Link Loving: Portfolios, Typography and Green Design

I have been throwing myself into the study of design and and it principles these past couple of weeks. I did take a break from it for a bit while Dennis and I sorted our new flat, but I am happy to be at it again. Here are a few articles I’ve found very inspiring and informational.

• Very cool collection of illustrations, typographic work, lettering, web design and user experience work via I Love Colors. I love this blog and I love the articles.

• Beautiful and creative way of creating card and garland by using recycled paper scraps. This article was written by Laura Normandin and posted on Design Sponge.

• PRINT Magazine is hosting a webcast on August 4th Pangea Organics CEO and lead designer. The will discuss their sustainable packaging and biodegradable soaps and products. Tree Hugger has given us a small preview of their accomplishments and company policies regarding sustainable design.

• I know I’ve asked myself this question before, and Nubby Twiglet provides some very informative answers with tips for creating a print portfolio.

• Interesting article by Jason Santa Maria regarding the use of print design principles that might not work the same for the web. I have to say I agree with him on this one.

• A fascinating inside look into the inspiration and work of Alice Savoie. In this interview, Alice discusses her studies, her process and future projects. The interview is via I Love Typography.

Link Loving

• 40 free high quality hand drawn fonts to download via HONGKIAT.com

• Lovely vintage inspired, hand made bags by Bari J. I LOVE her designs.

• Ultimate Mac setup for photographers. 50 apps that will help you with photo processing

• Void LP Player. A really trippy take on the record player via design boom.

• A really great collection of tutorials useful for converting PSD’s into useful html/CSS by dzineblog.com.

• Award winning Spanish design company develops a new fabric using recycled PET bottles. They are creating some really fabulous products with this fabric. The article is via Tree Hugger.

Image: Longest word in the Welsh Language as I understand it. It’s a train station between Holyhead and Crewe.

Ecofont by SPRANQ

This fabulous font was created by Colin Willems from SPRANQ, a creative communications agency based in the Netherlands. The font was designed to help conserve our ink cartridges (or toner) when printing. It works by omitting parts of the letter. The font might not look very usable when enlarged, but it is perfectly usable once reduced.

The designers conducted extensive tests trying to figure out what shapes would work best to conserve ink. After many long hours, they discovered that adding small circles to the font resulted in a product that uses up to 20% less ink. The Ecofont is free to download from their website, and it is available for Windows, Mac OSX and Linux.

Images via Ecofont

5 Lovely New Fonts From Sudtipos

I am always on the look out for new typefaces. Sudtipos Studio designs high quality, exclusive typefaces for corporate use. They are based in Buenos Aires, Argentina, but their client base is international. I can certainly see why so many high profile companies seek them out. I love viewing their site for inspiration.

Compendium

Angelus

Matogrosso

Uplink

Images via Sudtipos Studio

Fantastic Typography From Alex Trochut

Alex’s artwork is absolutely fantastic and inspiring. I was amazed at the level of detail he used to create his work. I do wonder if his designs are created using digital or traditional methods. Perhaps he uses a little bit of both. I typically don’t like to ask, but I do love to wonder. I certainly recommend giving his site a view. I am really loving his site design as well. I am usually guilty of slapping it on when it comes to website design, and I do admire his site’s simplicity. I honestly prefer a clean website layout.

Images via AlexTrochut.com

Beautiful Typography On The 51st Grammy Awards Posters

I can’t say much else. These are beautiful! I’ve seen portraits made with type before, but these are the best I have seen thus far. There is an artist in Brighton that creates portraits similar to these, but he uses a traditional medium. I believe he uses acrylics and stencils. Nevertheless, these are fantastic! Kudos to the designer. I know this project must have taken quite a while to complete. Fabulous work!

Bembo’s Zoo: Beautiful Typography Animals

Bembo’s Zoo is a book and animated website devised by author and designer Roberto de Vicq de Cumptich. He created this brilliant alphabet in which each letter is represented by an animal. Each animal is illustrated with the letters used to spell it’s name. This project is incredibly beautiful and very clever.

Wolf

Koala

Newt

Hippopotamus

Peacock

Yak