Photograph from Michigan Beer Buzz Weburbanist rounds up photos of beer cans since the 1930s and shares the history behind beer can design. Although I'm a fan of this uber-generic design, there's an interesting reason behind the need to jazz up the cans: After methods of packaging beer into durable cans were developed, the real treat for consumers and collectors were the colorful designs on the cans. Beer would still not taste great coming from a can for several decades. Manufacturers began releasing special edition and novelty cans with lively images and color schemes to attract consumers and compensate for the canned beer taste. Some of these early cans, if still in good condition, are now worth thousands of...
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Photograph from mag3737 on Flickr This collection of neon "Open" signs on Flickr is pretty impressive. There's definitely a theme: usually red, capitalized, and linked with Asian food, coffee, or the Subway sandwich chain. Related Awesome Vintage Restaurant Signage Photo of the Day: 1957 Neon Dunkin' Donuts Sign Being Dismantled Must Wash Hands, Restaurant Bathroom Signage Blog...
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From left: Chipotle's original logo, its pepper logo, and the redesign of the pepper logo. I think I had the same reaction as Brand New blogger Armin Vit to the redesign of the circular Chipotle chile pepper logo: I didn't even know the burrito chain had moved away from its original retro-shape-sign logo. The new signage and branding has begun rolling out across the chain's 800-some U.S. locations. [via Gordon Eats]...
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Photograph of Pinkberry from Design Tavern When I see a new frozen yogurt shop, I usually think, "This one kind of looks like...the other one down the street." After looking at Wallpaper*'s and Design Tavern's galleries of the interiors of frozen yogurt shops around the world, the aesthetics of fro-yo becomes clearer: modern, sleek, clean, angular with some blobs thrown in. While it's certainly not an unpleasant theme, it feels boring after a while. I wouldn't mind someday seeing a fro-yo shop that looks like a cozy living room, à la Sugar Sweet Sunshine. [via Doobybrain]...
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Alice Rawsthorn describes the form and function of the glass Heinz ketchup bottle and why it's so popular despite not being effective as a dispenser. For bottle variations, see this slideshow....
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Josh Harris has designed a coffee lid that doubles as a caddy for creamer and sweeteners. The design is obviously clever but you have to ask—is it a solution to a problem or a solution looking for a problem? What say you, serious coffee drinkers? [via Gizmodo]...
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Brand New Corporate branding and identity blog Brand New compares Wonder Bread's new and old logos. The group behind the logo, Willoughby Design, says: Needing to recapture a #1 position in the market, Willoughby and Wonder Bread took a new look at the red, yellow and blue balloons, explored a more grown-up typeface, and dialed up the sophistication of the design system overall in order to broaden the brand’s reach to meet the growing demands of this older demographic. I'm not sure I get the sense of sophistication—I mostly see that the rightmost balloon has transformed into a blue "arm." Related 'Coca-Cola Classic' Changing Name Back to 'Coca-Cola' Tropicana, Pepsi Overhaul Packaging Popeyes Gets a Full Brand Makeover...
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AdAge: "After its package redesign, sales of the Tropicana Pure Premium line plummeted 20 percent between January 1 and February 22, costing the brand tens of millions of dollars." Earlier: Tropicana, Pepsi Overhaul Packaging...
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Photograph from doisedois on Flickr Luisa P. documents her eating habits in a creative manner with her "Eatphabet" series. For more letter-shaped foods, check out the EATphabet pool on Flickr. [via notcot]...
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Isn't that what you imagine when you see a piggy bank anyway? For some of us, perhaps. Designed by Rob Price of Thwart Design and available for $60 from Design Glut. [via Swiss Miss]...
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