RIP Gary Coleman. You’ve earned it.

Don’t you especially love the assertion at the end of the Newton spot that “if there’s anything this world could use, it is more communication.” Hoo boy!

(Thanks SMCLT)

So not only is House Industries releasing a fantastic new font collection (the Eames Century Modern), but they will also be drawing three names to accompany them on an exclusive look into the inner sanctum of one of 20th century’s greatest design teams. The Eames House was built in 1949 as number 8 in the series of Case Study Houses and is still recognized as a revolutionary use of space and materials.

To toss your hat into the ring, fill out this form and enter EAMES HOUSE in the comments box.

And if you forget the first time (like I did) hopefully they’ll be understanding when you fill out the form twice (like I did).

New, limited edition book, about Helvetica’s infiltration of the New York City subway system. Written by Paul Shaw. Including hundreds of photos, along with reproductions of pages from various MTA and NYCTA signage manuals. Oh, I’m sorry — was that me drooling? Goodness, how embarrassing.

I lived in New York for 6 years, and I return every year at least twice, and to count the number of photos I have taken down in the subway would be impossible. I am obsessed with its haphazard permanence, its raw, often accidental beauty, and its consistent inconsistency.

I can’t wait to hold this book in my hand.

Haiti remains a place of profound need, anguish, desperation and danger, with a few glimmers of hope and slowly growing capabilities to receive and distribute the international aid now flowing in. Sporadic looting, sometimes violent, was met with force by security officials and ordinary citizens, resulting in a number of further deaths and injuries. The tenuous security situation has led to at least one temporary evacuation of a medical facility, to protect the care-givers. Despite the long time since the earthquake, at least five people were pulled from the rubble alive this weekend, including a young girl trapped inside a supermarket who was fortunately surrounded by food, and survived on fruit snacks.

Looking for ways to contribute but still unsure how to go about it? Charity Navigator sorts and ranks charities to help you find one you can trust. For Haiti and countless other situations.

(Description and images from The Big Picture at boston.com)

Phillip Niemeyer has created a fantastic chart for the New York Times depicting trends of the past 10 years.

The above is just a sample of highlights of the O’s, but the whole chart is an interesting walk down the memory lanes of our love, concerns, moods and fears.

See the full chart here.

(Thanks Crystal!)

Time.com has curated a list of the top-10 magazine covers of 2009. There are some great ones, but this New Yorker cover by Chris Ware slapped me across the face when it came into my house a couple of months ago.

Another New Yorker cover that wasn’t included in the list but that I haven’t been able to send to the recycling bin is this one that came out immediately after President Obama’s inauguration. It is titled “First,” and I think it is perfect.

See them all here.

(Thanks Guy)

For one reason or another we ended up being there longer than expected, my father in the Art Director’s office hashing out some problem, me the sudden responsibility of the junior art director.

I can’t recall whether he asked me what I wanted to do, but here’s what I remember:

He set me up at an IBM Selectric typewriter with the changeable typeface balls. Showed me how to change the typefaces. Gave me a sheet of slick paper and let me play. Once I was “done” he showed me the waxer and how to run the slick paper through, coating the whole backside with a thin corduroy film of sticky hot wax. We then went to a drafting table where he showed me how to use a T-square and a triangle and an X-Acto knife.

I emerged that day in a blissed out haze, telling anyone who would listen that I wanted to be an art director when I grew up.

11 years later I graduated from art school.

And now, 16 years after that, I am here with a new venture. A design blog. One that will attempt to share with you all the things that whiz through and whirr around a designer’s brain, or, at least, this designer’s brain.

I have spent a lifetime gathering wooden letters, vintage postcards, pieces of rusty metal, obscure books. Patient friends (and husbands) have long been forced to look at decrepit old signs, scorn public displays of poorly spaced type, and listen to me gush over perfect examples of design that make me bite my lip with jealous adoration, and them yawn.

I have boxes and shelves and envelopes stuffed with things I like to look at but don’t get to as often as I’d like. And now, finally, I have a place to put them: on the internet, where they belong. And where you can enjoy them too.

I sure hope you do.

……………..

Starting today, you will (fingers crossed) find me here every day, at least once a day. But if you find you need more, you can also find me here, on Twitter.