reactions

On July 25th the Tru Beverage Company announced that they will be bringing the fictitious beverage Tru Blood to a store near you. The beverage has been made popular by HBO’s vampire soap opera “True Blood.” On the television series, vampires have been able to “come out of the closet” and assimilate with humans because they no longer need to feed on them as their source of sustenance; they can drink the synthetic blood alternative, Tru Blood.

The carbonated blood orange based beverage promises to feature the same intensely red-colored product fans see on the show; however, I can’t imagine the consistency will be nearly as thick! Either way it’s a great way for fans to take home a piece of the brand aura.

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Design is not only visual, it’s about clear communication in everything you do. Thus, if you’re a bagel store, your pricing should be concise and to the point.

Couldn’t have this just said “$1 Bagels. Buy 12, get 1 Free” ?

The video “Hibi no neiro” for the band Sour has been in our inspiration files for a few weeks now and I keep coming back to it as such an amazing example of how technology is creating entirely new opportunities for creativity and engagement for brands. Cast with  real fans of the band from around the world and shot using only computer web cams, it reminds us that the new method of marketing is about engaging your customers in the conversation.

MSLK put our party and chef hats on to host the 3rd annual Spark BBQ. Spark, an organization made up of independent designers, holds a summer and winter event open to everyone, allowing for networking opportunities in addition to its monthly events specifically geared for creative professionals.

While I manned the grill for the most part, it was great seeing Old Guard members mingling with new members, who mingled with printers, copywriters, and business coaches.

One of the things which made this event so successful was the idea of name tags which had a pre-printed “Ask me about…” to spark conversations. A perfect fit for an organization named Spark.

Favorites “Ask me abouts…” included

“my new book”
“environmental graphics”
“learning to surf”
“Elvis” (which turned-out to be work-related)

and…

“California”

Maybe you’ll drop by for a veggie dog (or two) next year?

This poster series for the Bronx Zoo seems like a case of a great concept that probably never saw the light of day. The concept is so simple, yet captures the spirit of the Bronx Zoo so well. The designer simply uses the textures of the city to bring simple silhouetted die cuts of animals to life. The result creates a beautiful play between the city and the animal. It’s a great example of a designer considering context as part of the total design. Even better, it’s timeless and can be hung essentially anywhere.

My guess, however, is that these are only concept sketches and the design did not get produced. The downside to the concept is the cost of production. The design is deceptively costly, since a series of large die cuts can be very expensive.

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“Innovative Ideas for Marketing in a Downturn”
Presentation by Sheri L Koetting, MSLK
DIRECTION by Indigo Exhibition
August 5 at 2pm and August 6 at 11am
Penn Plaza Pavilion, 401 7th Ave, NYC, Ground Floor
Register Here

Fall is right around the corner, and here at MSLK, we’ve been keeping our eye on emerging trends for next season. A great source for inspiration is the textile design exhibition, DIRECTION by Indigo.

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Yesterday, Charles and Marie’s Soupe du Jour, 24 hr. product offering was a note card that looked all too familiar. An embossed, heavyweight card stock, the card is imprinted with the blank spaces of an LED screen. The sender need only use a ball point pen to fill-in the dashes to reveal the message of their choice. At $5 each, they are a very clever multi-purpose card to have around. It certainly reminded of MSLK’s own Love Letters customizable note cards. At $8 for a set of 5 cards, MSLK’s word find seems to be just as customizable and perhaps a better value.

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Sheri, Co-Founder of MSLK, writes about why, as designers, we feel compelled to raise awareness on environmental issues.

“MSLK’s Watershed Project Installed on Governors Island”
Notes on Design, online magazine
July 15, 2009

After the overwhelmingly positive response to Watershed‘s debut at the Figment art festival, our message about  unconscionable consumption of water in plastic bottles has become more timely than ever before: a small Australian town recently banned bottled water altogether, capturing the world’s attention.

We’ve since been very busy investigating other venues and opportunities to exhibit, and are pleased to announce that Watershed will be on display again in NYC in the fall — this time in the Brooklyn neighborhood DUMBO (aka “down under the Manhattan Bridge overpass”).

The dates are September 25 – 27, 2009, and we’ll keep you posted as to exactly where you can see it, as we’ll be conducting site visits over the next few weeks.

The East Deck Motel is at the epicenter of NY’s surf culture. Located directly on Montauk beach on the eastern-end  of Long Island, this iconic motel is seen by all brave enough to face the cold Atlantic surf.

I have taken to calling this local institution “Fast Deck” as its large, 1950s-style letters are set-back on the Motel’s roof, turning the “E”  into an “F.”

While “deck” is more of a skating term than a surfing term, I feel it’s a better name. If nothing else, “Fast Deck”  makes me want to surf even more.