gastrotypographicalassemblage

Typography + Midcentury Design + Food= One of my favourite things ever.

Also, gastrotypographicalassemblage is a pretty awesome word.

More info here.

five fun things #3

A few more things I’d like to share:

1. Small Magazine

   I tend to swoon over adorable, high-end childrens magazines. This one is free and on the internet, so I don’t have to feel weird about paying money for a magazine about something I don’t have (yet).

   And really, I would wear every last outfit in there if they made it adult sizes. There is some gorgeous, swoon-worthy stuff. Check it out.

2. Pumpkin Recipes

   It’s a pumpkiny season, and there is a bumper crop of squashes out there to be scooped up at discounted prices, so a New York Times collection of pumpkin based recipes is pretty timely. Plus, pumpkins are delicous.

3. Ombre Crafts

   Ombre is pretty. Crafts are fun. These pretty and fun ombre crafts live in that unique Martha Stewart universe where crafty projects end up looking high end, and elegant. You know, as opposed our own dimension where the words “Crafty” and “Elegant” are often mutually exclusive.

4. Typocalypse

   Diagnose your font use. Figure out what your typography choices say about you (I like to dance on the ceiling, it turns out).

5. the candi factory

   Karen over at Say It With Pie has long sung the praises of these hand made, artisinal undies. They went on sale, so I finally broke down and bought a set - a days of the weeks set, to be specific - because who doesn’t love an adorable days of the weeks set of underwear? And they’re typographic underwear, no less! Monday is Cooper Black!

   Karen says, on top of being really cute, they last forever, and are super comfy. So far I’ve already found the latter to be inordinately true. These things are heaven. Plus, I am strongly behind any operation that simply does not believe in thongs. Sing it, sister.

the seven year itch (because some like it hot)

Well, it’s the first long hot weekend of a long hot summer, so we are going to take advantage of it.

Our weekend is going to be positively packed with farmers markets, and golfing, and shopping, and eating, and probably a little bit of gardening (although, other than a little watering, things are looking pretty self-sustaining at the moment).

To celebrate, you should watch this clip of a pretty good old movie (with a script by Billy Wilder, and opening credits by Saul Bass - how can you go wrong?) about the beginning of another long hot summer in the city (just ignore the slightly racially offensive bit in the middle - kinda hard to find an old movie that doesn’t have a couple moments like those, unfortunately).

And then Marilyn Monroe shows up. You should really hunt this down and watch the rest of it though. It’s one of those classics that’s a classic for a reason.

hey, look at that

When I get settled, the very first crafty project I am whipping up to decorate my new abode is
this one I just saw on Design*Sponge.

Genius!

Handmade?

Typographic?

Throw pillows?

Doesn’t that sound familiar, everyone?

My only worry is that I won’t be able to find wool felt. It is hard to come by up here in Toronto, for some reason. Polar fleece, I can find oodles of, however, and it may have to do for this particular project (once fleece starts to get nubby and worn it sort of starts to look like felt, so it should be o.k.).

throw fonts

Even though I’m into things like Japanese dolls with huge eyes, and vintage tablecloths, I like to macho things up a bit every now and again. It keeps the boys from gagging when they enter my abode. (In fact, most boys who’ve visited quite like my apartment. Lots to look at. Comfy couch. Big TV. Video games. DVDs. Books. Don’t need anything else really).

If I were cooler than I am (which I think at this point has entirely to do with the disposability of my income - sick cats sucking up much of the funds with which would otherwise be spent on fine millinery and antique paperweights) I would cover my house in the wonderful typographic throw pillows I’ve been coming across lately.

They can be found here (in swirly titling script)

and here (in a deco sans)

and here (in a classic serif)

and here (in a a chunky mid-century serif)

Alas, they are pretty much all out of my price range. If I purchased one of each, the sum total would probably otherwise pay for a turquoise LeCreuset pot, or conversely, a used X-Box 360 - both of which are slightly more desired in this household at the moment - and that seems silly when I can throw together a throw in a couple hours with some two dollar thrift store fabric and a five dollar pillow form.

Of course, it’s entirely possible that I could whip something altogether less expensive up, by myself, if I simply procured a silkscreen and some cheap muslin….

sexy pinups (if you’re into typewriters)

I was out with friends, scouring the suburbs in search of a specific sample sale (that ended up being hidden away in a corporate office up a flight of stairs) when I stumbled upon a Goodwill.
And what a Goodwill it was!
I still say they are far superior to either Value Villages or Sally Anns.
I was about to give up hope, when I noticed a (mostly empty) rack that had a few interesting boxes lying on it.
One of them looked like this:

So (very intrigued at this point) I cracked it open, and found…

This marvellous, little, portable typewriter! For only ten bucks!

I love mechanical things. I have wanted a typewriter for soooooo long (mostly just for decorative reasons, but also maybe for the occasional art project). I have been looking for one in a sweet pastel, but for ten bucks, I didn’t really care that it was greige.

It works too! It even came with the original manual! I just need a new ribbon (which is looking like it will be more expensive than the thing was in the first place).

If you click through the pictures you’ll find more pictures on Flickr because, well, she’s a sexy girl.
Just tell me she isn’t hot.

lettering

love, love, love, originally uploaded by beth maher.

I love lettering. As I steadily plow through work for my portfolio, I decided some lettering practice was in order. So here are the results. I wrote the same short, simple word over and over again in as many hand forged faces as I could come up with. It’s a pretty handy exercise for anyone intrested in brushing up on their letterforms, or just a way to kill a few hours.

choucroute

My newest hobby is sticking random things in the oven and baking them.
I think I was always scared of the oven because baking is usually such a big ordeal - mixing, measuring, blending, kneading, scooping… and cleaning up eggs and flour everywhere…ick.
But apparently, if you just stick your dinner in the oven, it usually turns out pretty good. I used to be a frying pan kinda gal, but I think I’ve been converted.
Today I found this recipe for choucroute, which is basically just French for sauerkraut. It’s Alsatian dish (the Alsace is the borderland between Germany and France).
Being French, the authentic recipe is a little involved.
Myself being North American, I simplified it a little.
I simply tossed a handful of drained sauerkraut with a handful of carrots, a chopped red pepper, a couple of red-pepper sausages, a bay leaf and some leftover pork (bacon or ham would work too) into a casserole dish. I covered the ingredients with equal parts wine and water, and a splash of gin (the original recipe calls for juniper berries, so I figured that gin was a suitable replacement). I also added a bit of duck fat, as I just happened to have some in the fridge. But with the juices from the sausage, I don’t think it’s necessary. Although it is more authentic. A teaspoon of butter would probably do instead.
Then I covered it, and let it bake for an hour.
After the hour, I took off the lid, and let it continue to cook until the juices were suitably concentrated and yummy (about 2o minutes).
Then I seasoned it with salt and pepper, and we ate it with mashed potatoes and beer (there’s a little beer from the Alsace called Boris, that’s really good if you can track it down, it would be excellent here - and has some awesome typography on the packaging).
Liam said he doesn’t even like sauerkraut, but he loved it anyway.
So if you’ve got a fear of cabbage, this might just cure you.

gothic type

I just found the single most awsome site ever for very NOW free fonts.
They’re scratchy, rough, lo-fi and slightly gothic (but in that modern Mark Jacobs by way of the Arcade Fire kinda way). Basically, they are some of the most beautiful free indie fonts I’ve ever seen.
They can be found at misprinted type. The site is absolutely gorgeous too.
Thank me later.

gouache

I think I’ve finally found the trick to the whole drawing thing.
Number One: No distractions. With no boyfriend around I have no choice but to pick up a pen.
Number Two: No projects. With no paying clients lying about, I actually feel like drawing, for myself in the non-digital realm.
I’ve actually managed to pick up a pen and brush and do some sketching. I do quite like that process coloured gouache I bought for myself a while back. Not only is it incredibly vibrantly coloured (I’ve never been one for earth tones) I can fill a palette with paint, let it dry out, then go back to it later, add a little water to it and use it all over again.
I’ve become so used to the annoying lenghty prep work I’ve been taught when it comes to liquid watercolours, that this is quite a revelation.
Then of course there is the fact that the paints can be used translucently, or opaquely, which is quite nice.
It just seems like there are less limits on the stuff. It’s awesome for someone who’s been so rigidly, classically trained like me. It feels like the first time I discovered Adobe Illustrator.