I’ve loved Mexican food since I was a kid, and living in Oklahoma off and on for 16 years only succeeded in deepening my love. Tacopedia is a tribute in encyclopedia style to Mexico’s taco culture that includes 100 recipes, interviews, plenty of photography, illustrations, graphics, and maps. A visual cornucopia for taco enthusiasts.
For *most* of us the roommate phase of life isn’t all that long. College, your 20s, and then you’re more than likely ready to strike out on your own or live with a significant other. My pal Becky Simpson is an amazing illustrator whose latest book – aptly named The Roommate Book – provides a non-serious look at how to live with a friend (or total stranger). Flip through for a look at comical pie charts, hypotheticals, illustrations, and brief essays along with some nuggets of wisdom!
Artist Lisa Congdon’s books never fail to impress or inspire, and such is the case with her latest – The Joy of Swimming: A Celebration of Our Love for Getting in the Water. A longtime swimmer herself, Lisa has created an illustrated collection of vintage swimsuits and pool signs, hand lettered quotes on the subject, dozens of watercolor portraits paired with personal stories, and more. With summer just around the corner The Joy of Swimming is the perfect book to get you swimsuit ready!
Have a love for both nature and America? See America: A Celebration of Our National Parks & Treasured Sites was created to coincide with the centennial anniversary of the National Parks Service. Featuring artwork for 75 national parks and monuments across all 50 states, See America celebrates our nation’s landmarks and wilderness as well as revives the legacy of the WPA travel posters. Destinations are catalogued in the order they were established, and 1% of sales will support the National Parks Conservation Association through 2017.
Aside from beauty, art is also in the eye of the beholder. Whether it’s a plastic bag caught floating in the breeze, shapes in the clouds… or the discarded blotting tissues of artist Del Kathryn Barton. Because that’s exactly what Tim Moore saw when working as Barton’s assistant, so much so that he turned 95 of them into a book – Tim Moore: Not My Blotting Tissues.
As a steadfast beard lover, I of course gravitated toward Sarah Tanat-Jones‘ illustrated Beards of the World. The 28-page picture zine depicts “fashionable facial follicles across continents and cultures” and even includes your own beard to cut out. You know, for those of us who can’t really produce our own. Pick up your copy right here.
I doubt there exists a better book to start off a new year than Susan O’Malley’s Advice From My 80-Year-Old Self. O’Malley asked ordinary people of every age and walk of life just that question, and this book collects their responses. The result is a collection of words of encouragement, truth, and generosity.
Books are one of my favorite things to give and receive throughout the year, so what better time to share some of my favorites than now? Most are design, interiors, or food related because when it comes down to it those are the subjects I like to share most with others. (You never would have guessed that, right?!)
The Kinfolk Home // See San Francisco // The 52 Lists Project // Bright Bazaar
Food52 Baking // The Year of Cozy // The Sugar Hit // Whip It Up
Sage Living // 100 Years of Color // Outside the Box // The Forest Feast
Posted In create, holidays, living, read up
I’m been a far of Carson Ellis since first laying eyes upon a cover illustration she did for an album by her husband’s band, The Decemberists. But just over the past week or so a few friends have mentioned her and work to me, and in doing so made me realize that I’d somehow never written about her and her folksy style. Most recently Carson’s released a debut illustrated book focused on the concept of home, all homes. You can pick up your very own copy of the aptly titled Home here.
Intricate collage work is something I have extreme admiration for because I can’t even come close to having the level of patience it requires. Lucy Williams creates her works by emulating everything from Mies van der Rohe to less notable modernist spaces. First she creates a blueprint from a photo, and then working in layers from back to front brings alive in mixed media. Now there’s a book of her work, entitled Lucy Williams, that showcases her large-scale pieces in all their glory.
(via Fast Co. Design)
Posted In create, mixed media, paper, read up