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Inspired by the likes of Sophie from A Considered Life, I’ve been trying to be more conscious of what I consume. In my quest to reduce my waste and be kinder to the planet, I’ve been making some waste free swaps. When you move from using something disposable to something reusable, you’re obviously committing to having an object in your life for a while. So, I thought this was the perfect opportunity to invest in some great, ethical, design and I wanted to share some of the gems I’ve found with you.

Water bottles

S’well

I have and love a S’well bottle in a brushed silver colour. It’s been hard wearing and because it’s a thermos it keeps hot drinks hot and cold drinks cold – so it means I can have an extra few cups of tea on an evening without venturing to the kitchen. It looks sleek but not flashy – but there are definitely some bolder colour options if that’s what you’re into.

Stay Sixty

Stay Sixty have solved one of the age old problems of how do you clean out a reusable bottle properly? The bottom section of their stainless steel bottle unscrews, so if you’re a fan of a shake or juice this could be a great option. Designed in London, like the S’well their bottle is double walled to keep your drink at the right temperature. Their bottles come in some lovely colours too – I might have my eye on the stone one.

BKR

If you’re not into metal bottles and prefer glass, I’ve heard great things about BKR. Their glass bottles are surprisingly sturdy – I’ve seen one survive a fall from a desk. They’re simple and easy to use/hold. Pretty much everything you’d want from a bottle if you ask me.

Coffee mugs

Keep Cup

The Keep Cup is probably the best known reusable coffee cup on the market. They claim to be the “first barista standard reusable coffee cup”. They also look absolutely adorable and come in every colourway and material you could imagine. If you’re feeling a bit creative you can even design your own.

Frank Green

One of my colleagues has the Frank Green mugs and they do look as lovely in person as they do in all of their photos. They’ve also got every conceivable feature you would want from a coffee cup: non-slip grip, non-spill lid, double walled design to keep your drink warm, plus if you live outside of the EU you can also use your cup to pay for your coffee using CafePay.

Stojo

If you’re like me and don’t have take out coffee all that often but still want a reusable option, the Stojo cup is probably your best bet. It folds down to be the size of its lid when not in use, so you can easily store it in your bag then unfold it when you need rather than lugging around a big mug you might not always need.

Old Brewhouse Pottery

There are lots of hand made pottery options out there too if you want something with a bit more character which supports a small business. In the UK, Old Brewhouse Pottery make some lovely unique mugs. (If you happen to live in Australia you are spoilt for choice so have a google!)

Cutlery sets

Joseph Joseph Go Eat

Joseph Joseph make some of the best designed bits of tupperware on the market, a market I am constantly searching by the way. This stainless steel spoon, knife, fork set is super compact. The innovative magnetic design of the silicone storage case, holds everything together really neatly and means you can pop them straight back in your bag without worrying about getting pesto on your laptop.

Spork

I used to work in a camping store and sold a Spork pretty much every day. It’s the all in one option if you want to keep things as simple as they can be. It’s a spoon. It’s a fork. It’s a knife. It’s everything you need to eat lunch on the go and you can pick it up in plastic free stainless steel.

OFUN

This is the set I’m planning on buying myself. It’s a reusable wooden cutlery set, finished with a food grade non-toxic wood oil which is BPA Free. I love that it includes chopsticks. Because it’s made of wood, not only does it look super classy (every little helps) it’s also going to be that bit lighter than carrying a full metal set.

Tote bags

Stay Home Club

I bought a Stay Home Club tote years ago and I still love it today. They have a much bigger range now though. They’re all wonderfully illustrated, as is everything they make, and perfect for the introvert in your life. I’ve got my beady little eye on the no new friends one by Baker.

 

Adam JK

I think I mention Adam JK in every one of these design favourites type posts, but I love his work and I don’t care. His totes are funny and wonderful and subtle statements and I just want two of everything he’s ever made.

Other honourable mentions

There are loads of other swaps you can make to help reduce your waste and look after the planet. One of the biggest is to swap out meat and dairy (oat is my favourite alternative) where you can. But I’d definitely recommend checking out A Considered Life, which I mentioned at the top of this post, because Sophie has some great advice.

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September is potentially my favourite month of the year. It’s my birthday month. It’s back to school season. It’s just starting to be sweater weather. What’s not to like?

This September has also been filled with some great content, so here are my favourite picks.

 

stop watch illustration

SHORT READS, IF YOU’VE ONLY GOT A FEW MINUTES:

Kaye Blegvad on the making of Dog Years, her book about surviving depression

I’m a huge Kaye Blegvad fan. I’m always wearing at least 4 things designed by her, honestly. So as you might imagine I absolutely loved getting to read about her book, Dog Years, which began life as a presentation, before being published as a visual essay on Buzzfeed, and is now in print, via her own hard work and a Kickstarter project, which raised fives times its initial goal, (NBD). Thanks It’s Nice That!

A Right-Size Dream

I have to admit something to you all today. I’ve never read a Moomin comic. But after reading this wonderful piece on its creator Tove Jansson and her desire for a quiet life in The Paris Review, I think I’m going to have to.

A Visual History of the Creation of Disneyland

I’ve never been to Disneyland but that doesn’t mean I’m not more than a little bit interested in the magic it has created for so many people. This visual essay shows how Disney’s ambitious vision was brought to life by his team of “Imagineers”. The images include some wonderful initial sketches and the quotes are from Disney himself.

Is social media influencing book cover design?
You already know I’m a big fan of book cover design. But with ‘bookstagramming’ becoming a force in marketing, are designers making covers more colourful, bolder and cleaner, to stand out on our screens?

Happy Birthday, Minifig! Lego’s Tiny Plastic People Turn 40

The lego minifigure just turned 40! Lego was my greatest joy (next to digging holes and reading) as a child and I’m so glad I still get to play with it as part of my job – seriously. This piece from Wired includes some wonderful images, and a video from Lego themselves, documenting the development of our favourite yellow characters.

Google image search is now a design tool

“Picular is a new color search tool that lets you enter any search term and presents you with a slew of options, basing all of its color choices on what pops up first in Google image search. It’s a color-picker, courtesy of internet hive mind.”

 

Dentures illustration

LONG READS, IF YOU WANT SOMETHING TO GET YOUR TEETH STUCK INTO:

Meet the Literary Design Studio Bringing Classic Literature to New Technology

I don’t read as much as I’d like to anymore. But I still love books (I studied literature at Uni!). I still love stories. I certainly still love thinking about how they come together. So this interview with digital bookmakers Plympton’s CEO, Jennifer 8. Lee, and her co-founder, Yael Goldstein Love about crowdsourcing creatives, whether they fear (or are causing) the death of print, and how they’re bringing classic literature to the brink of new technology, was right up my street. How do you think we will be reading in 10 years?

Braille for a New Digital Age

At work (day job work) I’m a bit of a broken record when it comes to putting accessibility at the heart of everything we design, test, and create. Kristina Tsvetanova’s Bitlab and their new form of braille is an incredibly exciting piece of design. It opens up the web, because “With this tool, the blind can surf the net, connect with friends and download books, like everyone else[.]”

Lessons from Voltaire on Finding Purpose in Life

If you’re feeling a little bit philosophical or just looking for some food for thought, this Medium article is the one for you. I’m in a bit of a “what do I want to do?” rut at the minute and this was a wonderful salve.

Home is where the art is: what Paula Rego, Lubaina Himid and other artists hang on their walls

“Who are the painters’ painters, the sculptors’ sculptors? Five artists tell us about the works that adorn their personal spaces by Tim Adams. Interviews by and Killian Fox”

WHO TO FOLLOW, IF YOU WANT TO SPRUCE UP YOUR INSTAGRAM FEED:

@g.r_julia

Julia G.R’s ladies all have an awkward kind of sadness that I really identify with, which is probably why I’ve been really loving her watercolour illustrations recently. But I also love how she maintains her style whether she’s working in black and white, monochrome or using all the colours under the sun. Plus she’s another one of these clever people who create Instagram grids.

@sophyhollington

I started getting into tarot a few months ago, and my fascination with it has only grown and grown. Sophy Hollington’s Autonomic Tarot deck is absolutely stunning and very high on my wishlist – is it too late to buy myself a birthday present? I wanted to share her work as my Sunday social favourite because it’s just so distinctive and so different to a lot of what I’m seeing at the minute.

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About 6 months ago I bought my first tarot deck and since the moment I picked it up for the first time it’s had a huge influence. I know that for a lot of people tarot seems like hocus pocus, either a complete scam which preys on the vulnerable or something reserved for witches or at least those who love a cloak. While I am a proud cloak (thanks Elizabeth Suzann) wearer, tarot for me is about reflection and intimacy.

The wonderful Sarah Hughes wrote a piece for the Guardian about the rise of tarot lovers like me, who are new to the cards and using them as a tool for focus:
“People are clearly looking for other ideas, and I think tarot allows us to consider where we fit in the universe. It works as somewhere you can go in with a problem and come out feeling clearer and better about the world.”

Sarah’s article is far more articulate than I could ever be, but I also want to share my own story. I think hearing it first person makes a difference. I also just love talking about things I love.

I can’t lie, I was initially drawn into Tarot because of the beauty of the cards. There’s a deck out there in every style imaginable. My first tarot loves were the slightly more old fashioned ones which draw on religious imagery and medieval aesthetics. But my deck is Caitlin Keegan’s Illuminated Tarot which is bright and bold, something altogether more modern. Then you’ve got decks like Adam JK’s which strip the illustrations back to their purely symbolic form.

Whatever your preference, you can’t deny that tarot decks are works of art. Not only that they’re works of art you’re encouraged to interact with, to engage with, to make your own meaning out of over and over again.

That’s why I love them.

For me, Tarot isn’t about predicting the future. It’s not a magic 8 ball or Bill and Ted. It’s a visually engaging lens through which you’re encouraged to make your own meaning.

Currently, I do a daily reading with a single card. I like to use that reading as a bit of motivation for that day. I end up shaping how I reflect on what’s happened with the card in mind, trying to see how my story could be a part of that universe.

Now, I know some people would see that as me trying to force the card to come true. But it doesn’t matter if it’s “true”, whatever that may mean, for me. What’s more important is that it gives me a new perspective with which to look at my day. It gets me out of my head and out of my set brain paths. As someone who suffers quite seriously with anxiety, that’s pretty much magic for me.

I also like to do bigger readings when I start a project, or I just want to do some more reflection. Again these readings for me are about trying to look at my plans in a new light. They’re proved to be a source of inspiration. Using the cards also helps me dig to my underlying fears or motivations far quicker than just thinking to myself. They push me to find solutions and to confront my real demons.

So, that’s why Tarot is an increasing force in my life. Expect it to become an increasing influence in my artwork as well.

But for now I just want to learn more.

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In my last post, I talked a bit about harnessing that back to school feeling that always accompanies the start of September. I’m rolling with that theme again today and sharing a few kick-ass motivational quotes to really get you moving. These are some of the words I come back to when I’m feeling unmotivated or when I just need reminding that you just have to do the thing.

 

Feel free to print, share, pin any of these illustrated creative pushes to spread the (inspirational) word.

“It’s through mistakes that you actually grow. You have to get bad in order to get good.” – Paula Scher

 

“You can’t use up creativity the more you use the more you have.” – Maya Angelou

 

“The worst enemy to creativity is self-doubt.” – Sylvia Plath

 

“Everything you can imagine is real.” – Pablo Picasso

 

“To practice any art, no matter how well or badly, is a way to make your soul grow. So do it.” – Kurt Vonnegut

 

What are your favourite quotes which inspire you to get making?

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We’re at the close of yet another month. We’re moving into September, which means we’re moving into my favourite time of the year: back to school season. Yes, I am a massive nerd. But there’s always been something so exciting about the start of a new school year, that has stuck with me years after leaving. Just bring me a new pencil case and a planner and I’m yours.

But before we get there, here are some of the links I’ve been loving throughout the month of August.

stop watch illustration

SHORT READS, IF YOU’VE ONLY GOT A FEW MINUTES:

Mentors: Ruth Beatty

As a part of The North Face’s #SheMovesMountains campaign, senior designer Ruth Beatty offers some mentorship. She dives deep into gender, creativity, empathy, and fear. Rather than a weakness, Beatty says, “Vulnerability is exciting”. It’s the perfect Sunday viewing if you’re in need of a gentle pep talk.

 

‘Color Problems’: Rediscovering a Forgotten Female Pioneer of Color Theory

You know I’m all about showcasing the women who have shaped design as we know it so when I came across this piece on Medium I knew I had to share it with you all. A publisher and a record label have teamed up to reissue a visionary work by 20th-century artist and scholar Emily Noyes Vanderpoel.

 

Reebok debuts a shape-shifting, NASA-inspired sports bra

A Reebok designer has taken inspiration from NASA because when it comes to material design go cosmic or go home, and created a new fabric that stiffens when you’re moving and relaxes when you’re still. No more feeling suffocated by your bra.

 

6 Rules of Great Storytelling (As Told by Pixar)

Pixar is arguably one of the greatest storytellers of our generation. So Brian Peters has broken down the 6 reasons they’re so damn good at it and turned them into guides you can use to be damn good too.

Dentures illustration

LONG READS, IF YOU WANT SOMETHING TO GET YOUR TEETH STUCK INTO:

‘My brain feels like it’s been punched’: the intolerable rise of perfectionism

We often talk about perfectionism like an inconvenient asset, but the pursuit of perfection, taken to extremes, can lead to OCD and depression – and the number of students reporting the problem has jumped by 33% since 1989. This Guardian article considers the dark side of perfectionism.

 

Luck Is a Long String of YES’s

Jocelyn K Glei explains how luck and hard work are not mutually exclusive. In fact, the success of almost any endeavour depends on both, which is what happened in her case. Or, as that old Seneca quote goes: “Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity.”

 

Embracing Britishness: musings on biscuit lettering culture

Elena Veguillas muses on how she started to embrace “Britishness” via the medium of our nation’s obsession with biscuits. As Elena is a typographer, her learning to love biscuits, of course, had to include a fascinating exploration of the lettering used to adorn our “small baked unleavened cake[s]”.

 

Illuminated Manuscripts Brought Medieval Art out of the Dark Ages

Artsy’s Jonathan McAloon discusses the thinking behind one of my favourite historical art sources, the illuminations in Medieval manuscripts – seriously check out how they drew cats.

 

The British Heat Wave and Aerial Archeology

As you may have heard, it’s been hot this summer in the UK. “The freak conditions have made this summer one of the best in living memory for what archaeologists call “parch marks”—ghostly, pale outlines of vanished castles, settlements, and burial sites that materialize on the land when it dries out and grass and crops die off.” So get prepared to learn about the ghostly outlines of “Iron Age farms in South Wales, a Roman road passing near Basingstoke, burial mounds in Ireland, and the outline of Second World War bomb shelters on the lawns of Cambridge” I promise they’re seriously cool.

 

How to Crit

Art and design tutor Mitch Goldstein has set up How to Crit after a tweet thread about how to give and receive criticism in the arts took off. “Rather than letting this information get lost in the ephemera of social media, [he] created this site to act as a resource for art and design students (and their teachers).” It’s honestly such a useful, and thorough, resource for anyone, even if you’re not in the arts because we all give/receive feedback at some point.

WHO TO FOLLOW, IF YOU WANT TO SPRUCE UP YOUR INSTAGRAM FEED:

@sonnyrossillustration

This month, I came home to an exciting package full of swag from Sonny Ross which I’d picked up in his studio clear out. We’re talking postcards, prints, zines, originals, and all of it was magical. I love how whimsical his work can be. I’m also really into the super tactile textures he uses.

 

@haleytippmann

In a rare and wonderful moment this week Instagram explore actually recommended some an artist I now love. Haley Tippmann’s characters are just wonderful. She plays with perspective and proportions in a way that accentuates personality and movement but doesn’t ever feel out of place. Plus she toes that line between sketchy and well put together so so so well. Can you tell I’m a new fan?

 

@_marianeves_

In these days of dark politics and almost biblical wildfires, I feel like we all need something a little light-hearted to keep our spirits up and that’s exactly what Maria Neves children’s book like illustration offer. They’re fun and lovely and filled with animal goodness.