I found this site today and it made me smile. I didn’t really dig too deep into the content, but if you pop over you’ll see what I mean. Salt Films.

I apologize for what seems to be the only thing I blog or talk about lately (ActiveDen), but Susan can attest that it’s all I talk about in person too. It’s pretty consuming. I keep telling her, “baby when Activeden goes platinum…” and then it’s usually followed with some lofty dream of traveling the world, living abroad for months at a time, remodeling the house, buying a car, starting another adoption…

So far it’s been mildly successful. Each month is better than the last with a few exceptions and I’m constantly working on new ideas and projects to add to the portfolio. One day I’d love to see it over take my current salary.

Today though was a pretty good “feel good” moment. As you can see from the image above I received a comment on one of my files giving thanks and praise. This happens from time to time, but since I’ll never win any FWAs or CA awards for my stock work hearing from a real customer is pretty nice.

I don’t know what it is but I love headphones and these are the latest I have my eyes on. Maybe it has to do with the fact that at work sometimes headphones are the only way to gain a little solitude working from my 5 foot cubicle. And it’s not like I don’t have fantastic headphones already that I LOVE, but the thought of this pair makes me weak in the knees (I mean sheep leather ear cups), and it’s not like I’ve bought oodles of headphones in my life. Maybe 2 or 3 pairs in 10 years.

From the reviews the P5′s sound as good as they look. I know they’re such a luxury item, but they are now on my list wish along with a whole lot of other gadgety.

When ever the boys over at Hoefler & Frere-Jones create a new typeface I want nothing more than to go and drop a few bones to add the beautiful little characters to my font library. But alas I realize I just don’t have that kind of cash. Dang it.

I’ve been very absent from my blog the past couple of months, and yet I have much news I need to post and update everyone (like leaving my freelance life and working for a large design firm machine).

“I have done gift cards for Target that are in stores nationwide and animations for Nickelodeon that run 24 hours a day worldwide on cable TV,” Melinda Beck, an illustrator who is based in Brooklyn, wrote in an e-mail message to Google rejecting its offer. “Both of these jobs were high-profile and gave my work great exposure but both clients still paid me.”

Maybe it’s time to give bing a try.

We both thought the Carmen typeface looked smart and would work perfect for the phrase “Did you think to pray”. The print comes in loads of colors and both Susan and I have discussed doing a limited edition larger print (think poster size), but first I guess we’ll see how is sells.

If you’re looking to bring a little “holy spirit” into your home head over to Susan’s store.

I think just about every guy has a thing for a mustang once in his life. Mine happened after that show with Nicolas Cage and Angie Pit (Gone in 60 Secs), but it lasted only for a fleeting moment. Well the team over at FirstBorn Multimedia have come up with a pretty amazing site to help sell the 2010 Ford Mustang.

One of the nice things about the site is the size. As people’s computer screens get bigger and wider it’s a tough call as a web designer—how do you create a website that looks good on a laptop and also on a 24 inch screen? Most websites today are built at 960 pixels wide, and even though the Mustang site is the same width it feels much bigger than that thanks to it’s large graphics and the great use of background images.

Did I also mention the site’s a 100% Flash? You can checkout the site yourself by clicking here.

Long story short a while back I was outside in our yard and started to dream up a plan to build a backyard office space, and since then have been searching for a perfect solution. When I saw this one I thought it was pretty close. I love the sunken space and with the glass bulb top it’s pretty futuristic. I could totally see myself walking out back to work every morning, and in winter it’d be pretty sweet covered in snow (snow cave).

Found the photos here: iwan.com.

Just wrapped this project. VitaBrevisFilms is the video/ motion studio of Skylar Nielsen photography. They do some pretty fancy video work and I have to admit that it was really nice to work with everybody there. See it live on the WWW here.

The people behind theFWA (website dedicated to showcasing the newest and best flash websites) have now brought us a new site to showcase photography. Like “one website” a day the FWA photo is “one photo a day”. The website is very well done, and whether you like photography or not it’s worth taking a look just for the site.

Yesterday I stumbled across this site for GE Ecomagination. Beyond being a beautiful site though the interactive video/ hologram is unbelievable. It’s one of those things as a web designer that just blows through the glass ceiling, and opens up a completely new approach. A dozen ideas are swimming in my head now. Take a break and go check out the site. I didn’t print out the paper but rather put the image on my iPhone. Here’s the link to the site and here’s the link to the photo to work the hologram (on your portable device).

Viewing art or design is one thing, but to listen to the actual artist talk about their work is always better. That’s one thing I miss about being at University (guess lectures) but fortunately there’s TV right?! Tonight I watched a BBC program that showcased Industrial Designer Marc Newson.

I’ve seen a bit of Newson’s work around before but it was great to put it all together. He has a lot of sculptural design pieces that don’t necessarily look comfy to sit on but they definitely look interesting to try out. And at the same time he has a lot of things he’s designed that show a level of thought and understanding of the design problem/ solution that you just don’t see in most products.

One of the projects Newson talks about is a concept car he did for Ford motor company. It made me wonder if Ford would be in the financial trouble they are today if they had used even some of Newson’s designs. It also made me wish car companies would spend more time and money on their interiors. Recently I had the pleasure of driving my dad’s Audi A6 while he was away, and as wonderful a car as it is the whole dash is an absolute nightmare. From button placement to how to navigate the radio. What a nightmare. Audi tried to take 2 steps forward but I think it’s closer to 6 steps back. I hate to sound like a design prick but who has audi hired to do their interiors?

Anyway, that’s probably a whole other post. They should hire Marc Newson or someone who can understand the simple design solutions that would make driving less an effort and more comfortable (Audi if you read this I’m available for Hire). To watch the BBC Marc Newson episode you can catch it on youtube by clicking here.

“Design work that would have taken me a week in 1980 can now be done on a personal computer in less than an hour. Cutting and pasting, when needed, is done in the basement, often by interns. I get the impression that this kind of work, to which I once applied myself with the pride of a master chef, is now viewed as a chore like dishwashing.”

I wonder how the profession will evolve over the course of my career. The day it doesn’t take me a week to program my design work in flash will be a great day. I’m guessing the next break through that pushes the profession won’t necessarily be technological.

From the guy who brought you the move about Helvetica comes a new movie about industrial design.

Seeing this trailer makes me rethink my decision to become a Graphic Designer. Maybe it goes back to the days of building with legos or maybe my love for building with wood. As much as I love Graphic design I can’t help but dream about designing chairs, watches, or even a car. I’m sure I could single handedly design the American auto industry out of their woes—Well, at least it’d be fun to try.

I know the molded Eames Chairs are no longer made out of fiberglass but this video is pretty interesting nonetheless. Showing design to shipping of those iconic Eames chairs. I really want to get my hands on one, two, or a whole dinner tables worth. Santa…

I’ve always wanted a Herman Miller Aeron chair, but as of right now my sights have changed. This Embody chair looks to be better and let’s face it the Aeron is 15–16 years old. It’s either this or else I’ve thought about getting one of my parents old High winged back chairs they use to have in their formal living room. Now that’d help me feel more captainish.