The neon trend doesn’t seem to be going anywhere and I am excited to see some diversity in the hues explored. Often, the term “neon” is focused on four or five colours but there is actually a wide spectrum to consider within the vibrant hue family. I love this old neon thread card on the design center at philadelphia university blog as it highlights just how many directions one colour (like “neon pink”) can go in…

(image via the design center at philadelphia university)

When I spied this project on The Artful Desperado yesterday, my head exploded with colour happiness and I had to share. Alex Brewer, otherwise known as HENSE, is an artist from Atlanta with a colourful, abstract, graffiti-inspired contemporary style. In short: wow-inducing. He was recently hired to create a massive mural on a historic but derelict church in a waterfront neighbourhood of Washington, D.C. Fittingly, the installation is directly across the street from a planned 20,000 sq.ft. museum (making the up and coming area officially smashing). I am often in favour of preserving great old architecture and returning buildings to their former glory. This project gave me pause. It would have been easy for abstract/graffiti style to clash horribly with this vintage church and make it look a blight of soulless, messy tags. But in the hands of HENSE, it remains heavenly. Vibrancy, detail, gestural abstraction – the mural retains the integrity of the historical structure yet creates a completely modern, artful wash of colour. And all using just latex paint and talent. History is given a new, colourful layer and in effect, brings glory back to what was long forgotten…

(p.s. anyone know what this building is set to become? I’ve been trying to figure it out!)

(photographs via HENSE, spotted on the artful desperado)

I love Olympic design and the identity for Mexico 1968 is one of my very favourites. Full of bold colour, typography and clean illustration – it is a pitch perfect voice for a host city and example of what made 1960′s design so fantastic. I particularly love many of the pictogram design pieces including this Official Stamp Collection by Lance Wyman. Simple, colourful and stylish sport imagery…

(images via design related/karen horton and collectible)  

It’s no secret that I love perforated surfaces (particularly when light pours through the tiny holes in rather dreamy ways). In her photography series Daré alla Lucé, Canadian artist Amy Friend allows new light to pass through found vintage images by altering the surface with tiny pinholes. I am in love with the ethereal results and how a real sense of magic seems to infuse these images of years gone by…

(photographs via amy friend)

I love the mid-century colour palette featured in this photograph of vintage zippers by Suzanna Scott. Tiffany blue, tomato red and avocado look lovely together…

(photograph via suzanna scott)

Ecole Maternelle Pajol is a four-classroom kindergarten in Paris’s 18th arrondissement that joyfully showcases how colour and education are a true dream team. I love how Parisian architects Palatre & Leclère restored the 1940′s building. The front retains its vintage brick beauty while the back explodes with vibrant patterns and colourful activities. The interiors are equally joyful with bold hallways, bright furniture/building materials and a dotted ceiling I just love. Even the washroom features fabulous streamlined colour and animal details (love those dividers!) This kindergarten must be one magical place to learn and play…

(spotted on the cool hunter)

So technically, this is last week’s ‘palette of the week’. Whoops. Expect two featured colour combinations this week! I love the way brands and identities can be transformed to fit vastly different applications. This photograph by Heather David captures the bold pattern and colour of a Disneyland shopping bag from the 1960′s. How great is the abstract use of Mickey Mouse ears? Proof that great branding doesn’t need to shout to be wildly effective…

(photograph by heather david, spotted on present & correct’s pinterest)

It’s hard to resist the beautiful visual language designer Paul Giambarba created for Polaroid in the 1960′s. A perfectly organized system of vibrant colour bar graphics and a rather handsome News Gothic typeface make for one unforgettable identity. While quintessentially 1960′s looking, I think the exact system could thrive today. Aside from the clean and colourful looks, my favourite part is how the boxes stack. Beautiful.

(photographs via aisleone)

I have been meaning to do a post on Saul Bass as he is a true colour and design hero of mine. I spotted this poster for 1957 film Love in the Afternoon today and couldn’t resist posting it. Gorgeous handcraft typography and cluster of primary colour. Don’t you wish modern movies would experiment with illustration as handsome as this? Time to prep a Saul Bass post…

(photograph via brain pickings)

Seeing these images of Toy Atlas Rainbow by artist David T. Waller on Colossal this morning made me want to run to the nearest antique store and look for intriguing shades of vintage cars. The rainbow installation features 2,500 old toy cars and showcases some lovely vintage paint hues. They say blue sells and that seems more than true in the toy car world! I am fascinated by the gradient of hues in the close-up shot as well as the small but mighty purple and pink centre. Explain to me again why real cars don’t come in such awesome colours?

(spotted on colossal via fasels suppe)

Fogal is a Swiss fashion brand most famous for their high-end hosiery. Created in 1921 and now with stores around the world, the company’s legwear division features wildly diverse and fashion-forward styles and textures in over 70 colours. I’ve heard they make a great product but frankly, it’s the packaging I have loved for quite some time. The 1950′s/60′s feeling typography, vintage style and original logo are all fantastic but the colour palettes just make me giddy. A gorgeously vibrant collection of hues, the palette feels vintage but not stuffy. I especially love the borders of contrasting or complimentary colours. Yep, I wouldn’t mind keeping the entire collection on my desk as a perfect example of creating a big yet cohesive brand colour palette. Oh those colours would look just incredible in one big stack!

(photographs via the dieline and greedy girl)

The 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month marked the end of World War One and is now a day when countries around the world honour those who gave the ultimate sacrifice, those who served and those who continue to serve. It is a holiday unique to every nation but in Canada and many Commonwealth countries, Remembrance Day is a memorial wrapped in vibrant red. Why red? For the symbol of Remembrance Day itself – the poppy. Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae, a Canadian artist, doctor and solider, wrote the now iconic poem “In Flanders Fields” in 1915 as he processed seeing the bodies of so many fallen comrades intermingled with the bright red poppies that now marked their graves. The poem was published shortly after and spread across the world. Its first two lines, “In Flanders fields the poppies blow/Between the crosses, row on row” inspired the use of poppies as a symbol of remembrance. The blooms are sold each year to raise money for Veteran services and worn as a promise to never forget those who served and continue to serve.

I didn’t mean to turn this post into a rambling history lesson (although I have been asked by many a tourist what the red flower is for!) Overall, Remembrance Day is a day of honour, reflection and red. The poppy is an enduring symbol of gratitude and I am always struck by their beauty and meaning. Combined with the colours of military ribbons and uniform neutrals, it is a day of poignant colour palettes and a vivid poppy red that ensures we always remember. The image above of lights is of Vancouver’s war memorial in Victory Square Park and is a piece of local art I really love. Eleven lights based on WW1 helmets encircle the memorial and, when lit at night, always feel like a hauntingly beautiful tribute to all of those we lost and are beyond thankful to…

(photographs via themonarchist, iammacgirl, amanda last, tt24813055, matt s, wikipedia, dale calder, piscesdreamer and rainypete)