I read Ian's post on the Kodak Carousel and immediately wanted to put my hand up .... (a sling back to the days of discipline at a Catholic school). I'm probably stating the obvious but I felt the message was SO important that it deserved emphasising.  Yes, I understand the business side of the message but there was this other thing that became important too. The post has a video clip from Mad Men, a sublime tv program about an advertising agency in the States in the 60's. It's about the launch of the Carousel .... Forgetting the wonderfully clever pitch, the ability to turn an electromechanical To View More >>

There's a man on the side of the road selling dreams ... a guy comes up to him and says, "How much for a dream?" The Dream salesman says, "That depends, do you want a good dream, or a bad dream?" "I want the best dream I can get." "Did you know that your dreams are drawn from your own experiences?" asks the salesman. "Now I do. Maybe I could have somebody else's dream then," says the guy, hoping for a happy experience, and realising that his lacklustre life was not the material of amazing dreams. "Funny you should ask – I have a brother who sells books and lottery tickets, maybe he can help To View More >>

We asked one of our print consultants about their commitment to sustainability a few days ago, and they were rather puzzled by the question. "But of course," they said. "It goes without saying doesn't it?  Sustainable plantation paper ... ECF processing ... vegetable-based inks. We don't beat the drum about it, that's just the way it is these days." We feel the same way, but we're regularly asked the same question, so here's Queensberry's philosophy on the environment and sustainability... Humanity's biggest impact on the environment is generally from our daily practices. That coffee is gone To View More >>

Tom Waits has a cranky, croaky voice. I am listening to his CD 'Orphans Brawlers and Bastards' as I write this post. You could argue that his voice lacks 'quality' ... The words are often run together, mumbled, and broken. That collection of imperfections is the quality that makes his work so unique. It's a different type of 'quality' to the one we describe to sell our albums. We talk about the personal elements in the creation of the book. We talk proudly of the craft involved and the quality of the raw materials used in the album construction. We do this because we are proud of their perfections To View More >>