Silhouettes. Why do I love them so?

Here are two pieces I did for the Children's Museum of Indianapolis. If you go to their FB page, you'll find these along with some of my other pieces! 

OMG... Fall already??!

Hey hey, for the past month, I've been juggling a graphic design freelance gig and my interior design job. I'm waiting for my graphic design/ illustration career to take over, which FYI will be very soon!! There have been times when I feel like I'm still in school. Long days. Short nights. Multiple projects. Rare free time. The only difference is getting paid for my efforts. Here was a recent assignment that turned out well. The clients were pleased. (Their logo went in the bottom right corner.)

Apple phones...

Let me get real with you. In the past few months since graduating, I've been unable to acquire a full-time job as an illustrator/designer. Several interviews and several dull bites have not led to much. Things are moving as slow as molasses, says my current boss (who has been wonderfully patient in my pursuit of happiness). However one awesome thing has come from the job hunt...  I got a freelance assignment! It was a fun little gig and ended up on a company's Facebook page! I'm famous! Hah, not quite, but it's uplifting to see my work somewhere other than on my personal sites. Also nice to know that my style is applicable to something out there!!

Out of about five concept drawings, this was the one I chose.

Flash-tastic!

I lived in Atlanta for barely a year... but it was probably the funnest year of my life (I know, funnest is not a word)! I met 5 wonderful, beautiful girls that I am lucky to call my friends. They are the sweetest, most positive people I've ever known. Everyone should have friends like them! We all live in different cities now: Portland, Denver, Cincinnati, New York, Atlanta, Beijing. Very different cities! Somehow we manage to take breaks from our busy schedules to keep in touch. For my next email update, I made this silly, little flash animation for them. Just because. Of course I already see things I want to change about it... but that's no surprise.. is it? 

This is us!

Infographic Resume

I took a brief hiatus from the job search after graduation, but now I'm back. I decided to revamp my boring resume and create an infographic. Apparently it's becoming a trend. After doing some research, I came to the conclusion that maybe it's just a trend in Europe (?). There are sites that actually make them for people... but they don't even look that great (in my opinion). I'm sure I'll change this a bazillion times. So here's round one...

Wrapping up!

My concept illustration class finished today (... you know, my Drake's Cove class).  Yay!  I came away with some good pieces, including this little guy. I decided to take a different approach with Photoshop this time. I blocked out the prime shapes then added texture to them with different brushes. I can't tell if I really like the technique or really like the composition. I think the color could use some work and the treehouse could move away from Sadie's bum, but overall I'm pleased with the outcome. And I'll probably work with this style much more.

Making GIFs

A few weeks ago I volunteered to do my employer's website. After doing my own website, I had the itch to do another. That and I can't begin to describe how awful their previous one was. It was a Flash nightmare... a constant scrolling gallery... rollovers and drop downs that never disappeared... it was bad.  

Now I'm not here to brag about how much better the site looks (though it's a vast improvement!).  I'm here to post this GIF. Initially it was supposed to be like the Brady Bunch where everyone stayed in the same spot and their heads moved. Being that there were 11 of us who needed to be incorporated, we decided it would be best if people just moved around.  It turned into a huge undertaking. There are about 30 initial images which were edited and arranged in this beast.

This was the first take, where everyone stayed in the same spot. I think I like this one a little better.  It just needed to be slowed down.

Cuppy Cake

I found this bad boy hiding in my closet!  I painted him this summer.  I had a slight (-ly huge) obsession with cupcakes for a couple years.  I have about 4 or 5 cupcake pieces in repertoire.  But this piece is going be my inspiration for this weekend.  I'm dusting off my watercolors and adding some life to my Drake's Cove concepts. 

Last school year I took beginner & intermediate watercolor with Arthur Wang (the funniest man you'll ever meet!).  As it turned out... I was pretty decent at it.  I was even nominated for a scholarship (toot toot).  Hah, I knew I didn't stand a chance against the Fine Arts Majors, but it was nice to be considered (it was like the Oscars... everyone knew Meryl Streep was going to win Best Actress this year; the other ladies didn't stand a chance!)

A journal/planner that I designed.

  

Front & Back Cover 

I designed this as a final project last spring.  The ironic part was that I completely forgot about this until I started putting portfolios together and stumbled across it.  I was shocked.  You see, last spring was a blur.  I had two jobs, 8 classes, was a bridesmaid in 3 weddings and was lucky if I got 4 hours of sleep a night.  I was traveling every other weekend.  There was never a moment of rest.  I spent so much money on lattes...

 

Inside Cover

 

To Do Page 

This class was Styles & Concepts.  And it seemed like the only thing that got embedded into our heads was to take reference photos, use tracing paper and try to be a bad ass like our teacher, C. F. Payne.  The first semester I was using a lot of acrylics though I prefer digital.  By the time this project came around (it was a free for all), I said no more trace paper and no more references!  I do what I want!  I created these in Illustrator.

 

Monthly Page 

 Daily Notes Page

Coming up with the idea was a no brainer.  The only thing on my mind those days were dates... And how much I suck at using a planner.  As hard as I try, my brain and planners just don't work well together.  So I wanted to design something that I could use.  I can't remember why I chose the paper airplane/ banner motif (I think it might have had to do something with MIA), but I think it turned out well.  Maybe I'll make a couple more journal pages, print the book and sell it on Etsy one of these days!

 

Journal Entry Page

 

Journal Entry Page

Will Draw For Food

I made this for a promotional postcard because I need something to hand out at the career fair in a couple weeks. Who knows if I'll keep it. My mind is forever changing. I might try to make it a vignette.  Either way, I'll post the final card design when I complete it. Hoppy Easter!