Corkcicle
I love Christmas shopping – I think that finding the perfect gift is an expression of love to the people in your life. It is a little bit of time that is spent thinking about what someone else might want, rather than what you want for yourself. That said, I do sometimes stumble across really awesome gifts that I would like for myself. One of these is the Corksicle from Uncommon Goods. Who would have thought you could plug up a bottle of wine with an icicle? I just love it. See picture below, courtesy of Uncommon Goods.
Craig Cutler
Anyone who went through Visual Communications at the University of Delaware has heard of Craig Cutler. He is an incredibly talented photographer who has done work with such mega companies as IBM, Samsung, and HP. I was lucky enough to sit in and hear him talk during one of our many New York trips. His work is innovative and his use of light is outstanding. He seems to always be pushing the envelope, trying new things, and keeping his work fresh. To learn about him, please visit his website: Craig Cutler
Delivering Happiness
Not sure if I blogged about this before but if I did, it is worth repeating. A while back I read the book, “Delivering Happiness,” which is the story of the creation of Zappos.com – and later the acquisition of this company by Amazon. I thought the story itself was incredibly inspiring. Tony Hseih was a lifelong entrepreneur, from the time he was a child trying to create a worm farm. Written in a conversational manner, the story of Zappos in uplifting – though it appeared doomed to fail, Tony believed in his business and in his people; and the message about company culture and customer service is outstanding. How many businesses do you know of where they run marathons together, dress up in costumes, and give elaborate and silly tours to their customers? They employ extraordinary techniques including offering new hires money to quit after training if they feel the job is not right for them. It reinforces a message I learned long ago – be good to your people and your people will be good to you. If you haven’t read it, it is worth picking up – an easy read compared to so many entrepreneurial books I have had experience with.
You can find it on Amazon.com
And you can find more about the project at DeliveringHappiness.com
As a former (and probably current) Buffy fan, when this Creative Review article came up on Twitter today, I couldn’t resist taking a look. Sound advice presented in a memorable way…with Buffy-isms. What’s not to love? From Always Be Prepared to Never Lose Your Sense of Humor, we can learn a lot from the Buffy-verse. Not to mention the show is a classic. So go check out “The Buffy the Vampire Slayer Guide to Freelancing.”
(Photo from Daemon’s TV)
Buffy Cast
Wonder Woman
This post came up on twitter today and I just had to share. I think the message rings so true. I run my own freelance business part time and I have found so much inspiration and help by collaborating with other entrepreneurs in the area, especially women entrepreneurs. If you are good to people, it will come back to you – that is just the way of things. Women wear a lot of hats now – we should celebrate the diverse successes and how far things have come. So without further ado, here is City Girls World (Wonder Woman for President). I hope you are as inspired as I was when reading it.
QR Code Business Card Integration
I have recently started seeing QR Codes popping up everywhere, and have even been challenged in integrating them into design work lately. My fiance is in Information Systems, and we began talking about how to integrate them into business cards. I would love to try this for my next set. It is a challenge to do it and do it well. Check out these card designs from dzineblog. I’m inspired.
Hot Wheels Goes Viral
I love to check out viral advertising – I think it is a very intelligent and challenging form of design, as to be successful, you really must use the placement to make the ad work. This ad is an inspiring one by Hot Wheels, done in Bogota, Columbia. Think we’ll see it coming to the New York/New Jersey area any time soon?
Thanks to @mbgeek for posting this on Twitter and The Auto Blog for the photo.
Lomographic Fisheye Camera
I recently found a Lomographic Fisheye on sale at Urban Outfitters – it is really a toy camera…plastic frame, plastic lens… Fun to play with though. It has an interesting look – it records 170 degrees and has a round frame like you are looking through a telescope. Using 35mm reminds me of the excitement of not knowing what you are going to get. Thought I’d share some of my first attempts here.
Letterpress Wallpaper
I think I want this for my house… Letterpress Wallpaper, created by Wall & Deco and featured on The Style Files. It even looks 3-dimensional! Picture courtesy of The Style Files…
Nothing Says Happy Valentine’s Day Like…Fruit?
In honor of Valentine’s Day, I wanted to share this fun design from Twig & Thistle. I love when people use the common design elements we see every day (like the stickers on fruit) and turn them into something new and innovative. In this case, it would be a valentine. See image below.
And to download them to use for yourself, please visit Twig & Thistle
