April 2011
1 post
3 tags
What are you excited about today?
March 2011
1 post
7 tags
How do I get blogged?
I got an email from a friend today who’s a budding illustrator out of Chicago. The exchange turned out to be interesting. I think it may be helpful for a lot of creatives trying to make it in the world of design. Specifically, how do you get your work blogged?
From my friend: This may seem like a bazaar question, but I’m curious how you have gone about getting featured on design...
February 2011
1 post
4 tags
Pro Tip: Never give up on an idea… Ever.
January 2011
3 posts
4 tags
Pro Tip: Make something people will seek out.
2 tags
Pro Tip: Focus on great work. Not a great website to show your shitty work.
3 tags
Pro Tip: Make things! Make lots of things. Nothing can be improved until something is created.
December 2010
7 posts
14 tags
Joy and Revolution
This month I had the privilege of doing a design workshop at an Ambrose workshop in Holland, MI. Ambrose is an after school program for High School students. Its’ goal is to raise the bar for the Arts in West Michigan. The topic of the day was Process. This very idea of process is vast and overwhelming so Adam and I decided we would focus on just one element of process; brainstorming. We...
6 tags
“Pro-Tip: Creativity does not mean originality.”
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“Pro-Tip: Don’t wait for something you love. Make something you love.”
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“Pro-Tip: You have to sacrifice. There’s no other way…”
– Paul Rand
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“Pro-Tip: No one creates in a vacuum.”
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How do you create?
I have been noticing myself becoming more and more interested in creative spaces… Not the cool office spaces often featured on design blogs. I’m talking about physical and mental spaces where people do work, write briefs, make discoveries, tune out noises. Places that people feed off of. Instead of working in one location with one person, object, technique I have observed more people...
13 tags
Make it yourself
I’ve had an aversion to built-in fonts lately. If you can’t tell by looking at justlucky’s portfolio you’ll see a lot of newer custom typography work. I have been finding ways to insert custom typography wherever possible. You could say I am obsessed. It started with me just copying work that I liked in my personal time. I would sketch in my Moleskins for hours just to get...
7 tags
Thank You
We hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving. We definitely ate too much and spent a lot of time driving. But the down time was welcome and needed.
In the spirit of Thanksgiving and the upcoming holidays I wanted to personally say thank you on behalf of justlucky to everyone we have had the priviledge of working with. Justlucky is a small independent studio so all of our cashflow happens via...
November 2010
7 posts
11 tags
You don't need permission
We all grow up with structures that provide us security. The illusion of control and predictability. Mass production and communication facilitate these ideals. Large organizations are experts at projecting this feeling of security. All of the titles, meetings and handshakes are perceived as value.
The funny thing is that these procedures don’t actually assure anything. Some of the most creative...
9 tags
14 tags
Designing Experiences
I hear so many complaints from businesses when they work with designers that they don’t return phone calls or emails promptly. Many times the client feels as if the designer is haphazard and disorganized. This lack of communication causes unnecessary frustration and distrust during a project.
Creatives believe in designing great products. But what about designing great experiences? Once we...
8 tags
This years goals!
Design a print publication.
Acquire an official office location.
Facilitate one design event in Grand Rapids.
Design/Produce 3 new prints.
Take one client from nothing to an established brand.
Design one new font.
A few of my goals from today… Ready to make them happen.
7 tags
Just wait.
We all want to do everything. Creatively I think that is, by definition, an inherent trait. I myself find myself constantly shifting my focus from one interest to another but in the end. You can’t be a great web designer, programmer, packaging engineer, printmaker, etc. In the process loose something. Maybe its just passion for any one thing? Maybe its that focused skill of a professional?
...
13 tags
Quit.
This past weekend some friends and I saw one of our favorite restaurants close. It was well loved but it just wasn’t making it. The owners were breaking even and more importantly they weren’t doing what they loved. They loved to cook. They were in a large space with a number of employees and also running the menu at another high end restaurant. They had too much to do and suddenly they...
August 2010
1 post
Ben Pieratt's Blog: In Praise of Quitting Your Job →
(Alternate title: The New Work Ethic)
I wrote this email to a friend a few weeks ago, and then the topic came up again last night with an old buddy who was frustrated with his work. He seemed to appreciate what I had to say, so I figured it might be worth sharing:
- - -
Thinking about your…
June 2010
1 post
7 tags
Great Project or Great Process?
I was reading a statistic recently that stated that the freelance community of graphic designers would more than double in 2010. This means a lot more talent, wit, management, etc. Will be entering the arena and competing for the same work.
It will also mean that designers will be focused on creating compelling work. Now don’t get me wrong. I love shiny portfolio’s with lots of glossy...
May 2010
3 posts
9 tags
“As a company evolves, as this one has - so does visual identity. But a brand is...”
– Alexander Brebner, designer, writer & extraordinary creative entity
15 tags
Hard work is overrated!
I stumbled on this article this morning. Discussing the benefits of “goofing off” as opposed to working harder than everyone else.
The flypaper of an unfocused mind may trap new ideas and unexpected associations more effectively than methodical reasoning. That may create the mental framework for new ideas. “You can see regions of these networks becoming active just prior to...
13 tags
Appreciation Feedback
I just finished the book Making Ideas Happen by Scott Belsky. I would highly recommend it to any creative or entreprenuer out there.
One of the thoughts that stuck out to me though we a brief section on Appreciation Feedback. Sounds a bit too “nice” for my taste to be honest but it makes a lot of sense. Here is an excerpt from the book:
People need to relax to be able to discover....
April 2010
9 posts
14 tags
Satisficers & Maximizers
Since I have been on a kick about options, simplicity and the “underdo” concept in general I thought I would talk about Maximizers…
Schwartz relates the ideas of psychologist Herbert Simon from the 1950s to the psychological stress which faces most consumers today. He notes some important distinctions between, what Simon termed,maximizers and satisficers. A maximizer is like...
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Give 'Em What They Want
Clients hire designers to visualize something they cannot. Otherwise they wouldn’t need the designer. They would a mouse and keyboard.
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5 Minutes
A story from Signal Vs Noise:
Legend has it that Pablo Picasso was sketching in the park when a bold woman approached him. “It’s you — Picasso, the great artist! Oh, you must sketch my portrait! I insist.” So Picasso agreed to sketch her. After studying her for a moment, he used a single pencil stroke to create her portrait. He handed the women his work of art. “It’s perfect!” she gushed. “You...
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The Paradox of Choice
The need for options comes up again and again with clients. Many times it’s to “insure” that they get the best possible design for their brand, website, product, etc. Almost universally when 2 or more options are presented the client immediately begin pulling aspects of each design and start pushing them together… Or worse yet, they come with a new idea of what everything...
6 tags
(F)art
there are badly stated problems in basic design, stressing pure aesthetics, free expression, without any restraints or practical goals. Such a problem may be posed in this fashion: arrange a group of geometric shapes in any manner you see fit, using any number of colors, to make a pleasing pattern. The results of such vagaries are sometimes pretty, but mostly meaningless or monotonous. The student...
8 tags
10(ish) Reasons to Design in Black & White
1. It is accurracte accross a variety of mediums
2. It’s easily scaleable.
3. Looks great after being Xeroxed
4. Friendly for those of us who are colorblind
5. Anyone can print a color-correct copy.
6. You only need one Pen.
7. It works inversely.
8. It doesn’t get any more clear or consistent
9. Works with every other color scheme.
10. RGB? CMYK? GREYSCALE!!
10 tags
Don't Delay on Good Ideas
If you’ve ever had those Hours, Days, Weeks of inspiration you’ll know that its probably harder not to start working on great ideas than to just sit on them.
Unfortunately. Most people do.
They just sit on great ideas.
Most of us are just waiting until all the pieces fall into place while that only thing we need to do is take the first step to make something happen.
RT @NationalDebt: $12,825,687,391,205.70 (-) #nationaldebt
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The Illusion of "Right"
We’ve all been there before… We sit down with a new client and they start discussing their project. You discuss ideas and concepts you are excited about and then they hit you with, “Well we really want to get this right so make sure you take lots of time on this.”
Initially this phrase feels reasonable. Who wouldn’t want the “ideal” design or product...
January 2010
3 posts
10 tags
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A Bloggable Idea
I’m tired of seeing client dictated material. Commercial Art or Graphic Design is a mixture of personality and mass communication. You are being hired to express someone elses message through branding, advertising, design, etc. A lot of us are hired through our networks but also because the client liked our style, personality, etc. In spite of this most of us end up bending to the client. If...
13 tags
Less is Better, Period.
“Less is More” implies that more is better. It’s not. Less is less. Less is just right. Less is better.
Signal vs Noise
Yes this is borrowed but is no less true for everyone. Lately the idea of less has been on my mind as justlucky has made it to another year. The amount of time we spend doing “extra” work instead of doing something, one thing, really well. How many clients bring a...