There have been a lot of great articles floating around the internet this week and I thought I’d share a few of the ones that I found very much worth reading. This cold weather has me curling up with a cup of coffee and my books and my instapaper when I’m on the go. It’s the perfect time to catch up on reading!
Have a great weekend!
The Harbinger Co. has me doing some pre-weekend shopping. I’m a big fan of the mustache ring and other delicately cut jewelry pieces. It’s a great mind break this Friday afternoon!
I know that this has been circling the internet, but I still wanted to share it in case you hadn’t seen it. A great article, How To Steal Like An Artist (And 9 Other Things Nobody Told Me) is the perfect read for both students and professionals alike. Based on a talk by Austin Kleon for Broome Community College, it’s a great resource for motivation and understanding of how you get to where you want to be. Make you sure take a second to read it. It’s definitely worth your time!
{ kitchen, living room, straws, paper flowers, table }
As promised, I want to share some party inspiration from the birthday weekend I had with my girlfriends in Cleveland. Like any picture-obsessed designer, I had to create inspiration boards to hone in on what I was looking to accomplish in two days time. I couldn’t have done it without my friend, Clarissa Westmeyer, whose love of vintage and lovely home created the perfect atmosphere for the weekend. She was so fantastic (and a great cook!) and I couldn’t have made it happen without her. Thank you, Clarissa!
So here are the inspiration boards I made for the weekend starting with the colors. I like to use inspiration boards as a jumping-off point and don’t feel bound to them when I’m making something. They serve me well to get ideas flowing but I love it when an idea or something unique I find can take me down another path to something better.
While doing my freelance projects, I always wonder what others are doing as they deal with their clients and money. This great article, How Graphic Designers Get Paid, has done most of the legwork in showing what others do and have done for their own work. I was very surprised at some of the answers, especially that 61.5% said they bill a fixed rate. I thought for sure it’d be more even with an hourly rate. Did any numbers surprise you?
via David Airey
These information graphics by Paul Butt are making me very jealous. It’s hard to find new ways to show information and for it to be visually beautiful, but Paul seems to have no problem bringing life to stats. Neatly executed and visually powerful, each page is filled with a graphic more interesting than the next.
See more of the project on Looks Like Good Design and even more in his portfolio.
I found the work of Balsam Studio on Graphic Exchange, but it was looking at their website that won me over. You can’t see it in my screen grabs, but the website moves smoothly through their portfolio and information and I love the subtle details they’ve made including the lines and grids that remind me of my Swiss design upbringing. View their full site for the full effect.
Thank you to Casey Carmell for introducing me to Remade In Switzerland. A beautifully designed site with specialty army apparel clothes, Remade in Switzerland was founded when Christopher Raeburn found a surplus of stock from the war and deconstructed it, creating a whole new line of beautifully crafted clothing and apparel.
“Ræburn returned to his London studio armed with samples of the surplus stock and began the process of deconstruction. By taking apart the existing garments, he found inspiration and ideas to create new ones, re-imagining unexpected uses for the old and challenging the concept of what is considered new. A rare find was a box of horseshoe nails that became the symbol of the project for Ræburn. He challenged Victorinox to recast that nail into scales for an Original Swiss Army Knife to complement the project. The nail also inspired a print used for linings and other graphic treatments.”
Explore more the well designed brand, culture and philosophy of Remade in Switzerland here.
A wonderful interview and intriguing look into Paula Scher’s home on the New York Social Diary. Paula is such an icon for both the design industry and as a successful woman in business, I admire her work and thoughts more than I can say. Read her full interview and see more of her designerly home on the New York Social Diary.
Stylist and creative Randi Brookman Harris has a portfolio to be jealous of. With a client list consisting of Martha Stewart, Jack & Kate Spade, Conde Nast, JCrew, Instyle and more, her taste is impeccable and portfolio, drool worthy. She has a range that is envied with food styling, fashion, magazines and storefronts to name a few. See more of her work on her site here.
