Cool posters

Field Notes – share the love

We love Field Notes notebooks and we love print and this video shows why.

That’s the way to promote your product: show people you love what you do and that you’re competent at it.

The 45 sleeve — packaging as art

“Sleeves were designed originally to serve as a protective device for records and labels during shipment. In the case of “45” rpm records, however, a device of this nature becomes unnecessary. The raised label area on 45’s fully prevents any harmful contact between the grooved surfaces of records during shipment. Paper separators – such as this sheet – are designed to protect record labels during shipment. They have no other useful function and may be discarded at your convenience…”

Sage record care advice from the folks at RCA Victor, circa 1952.

As you can see from the small selection of 45 sleeves shown above, thankfully, the rest of the music industry — and, indeed, RCA itself — didn’t share this rather quite touching faith in the durability of the company’s new vinyl medium, and quickly turned the humble shipping protector into an art form in its own right.

RCA’s numpty claim is very redolent of those made on behalf of the CD when it was first introduced — most famously on a 1981 episode of the popular TV science show, Tomorrow’s World, wherein the presenters happily smeared a shiny biscuit with jam, then wiped it off and played it, as if proving that it was virtually indestructible! And we know how that ended…

“Sorry, sir, there’s no call for letterheads anymore…”

Farenheit 451 author Ray Bradbury's letterhead, circa 1950s

With the predominance of email comms, letterheads have become almost an afterthought. But until the 21stC, they were an important part of the comms kit of businesses, creatives, the great and the, um, deffo not so… A cool blog, Letterheady, features a cornucopia of letterheads, from the overweeningly self-promoting to the understated. Here are just a few examples, from the sublime to the dangerous…

If Comic Sans Could Speak

McSweeney’s is a brilliant site at the best of times but this imagined sideswipe at designer elitism from Comic Sans is genius.

WARNING TREMENDOUS AMOUNT OF POTTY-MOUTHED LANGUAGE

Sample Quote:
It doesn’t even matter what you think. You know why, jagoff? Cause I’m famous. I am on every major operating system since Microsoft @£$%ing Bob. I’m in your signs. I’m in your browsers. I’m in your instant messengers. I’m not just a font. I am a force of mother@£$%ing nature and I will not rest until every uptight armchair typographer @£$%-hat like you is surrounded by my lovable, comic-book inspired, sans-serif badassery.

You know what? I still hate Comic Sans.

Cormac McCarthy book covers

PanMacmillan have reissued Cormac McCarthy’s back catalogue. The covers have been given a lovely typographic treatment, beautifully designed by David Pearson.
They’ve been embossed too which makes them feel very desirable when you’re in Waterstones.

Flipping Princess

The Princess Bride has got to be one of my desert island DVDs. I already have the 15th anniversary edition, but the 20th is tempting… Got to love this fabulous ambigram cover design…

Princess Bride 20th edition