Liquid Treat

Fans of Pee-wee's Playhouse -- that is, everyone -- will recognize the distinctive creations of Wayne White, one of the creative minds (and voices) behind the show's puppets and insane charm. The designer, painter, puppeteer, sculptor and musician gets his well-deserved close-up in a new documentary, Beauty is Embarassing. The film not only examines White's deliciously madcap creative process, but also retraces his steps from childhood in Chattanooga, Tennessee to parenthood in Los Angeles. "It has been the time of my life," says director Neil Berkeley of the three years he spent making Beauty is Embarassing. "I hope audiences get that sense of joy that Wayne has about what he does everyday. That's the lesson I learned from him...spend everyday doing work that makes you happy."

Mr. Didot is quite refined, Mr. Stencil always appears to be caught in an updraft, and Mr. Federal may work as an old-timey sheriff. These are just three of the characters you'll encounter in A Field Guide to Typestaches, a witty anthropomorphizing of the curly bracket. Designed by Tor Weeks for Minneapolis-based Old Tom Foolery, maker of "unsappy, uncrappy cards and curiosities," the original Typestaches poster is now available as a tote bag or a t-shirt. Consider accessorizing with an angle bracket beard.

What do you get when you combine 71 artists, 12 countries and nearly 5 years? Sketchtravel, an international charity art project created by illustrators Dice Tsutsumi and Gérald Guerlais. A red sketchbook was passed from one artist to another in a kind of artistic relay race, along the way attracting the contributions of star sketchers such as Bill Plympton, James Jean, Rebecca Dautremer and Hayao Miyazaki. The original book was auctioned last year and now Chronicle Books has published a hardcover version (with proceeds and royalties going to literacy non-profit, Room to Read). Meanwhile, a Kickstarter campaign is underway to help bring the Sketchtravel experience to the public as a series of museum exhibitions, and filmmaker Catherine Bonvalot is at work on a documentary about the project.

The screen you're reading this on can display around 16.7 million colors—which one do you want? Glidden paint has teamed with UNICEF to create Own a Color, a fun fundraising initiative that allows you to stake your claim to a favorite hue and help transform children's lives. Once you've managed to choose from among the unsold shades, give your pick a name (we opted for "Liquid Treat Celadon"), and add a brief description. Complete your donation—as little as $2—in a few clicks and then spread the word about your colorful approach to philanthropy.

Magnetic poetry gets a pictorial twist with Glyphits, small square magnets of hand-drawn images that can be used to create messages and puzzles. The rebus-making materials are the brainchild of San Francisco-based Celia Hoffman, who turned to Kickstarter to make her concept a reality. "I have been obsessed with language and play for most of my life and I am happy to be continually finding new ways to marry the two," says Hoffman, who has already attracted hundreds of backers and exceeded her original funding goal. You have until October 2 to register your pledge—just $15 will get you a set of Glyphits, which will be shipped in mid-November.

When it comes to design, Dzmitry Samal is of two minds: boldly futuristic and charmingly retro. The Paris-based designer's new-old philosophy comes into focus through his collection of pixellated eyeglasses. The craggy acetate frames, handmade in France for use with shades or prescription lenses, nod to '80s computer graphics and old-school video games in styles ranging from "4dpi" to "7dpi." For Samal, the specs (around $500 per pair) are daily reminders of the technology that inspires almost everything that is in use today. "Even something as utilitarian as glasses can be transformed using technology," he adds.