Two and Two

I live in the midwest, which means two things. One, the weather is dreary, cold, and unpredictable for a majority of the year. Two, because of said weather patterns, we need a lot of coats. And color. (Example: I have three (count em) three purple winter coats.) And where do we hang our colorful coats? Why on a colorful coat hanger, of course! That and the prints that go with them. Links below.

1. Bold coat stand (Living etc)
2. "Encyclopedia 2" (2x200)
3. "Closing Credits at the End of the Movie" (2x200)
4. Eames Hang-It-All (DWR)

When you're blue

Pretty prints to keep you going. Links below.

(sources: But a Breath / Never Too Late (Etsy) / Choose Joy (Etsy) / I Can and I Will)

This American Life

I don't really know what the connecting vein of this post is, to be quite honest. Just a bunch of fun little things discovered on the same day, I suppose. (And most of this is vintage, and yes, the first pic is of a Chip n Dip, which Mad Men fans will probably appreciate.)

Links below.

(sources: Chip n' Dip / paper garland / Mad Men illustration / homes photograph / vintage wallpaper / vintage pastel set)

Pink Friday

Happy Friday, folks! These and much more from the Flickr photostream of Lola Thomasina. Check out her blog and Tumblr. Love the softness of her work.

(source: ghostlings on Flickr)

Pages

"Color codification dot drawings" by Lauren DiCioccio. A sheet of frosted mylar is placed over a page in a magazine with a paint color appointed to each letter. The result is a stunning explosion of organized color.

(sources: Laura DiCioccio / discovered in Rue Magazine, Issue 3)

Two and Two

More things that go together. Like Anthropologie and Etsy, which consequently is where three of the four items below were found. Etsypologie? Anthrotsy? I'm all over that. Links below.

1. Lamp illustration by Brent Courchman
2. Swaying Stalks Lamp (Anthropologie)
3. Tea Time Chandelier (Anthropologie)
4. Vintage tea, original oil painting by PaintedPostcards on Etsy

Woodland creatures

So, I kinda have a thing for birds. And really good knits and glasses. And if a bear just happens to be wearing said knits and glasses, then so be it.

Get these wildly whimsical animal prints by Ashley Percival on Etsy.

(source: Ashley Percival on Etsy)

Little green things

When I was a little girl someone gave me the most beautiful, plush frog prince pin cushion. It was the size of a small pumpkin, and made of velvet (purple, maroon, or deep green, i can't remember), with a porcelain frog prince head sticking out of it. The detail of that little thing. Too bad I couldn't appreciate it then as I would have now. Below is the prettiest little perfume bottle I've ever seen (by Happ & Stahns, via Anthro), and a page from a book printed in 1938 (via Etsy). They go together quite well in my head.

(sources: Happ & Stahns / TheFancyLamb on Etsy)

Warm, not so fuzzy

The best of Junya Watanabe, Paris, via The Sartorialist. 

First of all, I love The Sartorialist. Have I said that before? I do. Long time fan, forever love. Secondly, in the words of Rachel Zoe, I die for these knit blazers. Waiting for the day these come in a more budget-friendly version, and for women. Because I love a good knit, and I loooooove a good blazer (plus dude number one below; very French, wonder if he is?)

(source: The Sartorialist)

Limited palettes

One of my favorite techniques in illustration is limiting a color palette to three or four colors. These three are by illustrator, David Semple (make sure to check out his photostream on Flickr). And for the record, I would totally eat at a restaurant where a chicken waiter hands me my burger.

(source: David Semple / 1 / 2 / 3)

While we're at it

Oh, what the hell. Why make you trek all over the place when I can embed it right here. It premiered a week ago, and all the relevant links are in the post right before this one. This is "Don't Look Back" by She&Him.

Stuck on repeat

"Ridin' In My Car" by She & Him. Seriously. For like, days now. Listen below, and while you're at it, check out She & Him's latest music video for their song, "Don't Look Back": a retro design explosion that made its debut on Design*Sponge last week.

Big grey things

...and one small, pink thing. Don't you just love when things like this work out? Links below.

1.  Brave Baby Elephant by Sesyle Johnson; pictures by Leonard Weisgard
2.  Coralie Bed (Anthropologie)
3.  Charlotte Bedside Table (Pottery Barn)
4.  Hayley hammered silk-satin top (Marc by Marc Jacobs)
5.  White Narcissus Mirror (Anthropologie)
6.  Savannah Story Bust, Elephant (Anthropologie)

Step

Shoe illustrations by Brent Couchman. Because I realize it can't always be ballet flats and lipstick around here ;)

(sources: Brent Couchman / 1 / 2)

Flight

Check out these bird prints from The Animal Print Shop by photographer, Sharon Montrose. Shop around; prints can cost as little as $25! And it's not just birds (though they are a personal favorite). The Animal Print Shop features shots of reptiles, baby animals, cats (domesticated and wild), and forrest critters, to name a few.

(sources: The Animal Print Shop / Sharon Montrose)

People, Places, Things

Sketch collages by Bill Brown. Check out his photostream on Flickr.

(sources: Bill Brown / 1 / 2 / 3)

The Scientist

From the Flickr photostream of Arian Behzadi. Discovered on Miss Moss. 

Much too much lovely here. The most fascinating aspect of all this? Behzadi is a Biological Sciences major with an emphasis in Neurobiology, Physiology, and Behavior at UC Davis. Design work is something he does on the side, in between classes! This isn't his "day job", folks! Tell me, does art benefit from a scientific mind? Based on these, the answer is a resounding, "YES!" Here's just a sampling; check out his other work in the links at the end of this post.

(sources: Arian Behzadi on Flickr / Miss Moss / Arian Behzadi)

Sewn

Cut and sewn postcard collages by Shaun Kardinal. The more I blog and discover, the more I realize just how much cooler everyone is than me. Thank you, Internet.

(sources: Shaun Kardinal / all the mountains)

Wanderlust

By Erik Mansson. How to even describe these pieces. Does this fall in the 'digital collage' category, for lack of a better term? They are simply sublime. That'll be the category: Sublime. Great way to address that vertical space.

(sources: 1 / 2 / 3)

Saturation

I like to keep a mixed bag here at 2&20, and while these Trains of Discovery book covers by Devin Watson take on a more traditional feel, I really enjoy how saturated in color the background painting is. It lends itself well to the added label.

(source: design:related)

Hoot

A Hoot a Day is a self-initiated project by designer, Jen B. Peters (currently working at Mattson Creative). The concept is exactly what it sounds: a new owl illustration for every day of the new year. Too cute!

(source: A Hoot A Day)

Hue plus

"Opener illustration for Sight & Sound, the magazine of British Film Institute. 2010, a year in review" via Cristiana Couceiro, whose work I always love. Her style is very specific, and never goes too far.

(source: hue+saturation)

Red

'January Red' by Ely Kim for Kate Spade. YES, Please! There is nothing about this scenario that I don't enjoy. I'd walk an hour in the cold in downtown Chicago to get some red velvet at Sprinkles right now thanks to this.



(source)

History

I tend to post a lot of vintage on this blog, and there's a reason why.  In a society so besotted with the idea of here and now and the next big thing, I'm happy that things like this don't just get pushed to the wayside. Current graphic design yearns for and celebrates the classics. It's like we left something wonderful back there, and the more we move forward, the more we look behind.

Vintage spreads, cover art by Erik Nitsche.

(sources: ISO50 Blog / iconographics) 

Treasure

My, my. I'm in geek heaven today. Once upon a time, my life was all about this:
By designer, Pablo Sanchez. Buy them here.

(sources: GraphicHug / Ponigordo)

Yes, please

By John Foster. Available here.

(sources: Invisible Creature Speaks / Qbookshop.com / Bad People Good Things)

The Walking Dead

How I've managed to only see this now is beyond me. Here is another goodie from Andrew Kolb. 

(sources: Eight Hour Day Blog / Kolb Is Neat)

Tailgate

Love these posters by Abby Smith done for a student ministry event. Fun typography, a great pattern, and what looks to be a lot of good food; count me in! Check out Abby's other work in her Flickr photostream.

(sources: Abby in Color / 1 / 2)

Endless Summer

Because there's something mind-numbingly cute about drawing perfect cities on someone's arm. (And I'm having a really chick-y day.)

(source: homeofthenutty)

Hers & Hers

Excuse me while I have a girly moment. I am, after all, a girl. How cute are these J. Crew ballet flats?! First three pics are for women, the bottom two are for girls. Guess which ones I love more. (Little all the way!)

(sources: Paulina ankle-tie ballet flats / Girls' petit belle ballet flats)

Ward

Vintage Mobil ads by Ward Kimball. Today, making your work appear 'vintage' is a matter of how many textures you can add and how many colors you can subtract. (Of course there's no better texture than time itself.) The key is to be charming.

(source: Cartoon Brew)

Closer

Lovely black and white film set photos by Brigitte Lacombe. Depicted below are Nine, Revolutionary Road, Sherlock Holmes, and Shutter Island.

(source: everyday_i_show)