Spring 2014 Characterplay

It’s no secret that I enjoy seeing Chinese characters with some kind of visual design twist (I sometimes call it “characterplay”), and I’m getting more and more friends and readers sharing photos with me. Keep them coming!

基本髪

Here’s one shared by Matt Scranton:

So the character that means “hair” is 髪 in traditional Chinese, 发 in simplified.

Here are some others I found myself around Shanghai:

外星人也要吃的饼

心情

This one took me a few seconds to figure out:

飞来橫财

A play about suddenly getting rich.

爸气十足

A play on the phrase 霸气十足, which means something “totally dominating.” Changing the oppressive “霸气” to “爸气” (which isn’t a real word) makes it seem friendlier (and appropriate for a Father’s Day promotion), though.

Also, you have the little hearts in 买 and 送.