Inconspicuous Consumption

Inconspicuous Consumption

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Design

The Torpedo Bat Is a Classically Inconspicuous Design Story
The baseball bat’s shape has been essentially unchanged for a century — until now.
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Paul Lukas
12
The Binder Clip: An Appreciation
Seriously, is there anything this brilliant piece of design can’t do?
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Paul Lukas
25
Deconstructing “Folded” Logos
Can you recognize an iconic corporate logo when it’s broken down into its most basic shape? Plus a new Inconspicuous News Roundup.
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Paul Lukas
10
Let’s Check Out Some Cool Old Business Letters and Invoices
Each one provides a peek into a distinct little industry-specific world.
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Paul Lukas
17
A Very Unusual Traffic Light, and Some Additional Roadway Oddities
As we continue to discover, standardized highway signs and signals aren't always so standardized after all.
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Paul Lukas
17
The Amazing Variety of Parcheesi Board Designs
The popular game’s board has been rendered in a near-endless series of design variations over the years. Plus: The debut of the Inconspicuous News…
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Paul Lukas
8
The Pleasures of Vintage Billheads
You probably know about letterhead, but do you know about billheads? Let’s take a closer look.
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Paul Lukas
26
A Deep Dive on Air Mail Envelope Design
We all know what an air mail envelope looks like — or do we?
 • 
Paul Lukas
8
Go Figure
A deep dive on the surprisingly wide stylistic range of “Fig.” notations on patent drawings.
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Paul Lukas
8
☞ Bonus Post: A Deep Dive on Non-Postal Pointing Hands ☜
This symbol already had a long, rich history well before the advent of rubber-stamped “Return to Sender” graphics.
14
☞ A Deep Dive on the “Return to Sender” Pointing Hand ☜
This familiar symbol has featured a surprising number of design variations over the years.
24
The Very Strange Exit Signs on the New Jersey Turnpike
An extensive Inconspicuous Consumption investigation into some highly unusual highway sign graphics.
 • 
Paul Lukas
17
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