), and provide the tools necessary for viewing and keyword searching them. Great idea, great execution.
http://catalogs.google.com/
