Brand Design Photography & Styling Clarity Consulting

INSPIRED BY TOKO SHINODA / CURATED BY AMY MOORE.

Hello and happy Thursday!  In this week’s post, I decided to feature a well-known artist, whom I greatly admire: Toko Shinoda.  Her work graces the renowned walls of institutions like the MOMA and Guggenheim.  Classically trained in calligraphy (which is something I would love to learn!), she merges lithographs with modern abstract expressionism for a result that is uniquely stunning, fresh and inspired.  It’s always staggering to me when I come across an artist with such a large and consistent body of work – it drives me to produce more of my own, and to really analyze what my aesthetic is.  Which, to me, both go hand in hand; the more work you make, the better you can narrow your focus…certain characteristics will emerge and you can run with them.  Food for thought!

Art via Toko Shinoda

 

The Jone's view of Pac Northwest

During this past year there has been several occasions where a move to the Pacific Northwest was a possibility based on where the boy decides to take his next job(and still may be). The whole thought made me shiver, as I’m a girl that’s definitely happiest when surrounded by warm weather, sunny skies and of course…sandy beaches. After several months of talking things through with family/friends and even taking a trip up there, the positives of the area began to show through. Beautiful scenery, great food, oodles of artistic individuals, and my best friend (who lives in seattle).

These photos were captured by one of my favorite photography duo, the Jones. They also recently moved to Portland and have been sharing some of their outings on their blog. They are definitely capturing the aspects of the Pac North that keep me thinking I could survive up there if I had to. haha

Check out the Michael and Paige’s Portfolio!

Ma tunes this week: 8 Track

I follow some pretty lovely people on 8 Track and they’ve all got a wonderful ear for great tunes. Each week I usually find 1 or 2 playlist that keep me going through all the design work, and the ones above are winners this week.

Playlist 1: “Spring” created by Blogmilk
Playlist 2: “Sweet Sound 6” created by Sweet Thing Blog
Playlist 3: “Brave” created by The Flowerchild Dwelling
Playlist 4: “Harmony “created by For Me For You

Recent Work: Blog Design for The Daybook


Over the past few months I have been leisurely working with Sydney of The Daybook. She tweeted that her blog needed a little makeover and I jumped on the chance to work with her. Her blog has been one of my favorites from the very beginning and when she said her design style way modern minimalism, I couldn’t have been more excited. I am also following Malcolm Read to know the better ways of blogging. The process was a little long, but that’s what happens when you welcome a new little bundle of joy into the world (yeah, for baby Everette!). Check out her new blog design now!

(this blog included: blog makeover)

Simply Grove's Insider's Tip / Week 3

Week 3! Week 3! And it’s Tuesday, so that means Kirsten of Simply Grove is sharing her styling wisdom with all you lucky readers! Over the past couple weeks I’ve been seeing so many really awesome kid’s rooms all over the net. I chose a few of them, sent them her way, and she responded with some lovely styling tips for each room.

If you missed the first week of tip/suggestions, go check it out, and don’t forget to stop over at Simply Grove to see my latest color palettes!

1 / 2 / 3

Lesson Learned: Research before you leap

I got some comments on my last post that got me thinking about my current “full-time” freelance goals. Last winter, when I decided I was going to start making the transition towards full time freelancing I was hit with on overwhelming feeling of flat out FEAR. The main questions that kept popping up in my head weren’t about how I going was to keep consistent work, but more about the nitty gritty details (process, contracts, taxes, resources, etc). I realized that my heart was already set on making this freelance thing work, but my mind needed a little catching up to do.

I decided that instead of working a gazillion weekends on freelance projects, that I would spent a big chunck of my “free” time to start researching everything I could about the freelance business. I started to ask around to those I knew had already made the leap (which was insanely helpful) and start to work through the fine details. Yes, I’m still taking on freelance jobs that inspire me, but a lot of my time has been turned toward researching how to streamline my design process so that others understand me, create formal contract and process documents that I can send to potential clients, gather online resources that can help me along the way, and of course…keep networking.

I’ve found this system to be working so far. Every day I spend about an hour working on making my dream come true. My hopes that are when I am fully ready to make the full time freelance leap, that both my heart and mind will come together and have a party. We shall see 🙂

“Getting comfortable with discomfort is one of the first steps to not letting fear be a factor in making your decisions. Playing big means stepping beyond your normal and what you usually do. It means putting yourself out there in new and exciting ways. It means spending a LOT of time in the land of discomfort.” – Tiffany Moore (Paper N Stitch Blog)

 

*image

In Their Home // Dabito of Old Brand New (2nd session)



OMG you guys. Dabito of Old Brand New has done it again. I can’t tell you how much I love this man’s blog and interior space. He’s a lover of collected items just like myself and his home is a beautiful display of thrifted/flea market love. I’m completely jealous that he lives in LA and has access to one of the best Flea Markets in the US, The Rosebowl Flea. Several months ago I featured Dabito’s home but he has since moved and all these photos are snapshots of his new home and all the lovely corners. I could go on forever about this, so I’ll stop myself before I become a rambling mess.

Are you visiting this feature for the first time? It’s your lucky day and you can catch up on all previous In Their Home posts HERE!

* All photos in this post were taken by Dabito specifically for this feature. If you chose to pin or use these images, please make sure you “link with love” and link to Dabito’s blog.

South Island New Zealand Captured by Chris Sisarich




I believe I stumbled upon Chris Sisarich’s photographs one day when I was scrolling through pinterest. His portfolio of professional/personal work is pretty extensive. Within his portfolio there are these four images of South Island New Zealand, and yet again…I’m dreaming about seeing the place for myself. Every single image I’ve ever seen of New Zealand is filled with beauty and mystery. Sounds pretty magical to me.

Chris Sisarich’s landscapes

Friday Finds & Favorites // 61

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1. This flickr account has some killer inspiration!

2. Have you seen the work of Oat Creative? This studio is doing some amazing branding work!

3. Rabbit Apparel etsy shop has some really great screen printed tees. I’ve got my eye on a few.

4. I just love the typography work on this tumblr site. So creative and unique.

5. Fine art mixed media art books by Anna Wolf. So great!

6. The portfolio of Brion Nuda Rosch is really stunning. So cohesive.

7. Julia Trotti captured the Illawarra Folk Festival to a tee. So beautifully documented…as usual.

8. Design sponge sneak peek: The home of Ariele Alasko and Isaiah Palmer. Such a great curation of items. Basically a mini dreamland.

9. Have you guys seen the website called Jayson Home? The “petite flea” section houses so many great vintage items!

10. Very French Gangers….omg cute.

Happy Weekend!

Recent Work : Blog Design for The Friendly Fox


I’ve been busy over the past few weeks working to bring a face to The Friendly Fox. The lovely Annie contacted me needing to bring new life into her old blog. Annie wanted a very simple design with little homemade details. We chose to use an illustration that a friend of hers drew for her as the main image in the logo, but streamlined the typography. Annie was a peach to work with!  Check out her new blog design now!

(this blog included: blog makeover + branding)

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