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Advertising for beautiful places usually boils down to an advertising magical equation: 1 part scenic photos + 1 part good typography + minimal copy + a good shake = a great advertisement! Whether or not Bohan who created these beautiful ads for Landtrust for Tennessee followed that exact forumla or not is hard to say. However, they made some beautiful advertisements due to some amazing photos and clever typography. The way the ads are constructed, the viewer is starring into open fields with beautiful rich colors. The typography starts on the horizon line and progressively moves forward in space. The type has beautiful drop shadows that make the type really feel like it’s in the ad. There is minimal copy in the corners which help keep the ads clean, crisp and on point. Without further adieu, the beautiful spaces of Tennessee.

Images from AdsoftheWorld.com

Advertising Agency: Bohan, Nashville, USA
Creative Directors: Dave Smith, Jon Arnold
Art Director: Jon Arnold
Copywriter: Dave Smith
Photographer: Ben Fink
Published: 2010

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The Mercedes-Benz. They’re sleek, stylish and sometimes glitzy and powerful. Their recent TV campaigns show big, boastful sedans, ripping donuts around their “legal” team in the middle of the sand. Their print campaign, is a touch different. It draws on emotional ties between the left and right brain. The beautiful illustrated spreads show creativity, free spirit and passion of the right brain vs. the familiar, accurate and linear. The campaign, is beautiful, articulate and creative. The copy is carefully crafted and works with each illustration. The campaign was created by Shalmor Avnon Amichay/Y&R Interactive Tel Aviv, Israel and is on adsoftheworld.com

Music

Paint

Passion

But, all of this aside… The campaign is super creative, well created and technically sound. But, the problem that I keep reeling over is “is this Mercedes-Benz”?

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Travel Guides. We’ve all seen them, there’s hundreds to choose from. All with some sort of pitch for the best places to go. But, will the places be good? Will I even like them? I am basing my entire exploring experience on what ‘some guy’ in this book says… Enter: Graphic USA – An alternate guide to 25 US cities.

Graphic USA is an alternative guide that offers a fresh perspective into the boring travel guide segment. Each of the 25 cities are reviewed, written and illustrated by designers living in their respective cities. Not only does this book contain great places to go it also includes cutting edge creative design which, is a heck of a way to chart your way across these fantastic cities and a lot more user friendly that travel-guides in the past. The book is arranged with beautiful full color spreads and no detail has been left untouched. The best part about the book is that since each section has been handcrafted by an illustrator, artist or designer each section feels unique and showcases the vibe of the current city being reviewed. It also gives unique insight into local places that are off the beaten path. The great dive-bars that offer the best views or the best fresh seafood. You will use it as a gallery of beautiful images or a directory of talented illustrators and designers and most importantly a great travel-guide for a weird and wonderful alternative road trip across America.

The content of the book includes:
Anchorage, Alaska | Laura Feraco
Atlanta, Georgia | Laurie Forehand
Austin, Texas | Bryan Keplesky
Baltimore, Maryland | Elizabeth Graeber
Boston, Massachusetts | Esther Uhl
Charleston, South Carolina | Jay Fletcher
Chicago, Illinois | Daniel Blackman
Denver, Colorado | Gwenda Kaczor
Detroit, Michigan | Angela Duncan
Kansas City, Missouri | Ramzy Masri & Morgan Ashley Allen
Los Angeles, California | Tal Rosner
Memphis Tennessee | Alex Harrison
Miami, Florida | Michelle Weinberg
Milwaukee, Wisconsin | Mike Krol
Minneapolis, Minnesota | Adam Turman
New Orleans, Louisiana | Tom Varisco
New York, New York | Camilla BenBassat
Philadelphia, Pennsylvannia | Katie Hatz
Phoenix, Arizona | Jon Ashcroft
Portland Oregon, | Briar Levit
Providence, Rhode Island | Adam Lucas
San Fransico, California | Cameron Ewing
Seattle, Washington | Björn Soneson
St. Louis, Missouri | Rachel Newborn
Washington, DC | Joshua Graham Guenther

Graphic USA also has an older brother Graphic Europe which which takes you through 31 European cities. These titles are released from cicada books based out of London. If you want more information on either of these titles check out Cicada for the full details and availability. This book has taken it’s place in my suitcase for my new definitive travel-guide. It’s definitely worth a look if you’re looking for travel inspiration, great places to eat, drink or stay or something fresh in the travel industry.

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Our lives are often inundated with countless things screaming for our attention: media, packaging, signs, the web etc. When we’re searching through the clutter trying to find which product to choose, it’s often magical when our eyes rest on a beautiful, clean, well designed piece. The Minimalist Effect in the Maximalist Market does just that. Created by Antrepo which is a multi-disciplinary design consultancy that derives their power from exciting and passionate design members who are actively contributing to the core of design. Antrepo takes several popular brands, creates a simple variation and a more simplified variation. The result is stunning, clean, simple and powerful. We can only hope that some of these brands embody these principles.

Corn Flakes

Durex

Lindt

Mr Muscle

Nesquik

Nutella

Pringles

Red BullSchweppes

Toffifee

Antrepo

Site: Antrepo4.com

Blog: A2591.com

Twitter: @Antrepo

Facebook: Antrepo

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In today’s market of stiff corporate competition, it’s more important than ever to create an effective online marketing strategy. Often, this involves finding a way to set your website’s image apart from those of your top competitors.

To achieve this, some companies have created cartoon characters to represent their online identities. If executed correctly, this strategy can help retain website traffic and develop a unique corporate identity. The following are 3 examples of companies that have effectively used this cartoon character strategy.

Top 3 Cartoon Examples

Fatburgr

Fatbugr’s cartooned website portrays a great execution of this cartoon character strategy. The website’s cartoon icon of a fat boy eating a large hamburger makes visitors feel guilty about the fast food they eat and encourages them to dig further into the website’s information.

Code Button

Code Button provides another great example of proper cartoon usage. By identifying their target market and taking a comical spin on their identity, Code Button’s developers offer a light spin on the career of coding.

Jason Reed: Web Design

Jason Reed showcases how a cartooned version of oneself can help avoid an entrepreneur from coming across as pretentious by using traditional headshots. Jason Reed’s cartoon allows website visitors to learn more about him while still maintaining a degree of mystery regarding the freelancer’s identity.

BrandWood

Other Examples:

iAdvize

Mediocore

StoneSkipper

NybbleTech

Best Website Cartoon Practices

When considering creating a cartoon character for your website, there are certain best practices you should follow. By doing this, you will avoid the most common mistakes made by other companies and incorporate a successful cartoon identity. Here are the best practices to follow with this type project:

1. Hire a Professional Designer – Whether you plan to create a cartoon version of yourself for your website or develop a unique character, hire a professional designer to complete the job. Various tutorials exist online regarding how to create a cartoon without any previous experience but the results are often less than desirable.
2. Make it Appropriate – A major mistake of companies using website cartoon characters is that they become carried away with the cartoon’s identity. Don’t make the character over the top or completely off-base from the products you are selling. An obnoxious cartoon character will, more often than not, drive visitors away from the website rather than encourage them to read more about your services.
3. Test the Cartoon – Before releasing the new cartoon identity to the general online public, conduct polls with a small segment of customers. This testing phase can indicate the overall response you can expect from the general public regarding the character and whether or not this is a good move for your brand identity.

Building a successful corporate identity is of utmost importance when building an online customer base. If your current corporate identity isn’t achieving the desired results, it may be time for a change. Cartoon character identities, when developed correctly, can invite potential customers into your website to learn more about the products and services you offer. If met with positive public response, you may even decide to adopt this character as your company’s long-term mascot.

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In a world so inundated with information, an effective motto to adopt as a graphic designer is “less is more.” This minimalist mindset can set your logo designs apart from those of your competitors and help you create modern corporate identities for your clients. Here are 10 examples of masterful logos that make full use of the minimalism principles.

1. Missing – Admix Designs

Created by Joe Prince of Admix Designs, the logo plays with the company’s name by excluding each ‘i’ in Missing. By taking a moment to determine how a company’s name can best be utilized in a logo, you can achieve unexpected results.

2. Walk – Optimodo

The use of calming colors and relaxed typeface creates the perfect identity for Walk. The clever thought of creating the ‘A’ from a pair of legs adds to the logo’s overall effectiveness.

3. Folder – Rokac

This logo for a software company effectively utilizes optical illusions while adhering to minimalist design principles. The Folder logo shows how a little creativity can create more with less.

4. Unarmed – Admix Designs

Although Admix Designs was already mentioned in this list with the Missing logo, Joe Prince’s mastery of the minimalist trend has earned him another spot with the design for Unarmed. A clever play on words invokes a chuckle from viewers while they marvel at the design’s simplicity.

5. Bipolar – Siah Design

Many minimalist designers transform basic elements into effective corporate branding techniques as evidenced in the Bipolar logo. Extravagant illustrations and flashy colors are tossed aside, leaving only the bare essentials.

6. Height – Strizhart

This design by Strizhart is another example of how one can effectively use simple black and white graphics. An understanding of optical illusion principles also leads to wonderful displays of creativity.

7. Pelican – ru_ferret

The use of modern text and clever use of typography led to this wonderful logo by ru_ferret. As with many other minimalist designs in this list, the Pelican logo makes use of full negative space.

8. Love Clip – Designabot

Not all minimalist logos must be displayed in black and white or subtle colors as shown by the Love Clip design. This perfectly pink logo makes full use of the company’s name by taking a more playful approach to minimalist elements.

9. Sex Lovers – Brigada Creativa

People say sex sells but if it doesn’t, this logo will surely get the job done. Without being vulgar or over the top, the Sex Lovers logo achieves its purpose by holding the viewer’s attention and showing the sexier side of minimalism.

10. CodeFish – Mabu

By invoking a little programmer humor, the CodeFish logo speaks directly to its intended audience with a clever use of coding symbols. Whose says programmers don’t have a sense of humor?

These 10 examples show the true power of minimalism and how this movement matches the needs of the modern consumer. This trend may initially be difficult to incorporate into your designs, but stick with it. As you play with minimalism, you will become more effective at utilizing white space and will learn how this emptiness helps rather than hinders a design’s effectiveness.

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RESOLVE: verb, to come to a definite or earnest decision about; determine (to do something)

Resolutions come and go and some rarely make it past the first week of February. Chris Streger decided to change that by asking several of his designer friends to make their own ‘resolution’ in the form of an iPhone Background. He started the To Resolve project that stemmed from a conversation with his girlfriend. He sent out as many ‘call to arms’ as he could think of to designers he knew or those he didn’t. There’s been some pretty great work come in so far and it’s almost double in the last few days. If you need some inspiration, a new iPhone background or you want to design your own, check out the To Resolve Project.

Mads Burcharth | His Submission

Tyler Galpin | His Submission

Dan Cassaro | His Submission

Bobby McKenna | His Submission

Matt Payson | His Submission

Stefanie Pepping | Her Submission

Cassie Stegman | Her Submission

Sean Ball | His Submission

Michael Spitz | His Submission

Travis Fleck | His Submission

Rich Arnold | His Submission

Paul Wilkes | His Submission

Scott Hill | His Submission

Joseph Hughes | His Submission

Matt Stevens | His Submission

Jason Hines | His Submission

Curtis Jenkins | His Submission

Jenn Lew | Her Submission

Chris Streger | His Submission

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As Christmas is upon us and hopefully the goose has gotten fat, we’ve taken the time to select 10 gifts we hope are under out tree. There is a ton of creative gear in the worlds these days, and narrowing to 10 interesting gifts was more than impossible. Let us know what you want to see under the tree this year!

Rusty Wired-In Stealth Zip-Up Hoodie

Even the most studious constitution needs their tunes to make it through lectures sometimes; the Stealth Zip Up Hoodie is your own little escape from academics in true 007 style.  Military style fleece zip up hoodie with custom built-in headphone drawstrings. MP3 player connects in front pocket and it’s machine washable! What more could you ask for?

Lowepro Pro Trekker 300 AW

The Pro Trekker™ 300 AW is a lightweight, yet rugged, hydration-ready, expedition camera backpack. It offers superior protection and comfort with Lowepro’s premium suspension system. Inspired by Lowepro’s world-famous Trekker series of backpacks, Pro Trekker AW appeals to outdoor photographers, extreme sports shooters and serious enthusiasts who need a workhorse backpack that travels well—in rugged terrain or by air.

Specs:

Pro DSLRs with lens attached (up to 300mm f/2.8); 4-5 additional lenses; flash; tripod or monopod; accessories and personal gear; up to a  15.4” widescreen laptop

The Designers Balls

Some designers have them, some designers don’t. Nuff said. 4 Christmas balls CMYK: 1 Cyan, 1 Magenta, 1 Yellow, 1 Black

Porsche Design Aluminum Sledge

What christmas list would be complete without a sled? Exclusive design. Aluminium frame with stainless steel runners. Practical folding mechanism: no loose parts, ready for use within seconds. Porsche logo on top. Durable waterproof seat made from imitation leather. UV-resistant. Tested by German safety standards agency (TÜV). Highquality carrying bag. Black. Made in Germany.

Susan Kare – Limited Edition Prints signed and numbered

Susan Kare is a pioneering and influential computer iconographer. Since 1983, the San Francisco-based designer has designed thousands of software icons that have become familiar to anyone who uses a computer. Designed on a minimalist grid of pixels and constructed with mosaic-like precision, her icons communicate their functions immediately and memorably.

BookBook for iPad

Need an ultra-stealth and quality made way to cover your iPad? Look no further. BookBook for iPad is a handmade one-of-a-kind, hardback leather case that doubles as a fully adjustable stand. Along with its vintage looks, this case makes iPad feel as if you’re holding a real book, and in many ways you are holding a book. BookBook for iPad forms a safe cocoon around your prized iPad. The hardback cover and spine provide impact protection, while the hard protective inner frame offers crush protection. Hand distressed covers mean no two look alike. As a bonus, the unique design of this case disguises iPad for an extra level of stealthy security.

U-Socket

U-Socket is a duplex AC receptacle with built-in USB ports that can power any device that is capable of being charged via a 5V power adapter, but without the need for the power adapter! When a U-Socket replaces a traditional 3-prong AC wall socket, you can eliminate the clutter of AC Adapters that stick out & take up space in your home or office. Everything stays neat & organized. In additional, U-Socket’s energy efficient design only outputs power through the USB port if something is connected to it. Compatible with: iPod, iPhone, iPad, Blackberry, Nintendo, PSP, Bluetooth Headsets, Digital Cameras, GPS & more!

Cabledrop – Blue Lounge

In an office environment one can never have too many ways to organize cords. Cabledrop can really blend in with your decor, use them hidden under ledges with the muted colors to match your furniture or bring them to light by using the bright ones. Beyond just preventing cables from falling off a desk, they make great cable clips on furniture legs or walls to control unruly cords. Sold in packs of six, each package includes three different colors, either muted or bright.

Plumen – The Designer Energy Saving Lightbulbs

Plumen is the antithesis of low energy light bulbs as we know them. Rather than hide the unappealing traditional compact fluorescent light behind boring utility, Plumen 001 is a bulb you’ll want on show. The Plumen bulb uses 80% less energy and lasts 8 times longer than incandescent bulbs, giving you the opportunity to purchase an ecological product with style. It works just like any low energy bulb but it has a lot more presence.

Freehands – Cashmere Mens Gloves

The luxury cashmere Freehands are back this year with design improvements. The new cashmere Freehands features magnets to snap back the finger caps, and a supple sheepskin palm.

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An effective movie poster is art and text working together. Typography has become more essential to a poster’s success since the start of cinema, though. Take a look at how movie poster typography has evolved from 1920 to the 2000s.

1920s – ’30s: Boring Text

Think about the cover art for novels – hand-rendered artwork and clear typography on the edges of the poster or layered on top of the art rather than integrated as a part of it. Here are some other typical trends of this time period:

• Black, white, or brightly colored text contrasting strongly with the picture;
• Thin black or white strokes on the lettering;
• Heavy drop shadows on thicker kinds of type.

These classic posters show the first glimmer of merging text and art. For example, poster designs for the 1933 movie “King Kong” feature the film’s giant gorilla moving in front of the title’s text.

1940s – ’50s: Text Takes Center Stage

This is the era with a distinct movement toward making the typography part of the artwork. Movie posters, such as the one for the 1950 movie “Sunset Boulevard,” put the typography front and center. Besides combining text and art more obviously, the biggest changes to typography involved using modern and eye-catching typefaces for the times.

1960s – ’70s: Letting the Hair Down

Posters from the 60s took an extreme departure from the elegant-looking typefaces of the 40s and 50s and replaced them with a wide variety of styles. Here are a few 60s to 70s poster trends:

• Diverse text – bold block lettering, “cartoon” text with outlines, and in-letter detailing
• Tilted, warped, or shaped text
• A rainbow of colors for both text and images

Art interacting with lettering is even more common here, and the 70s are responsible for such iconic images as the poster for the 1978 movie “Jaws.”

1980s – ’90s: Branded Text

In the 80s and 90s, typography became artwork. The unique shape and color of the title was a branded image to associate with each movie. Lettering took on creative shapes and spacing, as seen in the 1990 movie “Night of the Living Dead.”

Textured text made to look like different materials was also in. The title for the 1984 movie “The Terminator” featured shiny metallic lettering to match the film’s cyborg and futuristic themes.

2000s: Photo-realism

With the advent of computer graphics and photo manipulation, designers have the freedom to show any image they can dream.

• Text made of anything – smoke, birds, negative space, even tongues
• Lots of photo-realistic special effects, such as rain, mist, lighting, and blood
• More extreme/artistic photography to stand up to shiny text effects

Since designers can digitally make text from physical materials, hyper real word/image fusions are popular. Contemporary movie posters often show photo-real scenes of impossible things, as is the case with the 2009 movie “Zombieland.”

What’s Next?

Throughout the years, the art of movie posters has evolved, but posters made entirely of typography aren’t likely to catch on as the standard. Designers with no limits on their technical ability to make something must come up with new designs unlike anything anybody has ever seen before.

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Part geekery, part circus, Kick Awesome.tv is wicked weekly web show (say that three times fast) that is dedicated to design, the web and general nerdery. The men behind the show are Nate Croft & Jon Longnecker who are also behind the wondrous works of 47Media. Currently, they’re 12 episodes strong – ranging in topics from photography lightboxes, first person shooters, music, iPod Nano watches, photoshop trickery, dribbble, their personal lives and anything in-between. If you’re tired of all the other boring ways to learn and hear about the industry you should definitely check them out. If you love their content as much as we do they also have some awesome sponsorship options. If that’s not enough awesome for you KickAwesome.tv is on twitter as well as facebook so, you should definitely fan their page and give them a follow.

Get More KickAwesome.tv

Twitter
Facebook
RSS
iTunes

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A major movement in the fields of photography and design is a call for minimalism. The major viewpoint of this trend is that, when it comes to art, less is more. In a world packed with overwhelming information sources competing for attention, consumers are bombarded by countless images each day. The minimalist movement argues that, when content is stripped to the bare essentials, it can more effectively catch the viewer’s attention and speak directly to their senses rather than overwhelming them with information. While advocates of this movement can be found throughout the Internet, one of the best locations to learn more and become a member is within Flickr groups. Here are the top 10 Flickr groups dedicated to the minimalist movement that you will likely find useful.

1. Elegantly Minimal

This Flickr group advocates that photos can still be elegant while advocating minimalism. All photo subjects are included in this group as long as they adhere to the minimalist requirements.

2. True Minimal

The True Minimal group advocates art that is stripped down to the bare essentials. This group is all about the sentiment that less truly is more.

3. Minimal Black & White

The Minimal Black & White group takes photographs back to their days of infancy by only allowing black and white shots. In a world so inundated with color, this group can be a refreshing escape.

4. Minimal Corner

The minimalist movement can take many turns and that includes having a group dedicated completely to the art of corners.

5. Minimal Color

Minimalism isn’t only about stripping designs down to their essentials concerning subject matter. The Minimal Color Flickr group embraces minimalism in color and includes wonderful displays of strategic color usage.

6. COM-Minimal

The COM-Minimal Flickr group includes both wonderful minimalist photos and enriching discussions regarding this design trend. While most Flickr groups only allow the posting of minimalist photos, this group provides a refreshing alternative to also join well-rounded minimalist conversations.

7. Minimal Flowers

As the name states, the Minimal Flowers group only allows simplistic, beautiful images of flowers. This is a great group for those who are primarily interested in photographing the natural world.

8. Animals in B/W, Sepia, & Minimal Color

This group is for the animal lovers on Flickr who are also fans of the minimalist movement. View animals in their most natural settings as they are meant to be seen.

9. Minimal Intervention in Photos

The Minimal Intervention in Photos community is a wonderful break from today’s trend of over processed photos with photo editing software. Only naturally shot photographs are allowed here.

10. Minimal Art [no people, no life]

The Minimal Art [no people, no life] group takes people and all life forms out of the minimalist movement by only allowing photos of lifeless elements such as buildings and furniture.

In a world inundated with information, the best option you have to stand apart from the massive crowds is to strip your designs and photography to the essentials. This minimalism in art will be a refreshing sight for your design viewers and will be more likely to grab and hold their attention.

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MNML – Exciting New Multitouch watch design ($34/$69)

A wicked new concept to house the iPod Nano and turn it into a slick wrist watch from MINIMAL whose diverse work spans industries ranging from technology, interaction and consumer products to fashion, furniture and environments. From brand-defining icons like the Nike Presto Watch and Ooba Bassinet to game-changing new experiences like the Xbox Kinect, MINIMAL is helping define some of the most anticipated new products and experiences for brands such Xbox, Nike, Dell, Microsoft, Apple and Steelcase.

The project has been funded through Kickstarter and has 24 days left before it’s “final”. There are two equally awesome concepts, TikTok and LunaTik.

TikTok is a simple snap in design. It allows the user to easily and securely snap the Nano into the wrist dock. It cleanly and simply integrates the Nano and transforms it into a modern multifunction timepiece.

LunaTik is designed and intended to be a premium conversion kit for someone that wants to dedicate their Nano to being a watch and the newest conversation piece with their friends. It is forged from Aerospace Grade Aluminum and then machined via CNC into its final form.

The straps are made from high grade silicone rubber and the hardware is solid stainless steel not some chrome plated brass that will wear off. The quality of these watch cases and straps will be scrutinized very carefully and produced in the same factories that produce the best watches for companies like Nixon, Diesel, Vestal, and Nike.

HEX watchband for iPod Nano ($24)

The Hex watch band is made out of a custom premium silicone strap. It features a great pop in and out design as well as integrated button controls onto the watch itself. It also includes an audio port cover with an inline orientation so it covers up from unwanted fuzz and whatever else you could get caught in your sleeve. The HEX iPod strap comes in 9 different colors to fit every taste.

Griffin Slap Wristband ($24)

Remember the slap bracelet? Remember how much fun it was? We’ve brought it back. We’ve wrapped a memory-metal wristband with soft silky silicone. Slap’s flexible, spring-steel band lies flat and rigid until you slap! it onto your arm. Snap Slap open, then snap Slap shut around your wrist. (Say that 10 times real fast.) The Slap band self-adjusts to a comfortable fit, exactly your size.

For your iPod, we’ve equipped Slap with a generous frame of silicone that holds your iPod securely and shrugs off bumps and jolts. Slap protects the dock connector and volume controls but leaves the headphone port open so you can plug in and listen any time. Speaking of time, you can press the Sleep/Wake button through the frame to check the time or control iTunes. The watch face display of your iPod nano turns Slap into a fun, handy classic timepiece.

• Flexible spring-steel band wrapped in soft silicone snaps securely around your wrist to keep your iPod nano close at hand
• Thick silicone frame protects your Multi-Touch display, volume controls and dock connector
• Frame covers the volume and sleep/wake buttons with protective silicone but still allows touch-through control of your iPod nano

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First of all, what is typography? Is it just the print; the way the page looks because of the type? Is it just correct spelling and appropriate fonts? Is it the message when the type is put together?

Well, here is one definition:

Typography is the art of using typeset, not only correctly but also with taste and humor.

Typography is possibly the most important feature in today’s world of excellent web design. More than art, or photos, or even color, typography can make or break the book, the poster, the business presentation, and, of course, the website. In fact the choice of typography is considered by web designers to be directly connected to whether your website is successful or not.

Most of the time, we recognize the importance of type, headlines, words, etc on our websites, but many times fail to understand the delicious humor and one of a kind art that the creative use of typography can supply. Most of us think of headlines or titles when we think of typography, but typography can also be an integral part of the artistic layout and humor.

So, how does that work? Where can one find a correct source for good use of typography? The best way to find out anything about the web is¦The Web! That’s right, the Internet is filled with excellent displays of humorous examples of the funny side of typography and it is right under our noses.

For designers of the web, posters, or any kind of print, typography can be as beautiful as a painting. Sometimes typography is used to actually create a picture. By building the picture with various types of fonts, it becomes a work of art that is extremely attractive. Many of these works of art are also extremely funny.

Examples of typography humor are wide and varied but some of the best that have been found are:

1. A play on words (pardon the pun) is always funny regarding typology.

by Peter Sebastian

For instance, cartoons or articles about the Serif, such as “Don’t Shoot, I’m the Serif” or “There’s a New Serif in Town”. (For those of you unaware, a serif is a type of font with little tails.)

via Dan Geislinger

2. Typography geek humor

via behance.net

3. Actual cartoons using only typography as the picture, is an overall, general favorite.

via I Love Typography

4. Wisecracks using typography terms:

Pa^2 Patois

5. Typography parody (copying the font of the original brand)

Source

6. Sometimes it’s the funny placement and design:

Via designer-daily.com

7. And very often it’s just the funny phrase or quote:

The fun part of all this is, as you get acquainted with the varying aspects of typology, the more fun you will have with this form of communication and art. You will find that learning just a litle about the history and humor will allow a greater appreciation for type; and you will also become acquainted with various different and unique typefaces and fonts.

This, in turn, will help you to recognize fonts and then help you make beter, more informed choices about the fonts and typology you actually use. Oh, and lastly, what do fish scales and serifs have in common?

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Everyone loves creative gear right? Well, what about stuff that not everyone has? Even better. Below are a few places that offer some really creative and kickass shwag. These are great people, doing great work and selling it to you and me. Need a shirt? Got it. Need an iPhone case? Got that too. Now go buy some gear! I’m sure there are other great places for

UGMONK

As the market continues to become saturated with overly complex, cluttered designs, Ugmonk’s mission is to provide high-quality products with simple, fresh graphics.

About the Designer

Jeff Sheldon makes his home in Downingtown, PA with his wife and no pets. He graduated with a B.S. in graphic design in 2008 and has a passion for all things design. When he’s not designing, Jeff enjoys snowboarding, soccer, biking, photography, and sleeping.

Inksie

Inksie is a brand, online community, and shop based on well-designed products and the culture that embodies them. The hub of our organization consists of new designers and veterans alike, excited to create, distribute, and vote on works of art around the world.

IdeaCafe

In this age of digital communication, smart phones, and touch computing, there is still a yearning for the simple. Despite the blood curdling pace at which technology inexorably advances, many people prefer to capture ideas and thoughts on an age old device — paper.

The purpose of this site is to provide a friendly, easy to use experience for finding and purchasing high quality notebooks, notepads, sketchbooks, and whatever othercreativity-inspiring products strike our fancy. We aim to enable creative people to find all the resources they need to work on their projects, capture their thoughts, and wireframe their lives in a format that fits them.

Veer

At Veer, you’ll enjoy an uncomplicated shopping experience that lets you stay focused on what’s really important: your creative work. You’ll also find things to do, accessories for creatives at home and on the go, plus endless opportunities to save.

House Industries

Known throughout the world as a prolific type foundry, House Industries has made a considerable impact on the world of design. House Industries fonts scream from billboards, wish happy whatever from tens of thousands of greeting cards, serve as the basis for consumer product logos and add elements of style to a wide range of mainstream media. In their illustrious career, House artists have mastered a large cross-section of design disciplines. Their typography deftly melds cultural, musical and graphic elements. From early forays into distressed digital alphabets to sophisticated type and lettering systems, House Industries’ work transcends graphic conventions and reaches out to a broad audience. What ultimately shines in the House Industries oeuvre is what always conquers mediocrity: a genuine love for their subject matter. Be it hot rods, classically relevant lettering or Swiss Modernism, House continues to provide typographic optimism in this age of the lowest aesthetic common denominator.

Poolga

Poolga is about art and design on hand-held devices and discovering talented illustrators and designers. We think that the iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad are great devices for carrying around, displaying and sharing art. We mostly focus on illustration, graphic design and typography.

Johnny Cupcakes

Customers like and appreciate the story and work ethic behind my brand. I started this as a joke from the trunk of my beat up ‘89 Toyota Camry. A college drop out with a drug and alcohol-free lifestyle, I never wasted my time going out and partying but instead focused only on brainstorming and sketching up my wacky ideas. I turned down investors and took countless risks like keeping my shirts out of chain stores.

Other Places

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The Airstream has been referenced for its clean styling, beautiful silver color and it’s iconic shape. For some airstreams are a way of life for others a way of relaxing. Wally Byam was the genius mind behind the iconic shape. In 1936 the first Airstream was produced and dubbed the clipper.

The airstream was the first of the now familiar sausage-shaped, silver aluminum Airstream trailers. Of more than 400 travel trailer builders operating in 1936, Airstream was the sole survivor of the Depression.

During World War II travel became a luxury that most could not afford. The Airstream has progressed to being one of the most well known trailers in the US. Mini made by BMW recently teamed up with Airstream to make a custom trailer to match a modified Mini Cooper. The combo was a fun with clean crisp design at heart. They were available in fresh colors and flower prints. The Airstream even had a built-in sun-bathing bed.

The Airstreams legacy has lived through the past decades and will be around for many more to come. You have to admit, it’s hard to argue with something that has such clean lines and a beautiful silver shine. Getting older just means that you can finally afford to get an airstream.