FFolio

I might be the only person in existence who's yet to have a Flickr account. I have no reason to, really. I'm too lazy to carry a camera around. However, I'll definitely be signing up for an account once FFolio is launched next month. It's a free, hosted portfolio service that automatically feeds from your Flickr photos. It'll be a fast and easy way to show our portfolio until we're rich enough to buy that domain space of our own. Read more and sign up for updates at ffolio.net.

Antique Specimen Slides

Everything about these antique microscope slides is stunning...the type, the labels, the shapes, the colors. They are so beautiful and delicate. The once in existence Nonist has a compilation here. I could spend forever and ever looking at these.

Gift Time

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The Grid System

The Grid System has just been launched by AisleOne. Created to be an ever-expanding resource site on the topic of grid systems, it hopes be a one stop shop for all designers to learn about grids, how to design them and how to use them. The site features links to articles, tools, books, templates and more. It even expands over into a Flickr group. This could turn into a great resource for all of us.

1001 Rules for my Unborn Son

"Let's get some things straight before I get old and uncool."

1001 Rules for my Unborn Son is an endearing blog listing some of life's most necessary lessons from father to son. Man, I wish my parents would have passed a few of these on to me...case in point:

Rule 174: If you are tempted to wear a cowboy hat, resist.
Rule 272: If the teacher forgets to assign homework, keep quiet.
Rule 289: Address anyone who carries a firearm as Sir or Ma'am.

The site also includes some great vintage photography, good quotes and the occasional required listening.

Fifty People, One Question

Fifty People, One Question:
What do you wish to happen by the end of the day?

This short film is beautiful. It managed to get me all teary eyed. And, granted, that doesn't take much, but you'd have to be a heartless bastard not to be warmed a bit. Be sure to also check out the New York edition. So great. I hope they continue to make more.

Fifty People, One Question: official website

Damien Correll

For project three inspiration, I've been looking up a lot of seventies flavored work. Brooklyn freelancer, Damien Correll, has some really great work with interesting typography. Above are spreads from a booklet he put together full of failed ideas. Damn. I wish my failed ideas were this awesome.

Damien + Correll: i like

Seriously

We the Robots: comics by Chris Harding

Security Patterns

Even as a kid, I've always been fascinated by security patterns found inside envelopes. Now, as an adult, finding these little charms even makes bill day a bit nicer. The patterns are so strange and complex and always have weird little imperfections. I've always had a want to start a collection and come this morning, I found out someone already has. Yay! And the Sweetie Pie Press even sells button sets that are going on my Christmas list pronto.

Flickr group: worldwide collection
Sweetie Pie Press: interesting store with a good blog

Project Three: Visual Map

It seems a little too simple, but I've looked over it a few times and can't really see what else it would require. I'm wanting to have a nice little intro animation as well as an ending animation. So hopefully that's not to ambitious.

Emmanuel Polanco

I love this artist's work. It's strange, playful and disturbing all at the same time. And his colors are pretty and nostalgic. Working freelance in Paris, Emmanuel Polanco's work reminds me a lot of MisprintedType. Their work seems so random yet symbolic which makes for a really interesting mix.

Emmanuel Polanco: website

Mustachio

This morning, while doing some online Christmas browsing, I kept running across mustaches. Sure, I knew mustaches were cool. But I had no idea they had taken over. I found mustaches on vases, mustaches on purses and cosmetic bags, even a mustache on a stick. I don't know how I feel about this. Sure they are cute, but how many mustached items can one own before it gets weird?

Side note: I had no idea mustachio was a legitimate word. But it is.
mustachio : noun
A mustache, especially a luxuriant one.

Just ran across this compiled list from Neatorama. It's never ending.

Cute Animation

I'm a sucker for cute. And this animation is definitely adorable. The newspaper even has a mustache. Aww. This style would work great for project three...too bad it's exactly what I'm trying to stay away from. Sad.

Morris & Essex

Mmmm...purdy colors. These hand-printed greeting cards are the perfect mix of organic and geometric. Morris & Essex is the studio of Eliza Jane Curtis. Living in Argentina, she pulls inspiration from the city's art deco architecture and memories of childhood daydreams. Her work is charming and warm and of course her website is super cute and I wish I could buy everything on it.

Morris & Essex: i need money

You Wish We Were Related

Last year marked a milestone in my family. A new holiday tradition was forged. A tradition which brings us together to celebrate the birth of the baby Jesus. A tradition which forces all family members to group up and submit a video for presentation on the eve of Christmas.

As a rookie, I teamed up with my brother and his girlfriend to produce, what I consider, a fine piece of work. And although it took second place due to its pure ignorance of forgetting the subject of Christmas, I still have a certain sense of pride every time I think of it.

With this year's holiday season fast approaching, I've already been thinking about a concept for this year's trophy taker. Although I may still be hard-up for ideas, I have confidence that we will be victorious.

Finished Website Designs

My website designs for Sunken Treasure Scuba are finally finished. The site still has a bit of work to be done, but I'm really happy with where it's going. Rollovers are still in the works and I'm thinking some quirky little gif animations for the images might be in order.

Sunken Treasure Scuba: hooray!

Project Three: Teach Someone Something

Making Crystals: exert from The Dangerous Book for Boys
Having a crystal growing on your windowsill can be good fun. With food coloring, you can make them any color you wish.

The problem is finding a suitable chemical. You may have seen copper sulfate and potassium permanganate in school. Both can be quite toxic and are therefore not easily available in local drugstores. Your science teacher may allow you to have a sample, if you ask very politely.
For this chapter, we decided to use potassium aluminum sulfate, better known as alum powder. It is a non-toxic substance that used to be used to whiten bread. As with any household substance, you shouldn't get it in your eyes. It is available from the following website: www.sciencecompany.com. It is also commonly sold as foot powder. 1 ounce will cost you about $3 at the time of writing, not including postage. That is enough for crystal making, but alum can be used for fireproofing and tanning skin—as discussed in other chapters. It also works as an astringent on small cuts, or the crystals can be used as an underarm deodorant. You might want to get more. Alternatively, you can grow crystals with common salt or sugar.

You will need:

• 10 grams of potassium aluminum sulfate (alum)
• a glass tumbler
• a clean Popsicle stick
• warm water
• thread
• small stones, preferably with sharp edges

Method

1. Make sure stones are clean—wash them thoroughly in running water
2. Put enough warm water in the tumbler to cover the stones. (About a third of the cup.) Do not put the stones in yet.
3. Add the alum and stir furiously with the stick until it stops dissolving easily. You may be left with a few grains at the bottom. Ignore them. You can either put the stones straight in or, for the classic look, tie a thread around a small stone and the other end around the stick, as in the pictures. We did both.
4. If you are intending to add food coloring, do it now. Show proudly to parents, who will pat you on the head for being a "little genius."

Evaporation is the key for these small crystals, so make sure it is in a warm place. It will take a few days for the first ones to appear, and the full effect can take a few weeks. Larger crystals can be made by repeating the process—after tying a small crystal to the thread.

The crystal you see here is a picture of the one we grew—the one on the left, not the enormous thing. The huge circle came from the bottom of the glass and in many ways is more impressive than the actual crystal. It took about six weeks in total, and we refilled the alum once.

Last One

Last election post. I just couldn't pass this one up.

CNN Hearts Touch Screens

Watching CNN last night, I couldn't help but be occasionally mesmerized by all the slick graphics. How sexy were those touch screens? How clear were those maps? And did anyone see the holograms?! Okay. That was kind of lame. But the rest was awesome.

2008 Election Maps: a collection of race result maps

Victory

This gives me goosebumps every time.

How to Nap

Not that I need any instructions on how to nap, but this info chart does give some good little tips. Plus, it makes me feel not so guilty about my lazy ways. One trick I haven't tried: drinking a cup of coffee prior to a twenty minute nap as to avoid grogginess.

Poladroid

Poladroid is an awesome Polaroid image maker. After downloading the program, all you do is drag and drop your image and wait. Bonus feature...you can even shake. How insanely cool is that? I can feel a new obsession beginning....

Pictures showcase my Fall Break in a nutshell...blogging twofer.

Poladroid: ahhh. it's so cool!

Scuba Diving Links

I have never seen so much blue! It's the ocean. We get it. It's blue.

1. Padi
Ugly. But I do like the way it's organized: start diving, keep diving, teach diving. Those are three easy and simple categories.

2. LA Scuba Diving
This website is guilty of too many links and trash on the homepage. Majority of scuba websites are guilty of this. If I were going to look for specific information, I'd get flustered and give up.

3. Blue Island Divers
The site seems well organized and the link bar is actually really nice and simple. However, again there is just so much information on the homepage that I would never have the patience to sift through it. They also have paragraph after paragraph of text. No one is going to sit and read it all unless it looks visually interesting.

Goals: stay away from blue and use nice typography

Etsy Animation

A cute animated commercial for online crafting haven, Etsy.

Ten Websites

1. Design*Sponge
I have been checking this website daily now for over a year. Brooklyn-based writer Grace Bonney has incredible taste and finds some great content to feature. The site is well organized in a basic blog layout, but tabs and links are also easily located and accessible. Bonney posts on a number of design-related subjects daily, from textiles to ceramics to student artists. My favorite days are Mondays, when Sneak Peaks are posted, showing the interior of a featured artist's home. They never disappoint.

2. Also
This website is awesome. Upon first arriving at the homepage it looks to be just a simple, static website. However, click on one of the four links and the screen transforms to entertain. Also, which creates websites for small, independent companies, doesn't contain a whole lot of content, but the feel of their company seeps through every part.

3. ReForm School
This LA store has a cute and quirky website that gives insight into the products they carry. The site includes some great illustration work by Julia Rothman as well as some purdy type combinations. The setup is super simple, with two groups of tabs...one for store categories and the other for company information. I love how little surprises are everywhere, popping up to entertain.

4. Mayfair Workshop
There couldn't be a more user friendly setup. The seven main links never change places, making the site's navigation as simple as possible. And seriously, the red and green color palette and animated details give this straightforward site some flavor.

5. NotCot
Never fail, they have some crazy cool finds every day. It has a unique setup for a blog, but I think it is necessary, since they have a good number of posts each day. The best thing about NotCot is that it is a creative community, where readers share and post cool finds.

6. Nick Dewar
This site is cute, simple and clean. I love the adorable little link buttons and his color combinations are super tasty.

7. Adrian Johnson Ltd
The logo animation introduction makes this whole website. I can't get enough of it. I like the setup of the site too...how you can progress through his work without clicking on another link. The type is small and quiet as to not distract from his work.

8. Qwstion
The website for bag company, Qwstion, is stunning and innovative. The setup is really unique in that majority of the page is taken up with photography. And the way you can look through all different angles of the bag is really helpful. The site looks complex, but is really fairly simple.

9. Ikea Dream Kitchens
I don't even have words to describe this. You have to check it out for yourself.

10. Koko3
This Helsinki based interior design firm's website is really unique. It's just so visually interesting. The layered fabrics and drawings really show the design process. Plus, it's always changing which makes the site seem really exciting. I'm in love how the work shows up full screen. Images do take a little while to load, but in the end, it's definitely worth sticking around to view. Their work is beautiful and so is the photography. And I'm so intrigued by the little nonsense video that shows when you scroll the mouse over the pink square in the bottom left hand corner. A detail that gives even more character to the site.

Sarah Palin Used Comic Sans

Click it. You won't be disappointed.

Darren Booth

Darren Booth is an incredible illustrator and typographer from Canada. Finding inspiration from old signage, found materials, architecture, etc. his work is beyond impressive. His color palettes are incredibly appealing and the method in which he layers colors is really unique.

Darren Booth: homepage
Interview: from Pica + Pixel

Blacktop Creative Studio Tour

Yesterday, I risked my life (never get in a car with C. Harsch) and ventured into Kansas City to tour design firm, Blacktop Creative. Located in the River Market area, the small firm puts out some incredible work. Everything they touch feels lively and current. They also gave some invaluable interview and portfolio advice.

For those of you slackers who have not yet been on a studio tour, I really encourage you to do so. Even if you aren't interested in staying in KC after graduation, it allows you to see what kind of companies are out there. I always feel invigorated and confirmed after each one. We are going to have some kick-ass jobs.

Blacktop Creative: homepage

Reading: Designing Interfaces

I think this calls for a duck.
signposts are features that help the users figure out their immediate surroundings. wayfinding is what people do as they find their way toward their goal. animated transitions help users stay oriented as they move from one place to another. an escape hatch allows users to always get back to a familiar page. clear entry points present only a few entry points into an interface. they are descriptive and task-oriented. global navigation on every page, shows a consistent set of links to easily find key sections. hub and spoke isolates sections of the app into mini-applications. it has one way in and one way out. a pyramid links a sequence of pages with back/next links. modal panels show only one page, with no other navigation options, until user solves problem. sequence map on each page in sequence, shows a map of all of the pages in order. breadcrumbs on each page in a hierarchy, show a map of all parent pages, up to the main page. an annotated scrollbar serves double-duty as map of content and color-coded sections use color to identify which section of site that page belongs to. animated transitions smooth out a startling or dislocating transition with an animation.

Reading: The Order of Order

As with many designers, I am positive that my love of design is due to my innate love of organization. I find relaxation out of combining and arranging and comfort out of being familiar with the things around me. The article states that the known can be tweaked into the unknown. I love that idea.

While my book collection is still growing, I hope to one day have a bookshelf arranged entirely by color. Although some might see this as impractical, I think the minor inconvenience is well worth it. The number of times I go looking for a book is insignificant to the number of times I walk past the bookshelf.

The Order of Oder: the article

Reading: Recipe for a Successful Website

This website breaks down the necessary steps involved in web design. While they do have some good advice, one subject they stress is the importance of updating regularly. Yet, they still list Netscape and Microsoft Explorer as the most commonly used web browsers. And seriously...take your own advice and hire a professional designer. All that said...here's what I took away:
-- content must be fresh and updated regularly
-- give a voice to your site, show some personality
-- organization and clarity is key
-- navigation must still allow for breath and depth
-- organization over representation
-- don't organize the life out of it
-- don't slow down the site with craziness
-- site must work well in all browsers
-- employ high quality, professional visual design
-- create an interesting and valuable experience

Recipe for a Successful Website: the site

Get Out The Vote Final Posters

Poster designs are finally done! I'm more than happy with the first one. It took many trials to find just the right color combination, but I think the blue and green give the right mood. Plus, I always love me some Futura Bold, mmmm. I'm still not sold on the second one. The texture looks cool and was fun to work with, but it just seems a little boring. Also, I don't think the wording choice is incredibly complex, but it gets the message across.

Get Out The Vote Motion Graphic

Here it is. My first try in After Effects. Simple, but overall I'm content.

Reading #4

I am a design major, not a business major. There is good reason for this. Issues dealing with the complex inner workings of companies and businesses have of no interest to me. I'm sure many designers feel this way. It sucks some of the fun out of our creative jobs. However, designers must come to realize that discovery and client expertise will substantially help to further the success of design work. It will lead to more effective, better organized designs. And, frankly, if this is the case, then I will gladly put in the work.

Do we as designers have the skills needed to fully and independently handle audience and content? Do we have the knowledge to perform our own research or is it necessary to collaborate with a team of marketers?

Chip Kidd is God

As if Chip Kidd needed to get any cooler, apparently he has a band called Artbreak whose wicked cool video I just ran across. Even the name of the band is awesome. This song is going to be stuck in my head the rest of the day. And I need to learn that cool little wiggle move he does towards the end.

Artbreak: myspace page

Why America is Fucked

A story about a sign and a warning to never use Ebay while drunk. Featuring designer Aaron Drapling.

Blog: his daily blog
Draplin Design Co: website showing some of his great work

Matte Stephens

Matte Stephens is a painter based out of Portland. Connections to design work of the fifties and sixties are obvious. This is because he lists Charles and Ray Eames and George Nelson as major influences. I'm always drawn to the color palettes he works with as well as the personality brought through in all his pieces. And I love the expressive teardrop shapes he consistently uses. Plus, I really love the spelling of his name.

Blog: his blog
Matte Stephens: homepage
Matte Stephens Interview: a really great interview from Grain Edit

Karen Davison

California based artist, Karen Davison, draws these portraits that I love. There is something about her style that I constantly strive to emulate in my design work. It's humorous, strange and horribly fascinating.

Karen Davison: homepage

Take a Break

Although I enjoy endless work as much as the next person, I find that I work best on projects if I take the occasional break. While sometimes this involves a nap or a good little cry in the corner, it most often calls for visiting and catching up on my favorite blogs. The one that cheers me up the most is Neatorama. With posts including strange news stories, interesting videos, useless information, occasional artwork and more, it never fails to make me feel a little bit better about life.

Neatorama: check it out

Reading #2 Question

If human beings have numerous ways of absorbing and understanding information, how do we as designers strive to communicate effectively and evenly with all learning types?

Get Out The Vote Mood Board

Get Out The Vote Key Terms & Associated Word List

start: verb & noun

1. to begin a course of journey

2. to begin an activity or undertaking

3. to cause to leave a place of concealment

4. to cause to move, act or operate

nec·es·sary: adjective & noun

1. of an inevitable nature; inescapable

2. logically unavoidable

3. absolutely needed; required

near·ing: verb

1. to come close or closer to

2. to draw near or nearer, approach

word list:
today, present, now, right away, imperative, mandatory, essential, necessary, needed, required, vital, important, big, major, meaningful, significant, substantial, active, alive, effectual, viable, productive, thriving, change, alteration, difference, modification, remaking, revision, recast, better, surpass, improve, enhance, enrich, meliorate, hope, anticipate, await, count on, depend on, rely on, possibility, potential, conceivable, imaginable, plausible, thinkable, achievable, attainable, doable, feasible, turn out, pan out, prove, develop, emerge, evolve, unfold, surface, debut, arise, break out, appear, surface, emanate, fresh, begin, start, launch, outset, threshold, emergence, activate, open, strike, forward, enter, proceed, impact, affect, effect, impress, influence, touch, stir, inspire, engage, interest, afflict, agitate, encourage, animate, enliven, invigorate, boost, energize, excite, provoke, rally, stimulate, future, approaching, forthcoming, nearing, oncoming

Get Out The Vote Final Story

In 2004, 20.1 million 18 – 29 year-olds voted, a 4.3 million jump over 2000. The turnout increase among the youngest voters was more than double that of any other age group.

Research of today’s youth shows that young people are actively following politics and election news even closer than in 2004. This gives strong hope and possibility to making this year’s young voter turnout even higher than the previous election. Today’s youth vote is making major impact. It’s a good thing, too. Health care, jobs and economy, energy and environment. Right now, these just seem like issues we will have to deal with later in life. But in the mere four years that it takes our new president’s term to end, our lives will just be starting. We will be beginning our career, buying our first house, starting a family, paying off college debt…Right now, we hold the power to decide the world in which we start our adult lives. In four years, where will you be?

Julia Rothman

I have a love for patterns and hand drawn doodles. Brooklyn based designer, Julia Rothman, combines both. Everything she creates has a nostalgic quirk about it that never fails to make me happy.

JuliaRothman.com: hompage
Book By Its Cover: her really cool blog