~ the weekly finds ~
Figma chats visual identity for its annual design conference, where to find the perfect $1200 Italian lamp for your living room side table, and coffee packaging that actually does minimalism right.
Hi friends -
This week, I’ve got a shorter newsletter for y’all. As the title suggests, its more of a recap of things I found online or IRL that piqued my interest this week. One of the reasons I started this newsletter was to document and share my taste over the days, weeks, and hopefully years, that I’ll be writing about design, music, art, and culture. Think of it as me sharing my bookmarked finds that will hopefully inspire you or at the very least make it to your own bookmarked tabs.
So let’s dive in.
THE WEEKLY FINDS (July 14-21)
— #O1
Read how Figma built the identity for its mammoth design conference, Config
I’ve been a huge fan of It’s Nice That for a while now. It’s a design publication built by creatives for creatives. Every week, I try to read a write-up or two from them. This week, they published an interview with Figma design leads about the 10-month process for crafting the visual identity for their annual design conference. For context, I went to Config in 2023 - and let me tell you this is definitely a “music festival, but for design software.” Click the link above to read the full interview with Damien Correll, Figma’s creative director, and Jessica Svendsen, its design manager.
— #O2
If you couldn’t tell by the bold brand colors, Don Molinico is a Spanish food brand that specializes in canned and jarred pimientos (or peppers). Founded by Jesus Mari in 1987, the company has its roots in the Navarre region in Northern Spain.
I really enjoyed this rebrand because I think it does a splendid job of modernizing a classic and traditional brand. The color palette is textbook Castellano. However, I love how they went with a more muted gold accent for subtle elegance, rather than an equally vibrant yellow. The inclusion of a baby blue for the tuna flavor and soft pink for the salmon flavor are also great additions. In an already busy and vibrant package design, these softer secondary colors denote flavor differentiation without screaming it into your face. Take a look at their well-designed website as well.
— #O3
These Enzo Mari Aggregato Tavolo Stelo Table Lamps by Artemide are so satisfying. I love how you can adjust the height of the lamp to widen or focus the light source.
If you’re interested, you can purchase them here for $1200 🙃
— #O4
FRUKT’s coffee packaging is how you do minimalism right
The way to accomplish this ? Keep classic minimalist qualities such as small capitalized or monospaced type. Cluster nuggets of information together to create white space in the layout. Finally, create an element of surprise by using a huge logo with slightly rotated lettering to break the defined grid structure.
— #O5
Design your next Berlin-inspired rave poster using this font.
— #O6
Here are some visuals (one, two, three, four, five) on Are.na that I enjoyed.
— #O7
been liking @bradleypinkerton’s designs on IG. the handmade, sketch quality of his mockups are very satisfying.
— #O8
shagey’s sticker packs are not a want. they’re a need.
— #O9
if you live in LA, someone please purchase this funky $900 mirror.
— #1O
Shoutout to Gabi Jones for writing this great recap on “What to Look for When Vintage Shopping.” My favorite part of this post was seeing the design of clothing labels change over the course of the 20th century. More on the typography of fashion labels here.