Graphic Design and More

Drawings on Sandwich Bags of David LaFerriere for his Kids

Graphic designer started drawing on sandwich bags for his kids in 2008. Almost every day his kids woke up to a surprise. You can see the gallery here.

A Gallery of Beautiful Ampersands

Even though the ampersand is a rather simple character, it has plenty of scope for creative expression. You can experiment and play with it til your heart’s content. This is the primary reason why we often see innovative designs of the ampersand symbol.

In this gallery, we have collected some of the most innovative and & beautiful designs of the ampersand symbol.

 

Ampersand by Francisco Martin

Ampersand By Leo Reynolds

Ampersand

Ampersand Cat and Dog

Ampersand Food Groups

Ampersand Redbarn

Ampersand

Ampersand By Mykl Roventine

Ampersand Earrings

Stencil Ampersand

Ampersand Love

Ampersand Needle

Strawberries & Cream Ampersand

Ampersand of Ampersand

Norwich

Ampersands

Ampersand Series

Ampersand Soft

Ampersand to Wall

Amper-Sandwich

And More

Bad Ass Ampersand

Butterfly & Wildlife Park

Ampersand

Leafy Ampersand

You and Me

Octopus Ampersand

Sans Serif Ampersand

Ampersand Candy

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Via Art of Manliness

32 Unique Black And White Patterns

Art has been in this world as long as human beings existed. It can be said that art existed even before the development of languages and man used art as a means of communication. In the ancient times, art was mostly simple geometric and linear figures or signs drawn on textiles, pottery, caves and rocks. It had a symbolic meaning representing culture, religion and status. This representation of meaning in art differed with culture and time throughout the world which led to the development of abstract art.

 Abstract art is a form of art which uses visual display of colors and lines to create a pattern that has a degree of independence, not confining to a particular figure. In other words, a perfect representation of objects or figures is likely to be extremely vague in an abstract art. It gives a visual meaning and anyone can enjoy it without being able to read it. Abstract art does not call for an elaborate use of colors. Even simple black and white patterns could create beautiful visual display that carries untold meanings. These 32 patterns contain both complex and simple drawings and they are sure to grab your attention and create an impact.

 

Stylish Swirls

Stylish and modern black and white swirls will create a stunning effect when placed in any room.

 

Stylish Swirls

Squares All Over

This simple black and white drawing is completely captivating and visually very interesting.

 

Squares All Over

Visual Art

With neat arrays of lines forming an interesting optical art, this pattern will play with your vision.

 

Visual Art

5 perfect pencils for professional designers

Whatever your design discipline, every designer needs a decent one. Here are 5 great choices to help you start your search for the perfect pencil...

Whether you're sketching out a wireframe, creating a rough draft of an illustration or just doodling for inspiration, you're going to need a solid, reliable set of pencils. Luckily, these are not the most expensive items in the designer's toolkit so you can afford to try out a few different brands in your search for the perfect pencil. Here we've gathered together five great choices to get you started...

01. Rotring Rapid Pro Drafting Pencil

Suited for: Graphic design and typography

This beautiful, metal drafting pencil is truly one for the pros. It features a hexagonal body and a circular cross-hatch metal grip. The cushion point mechanism allows the sliding sleeve to give slightly under pressure to reduce lead breakage while writing. The pencil includes a clip and eraser under the cap. A fantastic mechanical pencil suited for layouts and typography.

 

02. Faber-Castell Grip 2011 Mechanical Pencil

Suited for: Graphic design & typography

The Faber-Castell Grip Mechanical Pencil has won several design awards and has become deservedly popular. This wonderful pencil feels second-nature thanks to the perfect-sized triangular barrel covered in raised rubber dots which allow for firm and comfortable grip. Furthermore, the pencil comes with a handy extra long twisting eraser and 0.7mm HB lead.

03. Derwent

Suited for: Sketching

The Cumberland Pencil Company has been making pencils since 1832, and it shows in the quality of its Derwent brand. These pencils, which are sold individually, make smooth, easy lines on the paper, making them ideal for bold line drawings and free style sketches.

 

04. Albrecht Dürer Watercolor Pencil

Suited for: Illustration

This set is named after the famous German artist Albrecht Dürer, who created beautiful illustrations and paintings in watercolor. These are very carefully made using only the highest quality materials, including vibrant pigments, a unique binder medium, and with over 100 years of fade resistance.

These pencils are perfect for both drawing and painting techniques. They come in Tin Sets of 12, 24, 60, and a full range of 120 watercolor pencils, these sets are ideal for any artist.

 

05. Prismacolor Premier Coloured Pencil

Suited for: Illustration

This pencil set is suited for students and entry level artists. Soft, thick cores create a smooth colour laydown for superior blending and shading. A true art medium with thick, soft leads containing brilliant permanent pigments that are smooth, water resistant and lightfast.

Colours are easily blended on all art surfaces to form an infinite variety of hues and shades. Their thick leads resist breakage so you may get as dramatic as you dare.

 

And have you considered...?

As an alternative to using a pencil for sketching and illustration, have you considered using graphite powder? The Creatacolor Charcoal Powder is made using a special deep-firing method to produce a dense, rich charcoal. Develop large-scale drawings or mix with water and a binding agent for additional tonal effects.

The graphite powder produces luminous light and dark shades of gray, it slides easily, smudges, blends, rubs off like chalk. Fixative must be used on the final artwork and is suitable for wet or dry techniques on paper or canvas. Recent London graduate Kelvin Okafor is an avid user of the product, and his portfolio of drawings is spectacular.

 

[Via Creative Blog]

Mantone: 5 Colour Palettes for the Modern Man

Offering up a colour palette for the complex modern man, designer LunchBreath has created Mantone.

Which one is your favourite?

You've heard of Pantone, you may have heard of its booze-related buddy Beertone... now Chicago-based designer LunchBreath has created Mantone, described as "five exciting colour palettes for the complex modern man".

The 2013 colour forecast features five easily recognisable male stereotypes, each with their very own descriptions and colour palette: the hard-working hipster; the angsty alpha; the unemployed underachiever; the timid technophobe and the paranoid prepper.

Even though I'm sure that this project was just a bit of fun for the designer, I can't quite help but find the palettes rather useful. The complementary colours are beautiful, with the accents and graphic elements providing a nice little extra.

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25 Wall Murals To Make Your Room Come Alive

Decorating your room can either be a really fun project or a complete nightmare – and if you lack ideas and time, then this task has got “trouble” written all over it. Whichever way, Eazy Wallz has got a great solution for you: photographic wall murals that can make your dull room come alive!

I have to confess, I haven’t tried them myself, but the examples on Eazy Wallz website look absolutely incredible. They can instantly teleport you to any place in the world, be it Africa or Paris, or lift you up to the clouds to see the panorama of New York. The lightly textured Eazy Wallz murals not only are as thin canvas, they also don’t rip, wrinkle, tear or stretch. According to their website, they’re also easy to install, as the peal-and-stick feature gives you more than one shot at sticking them nicely.

Has anyone tried them? Are they as good as they look?

Website: eazywallz.com

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Giant Snow ‘Crop Circles’ by Walking All Day

A British engineer Simon Beck will make your jaws drop: the 54-year-old man creates massive trampled snow drawings by walking all day long in his snowshoes! Looking a bit like frosty crop circles, some of his drawings in the ski resort of Les Arcs in France stretch up to the size of 6 football pitches.

Simon says the main reason to start this was the need for exercise, when due to problems with his feet he could no longer run. The intricate snow art pieces require detail planing and mapping, which the man first does on his computer. As an orienteering leader, he uses a compass to create the geometric designs on the snow and calls his method “kind  of reverse orienteering”. In case of unfavorable weather conditions, some of his snow drawings can’t even be finished. Their lifespan also depends on the weather.

Website: facebook

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Superb Minimalist Posters of Children Movies

I have always believed that children cartoons are a wicked medium of self-expression to represent the human psychology. A child learns the standard human behavior with the help of these visual mediums just as he acquires the linguistic competence by imitating the sounds he hears in his surroundings.

However, animated movies are now so famous that they do great business with viewers of all age groups. With awesome graphics, quality humor, and great cinematography; children movies can be just as exhilarating as the adult Hollywood flicks.

Many graphic designers try to capture the creative essence behind these cartoon movies with minimalist design trends, and Christian Jackson is yet another brilliant designer from Chicago who has created an amazing set of minimalist posters, based on famous children movies. This technique surely complements the ingenious expression of human character, yet adheres to the fun aspect of entertainment.

Hope these posters revive your love for the children movies once again and bring back happy memories of the past.

See: Square Inch Design Blog

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James Bond Penguin Cover Prints

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

‘Originally released to celebrate the centenary of Ian Fleming’s birth in 2008, the Penguin Bond covers are now available as limited edition, signed and numbered prints in conjunction with the Fleming estate.’

- Michael Gillette