My job is designing printed matters or digital stuff (websites or apps), today is about typeface which is indispensable to my work.

Commercial design has the role of “telling”, so each product has a message, and the ways to tell it will be images such as pictures or illustrations, and texts. And selecting which typeface should be used is important to design.

There are typefaces that already installed and you need to purchase for a fee. Paid typefaces are high design and quite elaborate.
*Designing typefaces is a highly specialized and delicate world, there are typeface designers.

Both already installed and purchased are displayed on the character palette of professional editing software (illustrator, photoshop etc) when designing it, and you can select it.

There is a typeface genre I have never used before even though I see it on the character palette, I’ve been engaged in work in various industries so far and I think that the number of things you probably made is four digits though. I wrote about my “Oh I see!” discovery of “that one”.

It’s almost June, so the sign of summer has been coming. It feels still chilly in the morning and evening in Tokyo, but it is almost time to change clothes from Spring to Summer.

I reconsider clothes when the season changes, and I try to donate clothes that I no longer wear.

Recently, collection boxes are placed for recycling at clothing stores. That is nice idea, also I recommend the organization “World Gift Japan“.

We are always accepting partners from all over the world.
We are collecting variety supplies like stationaries, clothes, school bags, dolls, toys, everyday items and sanitary products to donate all the time to the following facilities.
devastated areas, poor neighborhoods, schools, facilities for handicapped people, hospitals, police departments, communities, support groups of disaster, animal shelters
We are always accepting partners from all over the world.

ー fromWorld Gift Japan website

As the above message, they accept not only clothes but also daily stuff. I check my daily stuff when the season changes as well as clothes, and send them to World Gift Japan. It is about three years since I started this custom, why I started this was I visited to Nepal at work.

Hawaii Island – Breakfast –
Hawaii Island – Climate –
Hawaii Island – Living Things –
Hawaii Island – Dolphins –
Hawaii Island – People –

I wrote the above blogs in series about my travel to Hawaii Island, today is the last one. It is about “Language”.

I often hear “Aloha!” and “Mahalo” at my hotel, restaurant or shops and the announcement on the plane of Hawaii Airlines. Here are worlds that I have known before I visit to Hawaii; Hawaii, Oahu, Waikiki, Aloha, Mahalo, Mana, Ohana, Kauai, Hula, Lei, Loco, Mahi-mahi, Ukulele. I only thought about they sound pretty, so I learned about it by this trip.

– The vowels are five: a, e, i, o, u
– The consonants are seven: h, k, l, m, n, p, w
– Symbol indicating stuttering called ʻokina : ” ‘ ”
– Symbol emphasize sound and pronounce it slightly longer called kahakō: ” ¯ ”

*The meaning becomes different if it’s with ʻokina or kahakō
ono → fish name
‘ono → yummy

kau → put
kāu → your

Hawaii Island – Breakfast –
Hawaii Island – Climate –
Hawaii Island – Living Things –
Hawaii Island – Dolphins –

It seems like a series of Hawaii Island. It’s about plants, birds, and animals, so that today is about people.

I wrote about the history of Hawaii in the Hawaii Island – Living Things – , and I write about the detail.

About 1,500 years ago
Polynesians arrived at Island of Hawaii where nobody lived. They came with canoes relying solely on the starlight.

About 1,000 years ago
Many migrants came from Tahiti. The basic Hawaiian ancient foundation of faith that the gods or half-gods and half-person brought in at this time. Hawaiian culture has been prominent for centuries, and an art called Hula, a sport called surfing were born. (According to my tour guide, there were some internecine battles but they were more like sports than war)

Hawaii Island – Breakfast –
Hawaii Island – Climate –
Hawaii Island – Living Things –

The next one of Hawaii Island series is Dolphins.
One of my wish list when I visit to Hawaii was “Swimming with Dolphins”.

I sometimes swim in the pool to exercise and it was first time snorkeling, but my curiosity won and I applied for the tour.

An energetic and pretty tour guide picked us up and took us to the ocean. The captain and the photographer were nice as well. The weather was great, it was so nice condition. I wore the wetsuit, fins and the mask, then jumped into the ocean!

I was a bit nervous because it was first time for snorkeling and it was ocean! but I told myself “It’s okay, you wear lifejacket, you can do it”, and looked into the ocean.
A lot of small black fish were swimming in a clear and beautiful ocean. I saw coral reefs and rocky areas at the bottom of the ocean, and it was my first time to see such a scenery live, so already I was impressed.

Hawaii Island – Breakfast –
Hawaii Island – Climate –

Following these, today is about the living things in the Hawaii Island.

I introduced about the climate in Hawaii Island – Climate –, the 13 climatic zones on Earth and the 11 exist in Hawaii Island. What a special place to have 11 different climatic zones in the same island.

There are many animals and plants where people live, I felt them closely. One of my favourite things of Hawaii Island is birds live closely. When eating at an open-air restaurant, birds came and stopped in the table or chair and saw me. It is very pretty bird came close to me and leans it’s head to one side.

And you can hear birdsongs often in the town. I think that never heard the voice of the birds like this even when I went to some places where were rich nature in other countries and regions. Maybe that voice is also beautiful and passes well so it sounds easy to hear. Warm wind, relaxing air, the sound of the returning waves, the sound of the wind that shakes trees, and high and beautiful bird voice…

I felt Hawaii that I imagined like “This is Hawaii!” but there are things that I was taught by my tour guide. Almost all of plants in Hawaii is from other countries, non-native. Also most of the birds are from other countries, they brought by human begins.

The last blog was about Breakfast in Hawaii Island, today is about the climate.

The basic information is about Hawaiian Islands.
Maui Island, Moloka‘i Island, O‘ahu Island, Kaua‘i Island and Island of Hawai‘i are famous but there are 19 islands and corals.

This is the map of Hawaii Islands, the right one is Hawaii Island. (from Wikipedia)

And this is the satellite photo of Hawaii Island. (from Wikipedia and the picture is from NASA, what a great photo!)
It is said that the island shapes right side of a bear (the right is a nose and the left is ear)

I often go traveling but I haven’t been to Hawaii never before even thought it is very popular and easy to get there. I thought perhaps I will visit there sometime but I had a chance this time.
Because Hawaiian airline start to fo into service from Haneda to Kona directly! I thought that I had to go there after Golden Week (long holidays in Japan), first Hawaii and first Hawaii Island!

I got on Hawaiian Air for the first time but it was very comfortable. I don’t know why but the world “Hawaii” is magic, it makes me feel better. Hawaii Hawaii Hawaiiiiiiii.
And Hawaiian language such as Hawaii, Aloha or Mahalo sounds gentle and cheerful, it pas power people to make feel good.

I heard that there is fulled with Mana power as you get off at the Kona airport, and it was true. The airport is small and open-air, I had a homey feel.
My journey stared feeling so good!

I have many things to write but today is about breakfast in Hawaii Island.
I’m usually get up early, and earlier when I travel (don’t want to wast of time!). I was happy because morning starts early in Hawaii Island! Starbuck coffee shops are the earliest to be opened in the world, it’s 4am! It’s because the nice weather, also it is said that it was remnant people who worked at plantations stated early in the morning.

I am interested in both antiquity/traditional and contemporary art as well, and I have been interested in Ukiyoe recently. I often go to museum to see it or read books about it. I thought again that Ukiyoe is an interesting genre of paintings because there were opportunities to see Hokusai Katsushika works by chance – The Sumida Hokusai Museum (Museum), Hokusai: Old Man Crazy to Paint (Movie), Hokusai and Hiroshige―The Thirty-six Views of Mt. Fuji and the Fifty-three Stages of the Tōkaidō (Museum), Kurara: The Dazzling Life of Hokusai’s Daughter (Japanese TV Drama).
Today I write about what is real and how to see arts with “Fine Wind, Clear Morning” Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji series by Hokusai Katsushika.

First the big point is art is a wood block print, not painting. Painting is only one thing but wood block print is able to make copies which means there are a lot of “real”. Usually the first printed 200 copies are called “Shozuri (first print)”, they are printed according to instructions of painter. Atozuri (after print) which is printed after Shozuri is printed by printer.

Nowadays the “Fine Wind, Clear Morning” is very popular, and seems also it was popular in the Edo period. According to one thesis is it was sold the most.
It means the look becomes different because wood block print is made by wood, the wood gets worn out so the line has changed. Also sometimes it reduced the process without squatting delicate blurring plates, it becomes a color of the taste of the printer, it was sold good sell colored prints. The more the number, the more “real” is produced.

The word “DIY” has also become established and more people are enjoying making things. I am happy because workshops and studios are also increasing. I also participate occasionally and enjoy making things, and I introduce to you I participated the other day.

I participated in “Workshop for making key cases with Tochigi Leather”.
“Leather to use is manufactured by Tochigi Prefecture called Tochigi Leather, is a high-grade leather that is evaluated all over the world. When licking the leather, by immersing plenty of oil, it makes the leather more supple and adds durability. As the taste changes deeply with each year, you can patronize long.” I decided to make this immediately because I love the leather and wanted to change my key case this time.

The all steps are here.