GOOD: 25 Hours in a Day

Imagine if you had one more hour a day. This was my submission to GOOD magazine's latest doodle project. 

SUBMIT YOURS HERE

My friends Ian and Sam made a calendar, meet April.

MORE FUN LIKE THAT HERE

My feelings on narrowing down my senior design thesis ideas. 

TYPOSTRUCTION

Writing

My mother scolded us kids when we played on her typewriter. Sometimes the letters would glob up at the top, a big mess of spindly metal, type, and ink and I'd reach up there and one by one pull down the s, k, p, m, and so on to their respective spots. It was fun to watch the arm swing up to the paper with a press of a button, then to twirl the knob on the side, moving the paper along. Not much has changed since then, besides that little thing called technology, but there's still a marveling amusement at putting one's own words on paper. For me, success in design is as much imagery as it is type and writing. Writing is quite powerful, and when paired with the right typeface - it's a beautiful thing.

TYPOGRAPHY SERVED

Papers and Press

A bright, crisp Wednesday morning in October had us meandering through the Pearl District. Our destination was Oblation - papers and press boutique shop. Here we saw large wet dripping sheets of paper being pulled from murky tubs of - get this - shredded underwear. Well...not quite, but the mix to make paper involves finely shredded cotton. Ron Rich, owner of the store/wearer of funky spectacles graciously gave us a tour of the paper making and letterpress process. Great tour and lovely shop - from humble beginnings of making paper in their kitchen blender to this wonderful, exquisite, and charming place they have today.

"...we bought a little book made in 1919...learned the hard way."

-Ron Rich [Oblation owner]

PHOTOS © OBLATION

Rubylith doesn't die

VOODOO CATBOX

In Portland there is an interesting studio, tucked away somewhere in a peculiarly empty building. Oriental rugs cover the floor, tools of the trade scattered on every surface, posters adorning the walls - a space so full that sound has no bounce, it falls gently on the eclectic interior's belongings. Gary Houston is the curator of this curious space. An artist whose twinkling eyes match the silver hoops in his ears. He is an original. A signature edgy line lends itself to each hand pulled screen-printed piece. In the age of computers, his work emanates a personality that is unhindered by technology. Imagery aside, I'm in love with how he handles type. Thanks for the studio tour and inspiration.

"Enjoy Being." - Gary Houston

PHOTO © AUDREY LEE

What's in the box?

Like a litter of puppies, client's choices always leave a few odd runts. Cute, nonetheless.

ILLUSTRATIVE TYPE, OH MY

They always said she had a pretty typeface...

I am Universal.

ARE YOU AWESOME?

Change

Copyright 2009: Mary Meccage

Freedom on two wheels. 

As spring softly tip-toes across the melting snow, the tires of change spin madly on.

Change brings new ideas and fresh starts. Here's to a fresh start, spring 2010.

"Here's to the crazy ones. The misfits. The rebels. The troublemakers. The round pegs in the square hole. The ones who see things differently. They're not fond of rules. And they have no respect for the status quo. You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify or vilify them. About the only thing you can't do is ignore them. Because they change things. They push the human race forward. And while some may see them as the crazy ones, we see genius. Because the people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world, are the ones who do." 
— Apple Computer Inc.

c o l o r : G R E E N

Delicious Cucumber Martini at Montana Aleworks

tags: advertising, apple, change, commercial, computers, different, bicycle, 

Sans Coffee

It was an accident really, me giving up coffee. This wasn’t something I premeditated, planned, or spoke about, it just happened. It started on a calm, snowy, Saturday morning. I arose, gravitated like a magnet directly to the coffee grinder like always, and then...I paused. The thought of the terribly noisy blades whirring the coffee beans to a powder, shattering the crisp silence of the morning was obnoxious and disturbing. So I didn’t do it. I walked away. No beautiful silence should be destroyed for something I could live without. Five days. I’ve survived five days.

While coffee may come from kitchens or cafes, spatulas on the other hand, do not. They come from Spatula City. Now if you've never heard of Spatula City you simply must visit. I created a series of postcards using stamps carved out of polymer clay and an exacto blade. No fingers were lost in the creation of the following images.