Aaron James Draplin

LOGO LIFE: My name is Aaron James Draplin, I am 52 years old and a graphic designer working out of Portland, Oregon. And man, I love logos. Ever since I can remember. All the way back to that Bicentennial logo in the summer of ’76, to Lego tiles, to BMX pads, to skateboard stickers, to band t-shirts, to discovering the modernist legends, and finally, rescuing long-forgotten graphic treasures from the American underbelly. Those are my favorite, cuz real people made them, often to no fanfare. Before going apeshit and adding my own @logoarchive study into the mix, I have just been watching from afar, and LOVING seeing all the work flickering out there in my feed. SO MANY BANGER COLLECTIONS out there! Some of my faves have been @wallvscrayon , @coombs.design , @jgspdx , @okpants , @patrykhardziej , @thecreativepain , @zalo.estevez , @hank_makes , @jasonthe29th , @mikesmith , @bennygold , @designerrichardbaird , @piedmontbrandco , @hellomuller , @bucket826 , @garasigrafis , @barnardco , @staygrayponyboy , @tyfrisbee , and holy shit, the brilliance of @markusdaum_logos ! So I did my first collection, going after the big gigs, or, marks that are still going 20+ years later! (Ahem, @unionbindingco !) And of course, that spilled out into personal stuff, things I did for buddies, animals, suns and even scraped the bottom to get some weirdo scabs from the DDC logo graveyard. Before I knew it, it turned into eleven of them. Had to show them all! 01. DDC “Professional” Logos 02. DDC “Personal” Logos 03. DDC “Friends, Fun & Free” Logos 04. DDC “Nothing & Nonsense” Logos 05. DDC “Animal” Logos 06. DDC “Nature” Logos 07. DDC “Sun” Logos 08. DDC “Heart” Logos 09. DDC “Arrow” Logos 10. DDC “D” Logos 11. DDC “Graveyard” Logos If you are feeling so inclined, please check my “Logos” section on draplin.com. Stuff going back to 1999! So proud of each and every one of them. Thankful for the work, and to have had a life making logos for a living, and, for the love of it! @logoarchive @logoarchive.now

BACK IN STOCK: Finally got our “Very Orange,” “All Natural” and “Dark Matter Black” DDC stuff sheaths back in! Now shipping! The next 25 orders come with a weirdo @fieldnotesbrand single from the DDC vaults! @leighola77 picks them randomly from the pile show in the third slide. PRODUCT DESCRIPTION: I needed something to protect my Field Notes. And, jam some extra stuff in, too. And we all know what a back pocket on the back of yer jeans will do to an unprotected memo book, right? So we made a little leather sheath. Just that simple. Something to protect our yer latest Field Notes memo book, and, wrangle all the scraps of paper and whatnot that are always bouncing around in our pockets or possibles bag. Simple moves. THEY COME IN EIGHT COLORS: 01. “Very Orange” 02. “All Natural” 03. “Dark Matter” 04. “Totally Turquoise” 05. “Soothing Sun” 06. “Really Rosé” 07. “Rainy Day Gray” 08. “Surplus Green” PRODUCT DETAILS: 01. Durable, full-grain leather.
 02. Eight banger colors to choose from!
03. 3-3/4" (W) × 6" (T) in dimension. Fits a Field Notes memo book PERFECTLY.
 04. 1/2" upper right corner radius.
 05. One line of burly stitching along the bottom.
 06. Front and back debossing with all the pertinent information.
 07. Just a simple little leather sheath to protect yer Field Notes, and whatever else you might have in yer pocket.
 08. Breaks in beautifully, in no time. BONUS MEMO BOOK: Each “DDC Stuff Sheath” comes with a single Field Notes memo book we’ve got stashed around the shop. Random stuff. Old stuff. New stuff. Weird stuff. Messed up stuff. Custom prints. You never know! #ddcmerch #ddcstuffsheath #leather

BURNE-ING BEES: Check out this wicked double B logo one @jeffkleinsmith sent in from the state north of Oregon. (That's Washington, if anyone was confused.) Burnes of Boston! He found it out junking and fired it down. Of course I had to rebuild it, just to nerd out on those curves and smurves. This was my warm-up this morning. I've been a fan of Jeff Kleinsmith and his smooth moves ALL OVER @subpop back in the day, and today! I read ALL the liner notes in my records and would connect all the names. The Jeff Kleinsmiths, the Jesse LeDouxs and the Hank Trotters, and all those INCREDIBLE record designs, graphics and type treatments. Will forever be a fan of these folks! And man, I like logos. Since I can remember. This is a good one. Thank you, Jeff! #logolove #thicklines #deadthings #newlife

ARCHIVE SPEAKER: Aaron Draplin Aaron Draplin (@draplin ) of the Draplin Design Co. lives and works in Portland, Oregon. He makes stuff for rock bands, comedians, restaurants, festivals and leftie politicians. He’s traveled the world telling his story, with over 575 speaking fiascos under his belt. He co-created Field Notes memo books with Jim Coudal, selling their products worldwide. His eight Skillshare classes are raging along, teaching design enthusiasts of all ages. He recently launched DDC Fonts showcasing his three typefaces. His first book titled “Pretty Much Everything” came out on May 17, 2016 on Abrams Books, and incredibly is in its 13th printing. The DDC merch roster is up to 400+ products! You’ll see them at DDC merch tables from coast to coast or in his online shop. He likes his lines thick, and sometimes thin. He owes it all to his parents. Really. Archive September 19, 2026 New York City @fitnyc —Katie Murphy Amphitheater Co-host @aigany

MOM DAY: This one is for my mom, Lauren Draplin! And all the moms in my life—Leah, Leigh, Maria, Auntie Barbara and Sarah. 🩷🧡 Thanks for giving me life, Mom! 🧡🩷 #moms

SIXTEEN HORSEPOWER: Happy Birthday, Oliver! 16! Proud of you, man! Sparky! Skranky! Zombu! #oliver16

YOU HOCKEY PUCK: Been on a Don Rickles kick the last couple nights. Going deep on a stew of appearances on The Tonight Show, Letterman, Conan, grainy roasts and everything else in the Rickle-verse YouTube chum. So many laughs. @leighola77 and I saw him in 2012 at a casino in Rhode Island. It was incredible. We were about ten rows back, and popped for the big shot tickets. So glad I did. He didn't move around the stage all that much, with a chair close-by just in case. He was quick, and sweet, and I remember being so thankful to see him do his thing. Regis Philbin was in the crowd and Leigh went APESHIT when he stood up to greet the place. One of a kind, one of a kind. What a brilliant mind. #donrickles #ddcdrawingclub #hotipadaction #

GET THE FRIG OFF THE PROPERTY: Francisco and Victor showed up for a visit! There's goes the neighborhood. Covered multiple subjects. Had a happy fun time. Then one gentle kiss was applied to each visitor and I promptly escorted them the fuck off the property. Find them, flog them, fondle them, frig them and follow them at: @nevermade & @iiwii_network

SPRINGDANA BANDANA ROSEANNE ROSEANNADANNA DEEDEECEE DANA SALEDANNA: Hi. I'm old enough to remember Gilda Radner doing her funny Roseanne Roseannadanna bit on Saturday Night Live in 1978. I was four. I remember! My aunts with their Gilda Radner hair, layered skirts, leather boots and never more than an arm's length away from some rope-y macramé creation hanging there with some ratty plant clinging to life. Little ceramic owls come to mind too. What does this have to do with bandanas? At this point I don't really know. But I do know we have a "25% OFF" sale on our bandanas, tapestries and one smooth, silky scarf! Head over to the “Merch” section on draplin.com and find the “Softgoods” section! 25% OFF this assortment of bandanas, tapestries and scarf! This sale goes as long as we want it to. “Springdana Bandana Saldana” over at draplin.com! GO! #ddcmerch #bandanas #tapestries #silkscarf

HELLO, IT'S LEIGH...I THOUGHT ABOUT US FOR A LONG, LONG TIME: My little moonbeam @leighola77 , sitting patiently for a 3-minute, 47-second sketch in my @fieldnotesbrand . From this last weekend. We are LIFE PARTNERS and this backyard is a constant cycle of iced coffees, existential speculation, taco salads, DDC merch orders and me begging her to rub my shoulders WHILE I MAKE POWERHOUSE, UNFUCKWITHABLE GRAPHICAL ARTISTRY IN THIS GODFORSAKEN COCKPIT. Leigh Leigh! #leigh

BREATHING EASIER: Happy to say my little sister Leah is home and resting, and healing up. Got to see her yesterday for a bit, and am thankful she's through the scary part, and now can just has take it easy, surrounded by her Jacob and Oliver and that little thing she calls a dog. What do these birds have to do with my little sister? Don't know. I just thought about them when I was thinking about her this morning, and went and dug up the image. Saw this one back in December at a junk store here in town. Really dug it. Look at those cute, little fuckers. My sister Leah is a cute, little fucker too. Hence where my mind went. It's Sunday and it's hot out. Glad my little sister is home again. #littlesister #littlebirds #connections

LEAH WEAH PEAH LEAH WEAH PEAH: Got my little sister Leah on my mind today. She had a surgical procedure early this morning and now is healing up in her OHSU room with her Jacob by her side. She's been through a lot the last couple years, and is through the thick of it. Happy she's on the mend and resting up. Heal up, Weah Peah! (And go follow her banger nails at @nailgoalsleah !) #leah