I'm consolidating my accounts so please follow along with @blag (more active now) and/or @sam (likely to be more active in the future) for all things #ghostsigns #signpainting #signwriting #lettering and tangents.

Here's some #SuperbOwl action: a San Francisco curiosity from the @ghostsigns#superbowlblog: https://ghostsigns.co.uk/2024/07/the-mirrored-owl-cigars-of-san-francisco/ #ghostsigns #sanfrancisco #owl #cigars #signs #fadingads

These late nineteenth century posters have just been revealed during renovations at the Coach & Horses pub in Stoke Newington, but can anyone guess the missing words in the older signwritten letters beneath? Glasses Only & Par____ _e_ ____ged n this Bar […] [Original post on typo.social]

I'm fascinated by #signs and #signage (hence an entire Instagram account devoted thereto). I'm also fascinated by objects that just persist, perhaps despite time, perhaps just because of inertia and benign neglect. Or, maybe this ice machine, which I'm sure […] [Original post on mastodon.sdf.org]

Is there publishing language that describes the difference between books whose secondhand price increases once out of print, versus those whose price goes down relative to their original cover price? Currently, Ghost Signs: A London Story is in the former category, with Amazon UK tracking at […]

In 2018, I was part of a little project to document surviving streetname plates for London's defunct N.E. postal district. https://ghostsigns.co.uk/projects/nesigns/ My partner in crime for that initiative was Nick Perry, who passed away suddenly last month. I have updated the above page on […]

Some lovely ghost signs in Jenna Homen's latest despatch, and my ears are burning: https://jennahomen.substack.com/p/the-art-of-disappearing #ghostsigns #signpainting #signwriting #roadtrip

Does anyone know if this article is available online: 'Classifying Signs' by Harry Leeson, Monotype Recorder, Issue 01, Summer 2014? I have a hard copy, and regularly find myself referencing it, but don't have an easy way to share it with others. For those interested, it compares and […]

Thank you to Londonist for featuring the map that @RoyReed and I have worked on to accompany our London ghost signs book: https://londonist.com/london/maps/london-ghost-signs-map #ghostsigns #london #maps #mapping

Dropping just in time for Halloween: a brand new category of ghost sign! "Baby on store sign in Japan turns into horrifying ‘ghost’ after ink melts in extreme heat." https://mustsharenews.com/baby-ghost-store-sign/ #ghostsigns #halloween #baby #japan

I''ll be dusting off my winter tour guide persona for a Stoke Newington Ghostsigns Walk on Sunday 22 December. Please tell your friends/boost this post, and visit https://ghostsigns.co.uk/tours where tickets and signed copies of our book are available 😊 […] [Original post on mastodon.social]

Now you see me, now you don't: this London ghost sign was revealed for a matter of hours yesterday as a decorator carried out some external repairs on the building. Thank you Nina Harrison for snapping the photo in this tiny window of opportunity. I'm […] [Original post on mastodon.social]

Last chance to see this 85 year old graffiti on the corner of Valencia and Cesar Chavez before it gets covered up again. This old graffiti and a hand-painted sign for Mission Chevrolet were recently uncovered during the construction of a new apartment […] [Original post on mastodon.social]

Happy world ampersand day to those that celebrate. I'd love to see more ampersands, especially hand-painted, by reply; boosts appreciated 😃 #ampersand #signpainting #lettering #type #typography

New at bl.ag online, 'Signs of the Summer: Postcards from a Busman's Holiday', with some photos, links, and notes from my recent travels: https://bl.ag/signs-of-the-summer-postcards-from-a-busmans-holiday/. #signpainting #ghostsigns #lettering #

New at bl.ag online, 'Two's Company in the Latest Culture+Typography Despatch': https://bl.ag/twos-company-in-the-latest-culture-typography-despatch/ In this guest post, Nikki Villagomez introduces her second book of found lettering, which examines the use of […] [Original post on typo.social]

Can anyone recommend a PC-compatible Bluetooth pen and tablet? I need it for sharing text and diagrams on an interactive whiteboard, *not* for illustration/graphic design. Boosts appreciated 😃 PS. A large working area is preferred—I have big writing and will sometimes need to include smaller […]

Lovely gilded glass shopfront revealed in Bristol for the one-time Parry Bros. tobacconist. https://www.bristol247.com/news-and-features/news/new-ghost-sign-revealed-old-city/ #ghostsigns #shopfront #bristol #tobacco

Has anyone seen one of these before? Someone bought it on ebay and has asked if there's a connection to the Peterkin ghost sign documented in our book, and here on my blog […] [Original post on mastodon.social]

I've just learned that Bryan Yonki's 'Hand-Painted in LA: Some Los Angeles Signs' has already gone out of print. I have a couple of copies left in the shop in case anyone wants one: https://shop.bl.ag/products/signs-of-la. #signs #losangeles #la #handpainted #signpainting #lettering #book

A fading fascia being revealed today at 110 Green Lanes, London N16: 'Perfection Fish Bar'. #ghostsigns #shopfront #perfection #fish #GreenLanes #london #n16 #signs

En route to London, and looking forward to this weekend's walk in Stoke Newington. I still have a couple of tickets for Saturday morning, so please join us and/or boost — 😃 — to let your friends and followers know. https://ghostsigns.co.uk/tours Pictured […] [Original post on mastodon.social]

Little photo dump of signs in Mons-la-Trivalle, Hérault, France, near where I've been coming for holidays since around 1990. #signs #ghostsigns #NoEntry #boules #Pétanque #laposte #mons #latrivalle #herault #france

The lettering on this French ghost sign reminded me of this other garage sign on the @blag site: https://bl.ag/chain-letter-etiennerenard/. Does anyone know what it's called and/or if it derives from a particular typeface? Garage, Le Poujol-sur-Orb […] [Original post on mastodon.social]

New at bl.ag online, 'Retrospectiva Recalls the Brands and Businesses of the Past'. Visit https://bl.ag/retrospectiva to learn more about this cultural initiative in Quinto, Spain. #quinto #spain #murals #signs #advertising #signpainting #signpainters #retrospectiva

After a few years off, I'm delighted to once again be a small part of this year's London Design Festival, among a host of other activities in the Bankside Design District: https://london-post.co.uk/london-design-festival-brings-font-focus-to-bankside/ #ldf #ldf24 #ghostsigns @London #design […]

This Suze ghost sign was partially covered by a mounted sign board the last time I passed it, so it was nice to see it in full yesterday. There's more about the Suze brand, and lots more of their ghost signs, on this excellent website […] [Original post on mastodon.social]

At the former railway station in Olargues, Languedoc-Roussillon, France: 'Dames'. #ghostsigns #dames #ladies #olargues #languedoc #languedocroussillon #france

I'm mostly hanging out about 1 km from here for the next couple of weeks. #holiday #vacation #france

The repainting of this brilliant double in Paris captured by Pixdar: https://pixdar.tumblr.com/post/757406760545943552 Some context, and 'before' photos, here: https://ghostsigns.co.uk/2018/12/two-paris-beauties-under-wraps/ #ghostsigns #paris #ripolin

From regular correspondent, Wayne Tanswell Signwriter, the many and varied services of E.F. Andrews, Felixstowe, Suffolk. E.F. Andrews Decorator, Plumber & Sanitary Engineer Building & General Repairs Rathbone Furnishing Stores 136 Hamilton Rd, Felixstowe […] [Original post on mastodon.social]

Newsletter subscribers check your inbox/spam folder for today's despatch, which contains this correction to our book, Ghost Signs: A London Story. 'X Doesn’t Mark the Spot: Revisiting an Islington Ghost Sign' […] [Original post on mastodon.social]

What's the missing word on this London ghost sign? @RoyReed recently got some better pictures than mine from the book, but we're stuck on the last line. "___ Simple & Inexpensive" I think I can see one of C/G/O as the first letter, and that the word ends […] [Original post on mastodon.social]

Another happy punter from the digital Bankside Ghostsigns Walk: https://ghostsigns.co.uk/tours. "Thank you for the tour! I took my dad on it and we had the best day! It was super informative and easy for me to follow and we are now looking at getting your book* too for more information since […]

"There are some epic photos of a sign painter in 50s Cuba on eBay" was the message I received from BLAG member Brennen Bechtol back in April. This was followed by some pictures and a link to the eBay listings. Here's a short thread of what happened next, which […] [Original post on typo.social]

Here's a few minutes of podcast digging into the stories behind some of York's ghost signs: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/p0j5mrh0 Pictured is the one for John Smith's Magnet Ales, photographed in 2009 by Ken Pitcher for the History of Advertising Trust […] [Original post on mastodon.social]

'Ghost signs make final appearance during Casper building demolition' on Oil City News: https://oilcity.news/community/city/2024/06/17/photos-ghost-signs-make-final-appearance-during-casper-building-demolition/ That's here in Casper, Wyoming […] [Original post on mastodon.social]

This text from Frank Jump's Fading Ads of New York City (2011) throws some doubt on the provenance of the signs. Transcription in the alt text over this and the subsequent post. So, perhaps 'faux': https://ghostsigns.co.uk/tag/faux/ More on Frank's book […] [Original post on mastodon.social]

Thank you to @nicksherman for alerting me to the threat to these fading painted signs in New York: https://nypost.com/2024/06/25/us-news/nyc-buildings-quirky-signs-could-be-painted-over-with-trendy-fendi-ads-an-architectural-crime/ #ghostsigns #newyork #tribeca #nyc

Loving this Ye Olde Sign Shoppe from the deep historical research behind Craig Winslow's latest light capsules installation: https://lightcapsules.app/no/40. What a wonderful combination of so many of my favourite things! #signpainters #signpainting #thedalles #oregon #ghostsigns #signs

That's BLAG 05 on its way to members around the world*; watch those post/mail boxes! If you're not already on the distribution list, then join today via https://bl.ag/md20. Next week, I'll be sharing more of what's inside, so don't miss out on that by joining […] [Original post on typo.social]

Monster High at Ocio Aventura Sitges. According to Wikipedia, this logotype was introduced in 2016. That means this reproduction has faded extremely quickly, assuming it was fully opaque to begin with. #monsterhigh #mattel #ghostsigns #sitges

"A strong link with the past" is a fitting slogan for this project replacing a railway bridge in Tipton, but including a replica of the ghost sign that was on its predecessor. https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/ceqqj0qv7npo #Tipton #ghostsigns #westmidlands #ale #railway #bridge

Fancy a cuppa? Nice piece on Sean Reynolds' ghost signs research and documentation in Melbourne, trailing a talk he's giving there in July: https://www.theage.com.au/national/victoria/every-day-is-a-faded-sign-for-ghost-sign-fanatic-20240529-p5jho2.html #ghostsigns #melbourne #tea

Make mine a Webster's: https://www.thetelegraphandargus.co.uk/news/24396075.fighting-cock-uncovers-historic-sign-works/ #ghostsigns #bradford #pub #beer #ale

Caught in the act: a fascia sign reveal taking place in Llandudno, North Wales, last summer. It also shows the lengths that people will go to to mount bigger signs than were intended by the architects. In 1939 the Nobletts confectioners were here, later […] [Original post on mastodon.social]

I'm putting the finishing touches to my next worldwide events roundup email. Please reply with anything I may have missed in the realms of sign painting, lettering, and related fields. I tend to break things down into categories like talks, workshops, exhibitions, conferences etc. Boosts […]

This wall sign for the Rawles butchers was originally designed and painted by George Biles in Bridport, Dorset. (This signwriter, RIP, is profiled on today's @blag post at https://bl.ag/biles.) The sign has since been repainted on at least two occasions […] [Original post on mastodon.social]

Almost two years ago I wrote about two remakable ghost signs unearthed in Chicago: https://ghostsigns.co.uk/2022/08/chicago-ghost-signs-and-the-beverly-sign-co/ This is one of them, shown here in its new home at the American Sign Museum in Cincinnati. The […] [Original post on mastodon.social]