[fertilepress]

vintage style...straight from the attic

Don't go here until you have more than a few minutes to spend!

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patternizing

Combine this from Pattern8...

with Photoshop and you get this background.

 

Cool!

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june desktop

Courtesy of Smashing Magazine.

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light & shadow & design

Ever wondered how artists and designers master the art of light and shadow...how they seem to know when to use a drop shadow, when to use a cast shadow and when to use highlights? And what about light sources? How do you figure all this out to create pleasing designs?

I first learned about light and shadow in a drawing class I took eons ago. The principles are still the same, though. My favorite online resource, Smashing Magazine, has an informative post on this subject.
Learn and enjoy!

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saving the world, one room at a time

That's the tag line for Apartment Therapy, the website for interior design junkies like me. If you're in need of a little home retail therapy but can't afford to do anything about it in this down economy, then the Apartment Therapy site is for you. You can browse the latest and greatest in contemporary design from the comfort of your home...and not have to spend a dime!

My favorite section, though, is the house tours section. There's one for each of six US cities: New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago, D.C. and Boston. You'll love a peek into how the design savvy are doing up there places these days. 

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Oh, and I forgot to mention there are tons of DIY ideas at Apartment Therapy, too!

my may desktop wallpaper

Get yours at Smashing Magazine. (There are 60 to choose from!)

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two for the price of one

The two are combination desktop wallpapers and monthly calendars. The price is free!

Every month Smashing Magazine offers free desktop wallpapers that incorporate that month's calendar. There are 55 wallpapers in the April collection available now. As I write this, the one above is on my desktop. Who knows...tomorrow I may choose another. Don't you just love design choices?

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a site for artists sites...

I know. That title is a mouthful. But Jaime Beitler's web design site is exactly that. Jaime designs artistic sites for artists ... umm ... sites!

Can you tell I'm way deep in web site design these days?

These are the days of miracle and wonder!

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a moo or two

My Moo mini cards arrived yesterday! It's like receiving candy in the mail. Actually it's better than receiving candy in the mail. They're just yummy.

In my quest to learn all I could about my new obsession, I came upon a blog that's dedicated to the art of making moos. It's called "Make a Moo or Two." Each week they post a challege based on a theme, then participants create mini moos and post them for everyone to see.

I'm posting my first entry today. The theme is playing cards and here are mine.

I've also uploaded larger pics in a photo album.

These were so much fun to make, I'm definitely doing a class on the art of making moos.

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conglomerfont

 

Conglomerfont. Free font from Bittbox. 'Nuff said.

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hoodie freak!

One of the perqs of hanging out in a Borders near an art school is watching the many fashion choices students make. One popular item is the hoodie...something that's a particular favorite of mine. But while my hoodies are all solid, not so for the art student.

Today I saw one that was so cool, I couldn't resist asking the wearer where he'd bought it. And that's how I found CCS, the online skateboarding store.

While the hoodie my student was wearing wasn't what I'd call "age appropriate" for me (think teenage boy), I did find tons of others that I'd be proud to sport any day of the week. This is the one I'm lusting after right now. It's the "Zoo York Doodle." Perfect!

I think an art hoodie is just the fashion addition I need right now. How about you?

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business cards can be cool

Now that I've discovered Moo cards I have a heightened awareness of business cards of all kinds. Just so happens I stumbled across the Card Observer site. Lots of eye candy to behold!

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p.s. - The featured cards are from Reactor.

moo mini cards...they're art!

Okay, I consider myself pretty up to date on trends. So how is it I missed moo cards? I saw my first moo card at CHA. Traci Bautista offered me one of her cards and I said, "WOW! What's that?" Imagine my thrill when I found out I can have up to 100 different moo cards in a single pack? And the "mini-ness" of these cards just tickles me to no end. I love working on tiny canvases.

I feel soooo out of touch! Not for long, though. I'm ordering my own set post haste! The good news is I don't have to design 100 cards. I've already got enough artwork in my archives. For example, here's a project I did back in 2005...just for fun. 

From that single design, I created these four mini card designs:

 

 

I can't wait to get these little masterpieces in my hands! (Oops! I just noticed that the 2nd one is different from the original design. Oh well, must have been an alternate I was trying out. No matter.)

And I'm also eager to teach the techniques I used to create the original designs. If this is something you'd be interested in learning (not about moo cards but about how I created the images), let me know. I'm planning classes right now for the new site.

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believe it or not...this one's about design!

Okay, enough philosophy for the time being.

Here's a fun little nugget from the Before & After site. I've been a subscriber to their magazine for years and always find it not just instructive but enjoyable reading, too. The post's about a design challenge they conducted. The assignment?

“Design the cover of a book that you’d keep near your bed to read and fall asleep. It must not arouse the reader in any way. No thought-provoking titles, no glorious colors, no gripping images, no edgy layouts.”

The haven't announced the winner yet, but, here's a submission that definitely didn't win.

 

A beautiful design, right? Of course it is! But did it meet the assignment's requirements? Apparently not. Find out why here. And while you're there, check out some of the other "losers." The design conflicts that caused this and others to fail the assignment are interesting and enlightening.

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2 too cool design challenges!

Awhile back I used to do regular posts titled "Shrine to Design." I'd scour the web for the most awesome design links. Today's post presents two Shrines to Design.

A couple of weeks ago I traveled to Cleveland to tape two episodes for the Scrapbook Memories TV show. I took several "show and tell" items along, but these two were my favorites.

 

The first is a laptop skin* and the second a custom pair of Keds*. Did I have fun making these? You betcha! The laptop skin came from myTego and the Keds from Zazzle.

Now, as if that info isn't cool enough, here's more! In celebration of Digital Scrapbooking Day, Digital Scrapbooking magazine has announced two more design challenges. Check these out!

First, there's the myTego challenge. Design a laptop skin and you could win a gift certificate to have your design made into a custom skin by myTego. You could also have your design included in their catalog (royalties to be had here). The Zazzle challenge is similar. Design a custom pair of Keds and win that very pair for yourself. No one else will have those shoes!

To get the details and enter these challenges, go to Plugged In, Digital Scrapbooking magazine's official blog. Win or lose, you'll have a ball at both these sites.

Have fun!

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*I used Anna Aspnes' "Sunny Side" kit for my design.