'The World of Interiors' Covers

“I am not a library, I am not an archive.” That is the mantra I repeat as I struggle to let go of a stack of magazines or any other piece of paper I don’t have room for, or that I don’t “need.”

In the mid 1990s, I subscribed to UK-based The World of Interiors. I loved being surprised each month by the inventive design and quirky subject-matter, and I still cannot part with them. When I contemplate tossing them, from time to time, I flip “once more” only to find a piece of crucial information/inspiration. That’s all I need to call off the purge. Recently, when I thought, for a few minutes, that I could actually chuck them, these first two issues were the ones I thought I would keep just for the covers.

The bejeweled feet, above, gracing the March 2000 cover, are embroidered Moroccan slippers. How perfect they are on the staircase in the Tangier home belonging to antiques dealer and collector Christopher Gibbs.


The bold wool fabric, on the cover of the March 1998 issue, is not related to the longest, nor the most significant story in the issue. It is linked to a two-page story wedged into the listings section at the end of the book. Upcoming at a Sotheby’s auction, would be an archive of swatch books from the Calico Printers Association, a society of the many textile weavers and printers located during the 19th Century in Lanceshire’s Rossendale Valley. These amazing designs, which could easily be 1920s art deco, were actually produced in 1845.




I’m throwing in a few more of the covers from the late 1990s. These issues ran without cover lines, and in those days, the issues came wrapped, so there was no bar-code disturbance either.

June 1997

July 1998

October 1996

May 1997

December 1998

Elvis Is In The Classroom

Act-a-like, look-a-like and sound-a-like, are the three basic aspects of impersonation at the core of the workshop, ‘Elvis Was Here.’ What’s unusual about this training is that takes place in primary schools throughout the UK. The hope is that under the tutelage of Elvis Tribute Artist Paul Richie, enough children will qualify for the minimum Elvis standard to break the world record for the ‘Most Elvis Impersonators in One Location.’

The project was orchestrated by Onkar Kular, a conceptual designer who uses various media to address social and cultural issues—in this case, questions concerning the legal definition of impersonation and authenticity.

Elvis portraits, acrylic on paper



The ‘Elvis Was Here’ day took place in 2008 at St Saviour's Church of England primary school in Herne Hill, London ...

9:00 am Elvis Assembly, lecture, and performance

10:00 am Elvis life drawing class

11:30 am Elvis fashion class

2:30 pm Final Elvis ‘Hound Dog’ performance

Group snarl & point

Photographs by Thierry Bal

Courier Magazine

The British Postal Museum & Archive has a wonderfully rich website that is well worth a visit, even if it’s just to view the online exhibit of poster design (if you haven’t already seen it).

In 1966, Courier, was launched for Royal Mail Group employees. It replaced Post Office Magazine, which started in 1933. For Courier’s 40th anniversary, in 2006, back issues were posted online as well as this survey of the changing masthead design and typography (alas, no Courier) over the years. Read more here.