Should They Design It Without Us?
by Bennett Holzworth, (17 comments)
I have heard plenty of arguments for and against the Design It Yourself movement. What follows is two very convincing arguments for these opposing viewpoints. I will let you decide …
An ad/coupon in the local phone book.
After a nearby yard sale was over, the seller decided to leave the remainder out for the scavengers to take for free. The sign shows the progression from sale to giveaway.
Comments (17)
Josh said:
They are both horrible each in their own way so I am not sure what is being illustrated.
Posted on May 1, 2007
Peter Marquardt said:
I agree. I don’t see which one is speaking FOR the design it yourself movement.
Posted on May 1, 2007
Bennett said:
Can’t you see the DIY creativity, energy and raw nature of the SALE/FREE sign? It gets you attention, reuses materials and gets the message across. That is far more than I can say for some professional work. I found the sign inspiring and the free logo ad completely depressing.
Posted on May 1, 2007
Jason said:
I kinda love the Sale/Free sign, for the sheer American-ness of it. The first made me throw up in my mouth a little.
Posted on May 1, 2007
Josh said:
I actually thought it said that the free thing was some kind of shirt offer not an ad for a free logo. That is pretty bad but I am not sure that the illegible SALE/FREE sign is really any better. Points for recycling though.
Posted on May 1, 2007
GcRaya said:
I think they need a star burst.
Posted on May 1, 2007
PixelHustler said:
The Sale/Free sign is good stuff. The resulting sign neither says SALE nor FREE, but it’s at least fun to look at. Then, on the right side, there’s the extra little FREE, so once your eye hits that spot, you know what it means anyway.
As for the other one, WHO SAID YOU COULD PUT MY WORK UP ON YOUR SITE?! Hahahaha, just kidding. It’s…less than stellar, let’s just call it that.
Posted on May 2, 2007
Mark said:
The problem with the Free/Sale sign is ITS FRERAKING HARD TO READ!!!!!!!
it looks like it says “BAEE” WTF is a BAEE?
Motorists probably are confused what the sign says,and as a result pass by it forgetting completely all about it.
Seriously, what would you do in that situation if you came across that sign?
about the ad on the other hand…..giving away T-shirts….no no no wait a minute they’re NOT giving away T-shirts,they’re giving away free logo designs for every T-shirt order WHAT THE HELL?
Both Ads are equally puzzling and confusing, BOTH FAIL AT DELIVERING THE MESSAGE!
Posted on May 2, 2007
artbitz said:
put a bevel on that SALE/FREE sign…instant web 2.0
Posted on May 3, 2007
Bennett said:
In fact, I did come upon this sign and I (along with a several other drivers) followed the arrow and went to the yard sale. Believe it or not … It worked.
Here is the situation. You are driving around a nice neighborhood on a Saturday early afternoon (i.e. prime garage sale time). You are seeing small signs with addresses about where different yard sales are (you usually have to stop and squint to see these signs). Then you see this fairly large, urgent looking and simple sign. Your mind sees “SALE” and the arrows. Maybe I subconsciously saw the free, because I stopped by the sale the first time. It wasn’t until I drove past a second time that I fully realized the “free”. Out of context, you might not be able to tell what it says, but when you are in the situation it perfectly conveys the message it needs to get across. Your mind gestalts that those four letters are “sale”.
The strangest thing about the whole situation is this. When I drove up, there was no one there. Just a sign that said “Everything FREE” and “Don’t take the tables”. Apparently when the yard sale was over, the seller decided to leave everything our for free that hadn’t sold during the day.
Posted on May 3, 2007
Ed-the neighbor said:
I see the word SAFE.
I think I must work with the genius that came up with this sign. We get some DIY gurus here at my job.
Ed- Bennett’s neighbor and in-house designer for one of two big hospitals in Lincoln, that shall remain nameless.
Posted on May 3, 2007
yael said:
I LOVE that free/sale sign. It’s so wrong-looking I would stop to see what in the world it was pointing to. And, maybe get out and check it out if I was in the mood.
Truth is though, if it said ‘free’ in clearer letters (no sale mixed in) then who WOULDN’T stop for that sign? Of course, the seller isn’t getting anything out of it at that point, so he/she wouldn’t bother making sure it was eminently clear, because why bother.
Posted on May 3, 2007
minxlj said:
The fact that they had to write ‘free’ again, in small crammed-in letters next to it, shows just how illegible it is. Illegibility is not good design, no matter who has done it.
Posted on May 9, 2007
daniel_j_s said:
I saw “FALE” (read Fail) In the sign :).
Posted on May 24, 2007
Andrew said:
What’s a phone book?
Posted on May 24, 2007
mark jaquette said:
it takes 5-7 seconds to read it (or try to here), being an ‘out-of-home’ ad or a lil’ billboard.… my curiosity would have me meander down to see if it’s a “oxymorons ‘FREE SALE’ “! ;)
Posted on November 5, 2007
Nat said:
Props for recycling, but couldn’t he just have turned the sign around and wrote “FREE” on the blank side???
His transformation of the word “sale” is completely illegible. I stared at it for at least a minute and had to scroll down to read what it actually was supposed to say.
Posted on June 15, 2008