articles

creative inspiration

| heather parlato

retro styles

fourth of july postcards
[image: from the collection of richard sheaff]
this fantastic collection of fourth of july postcards from designobserver.com includes illustrations of doll-faced children, hand-drawn type, and loads of fireworks!

power styling
[image: US steel, grainedit.com]
i have to say, i liked the look of the future as imagined in the mid-60s. thanks to dave from grainedit.com for sharing spreads from power styling, which seems to be a collection of illustrations proposing re-imagined looks for the infrastructure of electric utility. be sure to look through all the pieces he scanned, they suggest a majesty that is glaringly absent in the power lines i see outside my window today.

logo evolution

evolution of the logo
[image: smashingmagazine.com]
we’ve come to know logos as modern signifiers in the marketplace, but the concept of a brand mark has existed a long time through history. smashing magazine offers the evolution of the logo that traces how graphic marks have been used to denote ownership, authorship and associations with different groups, only leading them to corporate identity as a result of evolution.

identity

girl scouts of america get an identity makeover
[image: fastcodesign.com]
subtle, yet classic & modernized, check out the identity makeover on fastcodesign.com: a fresh identity for the girl scouts of america. i think these new profiles look more contemporary and youthful without losing any recognition of the brand and tradition. great work!

design industry

check out redesigning propublica by mule design. We love good journalism and hate unchecked abuses of power, so we were excited and honored to collaborate with ProPublica on their website redesign. hear, hear!

another from smashing magazine: add music to your workflow to improve results. i’ve always known i liked listening to music while i work, but i didn’t realize why it was helping me work better.

biznik article of the week

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A Culture of One: What Solopreneurs Can Learn from Zappos by Beth Buelow

i really like this article about creating a culture of one by aligning with your values and attracting clients of like minds. When you choose to create a Culture of One, you have decided to transform your viewpoint from seeing yourself as a one-person shop to proactively building a community based on core values. Your business choices are determined by aligning values –> culture –> brand. she then gives the reader steps they can follow to move into this business mindset. great article!

creative inspiration

| heather parlato

illustration

lab partners for monocle magazine
[image: lab partners]
from the farmlands, through the cities, to the sea! this illustration by lab partners is an amazing perspective on landscapes. thanks designworklife.com for the link.

photography

david hiser for documerica
[image: david hiser]
an amazing find shared on the how design blog: images of the 70s. the documerica project, commissioned by the EPA, hired freelance photographers to capture images relating to environmental problems. quite an outstanding collection!

typography

alto font
[image: fontshop.com]
if you’re looking for some great sans serif typefaces that work well in a variety of layouts and styles, check out thefontshop.com’s fundamentals: workhorse sans serifs for a great list with examples in action.

posters

sleepers & coal by adam hill
[image: adam hill]
thanks to fudgegraphics.com for showcasing this outstanding work by adam hill in their for your inspiration monday feature. this selection of gig posters shown have some really awesome type treatments and uses, along with his uniquely stylized illustrations.

design industry

a couple from aiga, did you know they’re expanding the resource center to add useful things like the aiga center for practice management, aiming to support all aspects of the business side of graphic design? it’s true! all those questions you might have about rates, legal issues, financial planning, and project management can be found in this public resrouce for best practices. another fantastic aiga development just released is the living principles, helping designers move toward the creation of work that is environmentally, culturally & socially sustainable.. their mission statement: The Living Principles for Design aim to guide purposeful action, celebrating and popularizing the efforts of those who use design thinking to create positive cultural change.

article of the week

| heather parlato

we are all brand anthropologists from hexanine.com.

a great perspective on how brand perception evolves through customer experience & feedback. mind your brand gaps!

beyond design

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food

zucchini ribbon salad
[image: emily ho]
if you’re growing zucchini this year, you’ve been enjoying the first fruits of your labor in the last few weeks. zucchini plants are huge producers, so you’ll want to stay creative with how you enjoy them. thanks to emily ho, <a href="thekitchn.com offers 15 recipes for zucchini, summer squash, pattypan & more!

just to drive the point home about how much of a non-food twinkies are, take a spin through dwight eschliman’s 37 or so ingredients, in which he photographs a sample of each ingredient that goes into a twinkie in its natural state. not surprisingly they are mostly powder and sugar, and not-at-all appetizing.

neighborhood

big parade LA
[image: alyssa walker]
i was so sorry to miss big parade LA [for the love of being out of town], but alyssa walker provides excellent coverage on gelatobaby.com: 100 staircases, 35 miles, 2 days, and too many friends to count. i’m definitely going to do it next year!

things are changing in los angeles! greenlagirl.com spotlights 3 ways public opinion has shaped transportation development in checklist: how you can shape the future of los angeles!

diy

this book of homemade beauty concoctions sounds like it’s right up my alley! book review: do it gorgeously—look good and live well on the cheap, reviewed by greenlagirl.com is all about making your own diy beauty products with natural ingredients. i may have to pick up a copy of this one!

creative inspiration

| heather parlato

http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=11443824&server=vimeo.com&show_title=1&show_byline=1&show_portrait=0&color=&fullscreen=1

Oceans from Sol Linero on Vimeo [thanks to designworklife.com for the link].

sports

fifa world cup logos
[image: logoblog.org]
there are some great retrospectives on fifa world cup logos and posters online. fifa world cup logo evolution: 1934-2014, from logoblog.org has some great archives, as does an older post, fifa world cup logo designs, from logodesignlove.com. it’s so cool to see some of the early stuff from the 30s-50s!

typography

open type features
[image: martin plus for ilovetypography.com]
for the type designers out there, an introduction to opentype substitution features will show you how to make all those cool ligatures and custom-set type combos you might want to add to your typeface design.

if you’re in new york [or willing to travel] and want to learn typeface design, H&FJ’s sara soskolne will be teaching turning letters into type july 12-16: learning typeface design.

web design

applying interior design principles to the web from smashingmagazine.com talks about how the same principles of arranging physical objects relates to the placement and use of graphic objects, with a great breakdown of each.

creativity

jazz brain: functional magnetic resonance imaging is a quick report from utne.com about brain behavior during times of innovative creativity. Limb had jazz musicians play memorized music while being monitored by an fMRI machine. He then asked them to start improvising and noticed a shift in neurological activity. Their scans showed less activity in the areas that represent self-censoring and inhibition and more in the area that indicates self-expression. Limb interpreted this shift as a possible sign of “spontaneous creativity.”

article of the week

| heather parlato

10 reasons why investing in branding makes you money in e-commerce by Stuart Silverstein

while this article is focused on building a brand to improve an e-commerce site, i silverstein is a friend and colleague who sees without a doubt that a smart brand strategy will improve sales for any business. he takes 10 solid points and explains how branding affects each in detail, in a way both partners and clients can understand. for me, this is a great article, because while i already love the power of branding, it’s really helpful to see how it applies to e-commerce.

beyond design

| heather parlato


ok go film a time-lapsed video in echo park at the lake where i go running. it looks like the geese are big fans!

food

porcini tortelli
[image: lacucinaitalinanamagazine.com]
it’s porcini season, which means that in many farmer’s markets, your local mushroom supplier will have fresh porcini for sale if they’re selling within a day’s travel radius from where they’re picked. i’m going to try out this goat cheese, chard and porcini tortelli among other things [maybe a porcini & cheese pizza]. here are some more great recipes for fresh porcini from saveur.com:
porcini and barley soup
seared copper river salmon with fresh porcini mushrooms
straw and hay: porcini fettucini

ever wondered what to do with yucca flowers? emily ho collected some great recipes & suggestions for how to use this desert flower: seasonal spotlight: yucca flowers.

a conversation on lebanese iced tea led me to this list of rose water iced tea recipes from the big apple: lebanese iced tea.

on spring
[image: greenlagirl.com]
there’s a new organic eatery in LA state historic park that has contracted with the park to grow organic vegetables on park land. Many L.A. food spots now use local produce in their dishes, but On Spring’s the only one that’s specifically contracted with the state to make locavoring easy on a state park. Now, Angelenos can go for a stroll in the park — then enjoy fair trade, organic coffee, healthy soups, and fresh salads and sandwiches made with produce grown within a 200-mile radius. exciting!

diy projects

homemade chicken coops
[image: kathy lafleur]
i am fascinated with the growing popularity in keeping backyard urban chickens. until i have a yard, i can only enjoy cambria bold’s collection of homemade coops from afar: pimp my coop: cool cribs for this season’s “it” chickens. i’m loving the green roof on this one, pictured above.

use these tips to propagate plants you already grow or find in your travels, and add to your garden or trade with friends: simple tips: propagate plants for free vegetation.

between eating eggs and making homemade cat food, i have a lot of eggshells. thanks to abby stone for sharing these uses for egg shells, most of which i never would have thought up myself! 8 excellent uses for eggshells.

industrial architecture

flipper bridge

what do you do when you have to bridge 2 countries who drive on opposite sides of the road? the flipper bridge offers a safe exchange and a lovely bridge structure. thanks <a href="kottke for the article.

beyond design

| heather parlato

food

marinated goat cheese
[image: todd coleman]
something fun to add to your spring dishes or just have on toast as a snack is this olive oil marinated goat cheese from saveur. delish!

a different angle on food writing: an unemployed restaurant critic finds a different kind of culinary satisfaction, ed murietta writes about eating on food stamps.

if you’re a food activist and have enjoyed reading michael pollan over the years, here are his favorite picks on the subject: the food movement, rising.

gardening

growing quinoa in containers
[image: kathryn wright]
when i thought about growing quinoa last year, seeing that it grows to 5ft tall made me think i didn’t have room for it. while some plants don’t transfer to containers so well, i’m glad to read that it’s possible to grow 2ft quinoa in containers: unexpected container gardening: quinoa from re-nest.com

eco-friendliness

tote bag by lostbirdfound
[image: lostbirdfound.com]
it looks like california is close to putting a ban on plastic bags and virgin paper bags, which will be a fantastic change for the environment. it will also mean getting a lot more committed to your favorite reusable bags. this lovely pomegranate print tote is available from lostbirdfound.com.