Two weeks ago, I had the pleasure of being Maxwell’s guest at Apartment Therapy’s October Design Evening at ABC Home. It’s not often that I get to do interviews in front of a live (and participating) audience, so I relished the chance to have a great discussion and interact with such a thoughtful group of design enthusiasts. After a great talk, where we covered everything from blogging ethics and the record industry to the future of publishing, AT was kind enough to put the entire video (all 45 minutes) online and share it with readers. I had such a great time taking with Maxwell and everyone in attendance — it’s been so nice to relive the experience in video form. I hope you’ll enjoy the clip, and be sure to check out AT’s Design Evenings if they’re in your town. xo, grace

One of my favorite things to do is watch a skilled craftsperson at work. Whether it’s weaving, woodcarving or pottery, watching someone do something that requires skill and patience makes me appreciate great design even more. This video from Trip Print Press shows the making of a series of business cards and has an almost hypnotic quality to it. I’ve always found the sounds of letterpress machines both calming and exciting, so I hope you’ll enjoy this glimpse into the process and design behind a finished set of cards. Thanks to Matt at Brought To You By films for sharing this with us, and Nicholas at Trip Print Press for the great work. xo, grace

Speaking of plaid, there is a fantastic documentary about Kathleen Hanna being funded over at Kickstarter. I will never forget the first time I heard Bikini Kill. I was at an all-girls summer camp in West Virginia, and a friend made me a mix tape full of great Riot Grrrl music. After repeat listens, my head pretty much exploded with excitement, and my wardrobe exploded with plaid flannel shirts. I will always associate her voice with that age and feeling newly empowered and excited about music. So when I heard that Sini Anderson was raising money to support the completion of The Punk Singer, I immediately chipped in. Sini’s documentary combines 20 years of archival footage with a detailed and personal look at Kathleen’s life. Whether or not Riot Grrrl meant anything to you, Kathleen’s voice (both on and offstage) has made such a huge contribution to the creative community that this is a must-see and must-support. Click here to check out the Kickstarter home page and read more.

Speaking of great documentaries, there is a follow-up being made to the amazing film Herb & Dorothy. If you didn’t see the original documentary, it focuses on the world-class art collection that belongs to two seemingly unlikely owners, a postal worker and librarian named Herb & Dorothy Vogel. It was one of my favorite films of the past few years, and now they’re funding a follow-up called 50×50, which follows the gifting of 50 of the Vogels’ pieces to one museum in each of the 50 states. The project is a massive undertaking, and I am excited to see how it all comes together. I am on my way to fund this one now, so if you’re interested in lending a hand or just learning more, click here to check out the film’s Kickstarter page. xo, grace

Thanks to the crafty people in my life (namely Kate and Matt), I’ve become sort of obsessed with materials lately. I used to be more of a finished-product type of person, but now the raw materials (wood, leather, brass rivets, etc.) seem more appealing than the things they can become. So I was fascinated by this video for sugru, a sticky material that has incredible holding power. I’m already dreaming up 9 million ways I’d like to use this around the house to keep things together that are starting to wear, but this video sort of says it all. It’s always fun to see a useful product in action. xo, grace

This weekend my parents were in town and we ended up talking about music. My dad was lamenting that no one bought albums or non-digital music anymore, which got me thinking about how much I miss record and CD packaging. My first job out of college was with a small record label in NYC and I’ll never forget how excited I was to attend a meeting with one of our artists to brainstorm CD packaging ideas. We went through stacks of inspiration CDs, dug out boxes of crazy materials being considered (a faux-fur cover was on the table- yikes) and wrote down page after page of artists that could be good to work with for a custom design. The sky was the limit and it reminded me of all the times I bought tapes and CDs when I was younger and how the artwork excited me as much as the music.

It feels like those days are all but gone, but thankfully a few bands haven’t given up on artwork. D*S reader Tyler sent over this link to an amazing video showing the band Field Days as they make one custom (the word ‘custom’ barely seems to do this amount of work justice) CD for their album ‘Projector‘. Everything is handmade here, from the CD sleeve (which is made by staining paper with colored water) and outer track listing to the artwork on the cover. Some of my favorite bands are still committed to this sort of DIY spirit and I’m so glad to see Field Days is as well. I was just typing the sentence “this makes me want to order one of these” and stopped myself. In between this sentence and the last I went to Field Days’ site and ordered one of these gorgeous handmade CD packages. The artwork alone is worth the cost and I’m so excited to listen to the music. If you’re up for some great new music and supporting a band that’s so dedicated to beautiful custom artwork and a handmade experience for its fans, click here to order a CD ($14.99) or album ($19.99). Thanks to Tyler for passing this on and thanks to Field Days for keeping the relationship between art and music so strong. xo, grace

One of the words I’ve been saying a lot since I got out to Portland is earnest. So many of the artists, musicians and store owners here have an earnestness that is both admirable and, at times, surprising. I’ve gotten pretty jaded living in New York, and it’s always good to be reminded that someone’s seriousness about their work is both positive and — sometimes — funny. I think it’s good when people can take a step back and laugh at some of the more comical examples of earnestness in a community, and this video from comedian Russ Armstrong is a great example. In this clip, Russ takes on the craftsman community in a way that makes me both cringe and laugh. The line about making his own tools using smaller tools he also built is worth the whole thing. If you have a few minutes to watch and get a little morning laugh, I highly suggest clicking “play” above. Thanks to Matt, one of my favorite Portland craftsmen, for the tip. xo, grace

*A few of the words in the video is NSFW, so you may want to listen with headphones