Go check out this year’s sensitive and heart-felt Christmas ad ‘Give a little love’.
https://youtu.be/Juv2c0xgGno
Finger tapping good
How bizarre! Not only the year 2020 itself, but the astonishing news that KFC have stepped into the gaming market by launching their own console with the help of Cool Master. Following in the shoes of Bud Light’s BL6 could they really rival Sony and Microsoft?
Maybe there’s a hidden ingredient in the Colonel’s computer chips.
#poweryourhunger
Quarantine of Solace
Like so many, many others during lockdown, I decided to make a conscious effort to work on my personal development - and to read more.
Well it was actually one of my New Years resolutions, and not for the first time.
So when the pandemic struck here in March, my reading was going to go one of two ways.
This was because on the one hand I’d be forfeiting a three-hour day commute of potential book worm binging, although I know myself too well - 3 pages in and being on a moving train I’d be faced planted into a page of crime or spy literature.
The second option of being at home for so many months won out in the end and so the reading from home or (RFH) began.
I picked a topic close to my heart and had all the tools (well novels), I just had to dust them down and open the first cover.
My parents had bought me the whole James Bond collection by Ian Fleming when I was in my early 20s and lamely I’d only ever read the first two. The books just sat with my other collection of Bond memorabilia including stamps, model DB5 and Sean Connery dummy (classic dinner suit attire, naturally).
Fast forward a couple of further lockdowns and I’m glad to say I’m working my way through the novels in the order in which Fleming wrote them and I’m realising what a simple but clever writer he was.
The novels are far from politically correct and make for hard reading at times but it’s a sign of the times in which they were written I guess. The numbers speak for themselves, selling over 60 million copies of the novels worldwide.
It’s a shame he passed away before he saw what a huge global success his 00 agent had become but I guess there’s… No time to die.
Sneaker preview
So today I saw an article advertising the new Adidas ZX8000 lego trainers. I must say they look pretty cool and a great marketing technique for Adidas to bulster their sales in the kids trainer market with so many toddlers, kids and teenagers donning Nike footwear.
The alternative take on the classic blue Adidas trainer packaging is really clever too. YouTube trailer
Leg-oh so nice
New kicks on a block
The white stripes
They think it's all over - it's not yet.
So the Premier League has been suspended indefinitely due to COVID-19 and during my time in isolation I’ve been working on this Blender model.
Have a Wunder-ful Christmas Nova Scotia
Home Office battered on social media for knife-free chicken campaign
Problematic chicken box campaign angers just about everyone.
A campaign from the Home Office that aims to tackle knife crime with messages on fried chicken boxes has sparked a furore online. The government initiative, which sees more than 321,000 #knifefree boxes distributed to over 210 outlets in England and Wales, has been branded "offensive" and "racist" on social media.
The boxes in question have replaced the standard packaging of retailers such as Chicken Cottage, Dixy Chicken, and Morley's. Real-life stories from young people who have chosen to follow positive activities instead of carrying a knife are printed inside each box.
The #knifefree chicken boxes are the latest in a series of government initiatives to tackle serious violence. Recently the government announced it will recruit 20,000 new police officers, and confirmed that all 43 police forces across England and Wales can use enhanced stop and search powers.
Source: Creativebloq
“The biggest issue with this campaign is its problematic undertones. Given that fried chicken has been associated with racist stereotypes, it’s unsurprising that people have called out the Home Office. Outraged Labour MP David Lammy took to Twitter to question the thought process behind the government’s campaign.”
Introducing the iDEALISK grater
Other more ‘powerful graters’ are available.
Maccy B’s - What’s the buzz around McDonald’s smallest restaurant.
Think they missed a trick, surely the drive through service should have been named Hive.
Don’t call us, we’ll call you - BT unveils new logo
I’m all for simplicity when it comes to logo design. However I was disappointed in the execution of the telecom giants latest installment, of which there have been many.
BT are focusing heavily on customer service and are giving all their employees shares in the business to help make these improvements.
I wonder what their customers think of the design.
Music to our ears
Adobe has finally fixed the bug surrounding the sound problem causing issues on MacBooks.
Read about the guy who went through three MacBooks and two sets of expensive headphones!!
The ultimate climb
National Geographic have opted for true variants of their newsstand and subscription February 2019 issues.
In principle this is nothing new. NG have been using cover variants dating back to their very, very early issues.
However, unlike many back issues, this time it’s not just a different crop or substituting copy, it’s a completely different photograph.
Worth taking a look, oh and the cover story is a fascinating read about the master that is Alex Honnold, the living Spider-Man - but even Alex doesn’t need a web.
Hats off to the photographer!
Slack attack
So the workplace app Slack came under serious criticism this week over its logo redesign.
I must say I tend to agree with the online community - I was a big fan of the original hashtag logo and colour palette and after reading the article on the rationale for change, which explains ‘...from a point of need rather than for changes sake,’ I get Slack’s point.
However I’m a little baffled to think that the initial design of the logo (created before the company started trading) and more to the point it’s colour palette ever made it to our workstations at all;
‘The design was perhaps too straightforward and weighed down by its colour palette.’
’The old design, while recognisable and distinctive, simply wasn't fit for purpose.
It will be interesting to see how the new branding develops and if the Slack community can eventually be won over.
People have taken to social saying the new design looks like artful genitals.
More 404
In light of my personal 404 page I posted at the back end of last year, creativebloq have selected 37 of their favourites. I particularly like the Australian newspaper and lego sites.
View them all here.
https://www.creativebloq.com/web-design/best-404-pages-812505
Happy New Year 🥴 Nirvana Rules 🤘🏻
Yes, a Happy New Year one and all - we’re slowly getting into the groove of 2019. Not such a happy start for Marc Jacobs who have received a telling off from Nirvana’s legal team for alleged logo misuse and charging £110 for their t-shirt design launched under the new clothing line Redux Grunge.
Maybe the Jacobs PR team should take to social media with words from what became Nirvana’s last song on their final album entitled ‘All Apologies’: “What else could I write? I don't have the right.”
My face broke the internet
A bit of fun and all that setting up my 404 page but hopefully you won’t be seeing this image on my website (other than here!).
Footy anthems
Bands FC is the brainchild of Tim Burgess from music band The Charlatans.
“It’s a celebration of the exact point where bands and football bump into each other – with a nod to Panini sticker collections,” explained designer Nick Fraser.
https://www.nme.com/blogs/nme-blogs/2348854-the-charlatans-football-logos-bands-fc-2348854
I love this concept but I must admit I’m not a ‘fan’ of some of the executions. The Gallagher brothers Man City badges are an acception - nice work lads.
That aside, football and music - ahhh, two of my favourite interests oh....and design of course.
Back of the net!
Adobe Max announcements: Ru ready?
So this week at the Adobe Max Conference there were a couple of updates I was interested in:
1. The exciting 3 updates to Photoshop found in more detail here:
2. The mobile version of Premier Pro - named Rush. Marketed at the videographer/editor on the go - this really does seem to push the boundaries of the capabilities software apps can do. Looking forward to trying it out.
Memorable logos
A fun article about how logos stick in the memory, or sometimes not. Some of the 150 people asked recreated damn right impressive memory sketches of the brands (Starbucks) whilst others were particularly bad - Apple!
https://www.creativebloq.com/news/10-iconic-logos-hilariously-drawn-from-memory
Press
So I’ve been watching the new bbc drama series Press, mainly due to the fact I’ve worked for a newspaper group and was interested to see Ben Chaplin’s character, Duncan Allen, the editor of red top, The Post.
Growing up I very much enjoyed him in the first series of Game On, he’s a good actor.
Press, its an interesting and in my option a true account of the fast paced, sometimes crazy happenings within the newspaper circle.
It highlights the recent strains that have evidently hit print circulation, the constant sales/editorial battles to maintain the quality of journalism and at the same time stop revenue decline - let alone increase it - and all the while working around the clock to get the papers to readers in time for their cup of tea and toast at 7am.
With 3 more episodes to go, it will be interesting how this initial series plays out. If there is a follow up series, who knows The Post and The Herald (the rival paper) could be online only publications or feel compelled to unite as one title in order to save the future of both. As I said, this drama holds lots of truth and similarities to the industry. No fake news here.
Written by Tom Britton