My Home Office

I thought I'd share a peek into my office. I use the term "office" very loosely. Rob and I live in a very small rented cottage. This means that my "office" has been relegated to a 48" x 24" section of our living room. Despite the limited space, I did get a window for my office. The view isn't fabulous {I see directly into our neighbor's trashy yard}, but the light is fabulous.

Here is a photo of my desk. If you click on the photo, you can view it in Flickr. In Flickr, you can see some of the notes I've added.

I am a Mac addict. I've had a Mac for the last 14 years. {gasp! That makes me sound really old.} I do the majority of design work on the iMac. The Macbook is more for when I or Rob goes out of town. After my last couple of trips, I've started to feel naked without a computer. Neither of these computers are what one would call Design Supercomputers. The iMac is a refurbished model that I bought directly from Apple. The Macbook I bought used from another designer. Both computers are running Adobe Creative Suite 2. I do the majority of my work of my work in Illustrator and InDesign. Yes, I am aware that there is an Adobe Creative Suite 4. CS2 works well for my purposes. If the Adobe fairy would like to gift me a copy of CS4, I would happily accept.

Here is a full view of my "office". Again, if you click on the photo, you can view it in Flickr. In Flickr, you can see some of the notes I've added.

We couldn't find a desk that would fit in the space. So, Rob built one for me. I love that all of my equipment is easily accessible. We plan to paint the black shelf to silver to match the legs of the desk. I love my inkjet printer and my Craft Robo cutter. My color laser printer? I would love to upgrade it. For now, I have a plain barstool to sit on. I'm in the market for a new drafting chair. There it is.... my office in a nutshell... Or should I say shoebox?

Tips, Tricks, and other Useful Tidbits of Information

This blog is primarily for showcasing my design projects. Because it takes several weeks for these project to come to fruition, I've decided to share information regarding the creation of stationery to fill the gaps. Topics that I will cover will range from different printing techniques, types of paper, and tools that I find helpful. I am by no means claiming to be an expert on any of these topics. In my explanations, I will explain topics based on my professional experience and offer links to other sources of information. I hope that this will help my clients and others have a better understanding of what goes into the creation of stationery.

Holiday Cards: Anne & Rob

Every year, I design our Holiday cards. And every year I want to kick myself. Don't get me wrong. I love making them. It's just that sometimes the process takes a wee bit longer than I plan. I'm just glad I was able to mail these out before New Year's. From the responses that I've received from my recipients, it was well-worth all the late nights.

I was inspired by these images:

© 2008 Hazelnut Photography


© 2008 Shine Pet Photos

Here are the finished product.

Front of Envelope


Back of Envelope


Holiday Card


Card as it is pulled from it's holder


Interior of Card and back of Card holder

Save the Dates: Nina & Jared

Nina had contacted me back in May to do her invitations after seeing the invitations I did for Wendy. Originally, I was only going to design her invitations only. She had contemplated DIYing her Save the Dates. Then, she had contacted another designer to do them for her. Sadly (for Nina), that designer stopped returning her emails. So, she asked me to step in. I was more than happy to jump in. She explained that she wanted to introduce her color palette with her Save the Dates. She also wanted it to be unique, but didn't want anything too over-the-top.

Here's some images she sent me for inspiration.

Snippet & Ink board #72 - Romantic Red

Snippet & Ink board #147 - Valentine

This is what I came up with.

A flat-card and custom envelope liner.

I think she was pleased with the finished product and can't wait to work on her invitations.

Business Cards: Robert

The man responsible for these culinary delights asked me about some design work.

From Wendy's Bridal Shower

From Wendy's Bridal Shower

Actually, the man responsible for the tasty treats is my husband Rob. This is definitely a case of "the cobbler's children have no shoes". He has been whining asking me to design his business cards for months. I kept shying him off because I was busy. To his credit, he knows how to motivate me. He threatened to have another graphic designer design and print his cards. I was horrified and immediately went to work.

The design process went fairly quickly. He threatened not to cook for me again until he got his cards. {Empty threats, BTW}. Rob ever the minimalist didn't want anything too fancy or too busy. I used his favorite Santoku knife as a point of inspiration. He also wanted cards that would easily fit in the pocket of his chef's coat.

Here's what I created.

Rob, now that I've done this, you'll have to wait another couple of months for any more design work;)

Birth Announcements: Tai & Ivy

As I promised on my personal blog, here is the reason for my photo shoot with little Joshua. As part of my shower gift, I offered to design Joshua's Baby Announcements. I haven't designed baby announcements in a REALLY long time and I love to do them. Essentially, there are no "rules" to baby announcements. No etiquette on what should be said or how. They are simply happy pieces of correspondence. Mom and Dad want to share their news. This gives me an opportunity to have fun.

I don't have a photo of my inspiration for this design. I based it on Joshua's nursery. Ivy had painstakingly applied an animal mural on his nursery wall. I took the animal theme from there and ran with it. Because Ivy is a clever gal, she dressed Joshua in a cute baby animals onesie. Voila! Everything coordinated beautifully. I love it when a plan comes together.

Here is the finished piece.

Exterior of the Card

A Peek at the Interior of the Card

The Inside of the Card
{Tai and Ivy have a sense of humor. They chose the photo of Joshua winking at me.}

Congratulations Tai and Ivy! I can already tell that Joshua is going to be quite a character.

Photobooth Backdrop: Carmela & George

I love to give wedding gifts that aren't on the registry. I have nothing against wedding registries. They are really great guidelines. However, when I find that there is some other gift the couple would enjoy more, I decide to go for that. I knew Carmela really wanted a photobooth at their wedding. The traditional booth that takes 4 photos was out of the question. In the last year or so, alternative booths have been gaining popularity. Many photographers have been setting up cameras on tripods with backdrops. It's a similar concept to the traditional booth. This has provided many couples wonderful wedding mementos.

I bartered services with my friend Pamela of Pamela Masters Photography. She graciously agreed. Not one to simply rest with that, I decided to do a custom backdrop that featured the tree motif Carmela was so enamored with. I put the design on white twill fabric. To ensure it was ready for use, I ironed and starched it.

Here's some photos with the backdrop.

From the looks of things, the booth was a big hit.

Best part, Carmela keeps the backdrop and is going to make pillows with it. The backdrop will live on.

Wedding Paper Accessories: Carmela & George

Carmela and I collaborated on many of the things I created for her. She was definitely a bride with her own unique vision and tastes there are not that different from my own. During her planning process, we have become friends. I had the pleasure of attending her wedding. As with Janice and J.D., it was an awesome experience to see some of my work in their settings alongside the many projects which Carmela had worked so hard to complete.

Here are two of the projects I designed.

Programs

Vellum Cover


Title Page


Bridal Party page


Thank You Page and Back Cover

Placecard and Menu card

Placecard


Menu inside of place card


Placecard in the Tablescape


Placecard in Place Setting

Save the Dates: Kanishka and Brian

I know, I know. I have been a horrific blogger when it comes to updating this design blog. Thankfully, it's because I've been so busy with design projects that I haven't gotten around to photographing my finished pieces. So, I'm going to do a massive game of catch-up.

When Kanishka and I started discussing her Save the Dates, she said she wanted something modern, yet romantic. She also wanted to introduce her wedding color palette. Other than that, she told me to work my magic.

To give me a better idea of her palette, she sent me this inspiration board from Snippet and Ink.

She also had this inspiration board which she created.
These photos of Leanne Marshall's runway dresses from Project Runway (P.S. Leanne was my fave from this season.)

In addition, they has some amazing engagement pictures taken by Pix of Life.


Here's what I came up with:

Custom Wrap-Around Label


Save the Date with Vellum Overlay

Interior of the Card

I hope they like it. I can't wait to design their wedding invitations. This color palette will be fun to work with.