Exodus of Re-Branding. Take 2

The wind is blowing. My little Mr. Mr. is nearing the end of his naptime.
 

I am re-branding. Again.

I have a problem.

I mean, really, a PROBLEM, with a capital P.

 Here's my problem. I LOVE color, I LOVE designs, and I can't have one design for myself. Why is that a problem? Well....how am I supposed to let everyone know who I am and what I do, if one minute I look like the lady at the bank, but I moonlight at the nearest Kon-Tiki?

Help me stay on track people! I am re-branding. This WILL be the last time. (Until my business base is established, that is.)  I am going with this, I will make business cards, and letterhead, and a blog header, and some stickers at Moo. The stickers are amazing.  

(And if you go to Moo, and happen to check out their blog, and leave a comment,
go ahead and give a kickback that you heard of them from me. That'd be spectacular.)

So check this out:

I've found that if I can design within a business card parameter, the logo generally figures itself out, and makes it easier to apply to my paper collateral. Weird, I know, but it works for me.

I will also be revising my list of services in the coming years weeks, so check back if there is something special you'd have me in mind for. I specialize in design for print, but I am slowly letting myself be pulled into web. I've been resisting since I've been in college. I know it's the newest coolest stuff, but I just have too much fun with the printing presses.

My favorite Piece of Eye Candy!

You guys are going to DIE when you see this door. Ready?

AAAH! I LOVE it! And since hubbins and I are a little bitten by the home buying bug, this may be a reality for us soon! Love it!

No Posts Since February!

Geez. No wonder no one reads this anymore!  Well, I've been a LITTLE distracted. We found out at the end of January that we're expecting! I'm due in November, just a scant week before my little Mr. Mr.'s 3rd Birthday. Way to go with the planning?! Eek! Yep, and we're STILL traveling, so my last few months have been filled with the details and possibilities of what can and will happen realistically in the coming months.

Suffice it to say.....every other area of my life has suffered a little as we've worked out the details.  And since every other area of my life is changing, so shall my blog.  I'm working on a website for my creative business, so this blog is going to be less business minded and a little more creative. Eye candy, for instance, is a designers best friend.

If my hubbins had to choose between diamonds and the latest design software/hardware, the romantic in him would go with diamonds, and I'd swoon, and probably cry a little. If the practical side of him kicked in and he went with the usable, oh my goodness, I'd be in heaven. I love my laptop, my mighty mouse, my Wacom Tablet, and my software. I use them DAILY, and my dream of a creative firm is going to take flight on those basic "necessities".  I'll keep ya posted.

~Jess

A little Thursday Fun

Here's a little bit of fun for your Thursday. I had a couple minutes or RARE free time while my little Mr. Mr. was taking a nap and threw this together. It's probably representative of the week we've had!

ENJOY!

What I Do When I am Bored

Have you ever seen those things on Facebook.  You know, THOSE things.... the posts about how if you're bored, just go to Flickr and pick a random picture, then go to a quote page and pick a random quote, then go to Wikipedia and pick a random article title, then put them together in Photoshop and that will be your first album cover when you get famous?

Haha. I didn't think so.

But I have.

Wikipedia gave me an article called Cambria Hills. A city in California.

Flickr gave me a picture of some beer kegs. A very artistic picture no less.

And the last quote on the quotations page, on the very last 4 words, gave me my album name.

Check it out!

It's just for fun, but kinda cool, no?

Outdoor Inspiration

In the past year, we have seen A LOT of water. A LOT. We were on the Oregon Coast in Brookings for quite awhile. It is SO soothing to look at water crash onto sand beaches when it's a blustery 50 degrees outside. I LOVED it! Even though we were in a travel trailer, I could take my little Mr. Mr. across the street and to an ocean overlook and watch the big waves. It was SO peaceful!

And then we were in Elma, WA. Not right on the water, but we could drive to Seattle, and we did, quite frequently. And you know what Seattle is famous for! That's right, the PIER! LOVED that pier! All the noise, and the smells (only a few bad ones). It was so great! I'm a closet city girl.

 And then we were in a few other places where there was no water. But as of YESTERDAY, we have landed just north of Othello, WA on the Potholes Reservoir. And the view is AMAZING! Our cabin overlooks the water from the dining area, and we get to watch the sunsets and the duck hunters. AND, to make it all authentic, there's signs everywhere that say, "We'll pluck your duck for a buck!" No joke! Hilarious! And really, this picture doesn't do the view justice. I just took it with my phone. Out the window. Yeah, cause it's cold, (and that's how I roll.)

Creatively Creating for a Giveaway!

There is something so SATISFYING for me to create something tangible. I get a kick out of designing for print, don't get me wrong, but I think it has something to do with the cold winter months that has me turning to knitting. It's so WARM, and FUZZY, and when I finally get finished with something I just LOVE LOVE LOVE it in all it's messed up glory.

PLUS it helps that I've had a ton of friends having babies lately so i've been making super cute little hats for their little ones. And they're babies so they can't say they hate it! I am by no means an expert. I YouTube knitting videos when I get to a stitch I don't know, or sometimes I don't even have a clue what they're talking about. Then I Google it and THEN YouTube it! Here's a look at some of the cute stuff I've done lately.

 So here's the fun part! I have pictures of 5 things that I've knitted. I'd like you all to leave a comment telling me which ones were from a pattern, and which ones I just made up as I went along! 1 point for each right answer, and 1 bonus point if you can tell me which pattern which ones were made from! So get to searching! In the event of a tie I will throw scraps of paper in a basket and pick blindly, and the winner will get a FREE custom design for web! No websites, something along the lines of a banner or blog button.  Get to it!