If there's one thing that I've learned from my experience of having birthdays over the years, it's that you need to set expectations high and be vocal about them. For example: I've never been happy simply with a single birthday, so I usually enforce a birthmonth celebration. This sandwiches the actual day with 15 more days on either side to exercise tyranny and partake of gluttonous pursuits.
This year, for the golden birthday, I was very clear that I expected all gifts to come in the form of gold. The real nutty part is that Rob actually takes them seriously and I received some pretty amazing earrings.
But the list of loot doesn't stop there...
I still receive birthday money from my grandmothers and I'm not above accepting it and spending it immediately. I'm on the search for some black boots (a search that deserves its own post), but then I got distracted by Amazon -- the black hole of shopping -- and never returned. I did score a ton of amazing books though to add to the library that we have no room to accommodate. The wine they're serving in the breakroom this afternoon may have something to do with it.
Graphic Design, Referenced
from UnderConsideration
The UnderConsideration online network includes, Brand New and FPO: For Print Only, both of which I read regularly. So I figured it was low-risk to invest in one of their books without paging through beforehand. This reference is 400-pages (so you know you're getting your monies-worth per page) cataloging basic principles, sought-after resources, influential designers, iconic work...
This book was recently profiled on grain edit. And it is now mine. All mine.
Images from grain editThe Sartorialist
by Scott Schuman
I use The Sartorialist blog as a motivational tool. It gets me out of the jeans, long-sleeve tee, and Converse sneaker rut that I'm prone to fall into. His eye for beauty is so enviable -- he finds it everywhere and unexpectedly. He reminds me to pay attention.
Paperback version coverThere's a hardcover deluxe version, but it's quite expensive. As much as I appreciate the craft of beautiful book design, I was really buying it for the photographs.
His girlfriend, Garance Dore, who keeps a blog that I value for similar reasons, hinted at coming out with a book of her own at some point in this interview my friend Amie did with her for shopbop (Super-cool name drop! Oui!). I'll support.
Penguin Classics
designed by Coralie Bickford-Smith
When my brother, Mike, was in town this past weekend, we hit up the bookshops. Both of us could spend an entire afternoon paging through books, revising our to-read lists and commenting on book design. We disagree a lot, but we certainly agreed that the new clothbound Penguin Classics were super sweet. I snatched up Wuthering Heights that day.
The first set of ten already released
The second set -- I don't know when this is coming outAnd thus ends the tale of a very spoiled and happy birthday.
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2 comments:
First, merci beaucoup for the SB shoutout. I will shamelessly take and encourage any and all links to our little blog :)
Second, I too am in love with the Penguin books. Who says you can't judge a book by its cover? Have you seen Ruben Toledo's illustrated covers of Pride and Prejudice, The Scarlet Letter, and Wuthering Heights? Beautiful.
Yes! I recently came across those too. Those were actually one of the covers Mike and I disagreed on.
I think his illustrations are beautiful.
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