ejnord.com | design blog of eric nord

Dilla Midnight Snack mix by RP3

Artwork by Fatoe.

Kimberly Elam’s Typographic Systems is pure, distilled grid inspiration.

Each aspect of design has its resources. Adobe Kuler and ColourLovers provide color schemes. MyFonts.com is the first stop for fonts. deviantART is a treasure trove of Photoshop and Illustrator brushes, patterns, and vectors. And Flickr has you covered with CC-approved photography.

When it comes to grid inspiration, Elam’s Typographic Systems is the go-to resource. With about 4-5 layouts per page, this book eschews history and theory in order to deliver more layouts. But more than sheer quantity, it is the range and variety that distinguish this book.

Typographic Systems includes works from grid pioneers and luminaries like Werner Jerker, David Carson, and Emil Ruder, along with transparent grid overlays on select pieces. The bulk of layouts were created by students of Elam; and it is the minimalism and simplicity of the student pieces that make this book such a usable reference.

artwork by Eric Nord

Aerosyn-Lex Mestrovic is a gangster of design.

He founded The KDU.

His blog is { n o n } T Y P E.

He is really good at calligraphy.

I found a nice Gradient Grunge web design tutorial. I dig the emphasis on modularity and how slight variations of art and color can yield similar, yet fresh results. This is where the science meets the art.

I found this tutorial via the good folks at AiBURN.

Khoi Vinh is a grid master. He is proof that a good grid never goes out of style. And he will never need to redesign his site. Why? Well, for one… he is Design Director at the New York Times… so his day job is steady. But the other reason — and the main reason — is that UI grids don’t get much better than this.

Dustin Diaz is a flickr phenomenon, both for his own dramatic style as well as the inspiration and enthusiasm he generates among his fans. With his highly refined style and detailed setup diagrams, Dustin is the poster child of the Strobist movement.