The first time I visited SCAD in Savannah I got to visit a class making books by hand. I’d never stopped to think about how much goes into handmade books and those students’ efforts were a real eye-opener. These beautiful handmade books, agendas and diaries are by artist Serena Olivieri. She just started designing and…
One of my big goals this year is to spend less time in virtual life and more time in real life. Part of that commitment means watching fewer screens and cracking open more books. I finally started reading seriously again during the book tour, so I’m starting to build a little collection of favorites. As…
I love books. I have a master’s degree in library science, spent eight years at the New York Public Library before joining Design*Sponge and have a relatively large collection of books at home. So each fall, I anxiously await the moment I can begin work on this guide. This year while traveling around the country,…
Oakland has a vibrant, tight-knit cycling community, and I’ve seen first-hand how passionately people can feel about their bikes. Sadly, I’m still too much of a novice to feel the same. These illustrations and images are part of new project by Stan Engelbrecht & Nic Grobler titled Bicycle Portraits. It’s a study of South African…
I am excited to share the new DIY book, DIY Furniture: A Step-by-Step Guide, for three reasons. For starters, this book was authored by one of our D*S scholarship winners: the extremely talented Christopher Stuart, founder of LUUR design. Second, this book features projects from some of my favorite emerging designers, including Lindsey Adelman, Uhuru and…
I’ve been impatiently waiting for this book ever since I heard that Julia Rothman was going to be working with Storey Publishing. (We did a sneak peek with Storey’s creative director, Alethea Morrison, just last year.) I have more than a few Storey books, and I love any sort of illustrated chart — particularly when animals are…
Many of you may recognize Mollie Greene’s name from previous mentions here on D*S — when Barb featured Mollie’s paper moose head on Before & After Basics, we were flooded with requests for a paper taxidermy tutorial from Mollie. She graciously agreed, and we were thrilled to share her newspaper taxidermy DIY last fall. Now…
Normally, I wait until Friday to post anything food related, but I couldn’t resist this gorgeous new book. Suzy from A Friend of Mine design studio in Melbourne sent over this beautiful new cookbook that Pan Macmillan publishers asked her to design and art direct. The Good Life is the latest cookbook from chef Adrian Richardson…
I’m not normally a big butterfly person, but ever since we did the butterfly dome project with Amy and Jessica for Design*Sponge at Home, they’ve started to grow on me. These colorful new butterfly and moth prints are from Shay and Jeff at Bee Things (you can see their awesome Dallas home right here). Each…
Despite all the sweet and well-meaning comments I received after my last tattoo post, I’m still planning on moving forward with my own this summer. I’m looking to get a very precise botanical illustration with clean lines and a specific flower that pertains to my home state, so I’ve been hunting through vintage and antique…
I’m beginning to think that idiomatic expressions about judging books by their covers must apply to everything but books. (Coralie Bickford-Smith anyone?) The Beekeeper’s Bible is one of the prettiest beekeeping books I’ve come across (and I should know, I have over five of them!), and at 400 pages, it packs a pretty heavy content…
As the week comes to a close the thing I’ll remember most about this week was an amazing meal I was fortunate to share with a group of fantastic people from Alabama. I was in town to talk about the D*S Book and because we were in the hometown of a fellow Artisan author, Chef…
We have been waiting for Heidi Swanson’s latest book for so long. Heidi Swanson’s Super Natural Every Day cookbook was finally released on April 5, and soared immediately into the top 100 books on Amazon! Just between me and you, it is one of the most beautiful cookbooks I own (and I have LOTS). Heidi…
It’s been such a treat having Jill Bliss‘ nature drawings on D*S this week. Today she’s sharing her final drawing (description in her words below) and I just wanted to post a quick reminder that you still have all of today to enter your own drawing for a chance to win a copy of Jill’s…
I woke up with about nine million butterflies in my stomach because this morning, Ryan is heading over to my house to start shooting the Design*Sponge At Home book trailer. Working on the book (I’ll be able to share the — seriously awesome — cover with you soon; the one on Amazon is just a placeholder)…
After yesterday’s rain storm I was in desperate need of some cheering up. Thankfully Jill Bliss‘ next nature drawing popped into my inbox and I instantly felt a comforting reminder that even in rainy Portland things were warming up and the flowers were starting to come back. Today Jill has this new drawing to share…
It’s a dreary morning here in Brooklyn so I’m happy to escape into the world of Jill Bliss‘ nature drawings. To celebrate her new Nature Drawing Journal, Jill is sharing a new illustration with us every morning this week. Today she’s sharing a daffodil drawing inspired by a flower she found on her way to…
I’m thrilled to start this week with a special guest series from one of my favorite artists, Jill Bliss. I’ve been following Jill’s work since I started D*S, and I feel like I’m instantly transported into the forest every time I look at her drawings. Based in Portland, Jill is surrounded by a wealth of…
I’m thrilled to end this week with a peek at a fantastic new book from one of my favorite designers, Lena Corwin. I’ve admired Lena since we met back when I first started Design*Sponge and have so enjoyed watching her work flourish and grow since then. Today Lena is introducing a fantastic new book called…
Experiencing different cities is one of my favorite things in the world to do. I love soaking up everything an area has to offer and trying to taste a little bit of what locals do there on a regular basis. Every time I visit a city I find myself wishing I had a specific type…
