design=love

klean kanteen: pretty in pink

I've wanted a Klean Kanteen for a long time, but never got around to ordering one. But today when I visited their site and saw the above pink ones... I finally snatched one up. Klean Kanteens were developed out of concern for the negative health and environmental impacts associated with the pervasiveness of plastic in our society and food chain. 

The plastic bottles you buy at the store or carry your water in may contain Bisphenol A (BPA). BPA exposure has been linked to a wide array of illness and disease, including breast cancer, heart disease, obesity, diabetes, liver abnormalities, and prostate cancer. To reduce your exposure to BPA you should go purchase your own Klean Kanteen, avoid plastic containers with the code 7 on the bottom, not microwave food in plastic containers, not put plastic containers in the dishwasher. If you must use plastics make sure they are polyethylene or polypropylene which have the recycling code #1, #2 (HDPE), #4 (LDPE), and #5 (PP). For more information about BPA, check out this q&a.

The other great thing about the above bottles is that Klean Kanteen is donating $4 of every sale of all sizes of pink classic bottles to the Breast Cancer Fund in support of their work to eliminate environmental and other preventable causes of breast cancer. 

twenty eight and forward...

image by aj marcinek / click to enlarge

Yesterday on June 28th I turned 28. Of course I always think my birthday is important but this year I was especially excited because 28 has always been a special number... hence being born on the 28th. 27 was a pretty sweet year... I earned my Masters in Graphic Design and got a job teaching at Shepherd. I got a cute little apartment in the adorable town of Frederick, Maryland and even found a sweet and amazing guy to hang with, AJ. 

Turning 28 has got me thinking about where I was 5 years ago when I graduated from college and started my professional career. I bought my first domain twentyfree.com and had this to say about it...

"on June 28th [2004], I turn 23. Yes, 23. That's freaking old in my opinion. Number wise anyway, cuz honestly I still feel 18 and still look 16. When I was 12 and thought of the age of 23, I thought I'd be married with a kid, a house, and a dog. Boy was I totally wrong huh? But my life is perfect and I'm right on track, so no worries. At 23, I'm still a kid. So I first wanted to name it something like twentythreeforward, meaning this is me at twenty three and on. Then I just came up with twentyfree. Sounds funny when you say it out loud, looks cool typographically (double letters are always rad), and I knew if I just didn't choose something soon, I never would. So, that's that, twentyfree."

Now 5 years later I'm thinking 28 sounds pretty freaking old, but doesn't quite feel that way. There is still so much I want to accomplish and equally as much time to do so! At 23 I had 3 goals in life. One was to design snowboard graphics... ummm check. I also wanted to eventually go back to school so I could teach graphic design... yeah check. My last goal, and one I'd still hold on to is to one day have my own all girl skate/snow shop. I don't know if that will happen... but statistically... it will. Maybe once I pay off all my grad school loans. ;)

So that leads me to the thought of now that I'm 28... what should my goals be... professionally of course. It's not an answer that comes as easily as it did 5 years ago. I think I just have too many to be so specific. But the most important thing is that I keep designing from my heart. I was never one to design something to win awards or to have people know my name... I always designed because it was my passion. Being in the competitive environment of grad school I started to lose a little bit of that. I started doubting my talents and questioning my ability. But now that I'm a sophisticated and mature 28 year old woman (haha), there will be no more of that crap. This is also something I hope to pass on to others. 

After a few years of twentyfree, I changed my domain to design equals love. It's not just a group of words I thought looked cool typographically but my motto as a designer. Whether you're working with clients, designing your own line of greeting cards, or at a huge corporate design firm — remember why you started designing. Me? I got in it to inspire others. At first it was to inspire girls of all ages to pick up a snowboard and ride. It was also to get my students excited to find their own passion. I also got into it for a truly selfish reason... because it makes me happy. So my goal for the next 5 years (and more) is to design passionately and from my heart. It's why I started and what keeps me going. 

I don't know where I'll be 5 years from now... but I promise to keep my goals close to my heart... as long as you do too!

deliciously cute by bukubuku

Following a link from Print & Pattern, I discovered the adorable work of Silvia at bukubuku. Her illustration style is so sweet! However, I instantly fell in love with the above amigurumi's (which means "knitted or crocheted doll" in Japanese) she made. So yummy with a cherry on top! You can purchase all of her goodies, here.

design=love... for real

I've had the concept for this poster in my head for weeks now and I finally gave myself the time to get it on paper. I'm so happy about how it came out and [after my week vacay at the beach] am excited to get started on more! I just may sell them on etsy, would you buy some?

fumi watanabe at IKEA

During a recent trip to Ikea, I came across the above print. I was like, "heyyy, that looks like Fumi Watanabe" and it was! I have loved Fumi's work ever since she worked with GNU on the 07/08 B-Nice graphic. The print is huge at 46.5" x 30.75". I really admire the use of layering in her work and of course the wood grain. Check out IKEA for this lovely print — and if you'd like to purchase a Fumi original, check out Velocity Art and Design. 

Dear & Yonder / Beautiful & Inspiring

Be sure to check out the beautiful and inspiring trailer for the new surf movie, Dear & Yonder. It features the surfing of some of my favorite ocean ladies, Kassia Meador, Sofia Mulanovich and more, in amazing places like Indonesia and Australia. Not only will this film make you want to pick up a board and ride some waves but it will inspire you to be more ecologically responsible. The film follows female surfers that are doing their part to encourage sustainable practices. The creators of the movie's hope is "for the depth and beauty of the film to traverse perceived boundaries and for each viewer to take a meaningful piece with them that will percolate positively back into our communities and lineups." The film is touring around the country this summer, check out their schedule to see when they are coming to a beach town near you.

sisterly love and adorable puppies

My talented sister, Sara painted the above doggie portraits of our beloved Frenchie, Mugsy and her adorable (yes one eyed) chihuahua, Uno. I love her use of color and the detail she puts into each animal. She would LOVE to paint your pet too! You can check out her website artequalslove.com for more info.

hello sparkly!

This weekend while window shopping in Rehoboth Beach, DE — I came across this huge sparkly Hello Kitty necklace. The photo above is actually a little smaller than actual size. It was huge. I would have loved to buy it, but I couldn't think of anywhere I'd actually be able to wear it. So if you'd like to invite me to a ball or some kind of fancy party, that'd be great, because I'd love to have an excuse to buy this glamourous kitty. I did splurge and buy a much smaller, but still super sparkly, hello kitty ring [pictured below].

Student Show and Tell: Jamie Smith

For one of the classes I taught this past semester at Shepherd University, I gave a project to re-illustrate a familiar children's book. It was a project I loved in grad school and thought my students would enjoy it too. One of my favorites was designed by the very talented, Jamie Smith. She took the story of Little Red Riding Hood and illustrated in her own style. I love her dark take on the story as well as the way she combined different typefaces. The final piece is beautiful. Here is the cover and a few of my favorite spreads. Make sure you click the images to see more detail.

click to enlarge

delaware DEsign love

If you know me, you know I am extremely passionate about the education I received at The University of Delaware. I received my Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the Visual Communications program with a concentration in Graphic Design. It was an amazing place with awesome people. The whole experience was stressful and crazy but wonderful. I graduated with a portfolio that was my heart and soul. UD/VC was a place that encouraged me to develop my OWN style. 

There have been a bunch of changes since I left UD, but I was so happy to see that the work has stayed unique and fresh. The images below are from some stand out ladies (sorry boys) from the UD/VC class of 2009. To see the portfolio sites of all the graduating creatives, check out the VC 2009 Show site.

KATIE SMITH // ktsmif.com

NANCY BELL // nancybelldesign.com

JULIANNE HAMILTON // juliannehamilton.com

EMILY BRANNON // emilybrannon.com

bracelets to match

Before the wedding I was looking all over for bracelets to match my dress and necklace. I wanted some simple wooden bangles with turquoise accents. Well, whatever ones I found were too expensive or not exactly what I wanted. So I decided it would be cheaper and more fun to make my own. So I headed to JoAnn's to get some sweet beads and was able to make 3 (with more beads to spare) for less than $15. (the price of one plain bangle). Above are the simple little bracelets I made to go with my dress. I really liked the huge wooden beads and the little dangle I made from one of the clasps. The 3rd bracelet didn't go as well, so I gave it to my mom. 

adorable typography

Came across these delightful prints designed by Christina over at Paperfingers. I'm in LOVE with the donut one. I also adore how they look framed. These would look sweet in any children's bedroom, but as Christina says — in your room too! She's super talented and has cute taste, make sure you check out her blog, Christina Likes, to check out what inspires her!

cute wedding weekend

This past weekend I went with the boyfriend to his cousin's wedding in Brooklyn. It was a lot of fun and he was the cutest date. I wish I had more pictures, especially of Bernadette the ring bearer — the groom's boston terrier cutie — but the 3 above will have to do. Oh and if you're wondering where my necklace is from, it's Art School Drop Out, of course!