For Carol.

Yes, I know, hush up, get back to your finals. But I think you're going to be glad I did this:


Can You Imagine puzzle by Trey Speegle via Even Cleveland.


--Dara

Letter Love

I'm sure lots of people are familiar with Darren Booth's hand lettering, but I just came across it again and it's still awesome.



Work/Life Cover for Uppercase Magazine



Royal Bank of America



Out Magazine



AARP

Lots more where that came from.

--Dara (yes, back to work. 2 more days of finals!)

Gift Guide, sort of: Bazaar Bizarre SF

I'll tell you what I should NOT have been doing today when finals are next week: going to the Bazaar Bizarre in Golden Gate Park. Particularly when I'm going to see Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros tonight (because at the time, when I bought the tickets, I thought to myself, "Well, that'll be a much-needed break in the midst of all my work"). But when I saw a chance to catch a ride with my friend April and her man friend Cameron, I couldn't pass it up.

I'm so glad I went; the booths were fantastic. Some of my faves from the Ho Down were there, and I of course developed some new faves. Definitely of note was the abundance of mustache throughout.



Admission hand stamp



Cupcakes by Cynically Delicious



Embroidered bandanas by Cindy of Archicraft (she also had some killer handknit cowls and some lasercut wooden doilies....)



Nif Naks

It most certainly did not stop there, though.




I just loved this couple at Paper Pastries. I'm having the hardest time just picking 2 photos right now; go to my flickr for more, or better still, their website. They were just the cutest- they're dying to get out of LA (sound familiar?), and she clearly is doing what she loves.



Beautiful letterpress calendar from Ilee Paper Goods



Hilarious stuffed fruit from the Felt Baron



Amazing prints from Sycamore Street Press- I LOVE the heart on your sleeve print. Might have to obtain that at some point. They were another event superfave.



Awesome scarves by Loomlab. One of their designs is actually a poem written in braille!



This necklace by Ach Ach Liebling had the distinction of being my sole purchase of the day. If I gathered this correctly, it's a vintage nail head from a train track, and the number represents the year it was put in. She was so lovely, too. (update: on the website, it says that this necklace design was inspired by "a song by the Magnetic Fields about trains," which I'm assuming is "Born on a Train," which is like, my favorite song by the Magnetic Fields. Even more awesome.)



This hilarious print by Willow of willotoons is only a taste of what she's got; she's a super cute maker of onesies and tees.

All in all, 10 stars to the Bazaar Bizarre!

--Dara

Clean White Love

This reminds me of a certain magical weekend I had this summer.

via Little Glowing Lights

(just peeking my head out of the finals fog....1 week to go!)

Nubby Twiglet

A few days ago, I was chatting with my roommate Dawn (a freelance graphic designer), and just discussing that crazy world of employment that we're all peeking at trepidaciously, with our hands covering our eyes. She referred me to the blog of Nubby Twiglet, a graphic designer who's my age and fresh out of school. Her blog is insightful, engaging, and definitely a great source for any designer; from people like me who are in school through the most experienced. I was just reading this post, called "The Life of a Graphic Designer (in Training)." If you're at all in my position- just starting out or just starting your learning process or even just beginning to have an inkling that design might be the direction for you- it's worth a full read. This quote she included from Saul Bass on some problems students and new designers tend to run into struck me in particular:

‘They are not privy to process,’ he noted. ‘They may have the illusion that these things really spring full-blown out of the head of some designer. This is a very unsettling perception for young people, because they struggle with their work. They have a go at it… They redo… It gets better… It slips… It gets worse… it comes back… It comes together. And maybe it’s something that’s pretty good, even excellent. But they say to themselves, “Gee, it comes hard and it’s so difficult. Am I really suited for this?”

The blog itself is a fun read for non-designers too; her outfit posts are adorable and her Thursday feature, Link Love, is full of goodies. Thanks for the recommendation, Dawn!

--Dara

Dee and La La

I was so grateful to Erin from the Handmade Ho Down crew for solving the mystery of the letterpress company I'd spaced on identifying at the event. They're called Dee and Lala, and if I thought their HHD booth was great, their website is even better.




"Let it Glow" Chanukah card




"Naughty/Nice Fireplace" holiday card




Peaclock



whale cutting board that I SO wish weren't out of stock!



Fondue pot card ('cause why not??)

If you're down in LA, you might have seen them this past weekend at Unique LA. If you're up here by the bay, fear not- you haven't missed them! They'll be at the Bazaar Bizarre this weekend (so many amazing crafts, so little time!). I'm hoping to be there.....

...Furthermore, LOVING Erin's etsy shop,Eristotle. She uses vintage, upcycled, thrifted and eco-friendly materials whenever possible. These pillows especially are so great.




The Last Leaf pillow



Rustic Modern pillow

Great job to everyone on the HHD staff; that event was seriously amazing. Can't wait for round two!

--Dara

Galaxy print

These galaxy-print pieces by Risto Bimbiloski are ridiculous. Clearly nothing is less than $300, but I suppose we can all cross our collective fingers they go on super sale in the new year.

Risto Bimbiloski via unruly things, though I originally saw them on even cleveland a while back...