A Year In Caps. 2012 Typographic Calendar printed on Sustainably-Harvested Birch Wood.

Heather Lins, whose unique pillows and homewares I have previously featured, has designed a calendar for 2012 which celebrates typography.

Each month is printed on sustainably-harvested wood veneers and makes a great gift for any graphic designer or typophile.




• Twelve 5" × 7" birch veneer cards
• Tied with a pretty ribbon.
• Gift tag and reusable gift bag included.
• Digitally printed.
• U.S. holidays.

By Heather Lins Home.
$32 USD, Buy it here.

If Walls Could Talk. Timothy Goodman's Mural for the Ace Hotel, New York.

San Francisco multidisciplinary designer Timothy Goodman was among a small group of artists asked to contribute to the mural project for the Ace Hotels.



The uber trendy hotel chain (whose rooms, I personally feel, look like college dorms) has locations in New York, Seattle, Portland and Palm Springs. Known for their appeal to the young and hip, the chain of hotels incorporates plenty of art, design, music and culture in their utilitarian-esque rooms and lobbies. They also have an association with the popular and fun Rudy Barbershops.



Timothy joined the ranks of other artists when he covered the walls of one smallish room in the latest Ace Hotel NYC location with 99 hand-drawn picture frames. Created with black paint markers and paint, he then filled them with images of facts, love, tidbits, items of interest and shout-outs to other folks to represent, in his own words, "the spontaneity and grit of the city."

























above photographs by Mark Dye.



Below are examples of various wall murals by other artists in the Ace Hotel, New York:













Timothy Goodman:





Timothy's website

Timothy's blog

Alexander Girard Prints on Plywood. Classic Graphic Art Goes Green With PLYprints.

For the first time since 1972 Alexander Girard's iconic graphics are now available as wall art, screened onto 14"x14" panels of Columbia's formaldehyde-free maple faced hardwood plywood.







The PLYprints program draws on Girard's history of printing directly on wood in such places as the Compound restaurant in Santa Fe.









Eight of Alexander Girard's classic designs are available on 14" x 14" plywood panels, including two NEW designs: Old Sun and New Sun. Each graphic panel features an iconic Alexander Girard image hand screenprinted with water-based inks on a US-made sustainably-harvested maple plywood panel.









All PLYprints include hanging hardware and have a spacer on the back that allows the panel to float off the wall. The vibrant artworks mix bold colors with the natural graining of the real wood veneers. The wood panels are responsibly made with Columbia Forest Products' soy-based, formaldehyde free PureBond® technology to create a safe and green wood based product for your home.







Three more of Girard's classic designs are available on larger 16" x 20" plywood panels, with wall hanging hardware included. This new size makes a bigger design statement with the same sustainable properties as the smaller wall hangings.







A "Give Love" gift set of six 3" x 3" blocks is also available, all with Girard's iconic "LOVE" design screened in red. Break up the set and "give love" to everyone you love. Alexander Girard (1907 - 1993) created iconic mid-century modern designs for such companies as Herman Miller and Braniff International Airways. His work married the timeless lines of the modern with the playfulness and bold color of Latin American folk art.



The estate chose to work with Columbia Forest Products because PureBond is the only widely available cost-neutral formaldehyde-free plywood panel. Girard had a long history of environmental concerns, especially about pollution, and PureBond technology offers a way to mitigate indoor air problems by eliminating the risk of toxic and carcinogenic VOC's that can be released by composite wood panels made with urea formaldehyde resins.



About Columbia Forest Products:

Founded in 1957, Columbia Forest Products is North America's largest manufacturer of hardwood plywood and hardwood veneer, a leader in sustainable forestry, and innovator of formaldehyde-free PureBond technology.



Columbia's decorative interior veneers and panels are used in cabinetry, furniture, architectural millwork and commercial fixtures. Employee-owned and based in Greensboro, North Carolina, Columbia employs more than 2,000 and operates facilities throughout the United States and Canada, and an operational network which spans the globe.



PLYprints Concept:

The PLYprints concept was developed in cooperation with Eric Pfeiffer of PfeifferLab, a San Francisco-based design and branding studio. PfeifferLab relies on Eric's penchant for simplicity of form to create useful and elegant solutions for everyday living. It's this pure design ethos, coupled with a casual sensibility that results in timeless objects rooted in a deep understanding of materials and message.



Learn more here.

A Wicked Way With Wood. Font Wall Art & Coasters By Jen Pepper.

Jen Pepper, the designer behind Peppersprouts, combines technology with crafting to create homewares and wall art that have a modern style combined with a traditional sensibility. While she also works in acrylic, I am especially fond of her hand drawn and laser etched cherry and walnut coasters and wall art.


Sans Serif Font Wall Art:


Fan of sans-serif typefaces? Then you'll love this.
Set in laser-cut walnut wood are Helvetica, Gill Sans Light, Century Gothic, Verdana, Univers Light, and Arial Black.

Easy to hang from Two small finishing nails.
Size: 15" x 14.25" (38cm x 36cm) and 1/4" thick (6.4mm)
Material: Dark Walnut
$70


Serif Font Wall Art:


Prefer serif fonts?
Then try this one. Set in Palatino, Copperplate, Archer Book, Courier Bold, Garamond, Times, and Georgia Bold.

Easy to hang from Two small finishing nails.
Size: 15" x 14.25" (38cm x 36cm) and 1/4" thick (6.4mm)
Material: Dark Walnut Laminated MDF
$70

"Home Sweet Home" Coasters:


The hand drawn houses have been etched on the surface of the wood and someone has gone and cut out all if the windows. The coasters have been laser cut from cherry wood, that has been hand rubbed with tung oil to protect them.



This set of coasters contains 4 coasters, each one has a different house.
Size: 3.4" x 3.4" and approx .25" thick.
Material: Cherry MDF
$28

"Take A Seat" Coasters:

The hand drawn chairs have been etched on the surface of the wood while little pieces have been cut away for very fun look. The coasters have been laser cut from cherry wood, that has been hand rubbed with tung oil to protect them.



This set of coasters contains 4 coasters, each one has a different chair.
Size: 3.4" x 3.4" and approx .25" thick.
Material: Cherry
$28

Classic Wood Silhouette Coasters:


The hand drawn silhouettes have been cut from the wood and the fancy ornate frame was engraved into the surface of the wood. The coasters have been laser cut from Colour Rimu wood, that has been hand rubbed with tung oil to protect them from water damage. Easy to clean, just wipe with soap and water.



This set of coasters contains one coaster of each silhouetted figure.
Size: 3.4" x 3.4" and approx .25" thick.
Material: Cherry MDF
$28

"Song Bird" Coasters:


The ornate designs or twirls and swirls have been engraved onto the surface of these wood coasters, while some dots, leaves, branches, and stars have been cut out making for a very lovely 3 dimensional object. The coasters have been laser cut from a cherry wood, that has been hand rubbed with tung oil to protect them from water over time.



This set of coasters contains four coasters of the same design.
Size: 3.75" diameter and approx .25" thick.
Material: Cherry Wood
$28

Shop for all the above shown items and more here.

About peppersprouts

Blurring the line between computer aided design and traditional craftsmanship, peppersprouts offers a wide range of affordable and eco-friendly homegoods.

It all started in 2009 in a tiny basement apartment in Brooklyn, NY. With a background in graphic design and the urge to create something new, Jen sketched a design for a coaster that she would love to see on the shelves of her favorite shop. With the help of some awesome people she was able to have her design protyped through laser cutting. After that, the ideas just keep flowing.

By using modern manufacturing techniques, and a little elbow grease, peppersprouts is proud to offer an affordable, well designed product.