Framed Polaroids

I love the idea of framing multiple Polaroids together, turning them into one grand visual statement. These examples are from the Palihouse LA, and though I have not seen them close-up, I would like to imagine that there are some naughty photos or a least a few unexpected shots hidden within....

--whitney

Daily Reminder...

Polish Book Covers

Loving these Polish vintage book covers. Found via

  A journey round my skull's flickr page...

-whitney

Daily Door

It's the little things that bring me joy...

I get immense joy from the often overlooked details that make our city the beautiful, quirky place that it is. One such detail that fascinates me are building numbers. Below are a few of my recent favorites.

--whitney

Daily Door

Pierrot Le Fou

Just finished Pierrot Le Fou for the second time. While it does have a tendency to ramble on in every which direction the film is worth watching if for no other reason then the colors! Take a peak at a few of the stills I managed to find....

Am thinking about painting my dining room chairs this shade of red.

This scene is shot with a variety of lenses, green being one of the most aesthetically pleasing.

--whitney

Daily Door(s)

Happy Birthday Ms. Gillian

My lovely cohort (Ms. Gillian) is hosting what is sure to be a smashing birthday bash. In honor of her special day I thought I’d post a little inspiration for the lawn party themed event.

Pictures from last years Jazz Age lawn party on Goveners Island Courtesy of A Cup of Jo and the Satoralist.

I'm guessing archery is not legal in SF parks but wouldn't it be fun to do in big beautiful dresses...

The perfect dress.

Gillian and I by the end of the party. Who am I kidding this is us in the begining, middle and end!

--whitney

Double (Telescopic) Fantasy

I spy with my little eye...

Daily Routines

Inspiration can be a fickle mistress, and part of the artist's work is to develop an effective seduction strategy.  Sometimes it can take a great deal of finesse in order to entice the muse of productivity to come out and play.   Encompassing favored locations, drugs of choice, or even requisite lunch menus, many artists have come to be known for their very specific (and often peculiar) work habits, which can be as interesting and unique as the work they help produce--sometimes more so.

Daily Routines is an amazing collection of interviews with artists, writers and great thinkers about the way they structure their days.  I love being able to get a firsthand account of extraordinary people doing ordinary things.  It's somehow simultaneously comforting and inspiring. (hey, even Virginia Woolf needed a snack break sometimes...)

Many thanks to Tim for the great find!

Here is an excerpt from Daily Routines, which details Simone de Beauvoir's day-to-day working habits. 

Enjoy!

-Gillian

Simone de Beauvoir
INTERVIEWER: People say that you have great self-discipline and that you never let a day go by without working. At what time do you start?

DE BEAUVOIR: I'm always in a hurry to get going, though in general I dislike starting the day. I first have tea and then, at about ten o'clock, I get under way and work until one. Then I see my friends and after that, at five o'clock, I go back to work and continue until nine. I have no difficulty in picking up the thread in the afternoon. When you leave, I'll read the paper or perhaps go shopping. Most often it's a pleasure to work.

INTERVIEWER: When do you see Sartre?

DE BEAUVOIR: Every evening and often at lunchtime. I generally work at his place in the afternoon.

INTERVIEWER: Doesn't it bother you to go from one apartment to another?

DE BEAUVOIR: No. Since I don't write scholarly books, I take all my papers with me and it works out very well.

INTERVIEWER: Do you plunge in immediately?

DE BEAUVOIR: It depends to some extent on what I'm writing. If the work is going well, I spend a quarter or half an hour reading what I wrote the day before, and I make a few corrections. Then I continue from there. In order to pick up the thread I have to read what I've done.

INTERVIEWER: Do your writer friends have the same habits as you?

DE BEAUVOIR: No, it's quite a personal matter. Genet, for example, works quite differently. He puts in about twelve hours a day for six months when he's working on something and when he has finished he can let six months go by without doing anything. As I said, I work every day except for two or three months of vacation when I travel and generally don't work at all. I read very little during the year, and when I go away I take a big valise full of books, books that I don't have time to read. But if the trip lasts a month or six weeks, I do feel uncomfortable, particularly if I'm between two books. I get bored if I don't work.

The Paris Review, Spring-Summer 1965
(Thanks to Marcine Miller.)

Vintage Bally

Graphic design in classic French advertisements has long been a source of inspiration for me (though lately others have been drawing inspiration as well... see Pottery Barn, Crate & Barrel, et. al).

Designer Jacques Auriac's work for Bally is a sensational representation of what makes this genre so alluring: the colors, the bold shapes, the simplicity.  What I really love about these images is how they convey such a strong statement without making any direct references to the products being advertised.  Instead, the prints rely on visual elements to convey the style and energy of the brand.

(My apologies for the tiny image - but it was too cute not to post...)

-whitney

Time-saving tips for busy graphic designers

Thank you to JP Williams of Amassblog.com for sharing this letter from one of his vast collections of typographical ephemera:  written on official Bauhaus letterhead and signed on page 2 by Walter Gropius, this  official correspondence is typed entirely in lowercase font.

The bottom of the letterhead contains the adage, "wir schreiben allas klien, denn wir sparen damit zeit", which translates to "we are writing everything in lower case in order to save time".

I love the idea of letting one's design influence all aspects of life, correspondence, love...  to efficiency and beyond!

--g

Daily Door

Things we forget

The following post-its are part of a project called "Things we forget." The author puts up one post it a day in Singapore. Here are just a few of my favorites.

A few weeks ago - I found the San Francisco equivalent to Singapore's "Things we forget." While the calligraphy may be a bit rougher around the edges - I always appreciate sentences beginning with "Please."

Daily Door

Simplicity: Thoughts for Monday

Q: Is there a specific object that changed how you think about design?

A: I've always been told that the egg is something that can't be improved upon.  Giving it some thought, I agree.

--William Krisel, mid-century architect, in conversation with Dwell Magazine

Stopping to smell the roses...

While it is infinitely rewarding to share inspiration with one's readers - for me, the best thing about contributing to our blog is that it serves as a constant reminder to open my eyes and take stock of the world around me.  While meandering through Pacific Heights this afternoon, I noticed some roses growing on an old Victorian.  After snapping a shot with my ever-ready digicam, I decided to take a city walk to see how many more I could find.  Boy was I in for a treat: roses were everywhere!  I found at least one bush on every block.

It is a amazing what you notice when shift your focus.  You'll be surprised by what you often overlook in your very own neighborhood.

--whitney