Thursday, November 29, 2012

Have Laptop Will Travel

Finally invested in a laptop. A refurbished Macbook Pro that came out June 2012, has 4 GB, 500 SATA.

Sunday, July 15, 2012


 For the last two years, I've revised the 31st LD Democrats brochure. This is what they gave me.


Original inside and back flap.
Original back and front side.

In 2011 I took the original, added the new membership form and used one of their logos. I tweaked the logo a little bit by adding some stars. The brochure became a trifold which allowed more room for the membership form on the inside but not as much room for the map on the back.
 

For 2012 I added the new 31st district map and redesigned and reorganized the information on the brochure. The membership form had no changes so I'm only showing the back and two sides.

This version looks more interesting, I think, but still could be improved. The layout was done in InDesign.

Thursday, July 5, 2012

Finally entered a Deviant Art contest. Creating a T-shirt design inspired by music with a maximum of 5 colors was the challenge. Click on the link to see my design.
http://lindagr.deviantart.com/#/d565aq7
Volunteering for a local chamber of commerce and not as a graphic designer. It gets me out of the house and helping people who stop in town. I get to tell people where to go :) I'm learning a lot about what's available in the local area which makes me feel like getting out more. I do enjoy helping people find places to eat, stay, and have fun.

I've been talking to them about adding their logo to the front window.

Saturday, May 26, 2012

50 Ways to Motivate YourSelf

Someone shared this article with me about motivating yourself and, although it focuses on job searches, I think the tips can also apply to freelancers. 
http://blog.timesunion.com/careers/50-ways-to-stay-motivated/1581/?goback=%2Egmr_4351066%2Egde_4351066_member_118629778%2Egde_4351066_member_118013083

Monday, April 23, 2012

The Evolution of a Logo

One of the ways I keep busy is by volunteering. This helps in giving me incentive and adds to my portfolio. Currently, I'm volunteering graphic design services to the Tacoma Events Commission (TEC). They have several events happening during the summer and they asked me to create a logo, letterhead, flyers and promotional materials. The logo was created first because it will be used on all materials. At first they wanted "The Events Commission", a patriotic color scheme, and something that represented the Pacific Northwest because their events are held in this region not just in Tacoma. I created three options. The first has a celebratory feel; the second is a nod to Mt. Rainier and our mountainous region; the third is a nod to the aerospace industry.

The board voted for the mountain but wanted to change "The Events Commission" to "Tacoma Events Commission".








They wanted to emphasize "Events" and replace the sky with 5 stars. They also wanted the logo to be less like a box.

This is the final version.



Wednesday, January 11, 2012

Inspiration

On my website I mentioned that I get inspiration from the world around me. Indeed, this is true. Something as mundane as walking my dog brought a cartoon to mind. It was a sunny day, birds were flying overhead and my dog was watching them with his whole body. Leaping in long arcs, nose to the sky, he made walking on the leash a challenging experience.

I thought "What if dogs could fly...?", hence the creation of this cartoon.