Mint

It seems fitting to end the year with one of my favorite projects — my 2012 collection for letterpress invitation company Bella Figura. This is my third year working with them, and designing the collections in the summer/fall is always really fun (and hard to keep secret). The new collection launched yesterday, and here are my designs!

Thanks for reading Mint! It’s been a wonderful 2011 and I’ll see you right back here the first week of January. Happy Holidays!

A round-up of gift-worthy items from some of our featured sponsors!

1. Good Timers Ceramic Mug by Kin Ship Press / 2. North Carolina Necklace by Vespertine / 3. Thunderbird Ring by Ruby Lane / 4. Zig Zag Postcards by The Change Factory / 5. Western Meadowlark Specimen Letterpress Print by Mossière / 6. Spring Court Velcro Trainers from Smallable / 7. Snow Angel Letterpress Cards from Felt & Wire / 8. Peaceful Snowflake Cards by Juniper Berry / 9. Looking for Beauty Print by Creature Comforts / 10. Hana-Hukin Kitchen Cloth from Uguisu

Thanks, all! Sponsors help make Mint possible, and I am so grateful for their support. If you’re interested in advertising on Mint, please get in touch by emailing ellie at mintdesignblog dot com, and I’ll be happy to give you all the details.

Some good ones from some of our favorites (with the holidays on the mind)!

+ Fun and colorful geometric wrapping paper from Forma via Oh So Beautiful Paper

+ These prints from Swallowfield would make the perfect gift! We especially like the one pictured above, via Bloesem

+ Ink + Wit’s wood cards are so unique, and we really like the gold envelopes!

+ Silly Buddy’s dog bow ties via Design Sponge

+ Ship & Shape is a beautifully curated shop and has a variety of gifts for the holidays (or yourself!) via Wit & Delight

+ We love the classic cases JCrew is carrying for the iPhone, along with the handsome DODOcase for the iPad

+LOCAL STUFF: 2nd Friday Artwalk in Chapel Hill // Prime Cut at The Fish Market Gallery // Object to Image at Trough This Lens // Luis France at The Stone Center // Phil Cook & His Feet Saturday at Local 506 // The annual UNC Student Print Sale is today (Friday) from 11am til 9pm on the 3rd floor of Hanes Art Center!

Have a good weekend!

One of our favorite sponsors Felt & Wire has some really great gifts for everyone on your list this year. They also have a large selection of cards and tags that would put the perfect finishing touch on any gift! Here are some of our favorites for the holidays, and be sure to check out their entire shop!

1. Heart Cushion Cover / 2. Holiday Music Card / 3. Yellow Candle Holder / 4. Kids Letterpress Color-in Clock / 5. Recycled Canvas Bucket / 6. A Year in Caps 2012 Calendar / 7. Fern Art Print / 8. Italian Grapes Journal / 9. Letterpress Holiday Cards (set of 6)

Thanks F&W! Sponsors help make Mint possible, and I am so grateful for their support. If you’re interested in advertising on Mint, please get in touch by emailing ellie at mintdesignblog dot com, and I’ll be happy to give you all the details.

Luci Everett is an Australian illustrator / graphic designer / collage artist extraordinaire who creates beautiful work and seems to always have her hand in a new adventure. We caught up with Luci to get a little peek into her mind and see what she’s been working on and what’s next for her!

When did you first become interested in graphic design and illustration?
I think I’ve always been interested in it. Definitely since I was about 12 at least, although my work aspirations have changed (I don’t particularly want to design for teenage girls’ magazines anymore!).

We have been following your blog and love your posts “Things I’ve been working on.” Can you tell us about these new pieces? 
These are peeks at some illustrative stationery I’ve been creating for an online wedding stationery store which is launching very soon.

Do you have any other exciting new projects you are currently working on?
Yes! A few personal projects in the works. I’m working on a publication with my friend and great photographer Olga Bennett and an animation with two friends. I just finished a fun illustrative typography project for Frankie magazine which will be in the next issue.

Who, would you say, is/are the biggest influences of your work?
Probably a mixture of a gazillion sources. Some which come to mind: Chris Silas Neal, MASH, Dane Lovett.

What piece of art do you own that you cherish the most?
Other than my nephews’ drawings, I have a beautiful wooden “egg head” (that’s the only way I can describe it) by artist Eveline Tarunadjaja.

What are some of your favorite materials to work with?
Paper/collage, watercolour, pencils.

What are three things you never leave your house without?
Phone, keys, shoes!

What is the best part about living in Australia?
Lots of beautiful places to visit and road trips to take. The Melbourne coffee is killer too.

Thanks, Luci!

All work and photos by Luci Everett

Some things we are coveting this week:

+ Pippa Small’s ethically traded collection at Terrain.

+ These constellation calendars by little bright studio via Unruly Things

+ Erika Lawlor Schmidt’s collages via Design for Mankind

+ This apple galette recipe from La Tartine Gourmande, above

+ Turner Pocock’s Owlet Wallpaper via Design Sponge

+ A very cozy looking Rennweg Scarf from Anthropologie

+ LOCAL STUFF: First Friday Gallery Walk in Raleigh // Durham Storefront Project // Holiday Open House at Marbles Kids Museum’s Corner Store // Raleigh Winterfest on Saturday

 Have a good weekend!

We’re kicking off our 2011 gift guide series with design books. Why? Design books are the gift that keeps on giving! Above are some favorites from my own collection (which I refer to often), in addition to a few I wish would appear under my tree. Photographs and book descriptions provided by their respective publishers.

DIY Furniture: A Step-by-Step Guide
Featuring 30 designs by leading designer-makers from around the world DIY Furniture shows you how to use simple techniques to make stunning designer furniture from scratch. …Each project features hand-drawn diagrams with short, easy-to-follow instructions on how to build the piece.

Thinking With Type, Revised Edition
Thinking with Type is the definitive guide to using typography in visual communication, from the printed page to the computer screen. …Throughout the book, visual examples show how to be inventive within systems of typographic form—what the rules are and how to break them.

By Hand: The Use of Craft in Contemporary Art
…By Hand features the work of thirty-two artists whose innovative and unexpected uses of handicraft techniques such as embroidery, sewing, knitting, and crocheting are making the age-old craft versus art debate obsolete. From Kiki Smith’s lovingly etched birds, to Barb Hunt’s knitted land mines to dynamo-ville’s one-of-a-kind puppets, to Evil Twin’s handstitched publications, the artworks in By Hand revel in the care and consideration of craft.

Vera: The Art and Life of an Icon
…An innovator and one of the most successful female entrepreneurs of her time, Vera built her company on a radical philosophy: fine art should be accessible to everyone, not just a select few. Known for her iconic images of cheerful flowers, trendy geometrics, and vibrant ladybugs, she believed people should surround themselves with beauty. …In this volume, richly illustrated with Vera’s original sketches, paintings, and photographs of her worldwide travels, readers are introduced to the amazing woman behind the dynamic designs that continue to inspire and influence art, design, and fashion.

Pulled: A Catalog of Screen Printing
Popularized in the 1960s by Pop artists such as Andy Warhol, screen printing remains a favorite of artists due to its remarkable versatility and relatively low cost. In Pulled, best-selling author Mike Perry (Hand Job, Over and Over) collects the work of more than forty of today’s most talented designers who are, in their own way, pushing the boundaries of this dynamic medium.

Drawn In: A Peek into the Inspiring Sketchbooks of 44 Fine Artists, Illustrators, Graphic Designers, and Cartoonists
People are fascinated by artist’s sketchbooks. They offer a glimpse into private pages where artists brainstorm, doodle, develop and work on ideas, and keep track of their musings. Artists use these journals to document their daily lives, produce their initial ideas for bigger projects, and practice their skills. …See inside the sketchbooks of artists Jessica Hische, Mike Perry, Jen Corace, Matt Leines, Jill Bliss, Camilla Engman, Anders Nilsen and many more.

Design*Sponge at Home
The long-awaited home décor bible by design blogger Grace Bonney

To Each His Home: Inspired Interiors as Unique as Their Owners
…In To Each His Home: Inspired Interiors as Unique as Their Owners, photographer Bilyana Dimitrova takes readers on a tour of eight extraordinary homes that unabashedly express the personalities of their free-spirited owners. Dimitrova’s carefully crafted color photographs, accompanied by brief interviews with each homeowner, create vivid portraits of these one-of-a-kind American spaces.

The Printmaking Bible: The Complete Guide to Materials and Techniques
… The Printmaking Bible is the definitive resource to the ins-and-outs of every variety of serious printmaking technique practiced today. In-depth instructions are accompanied by profiles that show how working artists create their prints. Historical information, troubleshooting tips, and an extensive resource section provide more invaluable tools.

Stay tuned this week for our usual Mint gift guide round-ups… more books, DIY, and “gifts for good.”