Backstage: The SinkIt logo in process

Very nice behind the scenes of what went into the new corporate identity for SinkIt here.

Top 10 logo tips

Great top 10...

1. A logo doesn’t need to say what a company does


Restaurant logos don’t need to show food, dentist logos don’t need to show teeth, furniture store logos don’t need to show furniture. Just because it’s relevant, doesn’t mean you can’t do better.

Cont'd

Via ybnby

Design Strategy by Continuum

Resonance from Continuum on Vimeo.

In Defense of Eye Candy

Well articulated piece here discussing the importance of well-crafted aesthetics and how many times the basics of color, depth and so on can have a major impact on how viewers digest and or navigate through our designs.

Miles

How Fluff is Driving Away Your Viewers

Nice write-up here that discusses the importance of simplicity and clarity in web design. The article highlights the fact that by incorporating extraneous messaging, gimmicks, etc., you are not only standing in the way of the users experience but also driving them away from your site.

Can Design Save the Newspaper?

People hate your website, now what?

So there you are, site has been completely built and in your opinion it couldn’t be better. Then it happens…. BAM… someone complains that they can’t find something on the site. Then another complaint…. BLAMMO… they can’t see the site at all in their IE6 browser. Suddenly you realize that though your site looks beautiful in Firefox, and to you it makes total sense navigating your way around, your users aren’t having the same experience as you are. Read more...

You should attend...

The first annual Denver Artcrank Poster show. Straight out of Minneapolis, and spear headed by my college buddy Josh Wills, this is sure to be a good time. The show will open across four galleries in downtown Denver beginning April 11th. Be sure to check it out! Click on the image for show details.

Miles

Logos 101: for all you newbs

5 straight forward, elemental things that every mark should be able to do well. These are the basics folks.

Miles

9 Common Usability Mistakes In Web Design

Nice write-up here.

Via smashingmagazine

The $50 logo experiment

The Creative Director at 160over90 to it upon himself to engage in a mock project with one of these "get an awesome logo online for a buck in less than 24 hours" types of places, i.e. logoworks, logoyes, etc. Needless to say, the process and results, here, were borderline seizure inducing, and at the same time, utterly hysterical. But hey, what do you expect for 50 bucks, right?

I won't get into what I feel is wrong with these sort of groups and their approach, because frankly, I don't have all day to write this post. I can, however, directly relate to this story and cite the true tale of a client who, before they called on us, sourced one of these companies and had an eerily similar experience. When all was said and done they were out of pocket some $400 and had absolutely nothing of value to show for it.

For further reading,
logoworks rip-offs
logoworks sucks
how not to design a logo

ps- I do want to state that the services offered by this lot may suit some companies perfectly, and that's cool. Not every client has the means to invest in a proper identity.

Miles

Via logodesignlove

Doggy biscuit biz cards

Love this concept.

Miles

Via ibia

Poster Goodness

Awesome collection of illustrative posters here which appear to be self promotional pieces for Italian agency H-57 Creative Station. Enjoy.

Miles

Via ibia

15 awesome ambigrams

Here is a nice collection of 15 ambigram designs. It is difficult not to appreciate the effort it takes to design such a mark. Fantastic craftsmanship...

ambigram, also sometimes known as an inversion or flipscript, is a graphical figure that spells out one or more words not only in its form as presented, but also in another direction or orientation. The text spelled out in the other direction or orientation is often the same, but can also be a different text.

Via logodesignlove

Miles

Judge a book

Here is a collection of nicely designed book covers from this past year. I have always found book design to be one of the more creative mediums, allowing for some truly artistic expressions. Enjoy.

Miles

Malcolm Gladwell @ AIGA

If you haven't yet read the book Blink, I highly suggest giving it a gander. Malcolm Gladwell does a great job of dissecting the human mind and exploring the unique characteristics that define our personal perceptions of both life and society. Here is a nice presentation from this years AIGA business and design conference in which he analyzes creativity and it's natural evolution of trial and error. A bit lengthy (38 min) but throw on the headphones and give it a listen if you have a chance.

Via swissmiss

Miles

Design for good

For those of you who aren't yet familiar with the annual TED conference in Monterey CA, I'd like to enlighten you. Their website features a collection of presentations over the years from the aforementioned event. Topics of discussion include everything from politics, culture, art, science, design, technology and much more. I highly suggest checking out some of the talks when you have a chance, it is all truly inspiring stuff from some of the worlds most notable individuals in their respective fields. This piece is no different, it highlights a new design of prosthetic that is, truly amazing. Enjoy.

Miles