Random

Feeling kind of restless today....too many ideas and not enough focus to pick a direction and to get started on them. Small steps first...so I will update my neglected blog and post a few logos that I concepted a while back for another pastry chef. Don't know why it didn't quite pan out, I felt my ideas were strong and on target with what I distilled from the clients' needs and wishes. Guess it all came down to lack of response on their part. Job hunting is a lot like dating in my book.

You set up a date to meet a potential client...you hit it off. They introduce you to their other half...and you all click. There's an immediate feeling of ease and familiarity with each other as you talk about the project and start to brainstorm ideas together. Time slips away and the meeting goes long because everyone got lost in the witty banter. You leave feeling like you just met your creative soulmate. They share your vision, get your ideas and are excited to move to the next level. As you drive home you ask yourself "Are we going steady now?"

You dream about them all night. In the morning, you jump out of bed and are eager to work without the usual gallon of caffeine. Creative juices are flowing full force and identities o'plenty pour out from your brain to your Wacom tablet. One idea, two idea, three idea, four!! You're on fire and excited to share your work. "It's never been like THIS before!". You're confident they're going to love the ideas as much as you do as you hit the Send button. Then...you wait.

And you wait.
And wait...
A day goes by. Nothing. Huh? "They were SO responsive when we first talked. Maybe I sent it to the wrong address."
You double check, everything is correct.
Another day goes by...nothing.
You send a follow up email. Nothing.

One final and last ditch effort to connect on your part "Hey, it's been a while...just checking in to see if you got the logos. I was starting to worry that something is wrong with my email or the file was too big to get through." (You use error on your end to 'excuse' your barrage of messages.)

"Sorry Hon, just SUPER busy."
Hmmmmm....aren't we all super busy? Isn't this the technology age when it takes 2 seconds to respond to a text or email...and say 'Got it, thx we'll get back to you!'. Aren't you the same person who had a landline, iPhone, laptop AND iPad all fired up and responding to all calls/messages while we were meeting? Wait?! HON? You're calling me Hon? Oh. Wow...whoa...did I just get taken? I feel led on.

As in dating....you can only hear 'nothing' for so long before you move on. "Will they call me back?", "Do they like me & my work?", "Do I call/email AGAIN?" "What should I do?". You feel like the Carrie Bradshaw of freelance. Just tell me you're not interested, you found someone else, I'm not right designer for you, you're playing the field...whatever, I'm a seasoned professional—I can take it. Don't expect me to chase you forever though, three unreturned emails is my limit. A gal's gotta have her standards, lol.

Months go by and you never did hear back from them. You're cleaning out your drive and come across your files. You think back to this brief affair, admire the work you did and think (Cole Porter playing in the background of your mind) "It was just one of those things."

Wrasslin' with a Die Cutter

So I have been wanting a die cutter for some time. I've done a number of custom invitations and I tend to do quite a bit of hand-cutting. I kind of enjoy doing it and consider myself quite the master of the Xacto, until I get to the 20-something invite when my hand is cramping and the cuts start getting bad. It never works out that I get paid for the time it takes either, so I figured a die-cutter would speed up my production time as well.

As Mac user, my options are limited, so I went with the one that *claims* to be compatible with a simple plug in. Simple? Right....I won't' get into all of that. Let me just say, when it works, it works great. :)

Anyway, my mom had asked me to design some cards for my aunt. An avid knitter, my Aunt Maryann goes to a variety of craft shows and sells her creations. Mom thought it would be nice for her to have something to hand out. The second my mom asked, this idea popped into my head.

Good excuse to buy myself a die cutter, right?

I printed these out with my inkjet on some nice white card stock. Ganged them 8 up on a letter size sheet, then ran them through the die cutter. 5 minutes later....a perfect stack of custom cut cards!

Helpin' the Kit-tehs!

Friends of mine are huge, I mean HUGE, animal activists. They never fail to foster a stray, find forever homes for a litter of kittens, help a runaway find it's owner, or provide instruction and assistance to someone who needs it when it comes to the care and health of their pet. I give them MAJOR kudos for getting in there and doing what I myself wouldn't be able to do. (I'm too scared of getting bitten to help a stray on the street, and too big-hearted and weak-willed to volunteer at a shelter. One, I couldn't stand to see all those poor animals and two there'd be no way I could walk out without a new pet every day.) So when they came to me for some design assistance, how could I say no? This is the perfect way for me to help a great cause without ending up with a basket of kittens. This 8.5x11 tri-fold is chocked to the gills with info, so my design is relatively minimalist and clean. The kitty logo is inspired from some vintage artwork I found at a flea market years and years ago.

Project Kitty Connect is a non-profit organization that seeks to reduce stray and feral cat overpopulation through the method of Trap-Neuter-Return, as opposed to the dire trap and kill. They are trying to reduce the stray cat population in the most humane way possible—adopting out tamer animals to new homes and letting ones too wild to be pets live out their lives in the habitats that are familiar to them. There are a lot benefits to this method and if you or someone you know has the issue of excessive amounts of strays in their neighborhood, then I encourage you to give them a call or look for them online.