I love calendars. While they have become largely unnecessary thinks to technology in just about every electronic in the average person’s possession, there is just something special about them.
Maybe it is the traditional touch that reminds me of earlier days, when cell phones were enormous and computers were a novelty in homes. Perhaps it is the decorative nature and the anticipation of moving on to the next month. It could even be that the electronic calendars just lose something in translation and don’t do it for me.
Whatever the reason, I am not alone. In fact, some people even come up with creative – and strange – calendars that are just as handy as they are awesome. If you are interested in traditional methods of keeping track of the days, check out these unique versions.
1. Ink Calendar
This calendar was created by London artist Oscar Diaz, who is well known for making fascinating, functional items that can be used all over the house. It works by taking ink from a prefilled bottle attached to the piece that is slowly released through the month.
Each day, it fills another set of numbers representing the date, moving in a zigzag from side to side, then down all the way to the bottom row. Every month has a different color that was made to coincide with what people often relate to the month in terms of weather – for example, a dark blue in December and a red in August. It was made for the London Design Festival 2007, where it was showcased as a major work of art.
2. Chrono-Shredder
Susanna Hertrich made this amazingly simple but interesting calendar idea. It has been a part of an exhibition since 2007, when the piece was initially released. Every year a new version comes out, which has been adapted and updated from its original design.
It works by continuously shredding a piece of paper that shows the current date, moving second by second until the day is completely done. It leaves it all in a trail of torn paper leading up to the calendar. The message is said to be the irrevocable loss of time, which can never be retrieved. Each moment has been destroyed, as will each following it.
3. Match Calendar
There have been a number of interesting calendars to come from the mind of Ukrainian designer Yurko Gutsulyak. Probably his best known was the set of trash bags that showed off a day of the month to encourage regular trash disposal.
But another excellent example is his date matchbook, which has an entire year of matches, one per day, that can be lit to tell the current date. It was made to be 100 percent safe and functional and has won numerous awards for its ingenuity and interesting concept.
4. Warranty Calendar
This is an amazing idea and a funny one, as well. Schott Solar is a solar panel producer that is one of the biggest names in the game. When it added a 20-year warranty on its products, Schott Solar made a move into a new guarantee system that many companies have yet to follow.
But it went a step further: It made a calendar that could count down the days for you – all 7,300 of them. This calendar actually has 20 years of papers, one for each day. It sticks right out of the wall, making it a bit of a waking hazard. Can you image having this in your home? I can – what a conversation piece!
5. Apple Time
Either a brilliant or a really stupid idea, this plastic tube works by inserting 28, 30 or 31 apples, depending on the month. Every day you remove one and eat it, revealing the date on the other side. It was created by German advertising agency ServicePlan.
The problem I see with this is that the tube is not refrigerated. Even if it was, have you ever eaten a monthold apple? When indoors, it tends to get pretty brown and nasty at about two weeks old. What would happen at 30 days? While it is a pretty interesting concept, it seems like maybe the agency didn’t think things through as well as it should have.
None of these are really widely distributed, and most are just exhibition pieces that cannot be purchased. You can find other bizarre calendars that are for sale, however, like Yoga Kittens, which is exactly what it sounds like: a bunch of kittens in what appear to be yoga positions.
Or how about Extraordinary Chickens, which shows you a different buddy from the coop with an odd feather style or doing strange things? Maybe Nuns Having Fun is more your speed, as you take a look into the crazy acts of a group of holy honeys on a rampage.
But perhaps the best thing you can do is come up with your own. Creating a calendar isn’t rocket science, and as you can see there are plenty of ways for you to go about doing it. All it takes is a bit of thought and a little work, and you have your very own calendar gracing your wall.
What are some of your favorite, bizarre date pieces? Or do you have an idea for your own? Let us know in the comments.
Jennifer Moline is a writer for PsPrint Blog. She has been writing about marketing, graphic design, freelancing, small business and printing for numerous years.
