“Toys are not really as innocent as they look. Toys and games are the preludes to serious ideas.” – Charles Eames

We saw this beautifully crafted set of Eames House Alphabet blocks at the Eames Office during the House Industries exhibition where they introduced their new typeface: Eames Century Modern. The Michigan-grown basswood blocks with screen printed letters, numbers, and symbols from the Eames typeface can also be arranged into a model of Charles and Ray Eames’s iconic home, Case Study House No. 8.

Having visited the Eames House and seen their archived work at Herman Miller, we deeply appreciate the Eames legacy and their philosophy of affordable, yet high quality furniture for the everyday person. The blocks introduce children to great design at a young age, but are also a collector’s item for Eames design enthusiasts who aren’t able to visit the house or own a piece of Eames furniture.

The blocks are available May 1^st.

Last night we went to the Eames Office for the opening of the House Industries exhibition where they released their Eames Century Modern fonts collection. We played with the fonts on wooden blocks, looked at fonts on freestanding hand-printed installations, and watched them get screen printed onto tote bags. It was typography made 3D.

A night of font faces, Eames furniture, and a live band. So this is what typography enthusiasts do for fun– that’s pretty cool.

We caught an intimate exhibit on Ray Eames during our visit to the Eames Office where her well-known scraps of notes, clothing designs, and personal letters – which we found the most interesting – were displayed.

Ray’s handwritten luggage tag.

This letter was written by Ray Eames to one of her granddaughters, addressed to a gate at the JFK airport as a little surprise before her granddaughter boarded the plane. These notes and letters were Ray’s trademark style as small presents to her grandchildren.

Up next at the Eames Office is the House Industries Eames exhibition, we’ll see you there.