Before & After - Old Table Lamp With Marimekko Pattern

I already wrote about the amazing chair made by Wisła Nicieja - with a photo of me handapainted on it - and today I am going to guide you through a process of changing an old table lamp into a beautiful object, gilded and painted with some Marimekko pattern.

Lets start with the table - I bought it in a second hand furniture store for 80zl, which is less than 30 dollars. I knew that the person who could help me turn it into something special was Wisła, and there was a weekend when she was over in Krakow. On a Sunday afternoon we kicked off the painting process then (and by saying we I mean Wisła, while I sipped on vintage cider).

Say Hi! To Design on Facebook

On a beautiful, sunny, Sunday afternoon we have started our existence on facebook. If there are already 650 million of people who start their day logging to facebook, why not give at least a handful of them a chance to kick it off with a dose of design inspiration?

Check the profile, featuring extra info, links and photos than the blog itself. Become out fan and tell us what you think about the featured ideas.

Visit Say Hi! To Desing on Facebook

Pomoc Domowa by Brandy Design

Brandy Design is a Polish studio specializing in package design. They just sent us their new piece of work, series of packaging for a new brand Pomoc Domowa (Daily Help). Brandy came up with the name and all of the package design for the line. The use of colour referrs to products seen at construction sites, yellow and black are usually associated with warning signs. The logo features picture of a woman, that reminds me of old communist propaganda posters, which I guess was intentional. In general the whole line shares the design concept for Organic Drop, both based on similar typography layout.

Fabirkk Restaurant - Visual Identity

Salih Kucukaga sent us this visual identity for a Fabrikk Restaurant in Istanbul. I like the original shape of the business cards, with triangular cut outs, emphasizing the industrial origins of the place (at least I assume that's was Salih was aiming for). It reminds me of the visual identity for the MOCAK (Museum of Contemporary Arts in Krakow) that also plays on the triangular shape of the building's roof (if you want to see it again, check out the whole post here).


Salih is a graphic designer from Turkey and apart from desigining he also writes for The Dieline (which I used to do in the past as well). When I visited his website the last time, I noticed some Istanbul photos in the Photo Diary section. They present a different view of Istanbul than the usual, colourful one. They are a little murky, but very intriguing. I adore Istanbul and have been planning on going back there for a few years now, these photos make me miss it even more...

Mouth Watering Food Websites

This week my work concerned mostly web design, as we are working on two websites. Both are related to food products. One is more mainstream, showing products of our client, presenting the company's profile, telling the company's history etc. The other one though is aimed to attract food connoisseurs and create unique atmosphere. It is dedicated to premium products, therefore it needs to be visually stunning. Next week we will have a photoshoot for the site, which I'm really excited about.

To prepare for the photoshoot, we were all looking for examples of food-focused websites that would appeal to our taste. Girls browsed tens of sites, so I think it's worth sharing here. Check out a few printscreens and adresses of websites that showcase food, such as restaurants, or food producers they found. Some of them are funky, some are elegant, most of them have amazing food photos.

There is also another collection of url's - this time websites for premium and luxurious products, which I'll share later on. For now, sit down, look ...and make sure you have someting tasty at hand, as it will make you hungry!

Vintage Package Design of Barilla's Pasta

Yesterday I spent some time on the internet looking for various examples of pasta packaging, as a part of a research for a project we're working on. While browsing Barilla's website I found a section dedicated to their vintage packaging. It's not often that you can see the evolution of a brand and their package design, so I'm sharing it with you.

I was touched and amused when I saw their old posters and packaging. Old designs used to be based on emotions so much more. They worked with feelings and atmosphere. Nowadays brands try to fit the shelf well. They try look just like other brands with small changes to have something to be recognized by. And the end result is they all look bland. Don't you think?

My Carpet - The Making Of Video

You must remeber the story about the carpet I designed for Komfort competition, as I keep bragging about it. Well, I just noticed the realeased a short video clip showing the making-of process. It is interesting to what it looks like, as well as realise it's the same carpet that lies in my living room. The movie also features a carpet they made based on a child's drawing. There is a bit of Polish text, but nothing important if you don't know Polish... :)

Thatcher Wine & Juniper Books

I already wrote about that somewhere on this blog, but let me repeat myself - if I could choose any other type of design other than package design, I would ♥ to design book covers. I designed a couple when I was still at university, but that was almost a decade ago and I crave that satisfaction nowadays. I used to read so much when I was younger. I devoured books. I read all Vonnegut before I went to highschool. And ever since I discovered photoshop, I wanted to make books look beautiful. I don't know if I would be anything like Chip Kidd, I think I would go for something more literal and aesthetic. I would treat books like dolls - simply wanting them to be dressed up nicely.

Anyways, because of all that I like to check out Book Cover Archives blog from time to time. One thing that caught my attention recently was their mention of Thatcher Wine of Juniper Books, who works with private clients and interior designers to create book collections. I personally like to have a random book collection, reflcting my interests in different times and so telling a story of some sorts, but I have to say that books collections based on colour spoke to my imagination... I think there will be some movement on my bookshelves tonight.

After Juniper Books: Thatcher Wine of Juniper Books assembles custom book collections and decorative book solutions for interior designers, homeowners, visual merchandisers, set designers and businesses. Our handpicked book collections and customized book installations are like none other and can be found in many of the world's finest homes, yachts, restaurants, hotels, retail stores, spas, common areas of high end residences, and other locations. 

Wallstreet's Corporate Identity for Argo

Last night I participated in an event dedicated to interactive design - Interactive Day, organised by a Krakow based agency Pride&Glory and Tischner European University. I watched two parts of it and will probably write about both. The first one was a short lecture by Wallstreet Different Creature, showcasing their design work, mostly examples of corporate identity. Some of them were really interesting, including their CI for Argo, landscaping company. Part of the message from Wallstreet to young students was to try finding an interesting idea while working on logos and corporate identity, rather than simply focusing on good looking elements an typography. The idea for Argo was to combine the name with elements of nature and landscape. In the end the name of the company is composed of shapes cut out of leaves. You may argue over the originality of the idea but the overall effect is very aesthetic. Which means I am approaching this from a graphic point of view, rather than the creative aspect.

I am going to post one more example of their work later on, but in general I had the impression that while they had some really (really) interesting design ideas while given absolute freedom, it wasn't always as convincing when they had to work with a demanding client. What I mean is that very often graphic designers have to work with clients who operate on the market and there are number of factors that have to be included in the design work. So you're not entirely free to go ahead with the most crazy and creative ideas, you are somewhat tamed by the reality. But I do admire the work that pushes the limits or expresses one's point of view. And Wallstreet's work often does just that.

The "Maja Chair" by Wisla Nicieja

I have been writing a lot about chairs on this blog. I have also been complaining that I don't have enough space in my apartment to work on my chair collection.But I never described the one chair that stands out the most. It is a chair that features... well, me basically.

One of my best friends,Wisła Nicieja, is a painter and an art restorer. Apart from restoring art, she also works with furniture. She can take and old piece of furniture bought online or found somewhere in trash and turn it into unique, hand painted treasure. She paints custom patterns on furniture, or copies your favourite piece of art onto them. When I visited her a couple years ago I caught something with a corner of my eye, when I entered her room. It was a little disturbing, it looked familiar, yet I couldn't quite put my finger on it. After ten seconds or so I realized the thing I was looking at had myself painted on it. It was a chair. With me in my bikini, looking at the sun, from our holidays in Paraguay.

The chair wasn't even made for me, Wisła needed something for an exhibition somewhere. But I did receieve it in the end, for my birthday. You can see the photo it is based on on the left, with Wisła in the right corner of it (I was pretty skinny back then, my ribs are kind of sticking out...). It was taken at a lake near Ciudad Del Este, a twon my uncle lives in. It is right at the border of Paraguay, Brasil and Argentina.

Wisła doesn't have a website (yet) but if you wish to contact her about a possible assigment, let me know.

Kibako - Zipper Jewellery

 

I'm going to post one more thing about kibako's jewellery (the previous one is a few posts below). The use of zippers obviously reminds me of Kate Cusack, so if you like that check out the post about Kate's designs here and here.