THE PERFECT HANDY DANDY SIGN... How COOL is this?!

I actually snapped this photo just days before seeing the movie "The Sign Painters" this week. This hand-painted sign sits in front of the locally-owned thrift shop called "Dandelion" in downtown Champaign when the store is open (obviously). Dandelion is filled with all kinds of clothes, jewelry, accessories, boxes, and other items. Much of merchandise is comprised of resale items but they also carry new products. They are "vintage/trendy," I guess you would say. I have always enjoyed shopping there for myself and for gifts, or just for browsing around. There is a certain happy mood, and the music played varies but is always something I find enjoyable. It's perfect for retail therapy. :) 

After seeing the movie, I have been thinking about hand-painted signs, and I remembered that I had taken this picture. I find it to be so appealing, and I'm glad it is weather-worn but hope they don't replace it with something new/different. It totally fits the store. I love the image of the dandelion, and the shapes that make up the flower look like they could be letters, but they aren't. The leaves make it most clear that the flower is indeed a dandelion. The letters in "Open" are sans-serif, very plain, and not perfect in their consistency in stroke width or even height, at least that's how it appears to me. It looks old. It looks bright and happy. The large arrow points into the store. You can see it from far away. The plain black on bright yellow catches the eye. It lures you in! The wood and paint are cracking and may even be rotting a little at the bottom. You can see the nail or screw holes. It's likely been repainted more than once. I just think it's THE perfect sign for the store!  Next time I'm there, I'm going to ask the owner who designed/made the sign. Maybe it's two different people. Anyway, I love it in its perfect imperfection.

And PS, I had to go back through this blog entry and take out the extra spaces I left after each period. That's going to take some adjustment!