11.30.2007

gfaf event invitation


Each year, the Greater Frederick Advertising Federation hosts the Addy Awards. I recently received my invitation in the mail for the event that will take place next spring. I thought the design was really great. Feel free to click on the photo for a closer look at the components to this piece. The envelope reminded me of what the components of a computer come in, or the bag I got my EZ-Pass tag in.

11.29.2007

istock double take


I'm always on the lookout for great greeting cards and stationery, and that's no exception around the holidays. I hunt to find the perfect Christmas cards to send to my friends and family.

This year, I didn't have much luck finding anything I liked, so I decided that I would quickly throw something together. I did a search on istock for the perfect image to use, and I immediately fell in love with this image. I downloaded it, and whipped up a quick postcard and sent the file off to VistaPrint for printing.

Then, yesterday, I received an order of gifts from amazon.com and one of the inserts had the exact image, just a different color scheme.

11.28.2007

it's almost there...(i think)

So, I've been working on my text for the 3D project the past few days and I've hit a roadblock. I'm not sure where I'm going with it and what else it needs, so I'm hoping to get some feedback from cyberspace! Please comment with your thoughts -- thanks!

The handful of colorful rings swimming in a sea of sweet pink milk sitting next to the unread sections of the Sunday Frederick News Post are quickly turning into an undesirable mushy rainbow. Sure, the last of the box of ‘Froot Loops’ were poured and topped with a splash of nearly expired 1% milk a mere fifteen minutes ago, but it doesn’t take long for the milk to permeate the candy coating of sugar and suck the life out of the once crunchy cereal.

You were looking forward to those last few mouthfuls of Toucan Sam’s confection. If only you could go back to the first crunchy bites. It serves you right though, what was so great about the article you were reading on Britney Spears’ custody battle that made you neglect the most important meal of the day?

As a child, your mother insisted you clean your cereal bowl each morning. She knew your secret weapon, too – the cat that patiently waited under the table. But there’s no cat to pass this bowl to. Just you, your conscience, the Sunday paper and your ‘Froot Loop’ soup.

It’s getting more repulsive by the minute. If you eat it, it may just ruin your day, and if you don’t, in your head all day you’ll hear your mother lecturing you about the starving kids in Africa that would do anything for a morsel of food.

The guilt is almost too much to bear. You fiddle with your spoon in the bowl; something your mother would have scolded you for. Maybe if you sat there long enough, like you did as a child in your silent protest against eating the brussel sprouts on your dinner plate until your father told you to go to bed without dessert, the guilt would subside. But the longer you wait, the worse it looks. It couldn’t be that bad…or could it?

11.26.2007

this is on my christmas list...

I think I saw this link in a random graphic design magazine during a recent visit to Barnes & Noble and when I got home I visited the site. It has some great t-shirts on it. The one in particular that caught my eye was the 'Magic Eraser' shirt...I think a recent Saturday lunch conversation circled around how we wished that there was a Command + Z function for life.

11.19.2007

show & tell: unnecessary process

My 'unnecessary process' is somewhat subjective. To me, writing out the procedure to do these things is unnecessary, however to some people, it is necessary. Here's an example:

-Put blank CD into CD-Rom drive
-Open ‘My Computer’, double click on your CD
Drive (this opens a blank window)
-Minimize window and open folder where the
files you want to burn to CD are located (Select all by hitting Ctrl + A, then
hit Ctrl + C to copy them.)
-Re-open CD drive window
-Hit Ctrl + V to
paste files onto CD
-Click ‘Write these files to CD’
-A new window will
open, here you can name your CD
-Click next and continue through the steps
until it spits out your burned CD or says it has finished burning.

**NOTE: if there are too many files that you are trying to burn to a CD, the burning will not work, if you delete the files from the CD-rom drive window, they will NOT delete from the computer…just remember what files they are so you can burn them to a second CD, if you desire to.**

11.16.2007

holidaze 2007

This illustration is for an upcoming AIGA BlueRidge event. Isn't it great? A student at Shepherd University did it and while it's a little suggestive...(almost) everyone who has seen it really loves it. I think we may be getting t-shirts printed with this on it as well, if you're interested in one, let me know!

Here's the specifics on the event in case you'd like to attend...I'm headed to it immediately after class!

Please join members of AIGA Blueridge and the Greater Frederick Ad Fed as we toast the end of 2007 at Danielle's Restaurant. A cash bar and light munchies await you on this first Saturday in December.

Call ahead to make reservations for dinner following the event or wander the streets of historic Frederick and take in "First Saturday", with light-trimmed trees and stores open late.

When: December 1, 2007, 4:30pm-6pm

Where: Danielle's Restaurant, 6 N. East Street, Frederick

RSVP: Free to members, $10 for guests. Space is limited, RSVP early!

Please RSVP by 11/28/07 to chris@txtdesign.com

Thanks to our generous sponsors for making this event happen:

Celebrate Gettysburg
Jean Peterson Design
Octavo
Rocketfuel Design
Text Design

11.14.2007

expanding my library of graphic design books...

My mother recently asked me for some ideas of gifts for me for Christmas and since my parents refuse to buy me an iPhone, I figured this would be a great opportunity to build my graphic design library with some of the books that Stephanie & Amy have suggested to us in class.

Just wondering if anyone has come across any books that they have found to be really helpful to them not only in this class, but in graphic design and improving your writing?

11.12.2007

everlasting elegance


A few people were asking what I used to make the 'milk in my cereal bowl for project 6, so I figured I'd share some info on it.

I got Everlasting Elegance at AC Moore...it's somewhat pricey -- around $14, but depending on how much you use, it should last you the entire project. I used about 1/5th of the bottle for machette I brought in last Saturday. I added white and red acrylic paint to give it the 'froot loop' milk color.

Despite the price, this is the only product like this that dries to a hard resin, as opposed to the gel ones out there.

For my next phase, I'm going to try using tacky glue with a touch of red food coloring instead of Everlasting Elegance.

Speaking of project six, can anyone think of a cereal I could use instead of Froot Loops? Amy suggested that I look for something with different shapes. I was at the grocery store last night and I didn't see anything. Trix used to be all the different shapes of fruits, but they went back to 'puffs.'

artsetera

I love series art...especially series that incorporate unique patterns and color palettes.

I normally don't click on ads, but I couldn't resist this one.

I'm definitely adding this to my bookmarks as something to buy for myself in the future...if only I could decide on which paintings I like the best!

show & tell: description


I stumbled across the very bizarre book called Catflexing: The Catlover's Guide to Weightlifting, Aerobics & Stretching while looking for a show & tell item for last Saturday. Despite it's weirdness, I think it's a good visual description of something I was completely clueless about: a woman, in workout clothing, obviously doing some sort of push-up, with her cat (obviously sedated...) relaxing on her back.

When I was searching for an image to include on my blog this evening, I came across this book as well, in case you're interested in reading your cat's paws!

11.08.2007

show & tell: narrative

Growing up, and even to this day, one of my favorite children's authors has been Robert Munsch. You may remember him as the author of the book 'Love You Forever.'

One of my absolute favorite stories by him is 'Purple, Green and Yellow.' I tried to include an iMovie, which was a project I did during undergrad. I was lucky enough to find that on his website, Munsch includes readings of his books, so I was able to use that in my project.

I'll give you a brief summary of the book:

It's about a girl named Brigid, who wants a set of markers, but her mom is concerned she'll draw on the walls, floors and on herself. So she asks for the markers that wash off with water. But when she gets bored with those, she wants the set of markers that smell, so she gets those as well. And again, she becomes bored. Then she tells her mom she wants the super-indelible-never-come-off-till-you're-dead-and-maybe-even-later markers. She gets bored with these as well, and decides to draw all over herself. She tries to wash off the marker and of course, it doesn't work. She remembers the marker at the bottom of the box that will color you your original color, so she uses that to return to normal. But, when her mom asks her to wash up for dinner and Brigid tells her mother she's already done so, her mother smells her hands...no soap! So she takes Brigid into the bathroom and the 'return to normal' marker wears off to reveal a colorful Brigid! The doctor comes and gives her a pill that makes her invisible and Brigid again takes her 'return to normal marker' and colors herself back in...

11.07.2007

a designer's inside joke...

I know a few others in class have posted some funny videos lately, I got an e-mail this afternoon from a former professor/AIGA colleague with another video that made me laugh. It's a pretty long one...about 6 minutes, but well worth it!

Check it out! http://www.makemylogobiggercream.com/

I'm eying up the merchandise they have too -- I think the poster would be a great thing to hang in an office!

11.06.2007

fun website...

I stumbled upon this website and I thought it was amusing. People post photographs that they've taken in places that have asked people to not take photos, like museums, concerts, etc.