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As designers, we are always in constant need of inpiration. Whether it be web or graphic design, other work to fuel our creativity is essential. Logo design requires the most amount of inspiration however.
Below we present a showcase of 50 beautiful, clever and creative logo designs that will hopefully inspire you. If you take a closer look at the showcase below, you will notice many trends. Some of these include use simple shapes to create something complex, origami shapes, coloring and transparency trends, and many more.
Why are these logos so excellent? All of these logos use very creative methods to represent the brand through color, shapes, and shape typography. Look at how each of these logos can tell you something about the company. Also note the brilliant color palletes and unique patterns used in many of these. Finally, pay attention to the typography, especially font selection and coloring.
Matt Cronin is a freelance web and graphic designer as well as developer. He is the author and owner of Spoonfed Design, a design blog with great tips, how-to, inspiration, tutorials, and more. Spoonfed Design is part of the VAEOU Creative Network, a new startup in progress with new services coming soon.
We like green. Green apples. Green Bay. The Green Mile. Asparagus. And we have this sweater. Anyway, we like green, but we've never been "green." We're, shall we say, suspicious about any word so often swathed in so much righteousness. Because "green" can too easily be equated with "good," which is a vast oversimplification, especially when so much fact gets aggressively manipulated by so many interested parties in the name of "green."
We have this friend who gave us some perspective on "green." His name is Bjørn Lomborg, a political economist, environmental activist, and fierce optimist, who brought eight economists (including five Nobel laureates) together a year ago to come up with a sensible plan for environmental activism. It's called the Copenhagen Consensus. He wrote an essay in our 75th Anniversary Issue (October 2008) that convinced us that the small things we do (and some of the big things we do) can't amount to much unless we overhaul our list of priorities (placing malnutrition above, say, reducing CO2 emissions). His essay makes environmentalism a powerful and complex idea. You can read it here.
So, about being "green" we're a little ambivalent. But about doing good we aren't conflicted at all. The products on these pages are good, and using them feels good. They improve our lives. They work. And they're environmentally sound. Which is a bonus.
Ben Goldstein/Studio D
The Quiet Mow
Virtues:
+ Gas-free
+ Noise-free
+ Aerobic
If pollution and sloth ever become virtues, self-propelled and riding mowers will be the trappings of the righteous. Until then, we'll stick with old-fashioned manual mowers. They don't use gas, don't stink, don't involve a potentially arm-snapping rip cord. And then there's the whisperlike sound they make. It's almost worth the looks you'll get from neighbors.
Husqvarna 64
Sharp
Swedish
Easily nicknamed ("Husky")
Brill RazorCut 38
Sharp
Collapsible handle
Tricolored
American Lawn Mower Company 141416
Sharp
Spare
Favored by prison-labor programs
A Hatchback for Men
Virtues:
+ Quick
+ Efficient
+ Japanese
The hatchback already comes close to the practical ideal: Seats five, sips gas, handles like a go-kart, looks cool — enough. Utilitarian. But the new breed of sport hatchback is more sport, less hatchback. Take the MazdaSpeed3 pictured above. (See also: Volkswagen GTI, Subaru WRX.) With 263 hp, 26 mpg highway, and a $23,500 base price, it's frugal enough for daily commuting, roomy enough for errands — and powerful enough to remind you you're not driving a Prius.
Ben Goldstein/Studio D
Better Beer
Virtues:
+ Fresher
+ Larger
+ Cheaper
+ Comes with handle
Until the late 1800s, beer came in one kind of container — the keg — and was sold in one place: the local saloon. Folks wishing to drink elsewhere would bring jugs to be filled at the tap. These were known as growlers. And the invention of the beer can all but killed them.
These days beer makers across the country are distributing growlers again. (And many brewpubs and specialty grocers will let you fill your own growlers directly from their taps.) Plunk down seven or eight bucks plus a two- or three-dollar bottle deposit, and head home with half a gallon of the crispest, freshest ale (or stout or pilsner) you've ever tasted. When you're done, you bring the bottle back and reclaim your deposit — or treat it as a down payment on the next growler. The bottle itself gets cleaned and returned to its source, ready to be filled again.
Ben Goldstein/Studio D
Paint Made from Mlik
Virtues:
+ Odorless
+ Durable
+ Bovine
Before modern chemistry gave us oil and latex varieties, "house paint" meant milk paint. You'd take a bucket of milk, add powdered lime (the mineral, not the fruit) and some pigment, and stir. The result was an odor-free, fade-proof coating with the added benefits of extreme toughness and zero cases of lead poisoning. Since 1974, the Old-Fashioned Milk Paint Company has been offering genuine milk paint in powder form, and there's a new version formulated specially for interior walls. Look for it wherever gorp is sold (or at milkpaint.com).
Ben Goldstein/Studio D
Soap for Everything
Virtues:
+ Works on hands
+ Works on feet
+ Works on hair
+ Works on dogs
There's no reason to buy hand soap, dish soap, shampoo, body bars, body wash, or shaving cream when you can just buy a bottle of Dr. Bronner's. The stuff's been around since World War II, is 100 percent organic, and cleans everything from rugs to babies. Dr. Bronner's comes in eight scents — we prefer the original peppermint — and according to the label can be used in eighteen different ways. (According to the Internet, there are hundreds more.)
NEW YORK (Reuters) - PepsiCo Inc is testing greener vending machines, a move that helps the soft drink maker reduce its environmental footprint and gives businesses a little relief on their electric bills.
The test involving 30 machines in the Washington, D.C., area has just begun. Pepsi hopes to begin rolling them out worldwide over the next several years, said Robert Lewis, vice president of packaging and equipment development.
The new machines use 5.08 kilowatt-hours of energy per day, down about 15 percent from a nationwide average of 6 kilowatt-hours used by current machines. Current machines already use 44 percent less energy on average than the machines used six years ago.
"That was the equivalent of burning five 100-watt bulbs constantly," Lewis said, referring to the 2003-era machines. "We're currently down to about two 100-watt bulbs. They're not using a lot of energy as it is."
The new machines also emit about 12 percent less greenhouse gas, in part by keeping the drinks cool with carbon dioxide instead of the usual hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), which scientists say contribute to global warming.
The green machines, which have won the praise of Greenpeace, are the latest step PepsiCo is taking to promote its more environmentally friendly ways. Both PepsiCo and Coca-Cola Co have come under fire for issues such as using too much plastic, and have made changes such as making lighter bottles and conserving more water.
CUTTING COSTS
The new machines are more expensive than current equipment, Lewis said, but declined to say by how much.
PepsiCo, whose brands include Pepsi, Mountain Dew, Sierra Mist and Aquafina, currently has about 4 million to 5 million vending machines and coolers around the world.
Vending machines are typically owned and serviced by the company's bottlers, which share their revenue with the offices, schools and stores that house them. Therefore, those customers will not incur any charges for the new machines, yet will benefit from lower energy bills, Lewis said.
PepsiCo worked with Greenpeace Solutions, an arm of the large environmental organization, to develop the program.
Greenpeace Solutions Director Amy Larkin said PepsiCo was leading the way to improve a technology that people use every day but rarely think about.
"They're transforming the industry in a way that is going to be more climate-friendly to a great degree, so what can I do but applaud that," Larkin said.
While Pepsi's greener vending machines are the first in the United States, Unilever Plc's Ben & Jerry's ice-cream brand introduced coolers that use carbon dioxide, she noted.
Coca-Cola has introduced HFC-free vending machines in Britain, and used them at official venues at last year's Beijing Olympics.
(Reporting by Martinne Geller; Editing by Gary Hill)
Touch-screen, pocket-size device will ship in second quarter (see photo, below)
By Matt Hamblen
March 31, 2009 (Computerworld) LAS VEGAS -- Samsung Telecommunications America announced the first WiMax-enabled Mobile Internet Device (MID) today at the International CTIA Wireless conference.
Called the Mondi, the touch-screen, pocket-size device is designed for use on the Clear mobile WiMax network from Clearwire, Samsung officials announced on Tuesday evening. Mondi derives its name from the Latin word for "world."
No price was announced, but it will be available at Best Buy and Clear stores, as well as Samsung's online store sometime in the second quarter, Samsung officials said. The black-slider form factor of the Mondi device extends horizontally to reveal a full QWERTY keyboard and an optical mouse. It runs the Opera 9.5 Web browser and has a 4.3-in. touch screen.
The Mondi runs on the Windows Mobile 6.1 operating system. In addition to WiMax, it connects to Wi-Fi, as well as GPS and Bluetooth 2.0. It has a 3.0-megapixel camera and camcorder, and comes with 4GB of internal memory. Other specifications were not released.
"The Mondi provides the power of a laptop but easily fits in the hand or a pocket," said Omar Khan, senior vice president of strategy and product management at Samsung.
Khan said Samsung supports WiMax networks globally and felt the need to build a WiMax product even though the capabilities of Clear in the U.S. are still in an early stage.
Samsung's Mondi sports a 4.3-in. touch screen.
"We do believe it's important to support WiMax to take advantage of 4G speeds," Khan said. "Everything starts at a nascent stage, and the Mondi is our first [device] to support that."
He said the Mondi was not a phone, and does not provide voice services. However, Khan left open the possibility of future voice support in the Mondi or other products, saying that Samsung's road map provides for dual-network mode capability with WiMax and other networks he did not name.
Khan said that Samsung was "on track" to provide Android devices in the second half of the year.
And regarding LTE, a future competitor to WiMax, he said Samsung was cooperating with LTE carriers on trials of that technology. "We are committed to being a leader in both WiMax and LTE," Khan said.
Asked whether Samsung devices would run Windows applications across other operating systems, Khan said Samsung was releasing a software developer kit next month as part of its Samsung Mobile Innovator Program to foster creation of widgets that would allow Windows to run on Android or Symbian.
Under that strategy, the browser in the device will run applications and not the operating system, he said.
Today an unwatermarked, time code free workprint of X-Men Origins: Wolverineleaked on the internet. Within hours thousands of people had a version of the upcoming Fox release, and once a file like this is in the wild it can never be fully brought back in.
How the hell did this happen?
I got in touch with a friend of mine who works in a post-production facility here in Los Angeles and he seemed to think my question was funny. "I'm surprised this doesn't happen more often," he said.
While studios bend over backwards to police film critics at press screenings (I've become used to security guards with night vision lenses staring at me while I'm watching a movie), the post-production process is apparently porous. Burned DVDs are swapped around with aplomb in this world; in fact I was told that the Wolverine DVD was switching hands for the last couple of weeks. It's hard to nail down where in the post-production process the Wolverine leak originated; it could have been someone working in digital FX, someone working on the titles, or even someone working on the trailer. Hell, it could be somebody working on the DVD release, for that matter.
My source told me stories of people blithely taking home DVDs of major upcoming studio blockbusters - some with watermarks, some without - so that they wouldn't have to work overtime at the office. And it's not just the honchos who have this access. My source told me about interns bringing DVDs home to watch with their friends. Even he seemed incredulous about the lackadaisical security at most of these post-production houses.
I've experienced some of this stuff first hand. I had someone from a post house meet me at a coffee shop and show me the Cloverfield trailer on a laptop. I've had files emailed to me that are clearly watermarked with post house names. I know a filmmaker who had his film pirated in the post-production stage, and who managed to nail the guy who was handing out DVDs to his friends. And I've come across some of these DVDs myself, although I never knew that they were so rampant.
Post isn't the only source of major leaks; these days getting a script to an unmade movie isn't even a badge of insider honor. They seem to be available to anyone who wants them. Someone told me that the security on the script for Cabin in the Woods was so tight no one would get it. Just to prove him wrong I got it three days later. I don't say that to boast but to explain how lax security is on the script end; once something hits an agency, PDFs of it may as well be deposited in the mailboxes of the biggest movie site writers. But while that's a problem - the mass leak of the script to Quentin Tarantino's Inglorious Basterds being one example - it's not half as damaging as the leak of an actual movie. Very few people will read a script. Many more will watch a DIVX file.
I have a feeling that the Wolverine leak is the tip of the iceberg. My source tells me that he suspects the person who leaked it may have been motivated by a grudge against the house where they work - perhaps someone who has been laid off or had his hours reduced (although to be fair he did also say that it's just as likely that this leak came from a dumb intern who simply made a copy for a friend. My friend has no actual knowledge of the particulars of this specific leak). The ease with which a DVD can be ripped and disseminated makes it child's play, and the ubiquity of laptops make it simpler and simpler for someone to rip a movie without even taking the disc off premises. Studios can keep being worried about someone sneaking a Flip camcorder into a press screening, but the real problem is right in their own system. So far they've been amazingly lucky, but how long can that luck hold out?
Out of bounds (OOB) photos are post processed photos where the contents are taken outside the boundaries, presented in creative 3-dimensional perspective. OOB photos can be achieve with some basic photo editing skills. Getting an interesting OOB photo depend largely on the photo angle and individual creativity.
In case you hadn't figured it out, you weren't meant to see these photos. At least not until the New York auto show opens its doors on April 8th. But thanks to an observant R&T reader and his handy camera, we can bring you these exclusive photos of Hyundai's latest, secret concept car—the Nuvis HCD-11.
Understandably, Hyundai isn't saying anything regarding the Nuvis at the moment, but we can tell you the gullwing doors on this SUV open to allow entry into a 4-seat cabin. We also believe the Nuvis will be sporting a hybrid drivetrain. Whether the Nuvis is purely a design exercise or an actual precursor to a production model remains to be seen. But while the gullwing doors and floating-in-air seats might seem pure fantasy, we're betting the Nuvis's drivetrain is intended for production down the road. The last Hyundai HCD (which stands for Hyundai California Design Center) concept was the HCD-10 Hellion that made its debut at the 2006 L.A. auto show.
We'll have much more information on the Nuvis HCD-11 concept, as well as many other world debuts, from the New York auto show floor once press days begin on April 8th. Stay tuned.
BANGKOK — In a skyscraper high above Bangkok, a fingerprint scanner bleeps, glass doors slide open and female technicians enter a humming lab.
One unseals a cold storage tub marked “Thai StemLife,” sending white vapors billowing upwards. Another worker palms a small container filled with purplish goo. In swift choreography, a steel box is lifted from the tub and the container is inserted into its prescribed slot.
That goo is umbilical cord blood, rich in stem cells and siphoned out right after childbirth. The cord, and the blood inside, is typically tossed aside as biological waste.
But in Thailand, worlds away from the political din surrounding stem cells in America, more and more parents are choosing to bank the cord blood of their newborns to use, perhaps, in future medical treatments.
Thailand could be well-positioned to cash in on the trend, as the business of storing stem cells relies on two factors: high birth rates and a class of moneyed parents. Thailand, already a regional healthcare mecca, has both.
A handful of start-ups — Thai StemLife, Cyroviva Thailand, Cordlife and others — are now vying to store stem cells from the roughly 800,000 babies born each year in Thailand.
“You have to do this business in places where fertility rates are high,” said Kostas Papadopoulos, CEO of Thai StemLife, which is Thailand’s largest private stem cell bank. “In Singapore, people just don’t have sex enough. And even though purchasing power in Thailand isn’t as good as Europe, America or even North Asia, the fertility rate is quite good.”
So, it seems, are Thai StemLife’s prospects. Founded in 2005, the company became profitable in two years, Papadopoulos said.
With more than 3,300 stem cell samples already stored in its deep-freeze tanks, it boosted clients by 25 percent last year. The biobank charges nearly $3,700 for a lifetime of stem cell storage. “This year,” Papadopoulos said, “we’re looking at doubling (clients).”
The science behind stem cell treatments, though full of promise, is also steeped in confusion and mystique.
There are two kinds of stem cells: embryonic and adult. Embryonic stem cells, which spring from fertilized eggs, can morph into any type of cell. Inside a womb, they eventually divide and divide until a fetus is formed — unless they’re collected, halting growth of a potential embryo.
Earlier this month, U.S. President Barack Obama lifted certain restrictions on federal funding of research on embryonic cells, long considered a political lightning rod. (Despite misconceptions, private funding of such research has always been legal.)
Adult stem cells, the type collected from umbilical cords, aren’t saddled with the same ethical concerns. They’re less versatile but still useful for certain medical treatments. Adult stem cells are usually difficult to extract — liposuction or dialysis are among the methods — and they’re thought to be less effective in treatment as a person ages.
Still, umbilical cords offer the cells in a perfect, easy-to-tap package. But once the cord is tossed aside, it’s difficult to obtain such a pure, voluminous sample later in life.
“After the baby is born, you just insert the needle in the umbilical cord and suck all out all that’s available,” said Somjate Manipalviratn, an obstetrician with Superior A.R.T., a Bangkok infertility clinic.
Likewise, treatment is almost startlingly simple. The purplish goo can be thawed and injected into a patient’s bloodstream. Stem cell treatments are thought to benefit people suffering from more than 80 diseases, including leukemia, hepatitis and thalassemia, a blood disease prevalent in Thailand.
Parents who opt to store these cells hope they’ll never need them. And very few do. Thai StemLife has thawed and released only about 50 samples for treatment. Like all stem cell bio-banks, most customers end up paying only for peace of mind.
Somjate likens this to insurance, telling his patients, “If you can afford it, go for it.” About 80 percent of his patients — who are largely affluent, he said — choose to store their baby’s cord blood.
“Almost all of them have babies at the private hospitals in Thailand,” he added. “The government hospitals aren’t talking about stem cells yet.”
Somjate also cautions them from believing every bio-bank’s claim, which sometimes veer into “science fiction,” he said. For parents who regret not storing umbilical cord blood, one Bangkok dentist clinic offers to extract stem cells from baby teeth, a less-proven method. (Thailand has yet to follow U.S. clinics promising to retrieve stem cells from menstrual blood.)
For many parents, it’s not all about stem cells’ brief track record. Stem cells provoke great wonder and hope for future scientific developments. And breakthroughs, however recent, are already happening in Asia.
Ian Fox, whose wife is Thai, opted to store his son’s cells on a whim. “We saw some PR literature in the hospital and thought, hey, let’s just do it,” Fox said. “It seemed wise and it wasn’t terribly expensive.”
His son was born in Bangkok with spastic diplegia, a form of cerebral palsy that left an immobilizing stiffness in his left leg. Doctors later told Fox his son’s “conventional options were a lifetime of orthopedic shoes and Botox injections. We thought, ‘There’s got to be a better answer.’”
After six weeks of fretting and intense research, the Foxes decided to try a stem cell injection. Several weeks later, they said, their son was noticeably more mobile.
But the boy, now 3, has also benefited from extensive physical therapy and hyper-baric oxygen treatments. And it’s difficult, Fox said, to prove which treatment spurred his son’s progress.
“We observed fairly rapid improvement after the stem cell treatment,” Fox said. “But I’m not going to tell you that the stem cell treatment totally cured him. We can’t ever say for sure.”
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All you art collectors out there. Here is a chance to get a Giclee copy of some of Ian M Sherwin work. Ian is planning on doing a whole series of Marblehead, Massachusetts paintings. His work is amazing.
Today an unwatermarked, time code free workprint of 
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