BIG IS BOLD, BUT A CHALKBOARD DOESN’T HAVE TO BE EITHER; it certainly needn’t cover most of the wall or even the sidewalk easel’s surface to convey an eye-catching message: Look (left) at the charming sign peeking from behind the poinsettia leaves at ZuZu’s Petals window. The frame around the slate-like surface dresses it up nicely, and the Happy New Year’s Day message is friendly.

While Brooklyn Artisan is still hovering over New Year’s signs, check out the Couleur Café‘s New-Year’s-with-a-wink sign (above). A nice example of soft sell!

The invocation outside the store Sterling Place on Seventh Avenue (right) gets our vote for double-take cleverness: “Let’s Celebrate Another Revolution Together,” it says, and with Emma Goldman‘s famous words in mind, we were about to start dancing in the street. But then we realized the board was showing the Big Blue Marble Earth in orbit around the Sun as a visual clue: No politics here, it’s about the passing of another year!

(Photographs from Brooklyn Artisan Photo Pool)

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