Scrambled Egg Decorating 101

In this DIY culinary clip narrated by Joe Emminger, artist Julie Paschkis dishes up a delectable hand lettered recipe for a perfectly scrambled egg. One serving guaranteed to please the whole family! 

Disclaimer : No eggs were harmed in the making of this video.

Daily Doodles

Do More of What Make you Happy, the delightful daily doodles of self-taught Tokyo artist, Mogu Takahashi. This sentimental platitude is a nice reminder for all of us to attempt to embrace throughout the year. I hope Takahashi's daily doodles give her as much joy as they do me. See so much more of Takahashi's daily doodles and sketchbooks here. And look for a wee bit more of me in this space in weeks ahead...

Playing With Fire

Happy 4th! Be safe out there folks ;)
:: Early 20th century Miller's Firework's ephemera from the Library Company of Philadelphia.

Joyful Holiday Greetings

I could not let the holiday season slide by this year without some seasonal best hits from some of the 20th centurys' most notable designers. Leading off here is an accordion four-panel card by Alex Steinweiss, the inventor of the album cover. Steinweiss (1916-2011), who spent much of his career designing for Columbia Records, preferred to just put a bow on it. I'm just sorry I didn't put this on my own xmas list, but it's still available here if anyone is feeling overly generous. 

This 1958 holiday card by Dutch designer Dick Bruna (b.1927-) was designed for Pastoe, a furniture company in the Netherlands. 
::via Centraal Museum

This undated Christmas greeting found here was illustrated by Erik Nitsche (1908-1998.) Though there is little record of its origin, Nitsche often signed his work which to a small degree, has helped to preserve his legacy. This seasonal design is rather unusual for Nitsche, who is more widely known for his bold, daring, and modernist artworks produced for the General Dynamics company in the 1950s and 60s. Below is another unusual holiday piece found here, which he designed as a circular in 1936 for the F.A.O. Schwarz Toy Company, titled the St. Nicholas Special. These are both great examples illustrating Nitsches' broad range of styles and lettering. 

Last up is a particularly handsome holiday card from 1955, designed by Scottish designer, Robert Stewart (1946-1995) for the famed Dovecot tapestry studio in Edinburgh. 

     You can find a seasonal sampling of last year's best hits here. May all of these timeless holiday treasures brighten your day!  

::via Writing Warp & Weft

A Velveteen Rabbit

For sale 

Velveteen rabbit. Needs good home. Ears permanently flopped and has obvious signs of being well-loved. Smartly attired, yet missing red buttons and one torn suspender. Reads at four year-old level, and comes with own book. Inquire within.

Pranks and Pratfalls

With April Fools Day today, I have to parade my old fake pencil and spilled ink pratfall once again. I never tire of it. The "Pirate Pencil" is from The Lovely and Strange Etsy shop, where you can find an eclectic collection of dime store novelties from the 1950s. "Lucky Tat-oos", Re-lighting Candles, and my favorite, the Hindu Magic Book are all there! I've already dropped some coins on all of these. Half the fun is the old toy, but the packaging artwork, lettering/type and printing, with the liberal interpretation of registration alignment is the best. My fake joke rubber pencil I once owned as a child is long lost, but the "Pirate Pencil" covers for it nicely. To accompany it, I dragged my "trick ink" bottle down from the Letterology attic again. It always makes me smile ; )

    

Lucky Charms

Happy Saint Patrick's Day! I continue to be charmed by this breakfast of champions, from 4CP / adventures deep inside the comic book. It is more fun than a bowl full of cereal and chewy colored marshmallows for breakfast, and far easier to swallow.

Atomic Robot

3D 4CP Boy

Ben Day in His Laboratory

The Type Machine

Main Frame

Mr. G

Comic Book Art

Captain Meric

You can find plenty more dot goodness here.

The Books of Love

The Art of Love, 1839, with gold stamping on a ribbon embossed cloth binding; from The Library Company of Philadelphia.

The Album of Love, 1846, with gold and blind stamping on a printed cloth cover; from The Library Company of Philadelphia.

The Album of Love, 1848, with gold and blind stamping on a cloth cover; from The Library Company of Philadelphia.

Love is Enough, 1873, by Ellis and White, and designed by William Morris. Gold stamping on a forest green cloth from the Victorian Web.

Roland, 1897 by Ernst Eckstein. Stamped cloth binding from the University of Wisconsin's collection of German decorative trade bindings.

Evidently, there is more than just one Book of Love. Happy Valentine's Day!

Lincoln & Lettering

This collection of mid-19th century songsheets from The Lincoln Collection in Fort Wayne, IN., exists to preserve the history and legacy of Abraham Lincoln. In addition, these songsheets help to preserve a historic record of hand lettering, ornamentation, and lithography of this same era as well. As a tribute to Lincoln's birthday today, we can celebrate him and the many songsheet title pages which were published in his time leading up to the Civil War and following his assassination. They are a window into one of the most pivotal times in US history, as well as one of the most engaging and visionary periods of printing and design. With a few exceptions, most of these songsheet title pages were published between 1860 and 1865.