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cmyk embroidery
I am in total awe of Evelin Kasikov's master's thesis project, entitled Printer Matter, completed while she was a student at Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design.
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If you don't know, most full-color printed pieces use four ink colors- Cyan, Magenta, Yellow and Key (black), or CMYK. The artwork is turned in a halftone which lays each color down in different sized dots. Colors are printed at different angles to prevent what's called a moiré pattern.
enlarged halftone screen on left, Kasikov's embroidered version on right
From her website: "Printed Matter is a project about craft within the context of graphic design. It is a unique set of books, which combine cross-stitch embroidery and printing processes. These books are about tactile visual perception. By mixing high and low tech, screen based media with slower crafts, I investigate different ways of seeing and experiencing visual messages."
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This is one of those "I wish I would have thought of that first" kind of projects. So cool!
Images [evelinkasikov.com]
via [inspirationresource.blogspot.com]
nonsense info graphics
I love this series of "nonsense info graphics" by Chad Hagen:
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I've always loved information graphics and am impressed when a designer can take loads of information, organize it, and make it look great at the same time. It's a true example of form follows function.
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Hagen removes the actual information and focuses solely on the aesthetic, to create these amazing information-less graphics and charts.
I heart them.
See more on Hagen's Flickr site.
pastels!
I keep staring at this cool spread from "Know The Joy Of Better Cooking Electrically" from 1963...
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It looks as though each room was photographed separately. But if you look closer, you can see the shadows cross over in to each "room". This set was created just for the photo shoot!
via [ctb59's Flickr photostream]
how to build modern furniture
I was shopping at a thrift store a few weeks ago and came across a really great find... a book entitled How to Build Modern Furniture by Mario Dal Fabbro.
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Printed in 1957, this book contains 53 furniture designs "for the home craftsman using the simplest joinery methods."
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I really doubt I will ever build anything from this book, but it's great to flip through for inspiration. And, if I ever get the urge for a George Nelson-ish cabinet, I can pull out this book, grab my screwdriver and get to work.
press
Thanks to Tina from Swiss Miss and Laura for the nice press today on their blogs! I'm flattered!
Tina mentioned the cool 45 record box and Laura about the swell 1950s school binder both at Kitsch Café Vintage.
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Also, if you are in the Cincinnati area, stop by local "green" store Park + Vine as they are now carrying Kitsch Café Handmade products, including journals, notecards, pouches, buttons and pack o' paper.
united's "heart" ad
A year ago, during the Beijing Olympics, United Airlines aired a television ad featuring the paper sculpture of Megan Brain and the stop animation work of Jamie Caliri. I loved it immediately and watch it often on YouTube for inspiration.
watch the ad on youtube | click to enlarge
Other than the obviously amazing art direction and animation style, the thing I like the most about this advertisement is it's subtly in, well, being an advertisement. You know what the ad is for without hearing the name of the airline over and over. Like Target used to in most of their advertisements, United isn't selling anything specific. It's just giving you a message about their company and brand.
For more information read this write-up and for a behind the scenes look at the making of the music (performed by Herbie Hancock and Lang Lang) check out this YouTube video by United.
phonebox cozy
I spent the summer of 1996 living and working in London. It was my first time in London- I knew very little about the city when I arrived. Visiting a city is one thing. But living there, interacting with British coworkers, being exposed to local and national media, navigating daily live in a huge, foreign city makes the social and cultural differences even more pronounced.
my tube pass | i was only 21 years old!
Through Facebook, I've been reminiscing about the experience with the flatmates i lived with at the time. It's made me miss the experience. So you can imagine how excited I was when I found these photos from Knit the City, a group of knit graffiti artists in London. They knit a cozy for one of the those familiar red phoneboxes:
images from knitthecity.com | click to enlarge
They even got a ticket from a policeman but only got a warning because his wife is a knitter. Thanks for the memories, KTC!
(I tagged my neighborhood a few summers ago with some knitted graffiti. It was fun.)
sneak peek: customizable greeting cards
I've been working on filling my shops with more products as I have a goal of having 100 items at Kitsch Café Vintage and 50 items at Kitsch Café Handmade. One item I am working on photographing are customizable greeting cards...
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I was thinking that it might be cool to be able to change your cards to match the occasion. And, people like being creative and giving handmade cards. Most people are busy, though, so helping them along by giving them easy to use stickers makes creating "handmade" cards easy.
I'm not done with the final design and I'd like to add a few more sets of stickers to the line. Looking forward to getting these in the shop!
weekend
I hope you are all having a great weekend so far. I've been to the movies, spent a lazy Friday night people watching, hiked through a wonderful city park, had a picnic with an amazing view...
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And if you are in the Mid-West, I hope you are getting outside and enjoying the amazing chilly weather!
What have all of you been up to so far this weekend?
inspiration: sara fanelli
I first came across Sara Fanelli's illustration in a graphic design magazine. I can't remember which one, but I do remember she was trained and worked as a graphic designer before discovering illustration while a student at the Royal College of Art in London.
images from sarafanelli.com | click to enlarge
Italian born, she currently works in London as a freelance designer and illustrator. She's illustrated several children's books
images from sarafanelli.com | click to enlarge
Check out more of her work on her website.
sneak peek: hand knitted pillows
I am in the process of a massive update to Kitsch Café Vintage. Next week I will be concentrating on Kitsch Café Handmade. I wanted to share something with all of you before next week: I am thrilled to show you the next product for Kitsch Café Handmade...
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Throw pillows! Hand knitted fabric combined with vintage fabric!
I have been working on these for several months, trying different sewing techniques, etc. I haven't really seen anything like this before, so I am excited to get these to the shop, STAT. The samples shown above are only two of the many variations that will be available. I will also be offering vintage fabric pillows with no knitting in a variety of sizes, at a lower price.
Check the shop in the next week or two, as I will be adding the pillows, as well as more vintage fabric covered note cards and journals, small zippered bags, buttons/pins and packs of vintage paper.
inspiration: sliimy
I totally love and am inspired by the retro 80s video for "Wake up" by French pop star, Sliimy:
screen grabs | click to enlarge
The white background with the primary color palette is wonderfully simple and totally amazing. He's the love child of Pee-Wee Herman and Prince! (Didn't you just love Pee-Wee's playhouse!?)
screen grabs | click to enlarge
Apparently, Sliimy (pronounced Slee-mee) became an overnight sensation with his cover of Brittany Spears' "Womanizer" which he posted to YouTube. I've read that he has since signed a contract with Warner Bros. I'm anxious to see what happens next with this kid.
my new studio
My new studio is finally up and functioning (mostly)...
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I live in a pre-war apartment building in the most fantastic, walkable neighborhood. I have a formal dining room that I really never used- I've never been in to dinner parties or having guests. So, it's now my studio.
My dad built a crazy cool work table a few weeks ago. It's counter-height so that I can stand and work without leaning over. He also added shelving at the bottom so I can store my shipping supplies.
Since I now have everything pretty much set up, I need to figure out an organizing plan... where does my inventory go, how do I store fabric, where are my notions, etc. In the meantime, though, I'm sure I'll me making plenty of cool things in my new space!
clean desk!
Earlier in the spring, I was in a cleaning frenzy for about two and a half weeks. My apartment was a wreck when I left my job. I knew that if my living space (and now studio) wasn't organized physically, neither would my mind.
I went through each room cleaning, trashing, organizing and reorganizing. I still have a bit more to go. The last space to clean and organize is my office/spare bedroom. I'm halfway through. I just finished cleaning off my desk- it's nice to not have to sit at the sofa to work on the computer. And look how good it looks:
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I found the red lamp while thrifting a few weeks ago. I was going to sell it in the shop, but I like it too much (not that I don't like the things I sell, but you know what I mean.) Next to the lamp is an old 45 record box that holds my receipts.
More to come of the freshly organized and (somewhat) redecorated apartment with before and after photos!
inspiration: wpa posters
This week I am inspired by the approximately 2000 posters produced as part of FDR's New Deal.
what about knitting for victory?! | click to enlarge
Created between 1936 to 1943, these posters use silkscreen, lithograph and woodcut to promote health, safety, culture, travel, the war effort and education.
i love the pennsylvania poster | click to enlarge
The Library of Congress currently has 908 of 2000 posters that are known to exist. For more information visit the Library of Congress's website. Also, check out this set on Flickr.
drew is:
- In his early mid 30s. He lives in Cincinnati. Drew is a graphic designer. He started knitting 5 years ago to control anxiety. He teaches a competitive color guard at one of those big suburban high schools. His ultimate dream is to learn French and move to Paris. Drew has a HUGE sweet tooth. Mid-century modern furniture makes him swoon. He is additcted to the internet and loves tea and hot chocolate. Drew is the youngest grandchild on both sides. His parents are cool. He loves Korean food. Drew is happy you are here.
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