Line of Thought

Line.




Today I was thinking about lines and realized that they're everywhere, they're existent and nonexistent at the same time when they define the edges of objects, and they're anything but ennui. Ok, what prompted this line of thought? A design class where we were forced to draw various lines, and where we need to create works of lines for some major projects. And the professoressa (who left a job that advertised for her replacement in The New Yorker) asked us, "Do you find this activity boring?" to which we all/most raised our fingers a degree and shifted our eyes. But nay, says I, and fortunately these images that remind me that the simple line is a thing of beauty, and can be a part of beauty implied.

Check out The Art of Immersion by Frank Rose. The contour lines remind me of a melted record. And notice the illusory, perpendicular lines that form as you scroll the page up and down. Magnifique.



Or the image at the top of this post, a poster by Fabien Barral that incorporates color and star charts. Star charts are beautiful examples of poised and elegant lines.

The stars themselves also create lines, and that's another beauty of the line: even without being there, it's often implied and present. It's the strong and invisible line, like the vision of someone pointing. Today, while Nannying, I pointed to the sippy cup on the floor and said, "where is your milk?" hoping that he would see the invisible line that connected the tip of my finger to his cup. Instead, intrigued, he grabbed my finger with his full fist, then proceeded to shape his tiny hand like mine, index finger out, and to point at a few books on the shelves. He was totally absorbed in the curious quality of this motion, and I was absorbed with the ability to witness the formation of life lessons within an individual. The line was lost, but he'll connect the dots eventually.

http://www.graphic-exchange.com/home.html

Finally, check out these prints from Brent Wadden. Thanks, Design Sponge, for the inspiration.

Book Cover Design - Something Completely Different

I was walking along the bountiful bookshelves of Powell's last night and checking out the Science Fiction section, a bewildering place because I know nothing about it except for the fact that Mark likes it; so I often venture into the dragon-filled, paperback world and find myself dumbfounded. What to get? Does he like Knights and Dragons science fiction, Martian Fiction, Wizards Fiction, or Futuristic lore? (Does that even make sense, anachronistically?) I don't know what he likes, I don't know what authors are good, and, quite frankly, all of the books look the same, which is so confusing.

It's true. They all look like romance novels with men in action poses, riding dragons or horses or space ships. That is, they all did, until Simon Morden revolutionized the Science Fiction book cover, shaking it to its core. I mean, just look at his geometric covers and then the goulash of books around them. They stand out. They "speak volumes!", they're different. They're all optical illusions, which is in perfect theme with the content of his work.

Bravo, Orbit. It'd be cool to know who the designer behind the covers is. Do you know? Do you have a favorite book cover?

Your DIY Spanish Style Bedroom

OK, you want a DIY Spanish look for your bedroom, you want to give only a handful of dollars, and you want it in a weekend. Here's a simple way to create your bedroom's new look:



You'll Need:

Paint: Primer & a nice, BOLD color
Fabric with an intricate, bold pattern on it
Fabric for drapes (or new drapes)
Objects from Nature
Frames
Spray Paint

~~~~~ the first step ~~~~~

OK, the first thing you can to do transform your bedroom into a Spanish Manor is to remove your furniture and paint the walls a BOLD color. Painting the room is the cheapest way to have a huge effect. A deep and lavish red is nice and dramatic, while an eggshell blue or a spring green all have personality to them, which is what you want. If painting the entire room is too much, consider doing just a wall. If you can't get enough paint, consider doing the ceiling a complimentary color. Also think about the size of your room: darker colors will give it a smaller, cozy feeling while lighter colors will open it up. If you live in a dark area, then lighter (yet still saturated) colors might be the way to go.


~~~~~ the second step ~~~~~


OK, now think about what you want to bring back into your room. Does your furniture match your new look, or is it more of a Victorian or even teenage hue? This is the time to select what you keep, and what you find another home for (your friends, curb, and even your basement/attic will be happy to house what you don't need).

What should you keep? Woods. Natural elements. Things in bold color. Don't bring too much back-- it's nice to live in an open, airy environment, especially if this Spanish Manor is anywhere near the Mediterranean in your imagination.


~~~~~ the third step ~~~~~

Cheap, DIY Wall Art.

Here's where your fabric and frames come in. Purchase some great fabric with strong patterns and colors, or choose a nice white-on-white pattern, and frame it with old frames. You can pick up your frames from garage sales and thrift stores. To create a complete look, remove the glass from the frames and spray paint them a complimentary color to your new walls. When dry, replace the glass, add the fabric, and hang. Instant art, few dollars, big effect.


~~~~~ the fourth step ~~~~~

Drapes. The longer the drapes, the more dramatic the feel, so go straight to the floor. You can either purchase new drapes, or buy some fabric and make your own. Making your own is way cheaper (depending on the fabric), way more DIY, and is the best way to get the perfect length.


~~~~~ the fifth step ~~~~~

Engage your Antique Finding Skillz and look out at garage sales and thrift stores for any accessories that fit your new look. Those could be colorful ceramics, Virgin Mary statues, crosses, and other beautiful items. You don't need too much: a few pieces make a strong statement while several pieces create a crowd.

~~~~~ the sixth step ~~~~~

Lay back and enjoy! And if your friends helped you create your piece di resistance, some tapas & beer is an excellent way to pay them back (just a suggestion).


Want more inspiration?

Spanish Homes Photography

Frida Kahlo

Look up Spanish Style Decor on Google



Do you have any suggestions for creating the perfect DIY Spanish Style room?

The Creative Invoice

Why not take something that's ASSUMED boring and bring it to life?


While researching how to create an invoice, I came across Holdsnowater's invoice on Flickr. The design is so great-- it's an invoice within an invoice, it's well labeled, and nothing gets in the way of the theme-- the whole thing screams Invoice, and yet the whole thing screams Well Designed.

It makes me wonder if creatives should have different invoices for different types of work. Like, for me, one Design Invoice, one Photography Invoice, and one Writing Invoice, each one with accompanying visual styles and elements to compliment the theme... Perhaps have a template, and switch the colors and graphics for each one accordingly, but have all other visual elements remain the same.

For a "quick" (not so quick) template that I had to give to my dad for some logo work, I created this one below. It's not as tight and assembled as Hodsnowater's, for sure, and it's not my clear theme delineation proposal, but I like it. Do you?

Do you have any links for other creative twists to boring financial documents?

There's no standard for how to do financial documentation, as long as it's clear. American Apparel, apparently, has a really well designed receipt. Check it out! It's always nice to come across some stellar design.

Art & Sound

Lately I've been taking a good look at art and sound and, for various reasons, have found myself involved in finding sound effects. This latest foray into the world of sound has been looking up bird calls for an app that M & I are creating. And because it's fun when blogs are interactive, here are a few of my favorite birdsong sounds that I've found:

Blackbird:

http://murraycharters.net/rwbb1.wav


Sparrow:

http://rmc.library.cornell.edu/ornithology/sounds/gocspa.wav


And there's nothing like a good ol' BirdLion:

http://simplythebest.net/sounds/WAV/sound_effects_WAV/sound_effect_WAV_files/lion.wav








Image from Strykmig

Burning Man Dome: The Sink

Burning man is hot, sticky, dusty, and dirty. You slather on sunscreen every day, sweat all day, dance all night, and have to deal with porta-potties. Eventually, you really, really, really just want to wash your hands. At least, I do. So much so that last year I took a squirt bottle and filled it with water and alcohol to spray on my palms and fingers to disinfect them. For the longest time I thought that was genius... until it dried my hands out so much that they were cracked and bleeding, and immobile by request (mine and theirs).

Now, oh now, the solution: the 3-Gallon sink. Look at this baby! Toothbrushes, razors, drinking water, face-washing, hand washing. Hootenanny!

Comfort at Burning Man

How can you have the best Burning Man crib when you're in a dome and not a camper?

It's essential that you're comfortable at Burning Man. For me, it's essential that I'm comfortable. It's hot, it's new, it's really fun, but it's also extremely physically demanding. There is no place where some self-care doesn't go a long, long way. So I'm thinking about doing a blog series about Burning Man comfort. The series will most definitely be updated, with the "Pimp Your Dome" entry being expanded and lavished with good ideas for months, hopefully. And, hopefully, I'll have some follow-through myself.

Last year, we had our clothes in giant tubs, which was a step up from our duffel bags from the year before, but which led to huge piles of dirty clothes mixed with clean, an inability to find anything, and general swampiness within the bins. The year before, our clothes were strewn around the dome (which was shared between three awesome folks), which was unmanageable. This year, I want something a little different.

Do you have any advice for a kick-ass dome?

- Paige