You return to work reinvigorated, newly inspired to design with skill, style, and a touch of fire. And then you glance up at the cute-animal calendar on the cubical wall and realize that one of you has to go. Fortunately, we’ve found a potential replacement for “fluffy plays with string” – the second limited-edition letterpress calendar from 12 Musketeers.
Here’s the brief:
Welcome to a collaboration between 12 young, battle-trained designers who formed an alliance and joined forces in honor of defending the art of letterpress and all things hand printed. The battle has begun. Join the warriors. Honor the letterpress.
Last year’s edition was a tad too cutesy; rest assured that this is most definitely not the case in 2014. Taking to the pugnacity of the collective’s name with gusto, 12 Musketeers has unleashed a full year of aggressive designs, each playing on the theme of battle in some way. April, for example, finds a Mamluk warrior, while the battle of the sexes is the subject of February, depicting the gods Venus and Mars.
But theme, schmeme – it’s the presentation we’re interested in. Each month is a black, 4.25-by-5.75-inch card run through a 1906 Chandler & Price letterpress, and set upright in a desk-calendar stand. And as we’re all about the extras, you also receive a black fabric banner roughly the same size as the calendar “to show your allegiance”.
However you choose to mark the days of this promising new year, do your best, do it often, and don’t ever let anybody do you down. Especially for that cute-animal calendar.
