This has been a strange year to say the least, but with optimism in the air and thought of next year being better I have picked out some interesting, funny and beautiful calendars for you. Most have been designed by small independent designers, who have found it increasingly difficult to sell their wares during Lockdown. So let’s go out of our way and support independent arts and craftsmen.
The first calendar Postcards from the Lido 2021 Enjoy your Swims is by Jessica and Nicola who call them selves the Lido Ladies London they live in South East London and love to swim especially in a Lido.
‘Our message is simple; we want to encourage everyone to enjoy a swim for both physical and mental wellbeing.
‘ During COVID lockdown, we were unable to swim, so we created our own Lido Fantasy World. We amused ourselves, and many around us with our intstagram pictures. We obsessively made flowery hats and embraced the retro glamour of the golden years of the Lidos.’
Their web site is https://lidoladieslondon.com/
Calendars available from @romeojonesdulwich and @ravenstunbridgewells and on line at https://romeojones.co.uk for £10. All profits are going to Mind Mental Health Charity.
Anne Heffernan described to me, by a designer friend, as the Alfred Wallace of the Collage world. She is a brilliant and original artist and it sometimes takes your breath away that she has created her images by just cutting and collaging papers. Her Calendar 2021 A year of Cut Paper Collages By Anne Heffernan has a mixture of images although there is a strong literary theme running through this year’s calendar are at least six book shops and many literary references. For April, his birthday, Shakespeare takes pride of place. Price £10.93
AnneHeffernanDesignhttps://anneheffernan.com/
If natural world and especially anything to do with the sea is your thing then British Seaweeds 2021 is the calendar for you designed by Molesworth & Bird the calendar features a collection of seaweed pressings found on the South West coast. Each month replicates the glorious natural colours of English seaweed. Printed on FSC fine art paper it is perfect for framing at the end of the year. It is available from the designers directly and costs £22
https://www.molesworthandbird.com/calendars/
and from one of my favourite shops of all time.
https://www.willandyates.com/
Stendig 2021
This calendar is probably the most expensive that you will ever buy but it is also a work of art. Created by legendary Italian designer Massimo Vignelli in 1966, the Stendig is considered one of the defining pieces of 1960s modernism, celebrated by designers and architects the world over.
Soon after its launch the Stendig was added to the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York, where it remains on display to this day.
For over 50 years the Stendig calendar has been printed and assembled by hand in Nashville and is printed on art grade paper.
Interchanging black and white detachable sheets are removed with each passing month.
Featuring the Swiss type face Helvetica each sheet measures 3‘ x 4‘ in size.
Previous months sheets make excellent wrapping paper.
Available from
Will & Yates gallery + home store, 104-106 High Street, Deal,
Kent CT14 6EE
The next 2021 calendar has a front cover from Derbyshire based designer Jade Mosinski and is called Praise for the Pollinators
Buzzing, flying, and leaping from flower to flower, bees, birds, and even lemurs are essential pollinators for the world’s food supply. The best-known pollinators are, of course, bees and butterflies, but birds, moths, beetles, bats, rodents, and primates also play a vital part in our planet’s cycle of life. This collection of beautiful illustrations of flora and fauna, paired with educational text, is a vibrant way to be inspired by these precious creatures and the natural world around us.
https://www.amberlotus.com/praise-for-the-pollinators-2021-wall-calendar
My next three calendars are sold by Not on The High Street, one of the longest running companies supporting independent makers.
The first is a calendar by illustrator Tessa Galloway. It is full of her well-known line drawings of cities. This is the present for those hard to buy for friends and relatives. Each month features a different city. The front cover is London then you can spend January in Paris, February in Helsinki, March in Toronto, April in Florence, May in London, June in Boston, July in Prague, August in Halong Bay, September in Madrid, October in New Orleans, November in Oslo & December in Vienna. £16 from Not on The High Street
The second Not on the High Street Calendar is very funny, with very simple stylized art work it is perfect for anyone with a love of Scotland or a sense of humour called Whits Fur Ye Scottish quotes and sayings artwork by Allistair J Burt for Eat Haggis
£15 https://www.notonthehighstreet.com/eathaggis/product/whits-fur-ye-2021-12-month-calendar
The third and last Not on the High Street calendar is a perfect one for women like my mother as it is based on the saying ‘ If you want something done then ask a busy woman’ called Busy Women run the world.
By artist Jade Fisher ‘The calendar is a celebration of women in all our roles that run the world, with quotes from inspirational thinkers to inspire strength, leadership and sisterhood’ £24
https://www.notonthehighstreet.com/jadefisher/product/busy-women-2021-wall-calendar
creativecolour.org 