Helvetica a treat for design eyes

I just recently checked out the documentary Helvetica from the Library.

"It's a movie about fonts?" my husband asked me doubtfully when I proposed watching it together.

"Well... it's actually just about one font," I admitted.

Needless to say, I enjoyed it much more than he did. The pace was quick, the visuals lively and fun, and the interviews of design greats were inspiring. The film covered the origins of Helvetica and its rise to popularity, showing the startling difference between advertising of the 1950s and 1960s. It also made you so much more aware how pervasive it is as a font choice in both Europe and the United States. The interviews were balanced between those who found it an indispensable font for all purposes and those who thought it was bland, generic, overused, and dated.

I would recommend it for anyone interested into a sneak peek into the world of typography and graphic design – I promise you don't have to be a designer to be entertained by it!

Charley Harper fan

His subject matter was most often animals illustrated in a beautiful, simple, modern style uniquely his own. I really really like it. Check out the book on his life, the adorable children's books, the 2011 calendar, and the official website.

And I just found these fun alphabet flashcards!

Anthropologie is coming!

The store is coming to Grand Rapids!  Nothing better than being inspired by beautiful products arranged in beautiful displays amongst some beautiful interior design. Some people get on their mailing list just to be inspired by their luscious visuals.

The website is pretty fun too – what is your home decorating style? Craftsman, artist loft, cottage, or modern cabin?

On a design note, they've done a remarkable job of bringing the layered and textured to the design of their website. For a medium that frequently uses Photoshop effects to create shadows and shine, it's nice to see a more illustrative and organic look on a website.

I want to make these masks!

Jennifer Ackerman-Haywood of CraftSanity podcasting and blogging fame, I do love your ideas! Just recently she posted step-by-step instructions on making fun little masks. If I only I wasn't in the middle of not working on a quilt! I am doggedly trying to accomplish the current project list before taking on any more. A skim of the steps makes it clear that another trip to the fabric store would be in order. So I will wait.

Anyone else with creative and adventurous children just might want to whip these up though. So fun!

old is new at Target

And this news is a bit old. A while back I noticed an ad for a new line at Target which looked curiously old-fashioned. For the most part, I associate Target with modern and clean, bright colors. However, I have to admit I was attracted to the classic illustration style featured on some of the items. I made a mental note to write a blog entry about it.

Fast forward a few weeks, or perhaps a month, and I am finally writing about it. The line at Target is by John Derian. Apparently it is for a limited time. Who is John Derian? Judging by his lovely website he sells quality home decor items in his signature style, albeit at a different price point. Take a look at this great painting below (I do seem to have a thing for stark black and white flora). Explore a bit. If nothing else the site is a visual feast.