Design Debate

What a beautiful product for those who still have a love for vinyl. It is always interesting, I think, when a product comes out of a need. Kate Koeppel design was looking for a beautiful way to organise their record collection but were unimpressed by the poorly made, ugly and largely plastic solutions available. So they put together a team of artisans including laser cut specialists and master letterpress printers to design a solution. Based in San Fransico this creative team have produced a really lovely made to order screen printed box. The dividers can be either horizontal or vertical and I think would look very smart on my shelf at home. See more at the Dieline .     

I love this branding for online store Deerz . Reduced down to its simplest form, just 3 'stitches' showing a deer's head.  Designed by Eskimo Design Studio, they created a new brand for the existing company as well as unique typography and product packaging. I really like the die-cut echoing the logo and revealing a little of the product. Deerz sell sweaters and pullovers with Scandinavian patterns and I feel the logo fits the brand perfectly. Eskimo also created the tags and washing symbols, and I think, quite  thoughtful packaging. The inner wrap kind of hugs the jumper, making the product feel special and cosy even before it is worn. See more at Identity Designed . 

You are probably quite familiar with the traditional Dutch tiles, pale tiles with blue illustrations, known as 'Dutch Whites'. Marga van Oers and business partner Judith Brook have given these 16th century tiles a new lease of life.  They take the tiles and add a little humour to create a story through collage and colour. The added details are always restrained and subtle and really do bring this traditional Dutch craft bang up to date.  Story Tiles also create modern designs, again with collage and colour added sparingly. Whereas you might find Dutch Whites lining a fireplace, Marga van Oer design's are artworks in their own right and really do encourage you to look closer and find the story yourself. Found via Bloesem .

When I was growing up my brother and I just loved Lego, didn't we all? So many possibilities. The backdrops they provided never really cut it so we would take our lego creations out into the wilds of the garden, mum's laundry pile or sometimes the dog's fur to make our stories come to life.  
This all came flooding back when I saw the work of Helsinki-based photographer Vesa Lehtimäki . He sets up great photos with the Lego characters from Star Wars and Indiana Jones. I just love how Lehtimäki creates such atmosphere using baking powder for snow and dramatic lighting. Brilliant!  
 See more at My Modern Met .