With the vast number of design blogs out there, it can be a little overwhelming trying to figure out which ones to follow. You may think you can subscribe to them all, but soon you'll crumble under the pressure of that 1000+ staring you in the face.

Share this Post

Tweet

Well the folks at Coupon Audit have made things a little easier by putting together a handy infographic listing the top 100 design blogs to follow in 2013. It's pretty awesome to see COLOURlovers on the list with so many other fantastic blogs. Check out the graphic and hopefully you'll discover some great new design resources.

Incredible how creatures of the sea can camouflage themselves in the depths but captivate us with their vibrant colors when paired with earthy vegetables, legumes, and grains. For your second course (here's the first, if you missed it!), we've decided to highlight this lovely balance of earth and sea.

Share this Post

Tweet

We’ve included two dishes from avid Forkly-ers, Chef Rodrigo De La Calle of Aranjuez, Spain and Chef Alessandro Ricciardi of Florence, Italy. Chef De La Calle’s creations focus on “Gastrobotánica,” a new wave of cooking that emphasizes the use of uncommon plant species for delicate, artistic dishes. Chef Ricciardi works with flour and natural yeast concentrating on impastazione, or, “making the dough” into beautifully textured dishes with contrasting reds, purples, greens, and such, depending on the ingredients of the season.

As is our reaction to many of the chefs and food enthusiasts on Forkly, we wish we could hop on a plane just to try a bite!

Pulpo Y Lentejas

Put simply, a fractal is a never-ending pattern. Put not-so-simply, a fractal pattern is a "geometric pattern that is repeated at ever smaller scales to produce irregular shapes and surfaces that cannot be represented by classical geometry." From rivers to trees to mountains, nature is full of fractals, making these amazing patterns both complex and familiar at the same time.

Share this Post

Tweet

With tools like Google Earth at our fingertips, people like Paul Bourke, a Research Associate Professor at the University of Western Australia, have put cool websites together like this one, featuring some of the most stunning aerial shots of Earth's landscapes that you'll find on the internet. With the help of other geographical enthusiasts, Bourke has a pretty extensive collection of fractals from all over the world. We selected some of our colorful favorites to share with you guys.

Algeria

On Forkly, stunning food images from food and drink lovers around the globe are an everyday treat. The luscious red of a perfectly plump summer tomato; the deep, velvety green of fresh-picked mint; the marbled yellow of golden beets...the list goes on. We've repeatedly found that the brightest, most colorful dishes and drinks are the ones that spark the most enthusiastic responses both at the dinner table and in the online world of food photography.

Share this Post

Tweet

So for the next few weeks, we’ll be serving you a course a week at our virtual Forkly dinner table. This week, we wanted to whet your appetite with a beautiful range of first course dishes from users across the US and Europe. Play around with the images and you’ll see more information about the restaurant and other dishes tried there...or simply take in their beauty--savor that first bite.

Bon Appetit!

1) Gran Fra i Fjor & Sjøkreps (Last Year's Spruce & Langoustine)

What happens when a love of beer and a love of color come together in one awesome project? The answer is Beertone.

Share this Post

Tweet

Created by a two man team in Switzerland, Beertone wants to combine beautiful design and beer into a fun and useful resource for anyone that loves either. Right now you can pre-order their beer color chart in one of three different packages, two of which include sweet Beertone branded mugs.

Allegedly we're not supposed to judge a book by its cover, but let's be honest, when you're browsing a bookstore (online or off) it's the good designs that catch your eye and draw you in for further investigation. And when it comes to catching people's attention, what better way than with a little bit of color.

Share this Post

Tweet

While there may not be one definitive "best of" list of books, there's still a lot of smart people out there that put out their own lists, so we decided to take a few of these and compile them into one colorful literary collection. Let's take a look at some of the best books from 2012 and the colors of their cover designs.

  

As we ease into the holiday weekend, it's starting to feel more festive than ever. Around this time, some people like to drive around and look at Christmas decorations. Internet nerds like myself like to browse around and see what awesome things people are creating online.

Share this Post

Tweet

When it comes to holiday patterns, there's lots of goodies to be found. Patterns are especially fun because you can use them as wallpapers or backgrounds or, heck, even as your own gift wrap. Some of these are just great inspiration, others are great foundations for your own designs, and all are sure to put you in the holiday spirit.

Agente Xmas Pattern by Vladimir Gorz & Xmas Pattern by Greg Christman

 

Rudyard Kipling's 'The Jungle Book' and his adventures character Mowgli have left an endearing impression on many people, including myself, but chances are this is due to the 1967 Disney animated version that we grew up with. In reality (and not unexpectedly), the Disney version and the original text are quite different. There's a great post that breaks down the differences between the two and it's definitely worth reading if you have an interest in learning more about both versions.

Share this Post

Tweet

From comic books to illustrations to animated films, Kipling's classic has been interpreted and reinterpreted by a variety of talented artists over the years. One version that caught our eye recently comes from a Russian publisher and is illustrated in watercolor by May Miturich-Khlebnikov. The illustrations are beautiful and have that warm, handcrafted feel that just makes you smile.

As the saying goes, all good things must come to an end, and boy has this latest GelaSkins contest been really good. Huge thanks to everyone that contributed and voted in this contest, and an especially big thank you to the folks at GelaSkins that made this whole thing possible.

Share this Post

Tweet

The GelaSkins brand was born from a passion for great design. That's why they work with the world's most creative minds, bringing stunning artwork to any device. The GelaSkins library is rounded out with thousands of works by established and up-and-coming independent artists, classics by the Masters, and patterns by renowned designers. Notable partnerships include National Geographic, Tim Burton and Norman Rockwell. Expressing individual style is easy with thousands of designs to choose from and simple tools to help create a unique look for any device. Personalize phones, tablets, laptops, e-readers and more!

By now you've hopefully had a chance to check out their latest HardCase product line. The HardCase by GelaSkins for iPhone 5 is a tough, polycarbonate, snap-on case. It's available in a wide array of great designs by artists from around the world. You can even be the artist and design your own – import family photos, company logos, or patterns you've created at COLOURlovers.com.

For this contest, you COLOURlovers were tasked with creating a design for GelaSkins new HardCase. There were a ton of amazing designs entered, and it was tough, but the GelaSkins staff was able to narrow down the entries and select a winner. Without further adieu, the next GelaSkins artist is...

This guest post is written by Jay Harris. Jay is a Home Depot sales associate and a regular contributor to Home Depot’s blog. His interests include home lighting, home automation, and solar panels.

Share this Post

Tweet

The kitchen is one of the most active and important rooms within your house—one that gets quite a bit of attention when it comes to home makeovers. You’re in and out of the kitchen constantly. Between preparing meals each day or just grabbing a quick snack, it seems like you end up in the kitchen more than any other room. With this much foot traffic, it needs to be a room that looks decent and represents your home properly.

Lighting can play a big role in helping this come to fruition. Lighting also plays a big role in how your color scheme will set the mood for the room. Kitchens are meant to be inviting rooms—they entice the appetite and help you to relax and unwind from your day.

Let’s illustrate how light can play a role in making kitchens stand out.