Oh so innocent

I have a very large stack of recipe books that I tend to glance through when I’m feeling bored with my dietary routine but generally they seem to occupy more of a ‘coffee book’ status in my house. Having three fussy young eaters on my hands now I have a much more pressing need to buy recipe books that actually work – by encouraging me not just to sight-see but to pick a recipe and blimmin’ well cook something! So it was with hopeful glee that I discovered the Innocent cookbook. I’ve been an avid consumer of Innocent products over the years, both because they taste yummy and are vege friendly but also because their philosophy and packaging are so creative and quirky. They really started a whole new vibe in personalising packaging design, making it fun as well as functional.

And now they’ve made a cookbook and it’s fab. I even made a recipe on the second day, so excited was I by it’s contents! The artwork is, as you’d expect from Innocent, jaunty and cheeky with lots of unexpected twists and turns and hidden surprises. There is so much more in here than recipes and photos though, there are interesting additions like ‘The 10 Commandments for Washing Up’ and ‘The 30 Steps to Sunday Heaven’ and even short stories to read the kids. It’s family fun focused and full to the brim of both enticing recipes and great ideas for creative things to do with fruit and vege (a must in my house!) and makes you really want to get stuck in and have a go. Oh and of course it’s beautifully designed.

 

Heartily, happily recommended.

 

Scandi-tastic

Having a Swedish grandmother imbued me with an affection for all things Scandinavian and these days the buzz for Scandi-chic extends much further than Ikea it seems. In hunting about the net to furnish my own ‘hus’, I’ve discovered a lot of terrific sites out there specialising in beautiful Scandi design, some with a modern edge, others with a more traditional flavour. Here are a few of my favs:

 

Hus and Hem

 

Cloudberry Living

ISAK

 

Scandinavian Design Center


Scandi Living

Drift Living

 

Nordic House

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Something old, something new

How do you take an old classic and make it relevant and desirable to a modern reader? Well a crackingly good cover design seems the right place to start. I’m a firm believer in the magic of the book cover to draw a reader in, enticing them to buy. I must confess to often buying books just because I love the cover so much. Perhaps that’s the wannabe book designer in me or perhaps it’s simply the designer doing a spellbinding job? Whatever the case, beautiful books are worth a look, a read, and a place on your bookshelf. Here are some lovely, unusual and creative reinventions of old classics that have tickled my fancy…

 

Moby Dick – Vintage Classics

 

Journey to the Centre of the Earth – Vintage Classics

 

The Scarlett Letter – Vintage Classics

 

Diary of a Nobody – Vintage Classics

 

The Secret Garden – Penguin Threads

 

Emma – Penguin Threads

 

Breakfast at Tiffany’s – Penguin Essentials

 

Lolita – Penguin Essentials

 

Persuasion – Penguin Classics Deluxe

 

Wuthering Heights – Penguin Classics Deluxe

 

Pride and Prejudice – Penguin Classics Deluxe

Movie Posters

I’m working on my own poster designs at the moment and have been looking at movie posters as a source of inspiration… perhaps I shouldn’t have – they’re all so good! I seem to be drawn to posters that are relatively simple, with minimal text, bold use of colour and an imaginative concept. Summing up a movie in one piece of art must be a real challenge but a pretty exciting one at that!

 

Griff the Invisible

 

Bonnie and Clyde

 

Winnie the Pooh

 

Beats Rhymes and Life

 

Between Notes

 

Brave

 

Super

 

Websites with the WOW factor

I love to browse the latest and greatest sites on the web; It’s a good way to keep abreast of the shifting trends in web design, and an opportunity to check out some supreme talent at work. Big and bold seems to be the way forward at the moment, with super-sized backgrounds the order of the day. On the plus side, sites like these offer eye-catching effects and lux imagery to draw you in but on the downside, it can often be a case of design over usability, as loading time can lag and navigation isn’t always intuitive. You be the judge…
 

MediaBoom

 

BokicaBo

 

Twofold

 

ultranoir

 

Rickard Sund

 

Nizo

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