Ryan is out of town, so I'm filling in. As promised, 5 things we're digging:

1) Dieter Rams short documentary - I'm a little late on this, but my cousin dropped me a line a few days ago saying how cool it was. And he was right. If you're not familiar with Dieter, you know what to do.

2) Lushpad - Great idea, and a great way to boost up our economic system. Buy furniture!

3) Joe Ranft Birthday Tribute - I obviously didn't know Joe, but he is greatly missed.

4) Pinocchio on Blu-Ray - Just picked it up last night, can't wait to dig in.

5) Phoenix - LOVE this band. Do yourself a favor and check them out.

The infamous IdN Magazine was kind enough to feature IC in their new 'Craft' issue. 6 pages + an interview about the collapse of music packaging. Pick it up!

Last summer we had the idea to re-work the blog into something that would be updated daily, whether that was showcasing new work or just talking about things we were into. As time went on, we realized it was impossible to post something new each day ... and to top it off - it probably wasn't necessary.

However, Jordan came up with an idea the other day that seemed pretty cool - and workable. He recommended that we do a weekly link drop of things that are catching our fancy. Just 5 links a week that we've been digging. Seems pretty easy to me - so we'll try it out.

1) The Visual Language Of Herbert Matter - Really looking forward to this documentary. If you don't know who Herbert Matter is, google him now. One of the most under-appreciated designers of the 20th century. One of my fav's.

2) Milton Glaser in Seattle - Yes I'll be there. Yes I hope I can shake his hand. What happens when you don't read the fine print? You find out that this is a documentary featuring Milton Glaser, not the man himself. Oh well, the film was great ... and I've clearly been working too much.

3) Golden Gems blog - Why did I just find out about this?

4) Alexander Girard goodies at House Industries - Nativity sets, puzzles, shirts & more. Mouth watering & wallet killing.

5) Julius Shulman: Modernism Rediscovered - A Christmas gift from my wonderful wife. This is an amazing 3 book set featuring the stunning photography of over 400 modern gems by the master Julius Shulman. And it probably weighs 60 lbs.

OK, so there we go. We'll try to do this regularly - Ryan and I will toggle each week. Happy internet-ing.

It's unfortunate that we are unable to blog as much as we were, but our excuse is legit: We are blessed with much work. This has been an amazing year for us - one that had its ups and downs (mostly in the music world), but we are thankful for a very happy ending to 2008 and an extremely optimistic view of 2009. We want to thank everyone on our list: our beloved clients and our faithful fans/blog readers. 2008 wouldn't have been the same without you guys. 

Now if it would only stop snowing in Seattle!!

It's been a long time coming. We are pleased to announce our new line of t-shirts on sale now at Feed The Creature. All shirts are printed on fitted American Apparel T's, with custom IC collar and sleeve tags. 7 designs available in men's sizes S-XL*. Merry Christmas!

* Children and Women's sizes coming soon!

Chip Kidd has a new website (finally!) titled Good Is Dead, which consists of his portfolio, blog, speaking engagements and other nuggets of goodness. I'm very excited about all of this, as I believe Chip is one of the all-time greats. If you don't own this, you need to.

Urban Outfitters is now selling Nate Williams pillows. Sleeping never looked so good.

I am loving Nerdbots (and their site) - and may just have to pick one up. 

"Oddly obsessed with all things robot, married couple Nicholas and Angela from Kansas City, Missouri, decided on a whim one day to do nothing other than to build one themselves."

I'm starting to feel partial to Drip, but Beamer looks like he may need a hug ...

Via Yewknee

Loving the new Lifework Portfolio pieces from Herman Miller.

Official proof that IC gear is actually happening. Woo-hoo!

Stay tuned ...

As mentioned last month, It's Nice That starts their new exhibit next Monday at Plymouth College of Art in Plymouth, England. Our 12" vinyl packaging for Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace will be on display among many other fine works of art - all submitted by It's Nice That guest authors. Photographs of the show coming soon.

Die Gestalten Verlag just released Playful Type, which may or may not have a few IC goodies within its pages.

Wes Anderson's classic film Bottle Rocket (my second favorite of his films, behind Rushmore) now gets its own Criterion Collection. Not a bad thing at all.

I had the great pleasure of seeing one of my very favorite bands, Oasis, a few weeks ago on their only currently-booked US date here in Seattle and needless to say, they were amazing. Oasis' new album will be released on October 7th, and you can pre-order this amazing special edition box now.

Just got a new machine, so we'll be back up and running shortly.

Keeping with our morning theme of bands east of the Atlantic, here's the new video from Glasgow's favorite sons: Something Anything. Is it just me, or is Fran getting more and more gray with each album? Who cares. 40 is the new 20. 

Ode To J. Smith is out 9/29.

God bless the boys from Manchester. Falling Down is taken from the new album Dig Out Your Soul, out 10/7. It can't come soon enough. In my 'top ten bands of all time' list? Yessir.

Mike Giant teamed up with Sharpie® to create his very own signature model pen. Mike has been using sharpie's to create amazing artwork for years, so it only seems right. Kudos to the folks at Sharpie® for recognizing great talent and not being afraid to endorse a "graffiti artist".

Don't ask me why it took so long to get out of ancient Blogger land, but it did. We are now embracing Wordpress with open arms. Many thanks to Jordan for the inspiration and for helping us make the switch. Rock and roll.

After 6 weeks on the road, we are back in action. We had an amazing time - many thanks to everyone who came out and saw the rock show. It's good to be home ...