I love reading, but I also adore books as physical objects. This is why I am in love with Penguin. Especially today. In fact, I can barely contain the love I feel for these bright, beautifully designed book sets & their matching posters (HINT: Scroll down for some Shepard Fairey). SWOON!!!

1. Roald Dahl Collection, 16 books, $115
2. Philip Marlowe Mysteries by Ramond Chandler, 8 books + 1 poster, $80
3. Classic Boys’ Adventure, 12 books + 1 poster, $110
4. James Bond Modern Classics by Ian Fleming, 14 books, $140
5. The Nick Hornby Collection, 6 books, $65
6. The Complete Cases of Sherlock Holmes by Arthur Conan Doyle, 8 books + 1 poster, $65
7. Arabian Nights (ancient stories from Persia, India, & Arabia), 3 books, $200
8. HG Wells Science Fiction Classics, 9 books, $100
9. Gothic Classics: Tales of the Supernatural, 10 books + 1 poster, $90
10. George Orwell & Shepard Fairey, 2 books + 2 posters, $160
11. The Bill Amberg Collection (leather-bound, classic novels), 6 books, $380
12. Charles Dickens Collection, 16 books, $165
13. Jane Austen Red Classics, 6 books, $40

I was reading The Penguin Blog, which is UK-based, and found out about these awesome Penguin Sets. There are 13 sets of books which contain a bunch of novels of a similar theme or by the same author, and each set has covers designed by a single artist.

What’s more, FIVE of the sets also have an accompanying poster (or two). The BEST of which is the George Orwell set because it includes TWO posters (1984 and Animal Farm) designed by Shepard Fairey (of Obama Poster fame).

Each Penguin set includes 2 to 16 books (and 0 to 2 posters) and run from $40 to $380 (the priciest collections aren’t necessarily the ones with the most books).

Click to see the rest of the posters and details of the most expensive “luxury” books. (Also, more of my rambling.) Or, check out the UK Penguin Sets page (I can’t find a US Sets page, but you can order to the US)! (more…)

Happy Monday. Possibly an oxymoron!

(By the way, TOMORROW: I’ll feature some art by a wonderful illustrator, and then the day after that I’ll interview him, and then the day after that he’ll tell us things he’s obsessed with. PS He recently did work for Wes Anderson. THIS IS TRUE!)

Above: stuff from 80stees.com our new advertiser.

NOTE
I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about advertising and how I want to handle it — whether I want to handle it. I’ve tried some advertising services briefly in the past, but didn’t like having so little control of the ads that would appear on my site. I only want to choose sponsors whose stuff I like and would actually buy myself. I also want to be really upfront about it, ie introduce the advertiser in a post to show you why I’ve picked them and let you know what’s going on. This post, along with the ad on the right, is kind of a test. We’ll see how it goes and how I’ll proceed in the future.

By way of explanation, if I were independently wealthy I would need no advertising. I’d like to be able to pay for my hosting services and have some money to continue and expand different parts of the site. I have a full-time job, so it’s not like I’m without income, but I’m also working 10 to 20 hours a week on Stickers & Donuts and actually losing money. (What a business woman, eh?) (more…)

Luckily, fashion is a season ahead, so when you get to the sales racks, you’ll find in-season merchandise!

If you head over to Target these days, you might find some of the Fall 2008 Richard Chai fashions for cheaper than the regular Target cheap. I love that ruffle-front shirt (far right), which is now $16.

Quick! Wear one of these before the summer is over! Er… actually… not so fast… first you have some choices to make…

a) Cotton Spandex Jersey Bandeau Bodysuit, $33 (Sizes XS-L, 7 colors)
b) Sheer Jersey Bandeau Dress, $43 (Sizes XS-XL, 7 colors)
c) Cotton Spandex Jersey Polka Dot Bandeau Pencil Dress, $41 (Sizes XS-L, black or white)
d) Le Sac Dress, $38 (One Size Fits Most, 8 colors with more on their way, comes with black ribbon); Additional Ribbon for La Sac Dress, $10 (11 colors/patterns — including lime green!)
e) Cotton Spandex Jersey Bandeau Pencil Dress, $41 (Sizes XS-L, 17 colors)
f) Cotton Spandex Jersey Bandeau Dress, $43 (Sizes XS-XL, 19 colors)

I love when regularly stationery items become suddenly interactive: when flaps can open on cards, pictures can pop-out of books, and paper can be folded into 3D glory! But imagine one dress with the capability of twisting and folding into about thirty other dresses… that’s a whole level beyond pop-ups and flaps.

The dresses above, all from American Apparel, can twist fold and bend into multiple outfits. B & C and E & F all work in a similar way, along with choice A which is more limited (these are all called Bandeau Dresses… or Bodysuit). Choice D (Le Sac Dress) is a new dress I’ve just discovered (because it’s new and I may or may not stalk the American Apparel web-site…), and I absolutely love it!

If you are indecisive, this dress is going to be your arch nemesis. First, you have decide which style dress you want. Then, you have to decide which color. When you finally get home, you have to decide which way to wear it! If you have the Le Sac Dress, you can also buy ribbons in different colors, and then you have to choose which ribbon to coordinate with your outfit!

You can watch a cool video online that shows you step-by-step instructions for how to turn the bandeau dress into 15 different styles. I own dress B (when it happened to be on sale… of course…), and it’s the most fun dress I’ve ever owned!

I think this was a good week in Stickers & Donuts land, with lots of fun posts (well, I had fun at least) and sets. How about a round of applause for Tricia who did two spectacular posts this week? I thought her posts were awesome and from the looks of things, so did you! Anyway, here is another small edition of “Currently Obsessed” for your Friday. Have a spectacular weekend!

I’m currently obsessed with the Olympics, among other things:

• This “League of Cliche Evil Supervillans” graphic from threadless now comes in a large print version in addition to the T-shirt version.
• Pizza. Yes, just plain old pizza. It’s so good. I had forgotten.
• The Christmas Tree Shop (especially the stores on Cape Cod). Cute home goods (and more) for ridiculously cheap. A super-bargain shoppers dreamland!
• Olympics gymnastics. So dramatic. So much flipping! Aren’t you sad it’s over?
• I watched all of the Michael Phelps’ Olympic races. EIGHT golds in ONE Olympics?! Close, nail biting races — some of the best Olympic moments I’ve ever seen. (See the now famous “miracle finish” in Phelps’ second to last race.)
• Yesterday, I bought a five pack of really BRIGHT colored socks for $10. I also bought delightfully opaque, and actually comfortable, tights in purple and in green. They have so much footwear this season (at least at the NYC H&M near Penn Station). If you need to re-wardrobe your feet, this is the place to go.

1. For the bicyclists who want their shorts to nearly double as reflectors!
   Nylon Tricot Bike Short in Lime Green, American Apparel, $28
2. To take down your speedy running times.
   Nike Yellow Chisel Watch, Urban Outfitters, $110
3. Okay, scrunchies are horribly ugly, but the gymnasts didn’t seem to get that memo. So, we can still wear them with a little irony, no?
   Custom Sequin Swirl Two Color Hair Scrunchies (choose your own colors!), She Plays Sports, $5
4. Running shoes that will keep your spirits bright on mile 10 (unless you are keeled over like I would be…).
   Adidas Technicolor Runners, Urban Outfitters, $88
5. Much less boring than most tennis racket cases.
   Tennis Racket Carrying Case, Fred Flare, $30
6. Yes, a really brightly colored suit from Speedo (there are other ones, too)
   Women’s Ninja Leaderback Swimsuit, Speedo, $55
7. For you back handsprings.
   Cotton Spandex Jersey Bodysuit, American Apparel, $36
8. A gold medal! Okay, so it’s a gold locket (er, actually brass), but you can pretend!
   Large Etched Locket Necklace, Urban Outfitters, $34

Okay, so I know that the Olympics are a classy event, which is why the Olympians show up in opening ceremonies in perfect, Ralph Lauren style. And I know that Olympians have the fanciest of running shoes, the specialist of swim caps, and they are always all decked out in home colors. Olympic fashion ranges from super-cool, to significantly ugly. Usually, bright colors are left behind for a more subdued look, but since you and I are probably not Olympians, we can be in the Olympic spirit without such constraints! Lime green and hot pink here we come!

1. Two tofu cubes that will guard your pencils with a smile, Phoophile Kawaii Shop, $16.75

2. Pigs that defy gravity (ps- THEIR SNOUTS ARE UPSIDE DOWN HEARTS! gasp.gasp.heart palpitations.), Rohmer, $16

3. Reminds me of Richard Scarry’s Busytown and various anthropomorphic critters (Lowly Worm is my favorite! What a sad belittling name for a worm that can drive an apple car…mad skills), San-X Sweet Street Pen Case from One Good Bumblebee, $13.50

4. Squeaky and classic, Pottery Barn Kids, $9.50

5. I want to be a hedgehog in love. Womp Womp, LeSportSac Hedgehog Case from Karmaloop, $23

6. Too cute! Wooden slide-y pencil case, The Small Object, $12

7. Zipped up, this case looks pretty conventional. BUT! UNzipped, it magically transforms into a standing pencil holder. So, basically, it is the alpha pencil case. Imagine all the “sweet pencil case” comments you’ll get at the library, when you have THIS displayed on your desk. Watch it in action on YouTube!, JetPens, $12.99

8. This past year has been a good year for robots. Flight of the Conchords. Wall-E. A talking Roomba. Keep the robot celebrations alive with a robot pencil case, Rohmer, $16

9. Nonsensical Asian stationery is the best. Viruses = GLORIOUS, Morning Glory, $4 (comes in pink and blue too)

10. For the person who has always wanted to encase his/her pencils with a taco, Fred Flare, $14

11. According to Wikipedia, ”Tenorikuma” in English apparently means “bears that fit in your palm.” Like all other Sanrio characters, Tenorikuma have very detailed personas. The large heart-eared bear-bee is “Latte,” a cafe manager. Then there’s Chai, Frap, Maple, and Macchiato. All bears are identifiable by different colored scarves. Last, but *definitely* not least, there’s Mister Steam and Muddler. A steam cloud and a spoon, respectively. Oh man, Sanrio. Idea. What if Latte, Chai, and Mister Steam decided to engage in a little ménage à trios? Consider THAT, Sanrio, $10

Although the Stickers and Donuts crew will not be returning to the classroom this fall, we love school supplies. One of our favorite parts about returning to school is the excuse to get new school supplies. Perfectly un-creased notebooks? Delightful. New package of pens? Bliss. Since it is August, it seems only appropriate to feature a series of posts on school supplies. Hooray!

The first pencil case I ever owned was a plasticizer-smelling, magenta and teal SpaceMaker. My pencils bounced from that to multiple metal-y and fabric-y Sanrio (Hello Kitty, Kerropi, Pochacco, Marron Cream, Badtz Maru, etc.) pencil cases, and then to a plain plastic snap case when I became a little punkass and considered myself above Sanrio. (FYI- My pens and pencils currently reside in a Hello Kitty pencil case)

Anyways, I went on a scout for the most baller pencil cases to share with you and I’ve selected my favorites. Enjoy!!!

Some of my favorites from last week! (Links in the list below; right click to open in new window.)

• A book of a guy comparing his silhouettes to famous silhouettes (via SwissMiss).
• A hysterical inscription on The Book Inscriptions Project blog from a book entitled “Doktor Bey’s Suicide Guidebook.”
• I really just want to put my feet into these rugs from the Dolder Grand Hotel in Zurich (via Cool Hunter).
• I love, love, love Chris Benz’s colorful clothing lines, and his web-site is pretty cool, too! (via Oh Joy!)
• A pretty awesome chair, good for seat crunchers, via Smashing Magazine. (I’m not sure that you can buy this; it has made its way around the blogs, but I think it was originally part of a show.)
• An awesome flea market guide from Design*Sponge, listing all of the flea markets in a variety of my very favorite states (Connecticut, New York, Vermont, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Maine, and Massachussetts)!
• Cool photographs of naked Olympians! (via Crap We Like)
• Another cool Smashing Magazine find — a retro phone that you talk into instead of your cell phone.
• I love this ASL (American Sign Language) pattern (and the tank top, which isn’t availible for sale, unfortunately!) in a book which includes designs from Julia Rothman (from Julia’s book design blog, Book By Its Cover).

1. Beets are making a comeback — this week at least, since the NY Times is posting a new beet recipe every day this week. I managed to concoct a beet salad and beet omelet (from beets in jars) and am feeling rather healthy & pink.
2. Books from Boxes is an amazing song by Maximo Park. On repeat all this week in my cubicle/car/ipod.
3. The new Dole Pina Colada juice is SPECTACULAR, and usually I’m not even a big juice fan. It’s 100% juice and 8oz is 120 calories and counts for two servings of fruits (though you are still supposed to get most of your fruit servings from whole fruits). I like to mix 1/3 juice with 2/3 plain seltzer. Yum!
4. Everyone is obsessed with Mad Men (availible on DVD) because it was nominated for, like, a billion Emmy’s. Now I’m obsessed, too. I wasn’t won over right away, but eventually became intrigued by the early 1960s ad world (mAD men, get it!), and especially love that they also have a female character who is trying to make her way in a man’s world (although almost all of the other females are secretaries or housewives). Anyway, I netflixed the entire first season this week.
5. Now that I have a brand-y new prescription from my eye doctor, I’m super-excited about the blog Glassy Eyes, which explains how to purchase prescription glasses online for about $10-$50. I love these particularly ugly glasses from eyebuydirect.com. They’re so ugly they’re fashionable! (There are a lot of not-ugly glasses at these sites, too, by the way. And you can even print out glasses or “try them on” online by uploading your picture!)
6. Fredflare.com was recently featured in an NY Times article about band-aids (they happen to have sausage and egg band-aids, by the way). Anyway, after even seeing the web-site’s name listed in the NY Times article I got all nostalgic about my fashion-forward, bright-colored friend. I now want everything on the web-site! Someone want to lend me a few bucks?

These Donuts (and donut holes and dolls who like donuts) of the Week by Heidi Kennedy have big eyes and have just been eaten by brightly colored dolls with stringy hair. That’s right, pretty random, and somehow at least a little bit cute.

1. Tells you when you’ve got to start using a new pair of contacts, Lens Alert, $10
2. Cute little faces & a mirror, Sanrio, $16
3. Leather, many colors, & a mirror, I-Pack Mirror Case from OptiPack
4. Hooks right to your lens-solution container, Kaba Clip, $8
5. Blue case with all you need for on-the-go contact use, also comes in a pink-heart variety, Contact Companion, $15
6. Sci-Fi looking barrel case, fun alternative storage, from OptiPack
7. Fun Tiger Print Case, Black Tiger Case from ikeeps, $5
8. A conversation piece and a great way to store contacts at night (it’s hard to see from the picture, but the case is a kind of statue of a man pulling out his “eyeballs” which are actually the contact cases), Luke Contact Case, $11
9. Simple and bright, Fashion Case from VogueStrap, $6
10. Hello Kitty head!!!, Sanrio, $20 (too many adorable contact cases from Sanrio to include them all here, but you can shop their Cases & Travel Sets area for more)

So, I just got my very first pair of contact lenses. The main reason for this investment was that my black-rimmed glasses, though portraying the generally dorky-cute fashionableness I require, doesn’t quite go with all of my outfits. As it turns out, contacts are more complicated than I expected (am I supposed to feel this fuzzy all of the time?).

Anyway, whether or not my contacts will actually work for the long-haul, I had to venture into the world of contact accessories. Surprisingly, you have to dig a few layers into the internet to find some cute and fashionable contact lens cases, but I found them, and now I’ve passed my favorites on to you!

I was chatting with a friend the other day and claimed that my hypothetical wedding (in a galaxy far, far away) would include my unique candy buffet, set-up with colorful candies in jars like a candy store. I thought I was pretty brilliant.

Apparently, other people have already been this brilliant. My friend immediately directed me to Style Me Pretty (a wedding blog) and soon I was venturing through tons of candy jar pictures, including a delicious post about Wedding Cake Alternatives.

My favorite candy jar set-up is from this post, and is shown in the upper left-hand corner of my collage.

Shape + Color recently posted Liz Wolfe’s new photography: bright colors, sweet candy, cute objects, with a touch of morbidity. (That ceramic dear isn’t just covered in sugar dots, the image is called “Diseased Deer”.)

Liz’s old work is just as fun as her old — check out this “Hand Punctured with Candy Stick.” Cute…?

I love Cleo Sullivan’s photography (I suggest you flip through all of the wonderful pictures on her web-site, as long as you don’t mind occasional nudity), especially these two photos set up like scenes from popular children’s books. (In case you didn’t have a childhood those books are Where the Wild Things Are and The Cat in the Hat).

I also really like the picture below. (All of those bright colors! And fluff!)