THAT'S NICE DESIGN

Where's all that nice design been for the last 6 months?!

2012-01-03T13:41:00.000-08:00

Well, firstly, happy new year! I hope 2012 is a great year for you all... You may have been wondering why this blog hasn't been updated in so long and my excuse is I had a baby! We had a little son early August and has since taken up all my time..! But he's very cute so I'll let him off. Whilst it has been difficult to get onto the laptop I have been beavering away on my iPhone getting addicted to pinterest. If you haven't yet come across pinterest it's a great site that allows you to save all that nice design you spot on the Internet and save all the images in digital mood boards for future reference. I think I've set myself 100 arty crafty projects to do and need to buy a mansion to fulfil all these great interior design ideas I've found on the site! That could be the next post!
Along with my pinterest addiction and becoming a mother I also signed up to a surface pattern design course featuring the highly talented designer Rachael Taylor. Module 1 is completed with modules 2 and 3 still to go. If you have an interest in surface pattern design I really recommend looking into the course, I've been very inspired.
So what's in store for that's nice design in 2012? I will hopefully start posting up some cool design finds much more regularly, try to do one special feature a month from interviews to design themes and twitter more!

How very handy...

2011-06-15T06:24:00.000-07:00

Check out this commercial for Samsung Galaxy.., and make sure you keep watching until after 40 seconds where is goes from 'he's a bit clever with his hands' to 'that's bleeping cool!'

For one day only... 11th May 2011

2011-05-11T01:45:00.000-07:00

Check out the animation of the google logo on google.co.uk celebrating what would have been Martha Graham's 117th birthday. Martha Graham was an american choreographer born in 1894 and died in 1991. To find out more about her click here.

How to celebrate the Royal Wedding... and the Union Flag!

2011-04-19T05:43:00.000-07:00

The wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton next week has created a bit of a come back for all things British, particularly the trusted Union Flag... which goes through eras of being in and out fashion. Coupled with the 60 year anniversary of The Festival of Britain, and the London Olympics just around the corner it's a time to celebrate all things British...

I've always been a fan of the Union Flag and even wrote my final year dissertation all about it - the rise and fall through history, politics, the punk era and right up until Geri Halliwell and THAT DRESS!

The flag, sadly, has no reference to Wales (due to the fact that at the time the flag was designed in 1606 Wales was part of the Kingdom of England). But out of all the world flags this one is surely up there as one of the most iconic and memorable.

So here's your guide on how to celebrate the Royal Wedding in a very British fashion.

Step 1

Take your seats early (wedding starts at 11am) and place your butt on your very own throne from Made With Love... for extra support use a Jan Constantine cushion.

Step 2

Make sure any young guests are suitably attired in a baby sleepsuit designed by Powell Craft and available to buy from Snugg.

Step 3

Serve cupcakes decorated with Hunkydory Home's beautiful toppers...

Step 4

Don't forget the plates - for extra impact go for these original designs from KK Outlet.

Step 5

If the wedding gets a little boring make sure you have some nice prints to look at on the walls, go for a typographic map of Britain by Bold and Noble...

...or perhaps a little twist on the now infamous Keep Calm and Carry On posters by The Contemporary Home. The original posters were designed in 1939 under the threat of war and although a few million were printed they remained in storage through-out the war years and beyond. For more on the history of the poster, click here.

Step 6

Time to wash up some of those many Union Jack and Royal Wedding mugs. There were too many to feature so instead opted for this splendid tea towel by Betsy Bean.

Step 7

The wedding is almost over, time to pack it all away and save all the Union Jack designs for next summers olympics or just kick back and put your feet up on one of these John Lewis trunks...

Step 8

Did it all get a bit much? no fear, make sure you have these Lydia Leith sick bags to hand!

See you on the big day! or if you miss it you can always check out the highlights here...

Grungy typefaces for FREE!

2011-04-07T05:55:00.000-07:00

Some nice grungy typefaces on this site... a lot for free use also...

www.misprintedtype.com

The 50 Greatest Opening Title Sequences of All Time?

2011-03-15T08:23:00.000-07:00

Any all time greatest lists will always be subjective but there are many classics amongst this top 50 bought to you by ifc.com - click here for the list.
For me, there's a few notable ones missing - namely Imaginary Force's wonderful Dead Man on Campus, and Bicentennial Man (ignore the sliding text at the start that the you tube contributor has kindly added!).
There's many more... what's missing on the list for you?

Love Design - special feature

2011-02-14T02:32:00.000-08:00

As promised, That's Nice Design is all about the love today to celebrate Valentine's Day... here's a small selection of LOVELY designs and art. Please feel free to post links to anything else that has captured your heart today...

Print - Johanna Basford

That's Nice Design favourite Johanna Basford has so many fabulous designs to choose from but it's Valentines Day and Love is the word for the day. So let's kick off our celebration with this gorgeous print... Love...

Fashion - Lovebirds

Such a simple design that works so well... two lovebirds kissing in the shape of a heart. And this guy goes to prove it's not just a girls t-shirt. Available as a print or t-shirt from Threadless designed by sockneck (aka Paul Vizzari).

Greeting cards - Kate Jones

The shops are awash with Valentines cards, it was so hard to pick. But these are a little different... designed by Kate Jones for Camden Graphics the range is called 'mishmash' and made from vintage scarves, her grandma's hankies, old maps and a few extra prints of her own. And if greeting cards, patterns and textiles are your thing make sure you visit the Print Pattern blog.

Woodwork - Rob Ryan

Rob Ryan is another That's Nice Design favourite. There were endless examples of Rob's wonderfully whimsical work that could have been selected for this Valentines special but I decided to go for something a little different. The Key to My Heart with little messages of love - how can you resisit?

Film - Blue Valentine

From the reviews I've read this is a brilliant film but not exactly the happiest! The titles are quite beautiful, and shows what you can do just using stills from the film. It's like an understated explosion which I am guessing reflects the film - the ups and downs of love, the highs, the lows and the fireworks which aren't always a cause for celebration. To watch the full video click here to go to Art of the Title website.

Print - Life is Beautiful

I love the simplicity of this print in design and message. Available to purchase from Culture Label for a bargain price of £20.

Branding - Coo

Hofstede Design, based in Australia produced this playful, stylish design for Coo, a company that makes products for young children.

Hopefully this has spread a little design love your way... please post your comments or links to other lovely designs...

Valentines Day - special feature

2011-01-28T09:36:00.000-08:00

January is nearly over and the month of lurve is around the corner... That's Nice Design is looking to do a special feature on Love Design... everything to do with love - hearts, wedding invites, jewelry, colour palettes, textiles, food, gorgeous typography... you name it. And I'm looking for your input. Please pass on any great designs you spot within the next couple of weeks.

beautifultype.net

2011-01-28T09:19:00.000-08:00

beautifultype.net is a great blog with lots of inspirational typographic approaches bought to us by two web designers with a shared passion for typography. It's already given me some ideas for wedding invites!

Make It Better - animated type

2011-01-28T09:02:00.000-08:00

This is a really nice piece of animated type, different to the norm... The idea and design were conceived by Climent Canal with animation by Sebastian Baptista. And not forgetting the very effective audio by Aimar Molero.

MAKE IT BETTER from Clim on Vimeo.

Design and typography blogs

2010-12-15T03:46:00.000-08:00

It's been one of those rare mornings where I've had the time to browse the internet and came across these two blogs... which have kept me busy for hours looking through all the nice work on them.

www.designworklife.com

www.typographyserved.com

Coming Soon

Annica Lydenberg

Shop Vac - Music video

2010-12-03T05:46:00.000-08:00

There's a lot of kinetic typography about these days so it's always great to see some examples that really make you smile and say wow! This video for Jonathan Coulton's song Shop Vac was designed and animated by Jarrett Heather... (who is also a wonderful pianist, so as it's nearly christmas check out this link - Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas.)

I'm going off track! Back to Shop Vac... enjoy!

Canon - Bringing Colour to Life

2010-11-03T07:02:00.000-07:00

This is quite simply amazing... for me this was like listening to a piece of music that makes you feel all tingly inside... Creative studio dentsu, and photographer Linden Gledhill have created a visual masterpiece.
View the making of this new Canon ad followed by the commercial itself... here!

(Thanks for the link Jack!)

Tips and tricks for adobe illustrator

2010-10-07T06:41:00.001-07:00

I know there are hundreds of tutorials on the net for different programmes but I've just found this particular link very useful so hopefully you will to...

10 useful tips and tricks for adobe illustrator

Can you handle it?

2010-09-15T10:54:00.000-07:00

My mum passes on a lot of spam email to me but this one caught my eye! Creative carrier bags..! Here's a few of my favourites...

Threadcakes - yum yum

2010-09-03T09:07:00.000-07:00

We've all heard of Threadless t-shirts, but have you seen Threadcakes where the t-shirt designs are turned into cakes! genius..! well some of them are - here's a few to whet your appetite...

15 Pretty Cool Typographic Film Posters (part 1)

2010-09-03T02:39:00.000-07:00

I saw a very cool typographic film poster the other day, so cool I can't remember the name of the film(!) I should have posted it on here straight away. Whilst trawling the world wide web trying to find it I came across some other examples of great typography in film posters. So here's a few of them... I'm planning to do a Part 2 to this post so please pass on any suggestions and in the meantime I will try to find the original poster I was after!

She Says Loves - That's Nice Design

2010-08-18T13:22:00.000-07:00

That's Nice Design blog is featured on SheSays!

She Says in a community recognising females (and the lack of them) within the creative departments of digital agencies. They run monthly networking events and even run their very own awards - The Golden Stillettos!

Click on the link to find out more and get involved.

Martin Wilson contact sheets

2010-08-06T07:27:00.000-07:00

Check out photography blog, PetaPixel - useful reviews and fabulous links to interesting photography projects like this one...

UK based photographer, Martin Wilson makes clever works of arts from contact sheets.

Project Morrinho all finished

2010-08-05T02:32:00.000-07:00

As promised, here's a few more images from the finished Project Morrinho on London's South Bank. Festival Brazil runs until the 5th September so go check it out!

Edinburgh Fringe Festival Poster

2010-08-05T01:59:00.000-07:00

Back in March That's Nice Design posted on this fun idea for the Edinburgh Fringe Festival front cover... people tweeted their ideas for what they would like to see on the cover and the amazing Johanna Basford illustrated the ideas live as the whole process was streamed over the internet.

I'm honoured to say that my suggestion of a dancing robot monkey wearing boxers shorts made it on the g (just above the penguin!)

For more information visit the Edinburgh Fringe Festival website or johannabasford.com

Hannes von Döhren

2010-07-27T02:05:00.000-07:00

Interesting interview with German typographer Hannes von Döhren on myfonts.com talking about his background in advertising, his inspiration, design heroes and love for type.

Read full interview on myfonts.com

Project Morrinho

2010-07-21T02:31:00.000-07:00

Now for something a little different... Project Morrinho is a community project based out of the Pereira da Silva favela (slum) in the Southern Zone of Rio de Janeiro. Local people and children build miniture urban landscapes as escapism from the harsh realities of violence and corruption that is often associated with the region.

As part of London's South Bank Festival Brazil, the project has a prime spot on the South Bank building a landscape inspired from the tower blocks of Lambeth to the backstreets of Rio.

This photo was taken during the construction. Walking past each day seeing the progress was fascinating and I'm looking forward to updating you with a finished image soon.

For more information check out the links below:

Project Morrinho

Festival Brazil

Long time no posts..!?

2010-07-21T02:30:00.000-07:00

Sorry for the lack of posts lately, I got distracted by the world cup, holidays and work!

World Cup Poster

2010-06-15T01:57:00.000-07:00

If you are fed up with those everyday newspaper pull out wall charts helping you record every score from the World Cup then purchase one of these, quickly... we are already 5 days into the finals. Designed by David Watson of Trebleseven, these colourful typographic posters are only £7 from Magma. And all proceeds go to Soccer Aid UNICEF. How can you resist?

http://www.magmabooks.com/content/bookshop/book.asp?disp=0&id=6713&page=1&c=PRO&sc=86

Added note: it's also available to buy from the Trebleseven website directly (thanks David)

www.trebleseven.com

Special Feature - Robots are Awesome by Her Art She Loves

2010-05-24T00:29:00.000-07:00

In the first of the special features on That's Nice Design I caught up with the self penned "Jane-of-all-trades" over a virtual coffee and cake to discuss her super cute robots.

Based in the USA, Her Art She Loves is an illustrator by day creating stock vector images and reformating genre comics for iphones. But as if that's not most people's idea of a dream job she started turning her drawings of robots into mini works of arts and now sells her masterpieces online at RobotsAreAwesome.etsy.com

"I've worked with polymer clay since childhood, I've made random sculptures off and on for years. When I began drawing digital robots, I tried my hand at making one out of polymer and wire. I really enjoyed making my first robot (pictured below left) and haven't stopped since."

It was probably unintentional but these robots have such a universal appeal, females, males, children, art lovers and yes geeks will all find it very difficult to not full in love with at least one of them. Which bought me to the question:
Have you ever made a robot that you just couldn't bring yourself to sell because it was too cute?!
"Yes, Teal Plumply (pictured above right) He was the first robot that really came together, I love his colors and he inspired me to make more."

The robots creator is a self confessed Star Trek and Doctor Who fan, and has always been inspired by that genre in her work. I asked her if she would like her robots to take over the world but it seems the main aim is for people to buy a robot, place it on a shelf and just make people smile. And with each robot branded with a heart "Because we all need a little heart in life!" it's surely impossible for her mission to fail.

I for one, am a robot convert. I have probably never described robots as awesome in my life until now... awesome, playful, adorable, intricate, lovable, colourful bots... I could go on.

To see more Robots Are Awesome from a very cute bride and groom to a rabbit bot go to the flickr page

What do you think of Robots Are Awesome? comments please!

Eliot Kid is a stylish little fella

2010-05-05T02:15:00.000-07:00

I 'accidently' turned on children's TV this morning instead of the usual breakfast election news, and found myself captivated by a title sequence for Eliot Kid. It's cute yet sophisticated style goes to prove that not all kids graphics need to be brash colours with big 3d type.
This isn't the best quality movie but check it out on BBC2 at 7.15am

Rob Ryan

2010-05-04T04:20:00.000-07:00

If you ever get a chance to see Rob Ryan's studio you must go. From the 23rd April to 3rd May he had his studio set up in Somerset House as part of the Pick Me Up festival. Seeing the intricate nature of the work and the cut outs so close up just makes you appreciate the work even more.

http://www.misterrob.co.uk/

Heydays - Norway

2010-04-19T08:48:00.000-07:00

Here's another cool design company from Scandinavia, Norway this time. Some nice clean branding and typographic work.

http://www.krop.com/heydays

Julien Vallée - that's nice!

2010-04-19T06:39:00.001-07:00

You know when you say WOW to something that it must be good. Check out Julien Vallée's extraordinary work!

http://www.jvallee.com

Chevychase Sweden

2010-04-15T03:19:00.000-07:00

I'm a big fan of Swedish company, Chevychase. Great branding projects, great typography, great use of colour and a great name!

http://chevychase.se/

50 retro and vintage websites...

2010-04-13T05:05:00.000-07:00

Thanks to Roger for the link (http://thatssodigital.tumblr.com)
Here's a fabulous array of retro and vintage styled websites to get those creative juices flowing.

http://www.webdesignledger.com/inspiration/50-retro-and-vintage-web-designs-to-inspire-you

Negative space in logo design

2010-04-08T04:27:00.000-07:00

Slightly old post this from logo design love but I find myself coming back to it time and time again... some great examples of using negative space in logo design

http://www.logodesignlove.com/negative-space-logo-design

Meredith Dittmar polymer work

2010-03-30T04:16:00.001-07:00

Beautiful polymer work by Meredith Dittmar at Corporate Pig. They would work really well as illustrations but bringing them to life with the modeling is quite stunning.

http://www.corporatepig.com/

Edinburgh Fringe Festival programme front cover

2010-03-26T08:52:00.001-07:00

Watch in awe as Johanna Basford illustrates your ideas live - What is the most unusual thing you’d like to see at the Fringe? submit your ideas via twitter or email... only 6 hours to go!
http://fringecover.edfringe.com/

I'm pleased to say my suggestion of a robot monkey wearing boxer shorts has been drawn!

What this space for the final front cover design.

Navigators - My Place

2010-03-24T05:18:00.000-07:00

Prague-based designer Pavel Fuksa has designed 178 fake vintage matchboxes to create a new video for Navigators. Cute, clever and original...

Creative use of typography

2010-03-23T08:46:00.000-07:00

Looking for some creative typography inspiration? then look no further - this blog link on Creative Bits has all the inspiration you could need, maybe even too much! It takes a look at some of the most original typographic advertising executions around. If you can't find inspiration here you need your lightbulb changing!

http://www.creativebits.org/inspiration/creative_use_typography_advertising

Doodle on the web - hours of fun!

2010-03-12T03:50:00.000-08:00

Okay, I'm not saying my crazy picture of a bedside lamp with furry monster is nice design but this website is amazing... Ricardo Carbello aka Mr Doob has created this clever tool in html5. You can even save the images you create.
http://mrdoob.com/projects/harmony

If anyone feels creative enough to design a new top banner for this blog using harmony then please send me your entries to hello@fayebrown.co.uk

Logorama The Movie wins Best Short Film at the Oscars

2010-03-08T02:25:00.000-08:00

Logorama is a short film exploring the way logos and brands are literally all around us, created by french collective H5. It's certainly a clever concept and visually attractive but do you think it deserved an Oscar? comments please!

Jeff Nishinaka paper craft

2010-03-02T02:10:00.000-08:00

Some inspiring work here showing the infinite possibilies of paper to create beautiful pieces of art.

http://www.centralillustration.com/jn/jn.php

Photoshop Fridge Magnets

2010-02-23T09:06:00.000-08:00

I so wish I had a magnetic door on my fridge and not a wooden cupboard covering it up... these photoshop fridge magnets are, can I use the word..? ok, I will... AWESOME! Definately need to buy a magnetic notice board now just to buy these!

http://photojojo.com/store/awesomeness/photoshop-fridge-magnets

Igor Lobanov 'Sprout' Pen

2010-02-23T02:38:00.001-08:00

Now that's not something you see everyday!

Igor Lobanov ‘Sprout’ Pen

Happy Birthday Photoshop!

2010-02-22T07:50:00.000-08:00

Can you believe Photoshop is 20 years old? Most of us have had longer relationships with photoshop than boyfriends, girlfriends, husbands and wives. Computer Arts asks creative experts about their experience and their 'first time' with photoshop!

http://www.computerarts.co.uk/in_depth/features/how_photoshop_changed_my_life

A brief history of pretty much everything

2010-02-22T06:42:00.000-08:00

Check out this animation created by Jamie Bell for his AS art course, yes he is only 17!! a flipbook animation made entirely out of biro pens and around 2100 pages long. Unsurprisingly he got full marks...

It's great to see such talent and dedication to a project from someone so young... I'm sure we will be hearing more from this chap in the future.

Objectified the Movie

2010-02-11T07:16:00.000-08:00

Objectified in the second film in a 3 part design trilogy by Gary Hustwit. The first being the film Helvetica. Objectified promises us an insight into the creative minds of product designers from Jonathan Ives to Karim Rashid. And discusses how everyday objects literally shape our lives.
Check out the trailer above and for more info go to the website:

http://www.objectifiedfilm.com/

The Base One Believe Ice Breaker business cards

2010-02-10T03:11:00.001-08:00

How many times have you been handed a business card that you instantly forget about, only to find it tucked away in your bag or wallet months later trying to recall who and where you met that person?

The Base One Believe campaign goes beyond business as usual, discovering new ways to start conversations and interact with each other. These eye-catching business cards aim to make that first meeting more memorable and spark conversation. The B design within the card pops up to reveal a belief specific to the owner of the business card, working as an icebreaker when the person meets somebody. You can then tear off the B, which has a link to the B campaign’s microsite. Immediately, the two parties have something to talk about.

Check out the campaigns microsite where you can add your own beliefs and start interacting with people.
http://www.iwouldliketobelieve.co.uk/

A clever idea and good design - tell us what you think of the campaign...

HU2 Vinyl stickers

2010-02-08T08:02:00.000-08:00

Looking for an interesting alternative to wallpaper and paint? check out these fab graphic vinyl stickers from HU2. www.hu2.com

Pentagram - What type are you?

2010-02-05T04:57:00.000-08:00

Pentagram - What type are you?

Those talented bunch at Pentagram have created the What Type Are You application... answer 4 questions and see what typeface best represents your personality type. I wonder if anyone is Comic Sans?!

Beautiful Blogs

2010-02-02T07:11:00.000-08:00

http://www.smashingmagazine.com/2009/07/22/50-new-beautiful-blog-designs/

Putting my template blog to shame!

Johanna Basford - Illustration

2010-02-02T01:40:00.000-08:00

Mesmerizing hand drawn illustrations by Johanna Basford. Her stunning designs have appeared on ceramics, packaging, desktop wallpapers, lots of magazines and available to buy as prints.
So if you are looking for a classy valentines gift check out her site:
www.johannabasford.com

Submit your top banner design

2010-01-29T01:17:00.000-08:00

Submit your designs for the top banner by the 1st Feb. Email me your submissions to hello@fayebrown.co.uk - dimensions 650x85 pixels.
The winning banner will have the top spot for a whole month and a post dedicated to them and their design work.
No brand guidelines, just has to say (in some form) That's Nice Design...

Sherlock Holmes credit sequence by Prologue

2010-01-25T09:15:00.000-08:00

A couple of years ago I went to watch Terminator 3 with a friend in the special effects business. We sat and watched the credits waiting for the VFX companies to see if there was anyone we knew who worked on it. As we did this everyone else was leaving, and my friend thought it was very rude people didn't wait to read who put their hearts and souls into making this film. However, as soon as the VFX credits finished and moved onto the caterers she was up like a shot and wanted to go home..! At which point I said 'come on, I want to see who did the catering!'

This point aside I think the art of the credit sequence is a pretty cool way of making people stay and read the major players, if only they could carry it on for the whole sequence of 100's of names! After watching Sherlock Holmes at the weekend it was quite heart warming to see people stay in the cinema to watch the credits, and what beautifully crafted credits they were too...

Take a look at this interview with Danny Yount of Prologue Films on the Art of the Title website - very interesting to see the other boards and the process they went through.
http://www.artofthetitle.com/2010/01/21/sherlock-holmes/

35 Beautiful E-Commerce Websites

2010-01-25T08:39:00.001-08:00

Smashing Magazine have a very useful artcile for all you web designers out there - the 35 most attractive online stores. A wide variety of looks and styles including whatisblik.com, where we are just about to buy a funky decal for our living room.

http://www.smashingmagazine.com/2010/01/22/35-beautiful-and-effective-ecommerce-websites/

My Top 10 handwriting fonts

2010-01-22T08:41:00.000-08:00

Ever since my good friend David Earls designed a typeface based on my handwriting I've always had a love for handwriting fonts. So when I was asked today to find a particular font (you know the scenerio - here's an image, what's that font?) I looked through all the handwriting fonts on myfonts.com and in the process made a note of my favourites. I know I know, they aren't all strictly handwriting fonts...

You can view the album here:

http://new.myfonts.com/users/2fmyqwxfrd/albums/438461/

Ptarmak

2010-01-21T09:17:00.001-08:00

http://ptarmak.com/

Great branding and packinging design from Ptarmak, Texas. The kind of projects you wish you could have been involved with...

Nando Volken Togni

2010-01-21T09:11:00.000-08:00

http://cargocollective.com/nandovt

Beautiful illustration and design work by Fernando Volken Togni from Brazil.

The most original motion work I've seen in a long while...

2010-01-21T06:47:00.000-08:00

I love this, very original... I'll give it 3 months before we see this on a commercial...

That's a nice banner...

2010-01-19T05:25:00.000-08:00

Feel free to submit your own top banner designs - there are no brand guidelines, just have fun! and the best design each month wins the top spot. Send your designs to hello@fayebrown.co.uk

That's Nice Design... hello!

2010-01-19T05:15:00.000-08:00

Welcome to an online space to keep all those great pieces of design we see day to day. Please get in touch if you see something you would like to add to the blog. Enjoy the site.