Mind your manners when checking out these plates by Pen and the Pixel! London-based illustrator and designer Emma Houlston created these plates as an homage to scenes from the Harrow Ladies Luncheon Club from John Betjemen’s 1973 documentary Metro-Land. While I don’t quite grasp all of the references, I do adore the sentiments on each plate. After all, how many times have you been chastised by your horn-rim bespectacled grandma about your elbows?
{images via Pen and the Pixel}
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With a hint of nostalgia and plenty of whimsy, the designs by Ben the Illustrator bring to mind happy days full of child-like glee and open-eyed wonder. The patterns achieve the perfect balance of playfulness and modernity.
Each print features a saturated color palette rooted in primaries. And that eggy yellow might just be my favorite color in the world, especially when paired with a tomato-red and stark white!
Ben’s work shows a great range of techniques: crisply drawn shapes mix with painterly brushstroked abstractions; thin linework stands in contrast against solid colored grounds. Each print creates a small world with lots to explore.
{Images via Ben the Illustrator}
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Since we’re always collaborating with talented illustrators for issues of Anthology, coming across someone’s work we love is exciting. Unfortunately for us, illustrator Happy Menocal’s focus is on branding and custom commissions, and not editorial work. But that didn’t stop me from scrolling through her entire portfolio, and falling especially hard for her Custom Heraldry.
When asked to design a wedding invitation suite for her friend, Happy came up with the idea of creating a crest as the unifying theme and palette. With it she could capture the essence of a partnership in a way a limiting monogram no longer could—a very modern approach to the age-old crest. The brilliance of this idea took off, requests started coming in, and soon she was creating crests not just for nuptials, but also for new babies, families, organizations, and individuals. These are a few of my favorites, but it’s worth scrolling through the set in Happy’s portfolio, and also reading more about her work in this interview.
{Images via Happy Menocal}
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The work of Katie Rodgers, aka Paperfashion, transports you to another place … to some dreamland far away where ballet dancers frolic, where the snow always glistens, and where women still wear gloves. Ever inspired by the whimsical moments in life, Katie seeks that unique spark in moments that many find to be mundane. A true artist, she layers many different types of media on top of her watercolor and ink illustrations. From glitter to sequins, even tulle, Katie has evolved her work while staying true to her distinctly feminine aesthetic.
What I truly love the most about Katie’s work is how unapologetically feminine her pieces can be. Each painting and sketch tells a fantastical story, one that shows her imagination and fresh perspective. As a good friend of Katie’s, every time I see her newest pieces on her blog, I can’t help but get caught up in her vision of the world and just how blissful life can be!
If you are interested in learning more about Katie’s tricks and techniques, she is teaching a class on Skillshare starting today!
{All images via Paperfashion}
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When I was reading the galleys for the Winter issue, the article “Coasting Through Life’s Ups & Downs” made me a little sentimental. Like the author, Pamela Ribon, I was expecting my first daughter, and reading about the traditions passed down from mother to daughter in her family made me look forward to establishing traditions of my own. I don’t want to give away too much about the story, but it’s a sweet balance of family and chaotic summer fun.
When we were looking for an illustrator for the piece, Zachariah Ohora seemed like a natural choice to capture the light-heartedness and sentimentality. Ohoroa is perhaps best known for his children’s book Stop Snoring Bernard (which I intend to add to my library) but also does great editorial work, album covers, and posters (he has a few more books due out later this year). We love how the final illustrations he created for us turned out. If you haven’t had a chance to check it out yet, be sure to flip to page 69 in Issue No. 10.
{Images from Zachariah Ohora}
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