The Brazilian design studio PS2 created this beautiful self promotional typographic memory card game.

This concentration game consist of 20 pairs of card, each one with a different type family.

Set has some extra cards with a typographical glossary and the explanation of the sentence that names the gift: “the quick brown fox jumps to over the lazy dog”.
The package also contains a text about the evolution of type design, locating in history each font used in the cards.

Set is the annual gift to customers and friends of the graphic design universe and of the agency and comes in a limited edition of 300 numbered copies.

JUST BRILLIANT.

Some Spec:
Principal Type: Univers Condensed, by Adrian Frutiger
Paper: Condat Silk + Matte
Colors: Pantone
Finishing: Lustre Lamination + Die Cut

Click to view a larger image

Here it is again the list of my 10 favorite readings of the week.
Let’s start.

• Most brilliant is new Zippo advertising campaign. Even if message clearly exaggerate the amount of space taken by discarded lighters, it shows an interesting point of view that probably few of us had considered before. Read a full article on StillAd ;
• Most Useful is The 13 most essential plugin for WordPress by Net-tuts. Even if I don’t agree to all of them because I think some plugin in list are not strictly necessary (don’t forget that each plugin you activate eats resources and slows a bit your wordpress!), there are some I didn’t know. I would add to list Login Lockdown: detect and record IP addresses of every failed login attempt and if more than a certain number of attempts are detected within a short period of time from the same IP range, then the login function is disabled for all requests from that range;
  
• Most stunning is Step into my Cardboard Office from CR Blog. Their article tells about Nothing, a new Amsterdam creative agency that built its internal working spaces with cardboard. Article has plenty of amazing pictures of the studio;
• Most funny is Comments you won’t have seen by DavidAirey.com. I read this clever and wit blog very often and surely there are a lot of graphic design post to point out (I especially like the “Logo of the month” series), but this one was, really, exhilarating;
• Most Interesting is Achieve your goals with Incremental Persistence. I’ve found this article on DevLounge. Very powerful explanation about how persistence conquers all. You can’t miss the linked John Reese article on Income.com too;
• Most Beautiful is a showcase of SmashingMagazine of 40 typography-related websites and blogs. Astounding creativity and a lot of knowledge here;
• Most Inspiring is a DesignM.ag Showcase about landscape photography. Incredibly, the shot of the cypresses has been taken not far away from where I live. Those trees are really famous among photographers here;
• Most Valuable is The Ups and Downs of Business by Chris Tomlison. I’ve found by chance this 5th and last article of an interesting series, so, my advice is to read them all;
• My favorite artist is Jay Horinouchi creates dreamy and intriguing worlds filled with Japanese-inspired creatures. Amazing painting technique. He is having a solo exhibition at Möbius Gallery in Los Angeles until April 7, 2009.

It is possible that my couple of reader will think that I am a soft drink addicted now (if so I Would never tell, LOL), but surely I couldn’t let this news unnoticed.

Coca-Cola launched about a month ago a limited edition design for the Coca-Cola Light bottle. And a very coool and eye-catching one, I have to say.

Bottles have been styled by Natalye Rykiel, daughter of the talented end eclectic French stylist Sonia Rykiel, ex model, actually art director of the family griffe.

Rykiel’s creations mark the 20th anniversary of Coke Light and the 40th year of her mother’s fashion house.

Lovely colored Diet Coke bottles are customized according the typical style of Nathalie Rykiel, the same way some time ago was done by Roberto Cavalli and Patricia Field.
Cavalli embellished 300,000 bottles with three of his typical animal prints.

Patricia Field edition (the designer became famous because she was the costumer of “Sex and the City”) had four color designs, that aimed to represent some aspects of a woman life: Career (gold), Love (pink), Passion, and, naturally, Fashion (the light blue bottle).

Nathalie Rykiel collectors bottles are sold at Monoprix and Grand Epicerie de Paris for 1,25 Euros (about 1,60 USD) but in EBAY there already is collector war, and there are some sold for 15 Euros and more!

Visit official Coke website presentation of the design HERE.

Some time ago UnderConsideration introduced the new design of the Tropicana packaging, a brand of the Pepsi Company.
The new bottle showed a cold, anonymous big picture of a glass of orange juice with plain sans serif typography.
Article ended the commentary with “I really want to believe that the screw-cap will not be an orange-colored boobie as in the rendering above”.
I couldn’t agree more.
That half-orange shaped cap was not only ugly but probably difficult to use too. (The one above is the initial rendering, at the end of the post the two real bottle compared)

YES.
I’ve said “was”.

New packaging arouse hell in all designers communities, and after a brief test period Tropicana has decided to return to its old packaging.

Let’s face the truth, with redesign it lost his identity: it was not
anymore the fresh fruit bursting with juice that made us all eager to drink.It became a plain product in a glass. Like anyone else.
There’s more.
Maybe this loss of quality in packaging was even perceived as a loss of quality in the product itself in the usual consumer too?
It may be.

Am I unfair?
I mean…I’ve always liked clean and sleek designs and this design is not bad in itself. Really.
Problem is that those that made the redesign forgot that this brand
has his history and his (strong) personality, and in their eagerness
to reach kids, moms, dads, grandpas and all in between cleaned up
and cut too much and in the end made it just…floppy.

So…what’s next now?
Will we see an update of the rejected design, an update of the old
one, a completely new one or we’ll keep on see the old beloved one
for years to come?

Well, it seems the Dubai department of Ogilvy & Mather has no no doubt about it: everything was DHL’s fault.

According to Omero version of the story, Greeks sent in front of the city of Troy a huge horse, which had to appear as a peace offer. The jubilant Trojans dragged the wheeled, wooden horse into their city to celebrate the end of the 10 years of fighting.
Unfortunately it was only an Odisseus plan to ultimately doom the Trojans: the horse was filled with soldiers that during the night, while the Trojans were more than a little comatose from too much drinking, slipped out of it. Killing Trojans and setting fire to the city, they quickly won the war.

So…here we are in presence of a revision of the history and DHL takes full credit for that old delivery.

I think this campaign is simply brilliant, clever and fascinating, not to mention beautifully illustrated.

I just love it.

Advertising Agency: Ogilvy & Mather, Dubai, United Arab Emirates
Executive Creative Director: Till Hohmann
Art Director: Rafael Rizuto
Creative Director: Dalba Singh
Illustration: Keith Thompsom
Editor: Sascha Kuntze

After last year successful guerrilla street campaign, Orbit is coming back.
New advertising poster has a beautiful vintage style (of those I love) and features a group of cannibals while preparing a couple of (human) pyres for their forthcoming snack.
In the foreground, a packet of Orbit whit the headline “After any meal”.

How daring! Humorous, engaging, and most of all so beautifully illustrated.
Ad was made by Agency Mark BBDO under the direction of creatives Leon Sverdlin and Martin Charvát. Brilliant copywriting was and idea of Pavel Sobek, art direction of: Daniel Kurz and (let me tell it again) wonderful illustrator was: Lucie Štamfestová.

Regarding last year campaign I just mentioned, if you don’t know it yet, faces were painted around street irregularities, with attached a simple note: “Dirty Mouth? ORBIT.COM”.
Very Impressive!

Campaign was planned by agency Energy BBDO Chicago, under the creative direction of Marty Orzio, art direction of Frank Dattalo, copywriting by Mike Roe. The artist that painted faces was Karen Tisel and the Christian Petersen-Clausen. Producer: Liz Miller-Gershfeld.