Packaging

Gourmet Coffee Packaging

By Delphine Hirasuna |

Blend Station

Consider this: The retail coffee market in the U.S. is estimated to be $48 billion annually (NCA). Worldwide 151.3 million 60-kilogram bags of coffee were consumed in 2015-16 (ICO), and gourmet varieties represent more than half of overall consumption. Americans love their caffeine so much that 52% of coffee drinkers say they would rather skip their morning shower than forego their cup of joe (Huffington Post).

Gourmet coffee, by any measure, is big business, and the industry is appealing to budding connoisseurs with new specialty blends and descriptive coffee lingo that rivals that of wine. Some of the latest trends include nitrogen-infused coffee, cold brews, and frozen blends. Millennials see the beverage as a social experience enjoyed with friends in cafes. They take delight in being the first in their crowd to discover new brands. That has made designing eye-catching brand packaging more important than ever.

Here are some coffee brand packages that we like.

Read More »

Architecture

It’s a Bridge! It’s a House!
It Unfolds Before Your Eyes!

By Delphine Hirasuna |

Ten Fold Engineering in the UK is bringing a 21st century twist to the concept of portable housing. The Ten Fold building unfolds and is walk-in ready in just ten minutes. No foundations, builders or cranes are required. Delivered to the site on a flatbed truck, the structure self-deploys using a hand-held battery-powered drill. Better yet, the process is fully reversible, so if you want to move, you can fold up your house as fast as it takes to dismantle a pup tent.

Read More »

Photography

Global Mass Marketing Before Photoshop

By Delphine Hirasuna |

This early 20th century postcard producer, probably based in Europe, set his sights on making global sales in the most economical way. He only customized what he had to to appeal to customers from different nations. Unless you are a postcard collector, you probably were unaware that the comely woman draped in a flag wasn’t “loyal” to any one country. The postcard maker simply hand-painted different flags on her, leaving her face and pose the same. No extra photo sessions necessary, no finding models who looked British or Chinese. The postcard producer’s approach to mass customization was to standardize everything he could and keep differences to a minimum.

Happy Independence Day, Americans!

Publishing

Making of a Magazine Icon

By Delphine Hirasuna |

With the exception of The New Yorker’s Victorian dandy, Eustace Tilley, American magazines haven’t had any memorable mascots. The haughty fop, peering at a butterfly through a monocle, debuted on the cover of The New Yorker’s very first issue in 1925. He was drawn by Rea Irvin, the magazine’s first art director. Irvin, who also designed the New Yorker’s distinctive font, based his illustration on an 1834 caricature of the notorious social gadfly, Count Alfred d’Orsay.

The New Yorker’s icon acquired the name, Eustace Tilley, from a series of tongue-in-cheek articles called “The Making of a Magazine: A Tour through the Vast Organization of The New Yorker,” written by Corey Ford in 1925. Ad buys were slim in The New Yorker’s early years (along with subscribers), and Ford’s humorous articles published in 20 installments were used to fill pages that advertisers weren’t buying. Ford named his fictional expert on magazine-making “Tilley” after his maiden aunt and “Eustace” because he thought it sounded good with Tilley. In time, Eustace Tilley and the top-hatted dandy on the cover of premiere issue became identified as one.

Read More »

Technology

Nike Unlimited Stadium

By Delphine Hirasuna |

Nike opened a new pop-up running track in the heart of Manila, Philippines. Designed by BBH Singapore, the Unlimited Stadium installation is shaped like the sole of Nike’s new Lunar Epic shoe. Lined with LED screens, the 200-meter racetrack invites runners to run alongside their own digital avatar. But first runners must attach a radio-frequency sensor to their shoe to record their initial track time. With this individualized data, runners are challenged to outdo their avatar, besting their own record with each lap. The temporary running track is able to accommodate 30 runners at a time.