Library Notebooks

Last weeks I have been working hard at an assignment for about twenty notebooks. It was fun to see all those splendid colours around me. In these wet winter days, the rain and wind were lashing my windows, and I only had to look at those lovely booklets to see the sunshine :) Each booklet is unique. The cover is provided with letters saying 'BIEB', which is a Dutch acronym for library. When you open the booklets you figure out that the flyleads are printed with the word 'NOTE' and have several bright and sparkly colours. It was fun creating all those different booklets. mass production, with a small escape :)
The booklets are Christmast presents for the library employees. I hope they enjoy them!

Irma Boom's Chanel N°5

White white white ... my favourite colour... exhibited in the Nederlands Fotomuseum in Rotterdam... in one word beautiful! According to Anne van der Zwaag - the curator of the exhibition- white is no colour and in the same time a mixture of all colours. White can be inspiring, but also intimidating. In short: White is interesting!
Visiting the exhibition was blissful. Some artists or art works really caught my attention; for example the capriole haute couture by Iris van Herpen, Aart Klein's photo of an ice skater and the closed eyes in a white face by Erwin Blumenfeld.
All very inspiring, BUT there was also the Chanel No. 5 Book of Irma Boom, a Dutch Graphic Designer specialized in unusual (art) books. Her beautiful white book, reflecting the world of Coco Chanel, was exhibited in a showcase, but luckily there was also one copy you could browse through. Of course with the white museum gloves on :), but I have to confess I also touched the book with my bare hands... You really have to touch this book, because Irma Boom made the pages very tactile by using only embossed images and text. To preserve the die-stamp-printing the pages were not cut and the book is softbound and not squeezed. If you want to learn more about this special book, check out the short movie where Irma Boom explains some things about The Chanel No. 5 book.

Custom-made Box

One of my clients - Sandra of BUROSANNIES - was looking for a special box. For a school assignment she had to design and make a scaled cupboard. Because she is totally into felt, the material choice was easy. She designed a cupboard out of sturdy black felt, supported by some timber carriers. The presentation of the final design was at least as important, therefore phase two of this design assignment was to find an appropriate box for her creation. In close consultation we chose a firm model that we could give a sturdy look. I experimented with the possibilities to make very simple hinges, whereby the box could keep it's cardboard look and feel. Not only the hinges and surfaces have a basic appearance, but also the clasps are basic, inventive and practical. A small strip of black linen stored with a matt black button clicks on a hidden press stud, so the box can be opened very easily. The text Felt like Organizing on top of the box is the finishing touch of the design and also gives a hint about the content of the box...
Hopefully Sandra gets a good rating for her assignment!

E-course Blogging Your Way

Last month I took the e-course Blogging Your Way given by Holly Becker from Decor8. Although I had a really, and I mean a really, busy month I enjoyed the course very much. It was nice to meet other bloggers on the forum and even live. It turned out that Agnes from Stylestek also lives in Rotterdam, so we didn't only meet online, but also in real live and we will keep on doing that :) Agnes is specialized in inspiring images for websites and promoting articles etc. Her work is refined and dreamy, and her website is as white as mine :)
During the course we learned things about blogging in general, branding your blog, styling, photography, photo editing, but above all it was INSPIRING! I have so many ideas for new blogposts and how to improve my styling and photography... I hope you will enjoy my future posts - inspired by this e-course and all the other bloggers I met at this class-!

Prien Work in Progress

Working hard at a nice assignment. Just wanted you to show the in-between-phase. So cool to see all these future booklets and their soon-to-be covers. The colours make me happy!!! Later on the result...

Aurora Robson - Recycling Plastic into Art

Today I want to show you the work of Aurora Robson. She is a Canadian multi-media artist who creates serene, dreamy installations and drawings out of waste. Aurora's goal is not only to create but also to inspire other artists to do what she does with her junk mail and empty bottles: create a fascinating piece of art.
Ofcourse I can write a lot about this interesting, inspiring and renewing artist, but I think you just have to take a look at her site to actually see what she is doing with all those polluting plastic bottles. Hopefully you enjoy her work and you get inspired to think about recycling and your own responsibility to this environment!